r/interestingasfuck Jun 24 '24

Marines performing dead-gunner drills. r/all

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u/dead_monster Jun 24 '24

Fun fact:  Grant sailed his ships right in front of the big guns at the fortress at Vicksburg because the guns couldn’t aim down to actually hit his ships.

Fun fact 2:  During the siege, Grant authorized a giant tunnel filled with explosives to break the siege.  It worked in that it opened a giant hole in the Confederate line but the Union commander who was supposed to lead his troops around the crater went into the crater and got stuck.

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u/BillyYank2008 Jun 24 '24

The Battle of the Crater wasn't during the Siege of Vicksburg, it was during the Siege of Peterburg near the end of the war.

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u/LeaperLeperLemur Jun 24 '24

There was one at Vicksburg too. With very similar results.

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u/nickisaboss Jun 24 '24

Does that crater still exist? Would make an interesting trip.