Basic Civil War infantry structure

Glorybound

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Stumbled upon this information, and thought it might be useful here on the board. I don't think it's set in stone, and there are inevitably variations on it, but for general purposes it does the job.




Infantry Military Structure of the Civil War

THE CHAIN OF COMMAND


The governor of the state would formally ask his legislature for a state bill creating the regiments called for by Congress, but would immediately start jawboning local political men to start recruiting enlisted men, on the promise that the recruiters would be appointed as officers of the company by the Governor. The most typical regimental organization was:

One Colonel: Commanding the regiment
One Lieutenant Colonel: Second in command of the regiment, and commanding a brigade or wing of the regiment
One Major: Commanding another brigade or wing of the regiment
One Regimental Surgeon: A medical doctor, equal to a captain
Assistant Surgeon(s): Usually more like a physician's assistant (number, pay and importance varied)
Ten Captains: Commanding one of ten companies (usually A,B,C,D,E,F,G,H,J & K)
Ten Lieutenants or 1st Lieutenants: Second in command of the company
Ten Second Lieutenants: Third in command of the company

The companies were usually authorized at a strength of sixty enlisted men, but rarely were that large. In general a company was considered full at forty or so men. Typically it was divided into five squads, each with:
One Sergeant
One Corporal
Ten Privates

REGIMENTAL STRUCTURE IN REVERSE ORDER
Private commanded no one
Corporal commanded five privates
Sergeant commanded five privates, and the Corporal and five privates which were the other half of his squad
Second Lt. commanded four squads
Lieutenant commanded four squads
Captain commanded two squads directly, and the other eight squads through his lieutenants
Major commanded a brigade of four companies
Lt. Colonel commanded a brigade of four companies
Colonel commanded two companies directly, and the balance of the regiment as he chose to.

EXCEPTIONS
The structure literally never worked exactly that way. Someone was always absent, and replaced by the next in command. If the regiment was whole, there was no reason for duplication of command, so the separations blurred.

Sometimes additional 2nd or 3rd lieutenants were authorized, or in some cases the rank of Ensign was used for a third lieutenant. In these instances the size of the company was larger (typically 100 men).

Every regiment had "WOG" (Warrant Over Grade) positions such as farrier (took care of horses), wagoneer , and adjutant (basically the regimental staff clerk). They were primarily privates who were paid slightly higher for their particular skill, and slightly outranked a common private.

The regiments were primarily organized by the states, but there were exceptions which were, literally, independent. More definition will follow, but first:

A battalion was any military group larger than a company (or detachments of several companies) organized for a single purpose. For example, in the 1870's when General George Custer split his 7th Cavalry regiment into three "prongs" of a fork ~ to attack around to the right, up the middle through the village, and around the left to scatter the Indian horse herd ~ they became forever after known as 'Custer's main battalion', 'Reno's battalion' and 'Benteen's battalion'.

Earlier in the 1850's, the Kansas Jayhawkers formed several militia regiments which marched as a group called 'Lane's battalion' to stop an invasion by pre-slavery Missourians. The commonality between the two sets of names was the singular purpose of the formation.

Now, lets say that many of the young men of a certain county wanted to go off and fight in the civil war, but the governor of that state had called for every regiment that he was authorized to at that particular time. Some "movers and shakers" of the community, who knew military protocol and procedure; would organize an independent company, regiment, or even a battalion with the singular purpose of being accepted into the regular army once they were ready. This was an especially appropriate procedure if the governor was not of the same political party as the young men who wanted to fight. Some places, like New York, northern Illinois, and northern Kentucky had a lot of Independent organizations. They could be very colorful in uniform and procedure, and often entered the actual war during crucial campaigns, seeing the worst of the combat. In some cases, the independents left excellent local records, but there would be no record with the US Government sources until it ceased to be independent.

e1.jpg


[SIZE=+2]Organization of the Basic Infantry Regiment[/SIZE]
COMPANY.

The basic unit is the company, commanded by a captain

100 men = 2 platoons = 4 sections = 8 squads

A company has the following officers (commissioned and non-coms):

Captain (1), 1st. Lieut. (1), 2nd. Lieut. (1)

1st Sgt. (1), Sgts. (4) and Corporals (8).

Plus 2 musicians.

When the company was divided into platoons, the captain commanded one and the 1st Lt. the other. There was a sergeant for each section, and a corporal for each squad. The 1st Sgt. "ran" the whole company.

BATTALION and REGIMENT.

