In April 1861, Ramseur joined the Confederate service as a captain of Ellis Light Artillery. In the following year, he was elected colonel of the 49th North Carolina. Ramseur distinguished himself during the Seven Days before he was wounded at the Battle of Malvern Hill. In May 1863, he returned to the field as a brigadier general at the Battle of Chancellorsville, where Ramseur was wounded again. A year later, at the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House, he was wounded once more before he was sent to the Shenandoah Valley as a major general. In October 1864, at the battle of Cedar Creek, Ramseur was mortally wounded in action.
