Civil War Field Fortifications
II. Minor Field Fortifications
For the purposes of classifying field fortifications according to their structural form Minor Field Fortifications are those works that were primarily intended to provide cover from enemy fire without at the same time posing a significant obstacle to either an enemy assault or a counter attack. This includes works such as rifle pits, blockhouses, and some types of batteries. The fact that they are called minor works should not be injudiciously construed to mean that these were unimportant types of field fortifications. Quite the contrary, all three of the types of works listed were used quite extensively throughout the Civil War both as detached works and in combination with major field fortifications forms. Unlike major field works, there was no single unifying construction technique or design premise that applied to all minor field works; rifle pits were about as foreign in form from blockhouses as it was possible to get while batteries were specialized artillery field works that could be constructed as either minor or major works. This being the case, each type of minor field fortification has to be dealt with individually.
The following links lead to more specific information on each type of minor field fortification:
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