Battalions and regiments were formed by organizing companies together. In the volunteers (Union and Confederate), 10 companies would be organized together into a regiment. The regiment was commanded by a colonel. A regiment has the following staff (one of each):

Col.; Lt. Col.; Major; Adjutant (1st Lt); Surgeon (maj.);

Asst Surgeon (capt.); Quartermaster (lieut); Commissary (lieut);

Sgt-Major; Quartermaster Sgt.

There were also volunteer organizations containing less than 10 companies: if they contained from 4-8 companies, they were called battalions, and usually were commanded by a major or lieutenant colonel. The (Union) Regular regiments organized before the war (1st-10th) were 10 company regiments like the volunteers. When the NEW Regular regiments. were authorized, a different organization was used. The new Regular regiments were organized 8 companies to a battalion and 2 battalions to the regiment. Thus new Regular regiments contained 16 companies. These regiments frequently fought as battalions rather than as single regiments. However, often the 2nd battalion could not be recruited up to strength, in which case they fought as a single regiment.

BRIGADE.

A brigade is formed from 3 to 6 regiments and commanded by a brigadier general. The South tended to use more regiments than the North, thus having bigger brigades. At some times in the war, some artillery would be attached to the infantry brigade: see the Artillery section below. Each brigade would also have a varying number of staff officers.

DIVISION.

A division is commanded by a major general and is composed of from 2 to 6 brigades. In the North usually 3 or 4, but in the South normally 4 to 6. Thus, a Southern division tended to be almost twice as large as its Northern counterpart, if the regiments are about the same size. At some times in the war, some artillery or, less often, cavalry might be attached: see the Cavalry and Artillery sections below. Each division would also have a varying number of staff officers.

CORPS.

A corps is commanded by a major general (Union) or a lieutenant general (Confederate) and is composed of from 2 to 4 divisions. Again the North tended to have 2 or 3, while the South had 3 or 4. Each corps would also have a varying number of staff officers.

ARMIES.

Corps within a geographic department were aggregated into armies. The number of corps in an army could vary considerably: sometimes an army would contain only 1 corps and other times as many as 8. Armies were commanded by major generals in the North, and usually by full generals in the South. Corps and armies usually had some artillery and cavalry attached: again, see below. Each army would also have a varying number of staff officers.

To summarize, the nominal strengths and commanding officers were:

UNIT MEN Commander Example NAME

Company 100 Captain Co. A (but not J, looks like I)

Regiment 1000 Colonel 38th N.C. Infantry

Brigade 4000 Brig Genl 3rd Brigade (US) **

Division 12000 Maj. Genl Pender's Division (CS) **

Corps 36000 Maj. Genl* IIIrd Corps (US) **

Army Maj. Genl+ Army of Northern Virginia (CS) ++

* or Lieutenant General in the South

+ or General in the South

** Numerical designation was used in the North, the Commander's name was typically used in the South, e.g. A. P. Hill’s Corps.

++ The South mainly used the name of the area or state where the army operated. Rivers were used primarily as names in the North, e.g. Army of the Cumberland


http://www.8thtnus.com/structure.html
 
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Cool stuff. I think I've got a pretty decent grasp on much of it (except for the company level) but I'll try to print or bookmark this as a quick refernce when I get confused.
 
It's funny but a Civil War regiment was rarely at its full authorized strength. Sometimes the entire regiment was drilled and it was called battalion drill. It was noted at several companies could be detached and formed into a battalion. Such is the case of the 42nd PA (13th Penn Res or Bucktails) when a small battalion was sent into the Shenandoah Valley where they joined in the pursuit of Jackson and killed Turner Ashby.

By late 1864-65, many Confederate regiments were down to 350 soldiers of all ranks and it was not unusual for smaller companies to be down to as few as 20 soldiers (thanks to sickness, detachments, desertions, deaths). They were regiments or companies (respectively) only in name.
 
Yes, amazing stuff, Glorybound. Especially the part about "rarely."

Some time ago, I got into the fixation of creating an OoB of the battle I was looking at. Too much detail. This regiment was at point X, but companies H and K were detached and assigned elsewhere. Where? Wagon guards. Supporting a battery. Herding prisoners. You name it.

Speaking of rarely, the basic structure was just that: basic. In the real world, the structure was rarely quite so pristine.
 
Dear Glorybound;

Excellent work sir.

Thank you for posting for all to learn and refer to.

Respectfully submitted,
M. E. Wolf
 
At the time of Mustering in All Iowa Inf Company were 100 men + - 1 or 2.
From 1863 and 1864 Adjutant General Report State of Iowa. The two Volumes contain names, age, home town or county, birth place, of every soldier or Calvryman , from the 1st Iowa through 1864. Some Regiments were consolidated by 1864 due to end of enlistment or death or capture. but they all started out as a 100 man CO.
 
