e-field. Charles VIII. crossed
the Alps with a pretty large train; but a part of these were hand-guns,
and but very few of the larger pieces were ever brought into battle;
indeed, it was then thought that this arm would be of little use except
in sieges. At the battle of Gravelines the army of Philip II. had only
seventeen pieces of artillery; and at the battle of Ivry the French had
only four pieces of cannon, and two culverins: the army of the League
had also only four pieces. At the battle of Moncontour the opposing
armies had but eight pieces each.

Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden not only improved the character of
artillery, but also gave to it great development as an arm of service.
At the battle of Breetenfield he had one hundred pieces of artillery,
great and small, and at the camp of Nuremberg he numbered about three
hundred. This king also made a more skilful use of his cannon by uniting
them more in mass than had been done by his predecessors; his system was
nevertheless very imperfect. In the disposition of this arm on the field
of battle, a vast improvement was made by Conde, Turenne, and Prince
Eugene of Savoy. Frederick the Great also made great use of this arm,
and was the first to introduce horse artillery. This mode of using
field-pieces has peculiar properties which in many circumstances render
it an invaluable arm. The promptness and rapidity of its movements
enable it to act with other troops without embarrassing them. The French
soon introduced into their army the improvements made by the king of
Prussia, and in 1763 the celebrated Gribeauval appeared. He improved the
form of the cannon and greatly diminished the weight of field artillery,
giving it an organization which has been but slightly changed since his
time.

The successive improvements in artillery have for a long time
constituted a prominent feature in war. The power of this arm to throw
projectiles to a great distance, and to overturn and destroy opposing
obstacles, renders it a necessary arm on the battle-field, and a strong
barrier and safeguard of states. It is an essential element in all army
organization.

In our army we have four regiments of artillery, forming the basis of
forty batteries. In the French service there are fourteen regiments,
forming the basis of two hundred and six field batteries.

The term _battery_, when applied to artillery as an arm of service,
refers to a permanent organization of a certain number of cannon,