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The U.S. Army Coast Artillery Corps (CAC) was a corps level organization responsible for coastal, harbor, and anti-aircraft defense of the United States between 1901 and 1950. The CAC also operated heavy and railway artillery during World War I. ==History== As early as 1882 the need for heavy fixed artillery for seacoast defense was noted in Chester A. Arthur's Second Annual Message to Congress where he noted: In 1885 the Endicott Board was convened. This board recommended a large-scale program of harbor defenses at 29 ports, including guns, mortars, and minefields. Most of their recommendations were implemented and new defenses were constructed by the United States Army Corps of Engineers 1895-1905. As the defenses were constructed, each harbor or river's installations were controlled by Coast Artillery Districts, renamed Coast Defense Commands in 1913 and Harbor Defense Commands in 1925.〔(Fort and Battery list at the Coast Defense Study Group website )〕 Army leaders realized that heavy fixed artillery required different training programs and tactics than mobile field artillery. The Artillery Corps was divided into two types: field artillery and coast artillery. This process began in February 1901 with the authorization of 30 numbered companies of field artillery (commonly called batteries) and 126 numbered companies of coast artillery (CA). 82 existing heavy artillery batteries were designated coast artillery companies, and 44 new CA companies were created by splitting existing units and filling their ranks with recruits. The company-based organization was for flexibility, as each harbor defense command was differently equipped and a task-based organization was needed. The Coast Artillery would alternate between small unit and regimental organization several times over its history. The head of the Artillery Corps became the Chief of Artillery in the rank of Brigadier General with jurisdiction over both types of artillery.〔(Coast Artillery Organization – A Brief Overview, Bolling W. Smith & William C. Gaines )〕〔Berhow, pp. 416-420〕 The Coast Artillery became responsible for the installation and operation of the controlled mine fields that were planted to be under observation, fired electrically and protected by fixed guns.〔 With that responsibility the Corps began to acquire the vessels required to plant and maintain the mine fields and cables connecting the mines to the (mine casemate ) ashore organized as a "Submarine Mine Battery" within the installation command, "submarine" meaning "underwater" in this case.〔 The larger vessels, mine planters, were civilian crewed until the creation of the U.S. Army Mine Planter Service (AMPS) and Warrant Officer Corps in 1918 to provide officers and engineers for the ships designated as mine planters.〔(Army Warrant Officer History )〕 The mine component was considered to be among the principal armament of coastal defense works.〔( Ft. Miles, Principal Armament - Mine Field )〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「United States Army Coast Artillery Corps」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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