Women in the Warzone: Disguised Soldiers in the American Civil War

Popular accounts of the Civil War describe the horrors of the battlefield, from the mass casualties at the Battle of Gettysburg to the starvation and freezing temperatures at Confederate camps in New York and Georgia. These documents highlight the poor quality of life of Union and Confederate soldiers, highlighting their tremendous historical value, but they rarely mention the experiences of women. Most commonly, women contributed to the war effort by providing medical aid on the battlefield and managing the homefront, but some even disguised themselves as men to join the military. To appear more masculine, these women dressed in layers or loose clothing–both efforts to hide their breasts–and sported short haircuts. These attempts to blend in with the rest of the soldiers generally succeeded, with their gender identity typically remaining a secret.

Brooke Keys explains.

Sarah Rosetta Wakeman, a disguised female who served in the US Civil War.

Context

At the dawn of the Civil War, the Union and Confederate armies recruited masses of young men to improve their chances of defeating the other side. Because of this desperation for soldiers, the armies failed to enforce strict requirements for enlisting. So, although the Union and Confederacy preferred that their ranks consisted of young men, ideally above eighteen years old, they still recruited a vast amount of adolescents. Not only this, but many lied about their ages to ensure that the army accepted them. After all, many people in the North and South maintained strong, oftentimes opposing, opinions on slavery, incentivizing them to support either the Union or Confederacy with their military service. 

This lack of strict requirements aided many men in the enlistment process. Unfortunately, it never helped the women, who the armies strictly banned from enlisting. By violating such a widely-known, highly-enforced rule, the women who disguised themselves as men demonstrated true bravery. They not only risked their lives, but they also risked severe punishment if caught.

Women in the Union Army

One woman who disguised herself as a man was Private Sarah Rosetta Wakeman. She constitutes one of hundreds of women who performed this feat, though many of their names have been lost to history. Intrigued by the monetary bonus offered to enlistees, Wakeman joined the 153rd New York Infantry Regiment on August 30th, 1862. Under the pseudonym Lyons Wakeman, Sarah joined the ranks and successfully blended in with the other recruits.

She traveled with the Union army to the Washington, DC area, where she operated as the provost. After a couple of years, the 153rd New York Infantry Regiment experienced a shift in leadership, eventually falling under the authority of Major General Nathaniel Banks. One month later, she and her fellow soldiers marched to Louisiana. Many of them died on the journey. When Wakeman reached Louisiana to participate in the Red River Campaign, she finally engaged in active combat. Prepared for battle, Wakeman fired at the Confederate soldiers at Pleasant Hill. Unfortunately, the Confederates prevailed, prompting the Union to retreat. Wakeman’s final battle occurred at Monett’s Bluff in late April. Shortly after, she found herself extremely ill. When Sarah Wakeman died on June 19, 1864, she died with the secret that she was actually a woman. Thanks to her family members who preserved her letters from the battlefield, however, Wakeman’s memory lives on.

Women in the Confederate Army

Although women in the Confederate army fought to preserve a morally-bankrupt institution, their stories remain important, at least from a historical standpoint. Their experiences illuminate the prominence of misogyny in the Antebellum, Civil War, and Reconstruction eras, and their rejection of gender roles proves worthy of examination.

One woman who disguised herself to fight for the Confederates was Lieutenant Loreta Janeta Velazquez. With Texas’s 1861 secession from the United States, Velazquez felt inspired to join the Confederate army with her husband. However, he refused to aid her in the enlistment process, so she adopted the name Harry T. Buford and joined the army anyway.

Velazquez then embarked on an eventful journey as a disguised soldier, even declaring herself a lieutenant and personally commanding a regiment. However, she ultimately abandoned this post and joined the Confederates in the Battle of Bull Run and the Battle of Ball’s Bluff. Shortly after her brush with combat, Velazquez abandoned the battlefield and served as a spy for the Confederacy. Because of the information she provided to them, they allowed her to join the detective corps.

Unsatisfied with her role as a spy, Velazquez joined a regiment in Tennessee and participated in the Battle of Fort Donelson, where she sustained a foot injury that prompted her to return to New Orleans. In New Orleans, authorities arrested her and accused her of spying for the Union. While Velazquez avoided those charges, she was reprimanded for impersonating a man and eventually released. To rejoin the Confederacy, she traveled back to Tennessee and found the regiment that she originally commanded. Together, they fought in the Battle of Shiloh, where Velazquez experienced an injury that required medical attention. Doctors quickly realized that she was a woman, meaning this injury symbolized the end of her journey as a soldier.

Intent on contributing to the war effort, Velazquez once again served as a spy for the Confederate army, and she later wrote her memoir, The Woman in Battle: A Narrative of the Exploits, Adventures, and Travels of Madame Loreta Janeta Velazquez, Otherwise Known as Lieutenant Harry T. Buford, Confederate States Army. According to historians, the information in this text remains contested, though it certainly contains some historical merit.

Conclusion

These accounts illustrate a new reality of life during the Civil War. Yes, women overarchingly remained in the domestic sphere and occupied a lower position than men, but some individuals refused to conform. Private Sarah Rosetta Wakeman and Lieutenant Loreta Janeta Velazquez are just a couple of women who, despite their gender, greatly influenced the sociopolitical landscape of a country torn apart by war.

What do you think of female soldiers in the American Civil War? Let us know below.

Posted
AuthorGeorge Levrier-Jones
Categories19th century, Blog Post
TagsFemale Soldiers, Female Soldiers US Civil War, Lieutenant Loreta Janeta Velazquez, Private Sarah Rosetta Wakeman