Cannons in the Revolutionary War were used like modern day mortars. In fact some cannons were exactly like mortars. they fired up in the air to their destination and hit with a blow of shards to the ground. To fire a cannon soldiers stuff the cannon ball down the curved vortex like barrel a pin was set in the back of the barrel, this is the fuse used to shoot the ball. All cannons were mainly the same.
By the 18centuary artillarymen were considered an elite group. Soldiers who could do the geometric calculations necesary to place a cannon ball on target must have seemed like magic men. The cannon was used in the revolution by all armies. Nothing had really changed in the cannons design for about two-houndred years.
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