Unarmed Men In The AoT

[kepi]

I'm astounded at the number of unarmed men in the AoT. It really shows just how desperate the AoT was as the war dragged on. These reports only cover Walthall's Brigade.

http://www.authentic-campaigner.com...records-of-Walthall-s-Mississippi-Brigade-AoT

Ammunition Report for Walthall's Brigade for week ending Aug. 21st 1863

24th Mississippi Infantry:
Average # of rounds per man: 38
Number of Ordnance Wagons: 3
Rounds in Ordnance Wagons: 29100
Arms of sick men in Wagons: 0
Number of unarmed men: 35

27th Mississippi Infantry:
Average # of rounds per man: 38
Number of Ordnance Wagons: 3
Rounds in Ordnance Wagons: 28056
Arms of sick men in Wagons: 0
Number of unarmed men: 14

29th Mississippi Infantry:
Average # of rounds per man: 39
Number of Ordnance Wagons: 3
Rounds in Ordnance Wagons: 26436
Arms of sick men in Wagons: 0
Number of unarmed men: 42

30th Mississippi Infantry:
Average # of rounds per man: 38
Number of Ordnance Wagons: 3
Rounds in Ordnance Wagons: 22859
Arms of sick men in Wagons: 0
Number of unarmed men: 47

34th Mississippi Infantry
Average # of rounds per man: 38
Number of Ordnance Wagons: 3
Rounds in Ordnance Wagons: 29515
Arms of sick men in Wagons: 0
Number of unarmed men: 27

 

[67th Tigers]

The Army of Tennessee was quite good about recording their logistics troops, and typically 20% of the "Present for Duty" in Federal terms were explicitly non-combatants.

Under Joe Johnston the army was at one point ca. 50,000 infantry, of whom 10,000 were non-combatants, and this ratio was retained (of 25,000 under Hood in early 1865, 5,000 were logistics). Unlike the ANV the AoT had not heavily incorporated slaves into the logistics trains. Although Joe Johnston gave an order to do this in early 1864 it had not been thoroughly carried out. Whereas with the Eastern rebel armies the PFD is essentially "combat effectives", out west it's closer to the Federal in counting.

 

[Sesech]

Where can you find logistical reports for the Army of Tennessee?

 

[gunny]

Yep. Like 67th Tigers said. Most of these men that were not armed were performing non-combat roles. Supplies, cooks, infirmary corps, etc. The arms were there, but the men were not issued the arms because of their roles. The 16th Tennessee had 212 men in December 1863, but only 157 were armed. That meant 55 men performed non-combat roles that should be essential to the operations of the regiment, brigade, division and army.

 

[67th Tigers]

Here is a promulgation of Johnston's orders to use slaves in the logistics in Feb '64:

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In April an Act of Congress allowed for the enlistment of "free negros" for those purposes, and Johnston orders it:

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Hood later in August requests 4,000 "negros" for that duty by impressment:

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Hood in his report blaming everything on Johnston included the returns he inherited and those he took away from Atlanta. The column "effective" is the number of men actually bearing arms for combat, "total present" is that plus the logistics, and "aggregate present" adds in sick and arrested.


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Hood of course is stretching the truth by mixing combat effectives under him with the PFD (inc. logistics) under Johnston - the returns are in the OT thus: http://ebooks.library.cornell.edu/c...trength;view=image;seq=678;size=100;page=root

PS note the huge differences between PFD and effective in the cavalry - a man who'd lost his horse was not effective.