The Daily Life of Civil War Soldiers

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The Daily Life of Civil War Soldiers

“War at its basic level has always been about soldiers. Nations rose and fell on the strength of their armies and the men who filled the ranks.” This is a very powerful quote, especially for the yet young country of the United States, for it gives credit where credit is truly due: to the men who carried out the orders from their superiors, gave their blood, sweat and tears, and in millions of cases their lives while fighting for ideals that they believed their country or government was founded upon, and to ensure the continuation of these ideals. Up until the end of the 20th Century, they did so in the worst of conditions, and this includes not only the battle scene, but also every day life. In this essay, I will examine the daily life of the Civil War soldier, including: identifying WHO he was, drill and training, camp life, supplies he used, clothes he wore, food he ate, on the battlefield, psychological aspects including morale and his attitude toward the war, and his sexual life. That’s right, you read it correctly: HIS SEX LIFE!

The Soldier Himself

Just who was the Civil War soldier? Nearly seventy-five percent of the soldiers in the two armies were American born. Immigrants joined the ranks as well, particularly the Irish and the Germans. English, Canadians, Scandinavians, French, Italians, Hispanics, African Americans, Native Americans and Hungarians also enlisted. Many of the American born soldiers’ families were only recent comers to the U.S. and had close ties with their native roots. This diversity of ethnic backgrounds brought with it some different ideas, which made for some interesting complications.

Name calling amongst the soldiers was common, such Ger...

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... from: http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici+0026-3931%28195124%2915%3A4%3C213%3AACWSTS%3E2.0.CO%3B2-6 on 04/22/02.

Earl J. Hess, The Union Soldier in Battle, (Lawrence, KS: University Press of Kansas, 1997).

Wilton P. Moore, “Coffee Break on a Civil War Battlefield”, Military Affairs, Volume 23, Issue 3 (Autumn, 1959): 158. Accessed from: http://links.jstor.org/sici?=0026-3931%28195923%2923%3A3%3C158%3ACOACWB%3E2.0.CO%3B2-C on 04/22/02.

John K. Mahon, “Civil War Infantry Tactics”, Military Affairs, Volume 25, Issue 2 (Summer, 1961): 57-68.Accessed from: http://links.jstor.org/sici=0026-3931(196122)25:2<57:CWIAT>2.0.CO;2-9 on 04/22/02.

Pete Maslowski, “A Study of Morale in Civil War Soldiers”, Military Affairs (December, 1970).

Thomas P. Lowry, The Story the Soldiers Wouldn’t Tell: Sex in the Civil War (Mechanicsburg, PA, Stackpole Books, 1994).

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