Limbers and caissons

Limbers were two-wheeled vehicles that connected field guns to draft teams and carried ammunition; caissons were wheeled vehicles dedicated chiefly to carrying artillery ammunition.

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Field artillery: Mobile artillery designed to accompany armies and support operations on land. Limbers and caissons formed the transport system that let field guns move with their teams.
Field gun: A mobile cannon designed for use with ground forces in the field. The limber connected this weapon to its team for travel and deployment.
Horse-drawn artillery: Artillery moved and operated using teams of horses rather than motor vehicles. Limbers and caissons were central components of this transport system.
M1857 12-pounder Napoleon: A bronze smoothbore field gun widely used by Union and Confederate forces during the American Civil War. Its crews used limbers and caissons to transport the gun and replenish its ammunition.
Artillery limber: A two-wheeled vehicle that connected a field gun to its draft team and often carried ammunition. The limber joined the gun trail to the horses and carried ready ammunition.
Gun carriage: A wheeled frame that supports and transports an artillery piece. A limber attached to the carriage so horses could tow the gun.
Napoleonic Wars: A series of European conflicts from 1803 to 1815 involving Napoleon's French Empire and its opponents. The wars established the importance of mobile artillery trains and organized ammunition supply.
M1878 caisson: A U.S. Army artillery ammunition vehicle adopted in 1878 for horse-drawn service. This named model shows the specialized construction of a late nineteenth-century caisson.
Artillery caisson: A wheeled vehicle designed to carry ammunition for an artillery unit. Caissons carried reserve rounds behind the gun and its limber.
Horse harness: Straps and fittings worn by a horse to attach it to a load or vehicle. Harness transmitted the team's pulling force to limbers and caissons.