 In the British Army, the Pattern 1861 was issued to artillery units, who required a weapon for personal defense and which could be more easily wielded from horseback.They were also imported by the Confederacy during the American Civil War and issued to artillery and cavalry units.However, the longer Pattern 1853 was more suitable for infantry units which fought in line formation of several ranks deep, in order to minimize the risk that the men in the rear ranks would accidentally shoot the men in the front ranks in the back of the head, or scorch their faces and burst their eardrums with the muzzle blast.