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THE INFANTRY
"Give them the 'Cold Steel'!"
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To the men who flocked to the flag in 1861, the Infantry, with its long rows of marching men with glistening bayonets, battleflags waving and martial music playing, conjured up images of romantic glory. What they found, instead, was a hard existence. The men marched, carrying all of their possessions, around 70 pounds, with them wherever they went. They battled heat, cold, rain, mud, snow, fleas, ticks, lice, mosquitoes, dysentery, diarrhea, fatigue, boredom, homesickness, and on occasion, the enemy. And for this, they received $13 a month, for a period of "3 years or the duration", whichever came first. |
INFANTRY ORGANIZATION:
The primary unit was the regiment. It consisted of 10 companies, a staff and a band and was commanded by a Colonel, who along with the Lieutenant Colonel and Major, were appointed by the State Governor. The total strength of a regiment was around 1000 men.
The basic unit was the company. It was commanded by a Captain, and consisted of approximately 90 men. When the company entered military service, this figure could be as high as 100. It quickly dropped to between 30-50 men though, due to illnesses and casualties. The men of each company were allowed to elect their Commissioned Officers (Captain & 3 Lieutenants) and Non-Commissioned Officers (5 Sergeants & 8 Corporals).
By U.S. Army regulations, four or more regiments (plus an artillery battery) formed a brigade. Two to four brigades comprised a division. Three Divisions comprised a corps. And finally, two or more corps formed an army. The average-sized army was around 50,000 - 60,000 soldiers, although this could vary. The Federal Army of the West at Wilson's Creek numbered only 5,400 while the Army of the Potomac numbered over 120,000. At Pea Ridge, both Generals Curtis & Van Dorn formed their smaller armies using the traditional formations of brigades & divisions, although they dispensed with the idea of having corps.
Infantry Introduction | Weapons | Tactics | Load & Fire Battlefield Tour | Federal Commanders | Confederate Commanders | Federal Order of Battle | Confederate Order of Battle | Battleflags | Infantry | Artillery | Cavalry | A Question of Supplies | Surgeons | The Medal of Honor | The Telegraph Road | The Trail of Tears |
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Last updated on:
October 11, 2003
Written by: Interpretation Staff
http://www.nps.gov/peri/inf1_intro
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