They were not just ahead of their time; they were ahead of our time.
May 16, 2023 11:44 AM Subscribe
Although it’s estimated that 750 women—likely more—fought as soldiers in the United States Civil War, the United States Army once declared that not a single woman ever fought. We know little from the women-soldiers themselves; many, like the men, could not read or write. Scholars rely heavily on obituaries and letters to piece together the stories of how they lived.
We tend to think of the Civil War as very much a man’s war: men fought; women held down the fort. The truth is much more complicated and fascinating, challenging our ideas of binary gender and ‘appropriate’ gender spheres during both war and peacetime.
One of the main takeaways from They Fought Like Demons is how women were able to disguise themselves and fight alongside men, often without ever being discovered. In the 19th century, gender was so strongly coded by hairstyle and clothing that if a woman wanted to fight, simply cutting off her hair and donning men’s clothing could fool most people.
Medical exams were unregulated and far from thorough. Recruits did not have to remove their clothes; often a cursory exam ruling out any obvious handicaps was all that was required to join the ranks.
At least one soldier assigned female at birth never relinquished his male identity. After he died, he was buried, in uniform, under his male name.
Another, after marrying and having children, fought to receive her veteran’s pension, fully supported by her former comrades, and became the only woman member of the Grand Army of the Republic.
Some women disguised themselves to fight with husbands or sweethearts. Some wanted the freedom of a man’s life. Some simply wanted to fight rather than “stay at home and weep.” Still others found soldiering a way to claim and live their true gender identity.
Books (via Indiebound):
Source of post title
(previously)
We tend to think of the Civil War as very much a man’s war: men fought; women held down the fort. The truth is much more complicated and fascinating, challenging our ideas of binary gender and ‘appropriate’ gender spheres during both war and peacetime.
One of the main takeaways from They Fought Like Demons is how women were able to disguise themselves and fight alongside men, often without ever being discovered. In the 19th century, gender was so strongly coded by hairstyle and clothing that if a woman wanted to fight, simply cutting off her hair and donning men’s clothing could fool most people.
Medical exams were unregulated and far from thorough. Recruits did not have to remove their clothes; often a cursory exam ruling out any obvious handicaps was all that was required to join the ranks.
At least one soldier assigned female at birth never relinquished his male identity. After he died, he was buried, in uniform, under his male name.
Another, after marrying and having children, fought to receive her veteran’s pension, fully supported by her former comrades, and became the only woman member of the Grand Army of the Republic.
Some women disguised themselves to fight with husbands or sweethearts. Some wanted the freedom of a man’s life. Some simply wanted to fight rather than “stay at home and weep.” Still others found soldiering a way to claim and live their true gender identity.
Books (via Indiebound):
- They Fought Like Demons by De Anne Blanton and Lauren M. Cook
- All the Daring of the Soldier by Elizabeth D. Leonard
- She Went to the Field: Women Soldiers of the Civil War by Bonnie Tsui
- Behind the Rifle: Women Soldiers in Civil War Mississippi by Shelby Harriel
- Women Soldiers of the Civil War – National Archives
- Female Soldiers in the Civil War – American Battlefield Trust
- The Women Who Fought in the Civil War – Smithsonian Magazine
- Women Soldiers of the Civil War – Civil War Saga
- List of Female Civil War Soldiers - Wikipedia
Source of post title
(previously)
Quite a while back, in a Metafilter thread I can't find now that concerned the relative lack of good roles for women in films, someone brought up the film Gettysburg as one that clearly had to have an all-male cast. Of course, that's not true; it's simply that all the women who were there got erased from the story. Lorinda Anna Blair received the Kearney Cross for bravery under fire! Another whose name we don't now know died in Pickett's Charge!
posted by kyrademon at 12:04 PM on May 16, 2023 [11 favorites]
posted by kyrademon at 12:04 PM on May 16, 2023 [11 favorites]
I read They Fought Like Demons several years ago. It's incredible how many women fought and how they got away with it for so long. Really amazing history.
posted by ceejaytee at 12:48 PM on May 16, 2023
posted by ceejaytee at 12:48 PM on May 16, 2023
The Cruel War is Raging (I grew up around the campfire with my mom and "uncle" (fam friend) playing folk guitar while we sang this one, among a thousand classics).
