What contributed to the high casualty rate in the Civil War?
1 Answer
Combination of poor hygiene and medical support, as well as the ways battles were fought.
Explanation:
There are several factors that led to this grim fact.
One of them was the introduction of Minié ball rounds that achieved much better accuracy and muzzle velocity than older muskets. The round would often shatter bones and rip tissue that would be difficult to treat, so the solution would usually be amputation. Because field hospitals lacked the necessary equipment to preform these tasks, infections that were very common lead to slow and painful death.
Another note that that should be considered is that Civil War battles were much different than any other battles before.
In Europe, two opposing sides usually fired their rifles once and then bayonet charged the enemy, which lead to one side fleeing from the battlefield ( this charging-fleeing scenario could be repeat several times ). Although this tactic did lead to some considerable casualties, they were not as high as those from the Civil War.
During the Civil War, two opposing sides would shoot and hold their ground until one side eventually lost most of its men.