Were companies arrayed in any particular order in line of battle? For instance, were they ordered into line alphabetically left to right or by the seniority of their commanding officer, etc.? I know the color company was in the center and could vary by name (letter). That is, the color company wasn't always Company C.
 
100 men = 2 platoons = 4 sections = 8 squads
Sorry to say, but he is wrong on a lot of the things he copy+pasted.
It is full of anachronistic elements.

The squad is not a tactical unit. Sergeants did not lead squads in combat.
Corporals did not command anyone, but was part of the line.

The captain also commanded the 1st platoon.
The 1st LT the 2nd.
The 2nd LT did not have any command role, unless one of the other two officers was taken out.
The drill books generally don't cover anything smaller than the platoon doing something, and it is rare and only used in a few manæuvres.

And the regiment was the basic tactical unit for much of the time, and in many cases the brigade was the basic unit.

This is not a modern army
(or the danish or sleswig-holstein or other "german" army where you did have a structure that did allowed for a NCO and about 10 privates to do something)
 
May I ask a question relating to this. Were PFC's a recognised rank during the civil war? the reason I ask is that i've seen it tagged onto a few period drawings/paintings but have come across very little supportive information.
 
no.
There where privates and nothing else.

Thanks Thomas, I thought that might be the case. The only written reference I ever found was about Texan Regiments, it stated that some wore a black stripe down the trousers to denote the rank of PFC but without any other supportive accredited sources I was always dubious about it.
 
well, there is always exceptions.

The union did mark their veterans (men that had completed one 2+years enlistment and signed up for another) by a stripe on the sleeve.
 
Were companies arrayed in any particular order in line of battle? For instance, were they ordered into line alphabetically left to right or by the seniority of their commanding officer, etc.? I know the color company was in the center and could vary by name (letter). That is, the color company wasn't always Company C.

They were not alphabetically ordered. For example, the "first" company, Co. A, would be on the right flank, whereas the "second" company, Co. B, would be on the left flank.
 
Were companies arrayed in any particular order in line of battle? For instance, were they ordered into line alphabetically left to right or by the seniority of their commanding officer, etc.? I know the color company was in the center and could vary by name (letter). That is, the color company wasn't always Company C.

Yes, only 8 companies formed in the line of battle. The remaining two were detached as skirmishers, or to the rear as camp guards etc.

The 8 companies were formed into 4 divisions, each commanded by the senior captain. The pairs were always the 4 most experienced captains with the 4 least experienced, with the most senior captain having the most junior captain as his 2i/c, the 2nd having the 2nd etc.

The company letters meant little. As captains changed the seniority of the companies changed, but their letters remained constant.

The right most company was always the most senior captains company, and the left most the 2nd. From right to left the companies would be ordered

1st company (most senior captain)
8th
3rd
6th
(Colors)
4th
5th
7th
2nd
 
Yes, only 8 companies formed in the line of battle. The remaining two were detached as skirmishers, or to the rear as camp guards etc.

The 8 companies were formed into 4 divisions, each commanded by the senior captain. The pairs were always the 4 most experienced captains with the 4 least experienced, with the most senior captain having the most junior captain as his 2i/c, the 2nd having the 2nd etc.

The company letters meant little. As captains changed the seniority of the companies changed, but their letters remained constant.

The right most company was always the most senior captains company, and the left most the 2nd. From right to left the companies would be ordered

1st company (most senior captain)
8th
3rd
6th
(Colors)
4th
5th
7th
2nd


Thanks very much for this information. If it's not too much trouble can you cite the source? I'm researching Iverson's North Carolina Brigade at Gettysburg who ingloriously went into battle without skirmishers and were demolished. I believe I have a list of the commanding officers of every company in each of the four regiments engaged. With a little research, I should be able to flesh out their seniority. Again, I appreciate your reply.
 
I'm researching Iverson's North Carolina Brigade at Gettysburg who ingloriously went into battle without skirmishers and were demolished.
Obviously not that relevant for the CSA, but Casey's version of the drill book obviously have the same 8-2 rules, but the preface say that this is not to be used by order of the war department. And every time the skirmishers are mentioned as being special, the § is marked with an 0, and should not be used.

And what is very clear across the war (on both sides), is that most battalions simply had 10 line companies and even if the two flank companies had rifled arms and the rest smoothbores (as happened early in the war) the basic Idea , that the men in the skirmisher companies should be specially selected for it and get training for it, was rarely done.
The men where assigned to the companies they enlisted with and only when casualties forced a change did men move company.
 
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