Relavent Lyrics:
I'll tie back my hair, men's clothing I'll put on,
I'll pass as your comrade, as we march along.
I'll pass as your comrade, no one will ever know.
Won't you let me go with you?
No, my love, no.
posted by atomicstone at 2:22 PM on May 16, 2023 [7 favorites]
Relavent Lyrics:
I'll tie back my hair, men's clothing I'll put on,
I'll pass as your comrade, as we march along.
I'll pass as your comrade, no one will ever know.
Won't you let me go with you?
No, my love, no.
posted by atomicstone at 2:22 PM on May 16, 2023 [7 favorites]
Related: FanFare's discussion of Pratchett's (fiction) book Monstrous Regiment.
posted by humbug at 2:38 PM on May 16, 2023 [4 favorites]
posted by humbug at 2:38 PM on May 16, 2023 [4 favorites]
This is utterly fascinating, and completely new to me. I can't wait to thoroughly dig in to all those links.
Thank you so much for crafting this so well, and for sharing it all with us, J. Tiberius!
posted by kristi at 2:49 PM on May 16, 2023 [4 favorites]
Thank you so much for crafting this so well, and for sharing it all with us, J. Tiberius!
posted by kristi at 2:49 PM on May 16, 2023 [4 favorites]
“…very much a man’s war: men fought; women held down the fort. The truth is much more complicated and fascinating…”
Truth is always more complicated and fascinating than any simple story, and we can and should recognise and remember women’s presence where it was never acknowledged, or more likely, erased. But, if the number of women soldiers really was 750, it was still very much a man’s war as far as soldiers were concerned: two or so women for every ten thousand men (750/2,300,000) doesn’t really change that. Though it does make the 750 extra badass.
posted by Quinbus Flestrin at 3:32 PM on May 16, 2023 [1 favorite]
Truth is always more complicated and fascinating than any simple story, and we can and should recognise and remember women’s presence where it was never acknowledged, or more likely, erased. But, if the number of women soldiers really was 750, it was still very much a man’s war as far as soldiers were concerned: two or so women for every ten thousand men (750/2,300,000) doesn’t really change that. Though it does make the 750 extra badass.
posted by Quinbus Flestrin at 3:32 PM on May 16, 2023 [1 favorite]
Fox News (ugh, I know) is doing a podcast series about women in the Civil War–women who in many cases donned "male" attire so that they could play a role. I keep wondering if the anti-trans folks at Fox see any irony in the fact that they're promoting this "woke" history.
posted by matkline at 3:32 PM on May 16, 2023 [2 favorites]
posted by matkline at 3:32 PM on May 16, 2023 [2 favorites]
Well, now I feel bad and need to do what I know (anyway) as the final verse:
Oh Johnny, oh Johnny, I fear you are unkind
I love you far better than all of mankind.
I love you far better than words can e're express
Won't you let me go with you?
Yes, my love, yes.
posted by atomicstone at 3:39 PM on May 16, 2023 [3 favorites]
Oh Johnny, oh Johnny, I fear you are unkind
I love you far better than all of mankind.
I love you far better than words can e're express
Won't you let me go with you?
Yes, my love, yes.
posted by atomicstone at 3:39 PM on May 16, 2023 [3 favorites]
women who in many cases donned "male" attire so that they could play a role. I keep wondering if the anti-trans folks at Fox see any irony in the fact that they're promoting this "woke" history.
