Followers

In the 18th century, just like today, it took a lot more than soldiers to support a military campaign. Armies of the time often resembled moving cities, with livestock, many wagons of supplies, and plenty of civilians traveling with the soldiers. Those civilians, known were broadly known as followers.

Women and Children

Women chose to follow their husbands, fathers, and sweethearts to war for a number of reasons. Some may have preferred the risks of traveling with an active army to staying home and living as a single woman for months or years. Others took advantage of the opportunity to earn a small living as nurses, laundresses, seamstresses, or sutlers. Whatever their reasons, followers faced many of the dangers and privations suffered by their men.

What happened to hundreds of followers after the war is unknown, although it is assumed that many returned with their husbands, if they were fortunate enough to survive. The roles of these many followers were immediately forgotten and have since been left out of traditional historical accounts.

One of the few surviving sources from a camp follower is the journal of Frederica Charlotte Louise Riedesel, whose husband commanded the German forces at Saratoga. Baroness Riedesel's rank and noble birth protected her from many of the hardships that other followers faced, but her memoir is still a valuable resource for anyone looking to understand what it was like to travel with an eighteenth-century army.