A Civil War Reenacting Guide For Beginners -Pvt. Matthew Reynolds 20th Maine Volunteer Infantry, Company G http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/mcr8/ en-us Homeschool Blogger Fri, 29 May 2009 22:00:00 -0500 Fri, 29 May 2009 22:00:00 -0500 Recognizing and remembering rank can be difficult even to veterans, but it is sometimes nessesary to know who is the highest in command or who is next in command over your regiment's officers. There are two categories of officers, noncommissioned and commissioned officers.   Noncommissioned (NCO'S): NCO's are never addressed as 'sir' and are never saluted. Save that for Commissioned officers with their useless swords. Corporal: A corporal has two chevrons or stripes on his sleeve. Sergeant: A sergeant has three chevrons or stripes on his sleeve First Sergeant: A first sergeant has three chevrons and a diamond over the top chevron. Ordnance Sergeant: A ordnance sergeant has three chevrons and a star over the top chevron. The ordnance sergeant is in charge of ammunition and weapons. He works with the Ordnance Department in Washington D.C. to supply the troops. Quartermaster Sergeant: A quartermaster sergeant has three chevrons and three stripes over the top chevron. The quartermaster sergeant is in charge of supplying the troops with uniforms and leather gear. Sergeant Major: A sergeant major has three chevrons and three curved stripes over the top chevron.   Commissioned Officers: Commissioned officers are always addressed as 'sir' and you should always salute these officers. If your hands are free then salute with your right hand with your palm facing out. If you are carrying your rifle then come to shoulder arms and place your left arm arcoss your chest with your palm facing down. Second Lieutenant: A second lieutenant has a rectangular box on his shoulder which is usually a goldish yellow color. First Lieutenant: A first lieutenant has a rectangular box with a rectangle inside the box near the front. Captain: A captain has a rectangular box with two rectangles inside the box near the front. Major: A major has two oak leaves on either end of his rectangular box on his shoulder. Colonel: A colonel has a eagle in the middle of his rectangular box. A colonel is usually in charge of a regiment. Major General: A major general has two stars inside a rectangular box. Lieutenant General: A lieutenant general has three stars inside a rectangular box.   http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/mcr8/694065/ Fri, 29 May 2009 22:00:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/mcr8/694065/ The first time you march onto the battlefield can be a little confusing, but after a few times you get used to it. The most important thing to remember is to always no matter what obey your officers!! If you don't the battle can get very unsafe! The only exception would be if he orders you to do something that you be unsafe. Before you decide to 'die' you need to fall out of line, act like you got 'wounded' and then 'die'. This will be much appreciated by your fellow soldiers and officers! A good time to be shot is when there is lots of gunfire or when you are in range of a cannon. When you do get wounded or die try to make a good show of it because the public loves it when you do a dramactic death or start rolling on the ground screaming at the top of your lungs. Running hits are also very cool to watch!! Sometimes they have ground charges set up on the battlefield for exploding cannon ball effect. If you decide to get hit by one of these make sure you don't get too close otherwise you'll get dirt blown at your face. The two most important things to remember on the battlefield is be safe and have fun!! http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/mcr8/678046/ Fri, 10 Apr 2009 22:24:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/mcr8/678046/ When you begin learning the manual of arms can be very tricky at first, but you will get the hang of it soon enough. When a command is given you move to that position at the word 'arms' or 'rest'. Arms does not mean your physical arms it refers to your rifle or firearm. Your feet should be 30-40 degrees apart with your heels together. Here are a few basic positions: Order Arms: -Grab the rifle with your right hand using your index finger and thumb. -Place the rifle with the trigger guard facing toward the front. -Make sure the rifle lines up with your right toe. Shoulder Arms: -From Order arms grab the rifle with your right hand as far down as you can without bending over. -Bring the rifle up to eye-level and grab the rifle with your left hand so you can grab the rifle with your right hand. -Place your right index finger under the trigger guard and your thumb on top of the trigger guard. -Then place your other fingers under the hammer. Right Shoulder Shift Arms: -From Shoulder arms move the rifle onto your right shoulder so that the lock plate is over your shoulder. Support Arms: -From Right Shoulder Shift arms move your rifle to your left shoulder and rest the rifle's hammer on your left arm. -Place your left hand flat across your chest. In Place Rest: -From Order arms move your right foot behind your left without moving your rifle. -Grab your rifle with your right hand and place your left hand on top of your right wrist. Parade Rest: -From Order arms move your right foot behind your right and place your rifle against your shoulder then place your right hand on the rifle and your left hand on top. http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/mcr8/677654/ Thu, 9 Apr 2009 20:03:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/mcr8/677654/ Hats You have probably wondered what they call the different pieces of equipment that a typical soldier would have carried or worn. I will start with hats. Hats varied from soldier to soldier. The troops in the East would usually wear forage, kepi, or Hardee hats. Forage hats are awkward and they kind of look weird when you first buy them, but they wear in after some time. Many of the Eastern and some Western soldiers wore them during the war. Kepis originated from Europe and were issued to mostly officers, but a few regiments were also issued them. Hardee hats were named after General W. J. Hardee who published a infantry tactics manual. The Hardee hats were used mostly by state militia and the Iron Brigade which was commanded by General John F. Reynolds. Now the troops in the West who got to slack off a little and who didn't care about military spick and span, wore mostly different kinds of civilian