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And i'm talkin' about real life blacksmiths working in or near the battlefield. at first I believe that blacksmiths don't work near the battlefield but look.


the pic says that a team of blacksmiths were forging horseshoes near the HQ tent. among the teams of blacksmiths there is an african american. so it appears that they work for the Union. or else?
do they forge blades and bayonets too? and when did the war smiths working near the frontlines began to disappear?

Warsmiths probably went when the cavalry did. One of their main purposes was repairing horse shoes and putting fresh edges on things. They also manufactured anything that needed to be. I bet the Prussian-Franco war had them, possibly the Boer War, but I don't recall anything about them in the Great War or later. Although recently in Iraq/Afghanistan the americans started to put quick fabrication and prototyping shops up in warzones to address immediate equipment needs that would take months if not years going through the regular channels for military procurement. So I guess they're coming back in a way.

Sure but the warsmith's modern equivalent the armorer has always gone forward with the boys. Especially as things have gotten more technical the need for modern "warsmiths" have become a vital and extended part of the supply chain.

The tools have changed but the job's the same. Fix what's broke and get it and it's owner back in the fight.


(Marines from CLB-3 I believe recovering a mine roller for the curious)