A SOLDIERS’ STORY:
WHAT IN BLAZIN’ CANNONS IS A MATROSS?
It’s interesting to learn about the military positions that were important during the Revolution. Some jobs such as the infantry have stayed largely the same, except for newer equipment and techniques. Some jobs that are important today didn’t exist at all back then, such as drone pilots. Some jobs that were very important during the Revolution have gone away completely.
Our study of Morris County Revolutionary War soldiers uncovered a number of men whose position in the army was a Matross, an important role that has since disappeared. A Matross was part of an artillery (or cannon) crew with the rank of Private. They were responsible for moving and positioning the cannon on the battlefield. Cannons were transported to the battlefield by horses, sometimes belonging to civilian contractors. The teamsters would drop off the cannon and remove their horses to safety. From this point on during the battle, the cannon was moved by human power, the Matrosses.
The Matrosses must have been a strong bunch. Field guns were usually 3, 6, 9, or 12 pounders, meaning the weight of the cannonballs they fired. The cannons with bigger cannonballs were considerably heavier and harder to move, and therefore required more Matrosses. A 3-pounder cannon might weigh about 450 lb, and a 12-pounder could be close to 1400 lb. Try moving that around uneven terrain of a battlefield while you’re being shot at! A gun crew usually needed 6 Matrosses, and sometimes more, to service a single cannon.
The Matrosses also helped defend the cannon if the enemy approached too close, and were sometimes armed with muskets.
In addition to the Matrosses, a cannon’s gun crew included:
- The Gun Commander was in charge of the gun, issuing commands at each step to aim, load, and fire, and clean. He did not assist in actually loading or firing the piece. Sometimes there would be an Assistant Gunner to help manage the crew.
- The Powder Handler (sometimes called Powder Monkey) was responsible for removing the powder box from the ammunition chest kept a safe distance from the gun, and bring it forward to be loaded into the cannon. He would also help with aiming the piece from the back end.
- Four additional crew were positioned at the left front (LF), right front (RF), left rear (LR), and right rear (RR) of the weapon. Each of these soldiers had very specific responsibilities.
- The Powder Box Handler guarded the ammunition chest containing the supply of shot and powder. He would also keep a bucket of water nearby to keep the sponge wet.
Firing a cannon involved a highly choreographed process of step-by-step orders issued by the Gun Commander:
- “Search Piece” – The LF used a “worm” to extract the spent cartridge from the previous firing. The worm was a large wrought iron corkscrew attached to a long pole. He dislodged stubborn charges and clean the bore of the chase.
- “Tend Vent” – The RR had a very dangerous job. He placed his thumb over the vent hole to help create a seal while sponging. Because the gun was very hot, he would wear a heavy leather glove. Still, sometimes remaining embers and gunpowder would discharge in an explosion which would come up through the vent hole and blow off his thumb.
- “Advance Sponge” – The RF would dunk a sponge in water and place it near the muzzle. The sponge was on a long stick, so it could reach all the way to the back of the cannon.
- “Sponge Piece” – The RF ran the sponge down the barrel to swab it out and extinguish any lingering embers, while the RR kept his thumb on the vent hole to seal it.
- “Handle Cartridge” – The Powder Handler would bring up the cartridge from the ammunition chest and hand it to the LF. The cartridge was usually a linen bag holder gunpowder, and was attached to the cannonball to make loading quicker.
- “Charge Piece” – The LF put the cartridge in the muzzle
- “Ram Down Cartridge” – The RF used a rammer to jam the cartridge down the muzzle so it was placed underneath the vent hole. The rammer was on the other end of the stick that held the sponge.
- “Prime” – The RR would take his thumb off the vent and push a brass or copper prick down the vent hole to poke a hole in the powder bag of the cartridge. He would then push a quill primer or pour loose powder from a powder horn down the vent to the cartridge.
- “Take Aim” – The Gun Commander would adjust the aim of the gun. The Powder Handler assisted by moving the back end of the gun.
- “Fire” – The LR introduced fire to the vent hole using a portfire, which is much like a road flare or a slow match, attached to a linstock. A linstock (Dutch for matchstick) was a long staff with a metal fork or serpentine jaw at the end to grip the portfire. The match itself was made of cord or hemp twine that was treated with potassium or sodium nitrates.
If you like to see this process in action, here’s a really good ~12 minute YouTube video that explains the steps of firing a Revolutionary War cannon. This video shows a British army crew, but the process was the same on both sides. Just pretend the soldiers are wearing blue and buff!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G9BiQv6gMLA
Here’s a tribute to all our Morris County soldiers who served as a Matross. Those we can identify by name include Gideon Riggs, Jonah Garrison, Jonathan Fairchild, Jonathan Fisher, Lewis Cary, Joseph Hathaway, David Mumford, Josiah Garrison, Josiah Wynn,
and Richard Crum.
From: Schenawolf, Harry, “Firing Field Cannon in the American Revolution,” Revolutionary War Journal, 3 Sep 2014
Sources
Olsen, Eric (Morristown National Historical Park), letter to Bobbi Bailey about firing a cannon, 27 Mar 2022
National Park Service, Manual of Instruction for the Safe Use of Reproduction 18th Century Artillery in Historic Weapons Demonstrations
Schenawolf, Harry, “Firing Field Cannon in the American Revolution,” in Revolutionary War Journal, 3 Sept 2014, online at https://www.revolutionarywarjournal.com/firing-field-cannon/