As has played out on Metafilter many, many times before (dig out any James Barry FPP), they will simply insist that all women who fought as men in the Civil War did so as a matter of convenience and returned to gender-conforming, heteronormative lives post-war. And for some, possibly most, that was true! But, as noted in the FPP, some can reasonably be described as trans and others were surely queer women.
posted by hoyland at 3:51 PM on May 16, 2023 [2 favorites]
As has played out on Metafilter many, many times before (dig out any James Barry FPP), they will simply insist that all women who fought as men in the Civil War did so as a matter of convenience and returned to gender-conforming, heteronormative lives post-war. And for some, possibly most, that was true! But, as noted in the FPP, some can reasonably be described as trans and others were surely queer women.
posted by hoyland at 3:51 PM on May 16, 2023 [2 favorites]
Utterly fascinating. In the initial story, Frank Moore's "Women of the War" is mentioned, and, as a collector of old books (he published in 1866) I realized that I have that book! The (sadly short) chapter mentions only three examples of female soldiers, with three different reasons for joining.
This is such a great post. I have a fascination with both the Revolutionary War (growing up and living in an area heavy with history related to it) and the Civil War, and now I'm reading Moore's book. Thank you again!!
posted by annieb at 4:13 PM on May 16, 2023 [3 favorites]
This is such a great post. I have a fascination with both the Revolutionary War (growing up and living in an area heavy with history related to it) and the Civil War, and now I'm reading Moore's book. Thank you again!!
posted by annieb at 4:13 PM on May 16, 2023 [3 favorites]
There's an excellent novel about a woman who fights in the Civil War as a man: Neverhome by Laird Hunt.
posted by CheeseDigestsAll at 5:17 PM on May 16, 2023 [2 favorites]
posted by CheeseDigestsAll at 5:17 PM on May 16, 2023 [2 favorites]
(I do really love the song, but I have less than zero knowledge of AFAB people in the Civil War and don't mean to displace anyone with wives trying to follow their husbands as the song depicts)
posted by atomicstone at 6:15 PM on May 16, 2023
posted by atomicstone at 6:15 PM on May 16, 2023
My great-grandmother many times over was one of them. The family story was that she did it to stay with her husband since they were recent immigrants from Germany. We have a picture of them together and she’s wearing a typical Union uniform but otherwise she doesn’t seem like she is trying to present as masculine. It’s unclear what she did although it unlikely that she was actually fighting per se, both her and her husband were probably cooks or in the band.
posted by scantee at 6:31 PM on May 16, 2023 [4 favorites]
posted by scantee at 6:31 PM on May 16, 2023 [4 favorites]
Thanks for posting those lyrics--I didn't remember the song title but definitely the words. This is a wonderful post and discussion. Thanks to all.
posted by etaoin at 9:35 PM on May 17, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by etaoin at 9:35 PM on May 17, 2023 [1 favorite]
Different war, same sentiment --
The Banks of the Nile, sung by Naihm Parsons
The Banks of the Nile, Fotheringay (Sandy Dennis) lyrics
Oh, but I'll cut off my yellow hair, and I'll go along with you
I'll dress myself in uniform, and I'll see Egypt too
I'll march beneath your banner while fortune it do smile
And we'll comfort one another on the banks of the Nile
But your waist it is too slender, and your fingers they are too small
In the sultry suns of Egypt your rosy cheeks would spoil
Where the cannons they do rattle, when the bullets they do fly
And the silver trumpets sound so loud to hide the dismal cries
posted by TrishaU at 3:09 AM on May 18, 2023 [1 favorite]
The Banks of the Nile, sung by Naihm Parsons
The Banks of the Nile, Fotheringay (Sandy Dennis) lyrics
Oh, but I'll cut off my yellow hair, and I'll go along with you
I'll dress myself in uniform, and I'll see Egypt too
I'll march beneath your banner while fortune it do smile
And we'll comfort one another on the banks of the Nile
But your waist it is too slender, and your fingers they are too small
In the sultry suns of Egypt your rosy cheeks would spoil
Where the cannons they do rattle, when the bullets they do fly
And the silver trumpets sound so loud to hide the dismal cries
posted by TrishaU at 3:09 AM on May 18, 2023 [1 favorite]
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posted by grobstein at 11:48 AM on May 16, 2023