SOLDIERS IN BLUESome 2.5 million men served in the Union
army in the course of the Civil War. Of
these, around 360,000 died in battle or
of hardship and disease.DEMOBILIZATION
No thought was given during the war to the problem
of returning men to civilian life. Soldiers whose
terms of service ended and who chose not to reenlist
simply returned to their homes. At the war’s end
public opinion demanded swift demobilization.
Union soldiers were gathered in camps for
discharge, but many deserted before the slow and
tedious mustering out process was complete.VETERANS’ PENSIONS
By 1865, a system of pensions had been put
in place for disabled veterans and for the
widows and orphans of Union soldiers who had
died in the war. In 1904, pensions were in effect
extended to all surviving Civil War veterans in
their old age. There were still individuals drawing
Civil War pensions in the 1950s.A CONTINUING ROLE
Rapidly depleted, the U.S. Army nonetheless was
burdened with important tasks after the Civil War.
The South came under military rule during the
Reconstruction period 340–45 ❯❯, while the
Plains Indian Wars kept the army actively
employed into the 1880s, many Civil War veterans
seeing action against the Native Americans.Improving morale
Loyalty to his colleagues and proud
identification with his regiment, brigade,
and corps were the bonds that held a
man in place and, more than any
other factor, made him ready to fight.
Although obedience never came easily,
the Union army developed into a
reasonably well-drilled and disciplined
force, with order enforced by harsh
corporal punishments. From 1862
onward, Union troops were generally
well supplied and equipped. Northern
factories provided sufficient standard
uniforms and footwear, even if
sometimes of poor quality, and
the official food ration was quite
generous in its portions of bacon,
beef, bread, and beans. But men easily
became ragged and hungry during hard
campaigning. Even when the supply
system had not broken down, the
temptation to pillage farms along the
line of march, usually in Confederate
territory, was rarely resisted. When
marching, endurance was required—
the pack was heavy, feet were sore—
but even in a well supplied camp the
military routines could be both boring
and wearing. Disease was a serious
threat, especially in the early period
before sanitation improved. A Union
soldier had a one-in-eight chance of
dying of disease, compared with a one-
in-18 chance of dying in battle.
Disillusion and desertion
The quality of Union troops was diluted
in the last years of the war. The proud if
war-weary volunteers who had fought
since 1861 were often contemptuous
of the mercenary “bounty men” and
substitutes raked in from 1863 onward—
Private Frank Wilkeson dismissed them as
“conscienceless and cowardly scoundrels.”
Desertion rates were always high, men
slinking away, discouraged by army life or
needing to cope with difficulties at home.
But those who joined up for a lump sum
payment were notorious for disappearing.
Grant complained in September 1864
that: “The men we have been getting
in this way almost all desert.” Yet Union
troops always proved tough fighters
when it mattered. There was no
questioning the courage and fighting
spirit of the soldiers in blue.
AFTER
Unknown Union soldier
This young recruit of the 8th New York Heavy Artillery
has the Hardee hat of his full dress uniform alongside
him and carries an infantry musket. Eighteen was
considered the youngest age for a combat role, although
many volunteers lied about their birth date.Taking a break
This scene of soldiers playing cards was painted in 1881
by Civil War veteran Julian Scott, who had served as a
musician in a Vermont regiment. It reflects the mix of
uniforms worn early in the war.
The estimated
number of Union
soldiers wounded in the course of the
Civil War. One in every four Union
soldiers who served in the conflict either
died or was wounded.281,881