Transcript Page D in Packet

Section 2: Life in the Army
Section 3: No End in Sight
The Soldiers:
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Both sides
Most were between 18-30 years old
(but some very old and some very
young).
About half of all soldiers had been
farmers – and most of them had
never been very far from home.
Most were American by birth, but
there were some immigrant soldiers.
Even from the beginning African
Americans wanted to fight – but
didn’t get to until later (in the
North).
Most were volunteers – many of
whom wanted to get off their farms
and look for some “adventure.”
Some signed up for the money
they’d make as a soldier.
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2 million men
soldiers fought for
the North.
1 million soldiers
fought for the
South.
Life as a soldier was unpleasant
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Most soldiers lived in
heavy tents – in all
weather.
Drill, drill, drill, drill,
drill, drill, drill….
“Extra” time? Cut
wood, clean up camp,
check guns and
equipment, dig
latrines….
But, they got a uniform
(usually either blue or grey)
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Sometimes it might even
fit.
Clothes were not as
comfortable in the 1860’s
as they are today.
Shoes were sometimes
scarce.
After battles, soldiers
would go through the
bodies and look for
shoes/clothes they could
use.
At first, food was not an issue
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But, later in the war, as
more farms were
destroyed, there might
not be as much food - or
supply lines cut off.
Soldiers need to be fed
(drilling, fighting, working
ADL).
Even still, it was army
food and you can
probably guess what
that’s like.
Again – just like the miners…
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If it’s only men (and a lot
of them) – who have little
hope of any
“companionship” for any
reason, they might not
always be living very
nicely.
Weeks without bathing or
washing their clothes.
Bodies, clothing, and
bedding often had lice an
fleas.
And they didn’t understand about diseases
(they come from germs you know)
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They didn’t have that figured
out.
Their was a lot of widespread
sickness.
Most soldiers had chronic
“intestinal disorders.”
Doctors would not wash their
hands.
Instruments would be used
over and over again (without
being cleaned).
The same bandages might be
used over and over.
Next slide: you may not want to look at…
During the civil war, new technology
also affected the fighting
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The were new
kinds of muskets,
bullets, and
cannonballs.
And they decided
to start using iron
on their ships
(called
“ironclads”)
There were a lot of famous battles
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The Southern general in
charge: Robert E Lee
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The Northern General in
charge: many…
Lincoln was not too
happy with most of the
union generals, and he
kept replacing them with
new generals.
One of the better Union
generals was Ulysses S.
Grant
Another famous Union
general: George
McClellan – but he
“drilled” too much and
didn’t actually fight
enough.
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The Fall of New
Orleans…
…is a famous battle
because when the
Union won their, it
split the South into 2
parts.
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Antietam is another.
It was the “bloodiest
battle of the Civil
War.”
25,000 men dead or
wounded.
Neither side really
was victorious, but
the South lost a lot of
soldiers