hats to protect them from the hot sun in the Midwest. Cartridge Box The next piece of equipmnet is the cartridge box. A soldier's cartridge box held his cartridges for his rifle. A 1860's rifle cartridge was a bullet and gun powder wrapped in paper. Later a cartridge was much like today's with metal case instead of paper. A cartridge box usually held about 60 cartridges. The cartridge box was worn behind the soldier so that stray bullets couldn't hit the box and explode the powder inside. To further protect the soldier from explosions the containers inside the box were made of metal and the box had two outside flaps to prevent any sparks. Cap Box The third piece of equipment would be the cap box. If you have shot a cap gun you should know what caps are and what they do. If not then a cap is a cup-shaped piece of metal that is partially filled with black powder. When you pull the trigger of the gun that sets off the hammer which hits the cap and creates a spark which ignites the powder inside the barrel and shoots the bullet out of the gun. The cap box has two flaps like the cartridge box that deflect any stray sparks that could set off the caps. Inside the box there is lamb's wool to keep the caps from falling out of the box. Bayonet, scabbard, and frog Your next pieces of equipment are your bayonet, scabbard, and frog. You are probably wondering again what a frog is. It is definitely not a frog that ribbits! The frog is only for Enfield bayonets which go on Enfield rifles which I will talk about later, but the scabbard slides into the frog which hangs onto your belt. Most bayonets during the Civil War were triangularly shaped so that when you stabbed your victim it created a unfixable trianglular hole. So if you were stabbed with a bayonet you would eventually die from your wound. Haversack After the bayonet and its counterparts comes your haversack. A haversack (pronounced hav-er-sack) holds your personal items and daily rations. A Union soldier's canvas haversack would have tarred that is why they are black in color. Usually a Confederate's haversack was just a simple canvas haversack that was made at home most of the time. Soldiers didn't usually keep paper in their haversack because there was sometimes lots of oil and grease in their rations so they kept their paper items in their cartridge box. Canteen A canteen was a soldier's best friend. Taking a sip of water was very refreshing after a 30 or more mile march across rugged terrain. Canteens came in many different kinds. Union soldiers used what is called a bullseye canteen that had ridges in circular patterns. Confederates usually used wooden or just the regular metal canteens. Rifle The most important of a soldier's equipment is his rifle. There were many kinds of rifles that were used during the war, but I will talk about just a few. The most common among the infantry was the Springfield which was manufactured in Springfield, Massachusetts before and during the war. The second most common rifle was the Enfield that was made in England by various manufacturers and was used by both sides. Since England did not want to take part in the war Enfields were smuggled over to the United States. Now repeating rifles were being produced for the first time and were becoming very popular among the infantry. The Spencer and Henry rifles were the most common during the war. The Henry Repeating rifle later became the Winchester rifle a few years after the Civil War. http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/mcr8/675000/ Wed, 1 Apr 2009 17:45:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/mcr8/675000/ Understanding how an army in the 1860's was organized is a bit of a challenge (its still a challenge even in today's army!). The smallest of the infantry units is a company which contained about 100 men each. Each company was assigned a letter of the alphabet from A to M not including 'J' because it was too similar to an 'I'. Twelve companies made up a regiment and 3 to 4 regiments made up a brigade. The next biggest unit was the division which was made up of 3 brigades. Three divisions formed a corps (pronounced 'core') and depending on the size of an army there were from 3 to about 6 corps' in an army. Now by almost the middle of the war officers had a hard time figuring out what men were under their command. So General Phillip Kearny came up with a solution. He took a red blanket he had in his tent and cut little round pieces out of it and ordered that all the soldiers under his command to wear them on their hat. It later became popular among other officers and General Hooker made them official by ordering all soldiers to wear them. The badges were different shapes to represent a different corps and were either red, white, or blue to represent the first, second, or third divisions. 1st Division  5th Corps: http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/mcr8/674274/ Mon, 30 Mar 2009 21:45:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/mcr8/674274/ Choosing a certain regiment to join can be frustrating and confusing, but once you find the right one it can be loads of fun! If you are interested in joining a certain regiment you need to ask to talk to the regiment's recruiter and then he will tell you how to join. When you first join a regiment they will usually have loaner gear for you to borrow until you can buy your own equipment. The first thing to do once you've been recruited is research as much as you can on that regiment and possibly daily life in the early 1860's. This might not seem important, but you must be ready to answer questions from the very curious public. Before you buy your equipment talk with your recruiter and your fellow soldiers so you know what to buy and where. For example you don't want to buy a different type of jacket than the other soldiers in your regiment. Now remember this hobby can be very expensive! The price range for all your basic gear is from $700-$1,000. Your rifle being the most expensive can be from $500-$600 depending on what you get. It may take a while till you have all your gear, but that's what loaner gear is for. Here are a few resources to buy equipment: Fall Creek-fcsutler.com Two Flags-twoflagssutlery.com The Regimental Quartermaster-regtqm.com There are many others, but these are the ones that I have bought from before and was very satisfied with the quality of their products. http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/mcr8/674250/ Mon, 30 Mar 2009 20:26:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/mcr8/674250/