answersLogoWhite

0


Best Answer

The United States has its own history of child soldiers. During the U.S. Civil War (1861-1865), thousands of boys under the age of 18 served in the Union and Confederate armies. But most of those boys didn't carry weapons as they were armed with Musical Instruments: drums, bugles, and fifes!

In fact, Army rules prevented boys from enlisting as soldiers but did permit them to be military musicians. Most of the boys knew very little about music. They were just anxious to be a part of the war effort. Playing an instrument during the Civil War didn't mean entertaining troops between battles. Musicians played an important role in the war. There is controversy in this however. One web site has statistics that are staggering. More than 2,000,000 Federal soldiers were twenty-one or under (of a total of some 2,700,000)-

More than 1,000,000 were eighteen or under.

About 800,000 were seventeen or under.

About 200,000 were sixteen or under.

About 100,000 were fifteen or under.

Three hundred were thirteen or under were mostly fifers or drummers, but regularly enrolled, and sometimes fighters. Twenty-five were ten or under.

Confederate figures are skimpier, but one sample of 11,000 men produced about 8,000, the great majority, between eighteen and twenty-nine. There was one of thirteen, and three were fourteen; 31 were fifteen; 200 were sixteen; 366 were seventeen; and about a thousand were eighteen. The Confederate figures during the war was unreliable as some states did not keep accurate statistics such as Alabama. The statistics above is referenced to a book titled "The Civil War, Strange and Fascinating Facts" by Burke Davis.

User Avatar

Wiki User

13y ago
This answer is:
User Avatar

Add your answer:

Earn +20 pts
Q: Underaged soldiers in the US civil war?
Write your answer...
Submit
Still have questions?
magnify glass
imp
Related questions

How many soldiers served on both sides during the US Civil War?

Nearly three million soldiers served in the US Civil War.


What war killed the most US Soldiers?

the civil war


Which soldiers in the civil war were union?

The soldiers of the Army of the United States were known as the 'Union' during the US Civil War. The soldiers of the opposing side, the Confederate States Army, were the rebels.The soldiers of the Army of the United States were the 'Union' during the US Civil War. The soldiers of the opposing side, the Confederate States Army were the rebels.


What were free soldiers in the US Civil War?

dumb people


How many french soldiers from the Civil War are buried in US?

There were no french in the civil war their are some in the revolution though.


Physical therapy in the us evolved around caring for soldiers in what war?

Civil War


Who had more soldiers in the US Civil War?

In the US Civil War, the large population in the Northern states allowed to field many more troops than the South. During the US Civil War, the Union had as many as two million soldiers in uniform. The South had fewer than 900,000 troops in total.


What were the uniforms they wore in the US civil war?

In the US Civil War, the soldiers of the north wore a dark blue uniform, and the soldiers of the south wore gray uniforms. The war is still remembered in terms of blue vs. gray.


How many soldiers were injured in the US Civil War?

Approximately 412,000.


How many soldiers were involved in the US Civil War?

The best estimate was that in the North, almost two million soldiers were in the military during the course of the US Civil War. The best estimate for the Confederacy is perhaps 750,000.


What was a constant threat to soldiers in the US Civil War?

For soldiers on both sides of the US Civil War, a major and consistent threat for soldiers were diseases such as malaria and dysentery. Also, the large number of amputations during the war, often resulted in infections due to the lack of antibiotic medicines.


How many Union soldiers were under the age of twenty one during the US Civil War?

It is estimated that more than 2 million Union soldiers were under the age of 21 during the US Civil War.