Military service meant months or years away from home, endless hours of drill, inadequate food or shelter, disease, and long days marching on hot, dusty roads or in driving rain — all punctuated by moments of sheer terror. In this chapter, we’ll explore the life of a Civil War soldier — camps, food, uniforms, music, and arms, as well as disease, amputation, prison, desertion, and death.

Section Contents

• The Life of a Civil War Soldier
• Small Arms in the Civil War
• Civil War Uniforms
• Soldiers' Food
• Rose O'Neal Greenhow, Confederate Spy
• "My dear little darling"
• Life in Camp
• A Plea for Supplies
• Civil War Army Hospitals
• Enduring Amputation
• Salisbury Prison
• Vance's Proclamation Against Deserters
• "I am sorry to tell that some of our brave boys has got killed"