Ranks and insignia of the Confederate States

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to navigation Jump to search

Template:Short description Script error: No such module "Unsubst". The ranks and insignia of the Confederate States were a rank insignia system devised for the military of the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War.

Confederate States Army (CSA)

File:War of the Rebellion Atlas Plate 172.jpg
Color plate from the War of the Rebellion Atlas depicting Union rank insignia (top row) and Confederate uniforms and ranks (bottom row)

Officers

At the beginning of the Civil War, the ranks and rank insignias for the fledgling Confederate States Army had to be developed while the volunteer forces of the individual states that formed the Confederacy made up their own ranks and insignias. They usually were similar or influenced by both their own militia traditions and those used by the regular United States Army.

Officers wore, according to regulations, a combination of several rank indicators on their uniform. The primary insignia was a number of bars or stars worn on the collar of the uniform coat or tunic. This was occasionally substituted for, or coupled with, shoulder straps. The secondary insignia were Austrian knots, elaborate patterns sewed on the lower sleeves with the number of lines indicating the rank. In 1862 those were ordered not be worn on the field uniform and thus mostly relegated to parade dress. In addition the regulation Kepi had a similar knot pattern on sides and top but other hats without insignia were frequently worn.

Most junior officers wore tunics and coats with a single row of seven buttons while field officers wore two rows, however there were exceptions. Generals could be recognized by the eagles on their buttons and the placement of the buttons in groups of two. While there was no official insignia distinction for different grades of general, all wearing three stars in a wreath on the collar, some major generals adopted the pattern of their Union counterparts by wearing two rows of nine buttons in groups of three.Template:Sfn

Template:Ranks and Insignia of Non NATO Armed Forces/OF/Blank
KepiTemplate:Sfn File:Confederate General's Kepi.JPG File:Confederate Cavalry Colonel's Kepi.JPG File:Confederate Infantry Captain's Kepi.JPG File:Confederate Artillery Lieutenant's Kepi.JPG
Collar and
sleeve insigniaTemplate:Sfn
File:Confederate States of America General-Staff Officer.svg File:Confederate States of America Colonel-Infantry.svg File:Confederate States of America Lieutenant Colonel-Staff Officer.svg File:Confederate States of America Major-Medical.svg File:Confederate States of America Captain-Marines.svg File:Confederate States of America First Lieutenant-Artillery.svg File:Confederate States of America Second Lieutenant-Cavalry.svg
Generals Colonel
(infantry)
Lieutenant colonel
(staff or engineers)
Major
(medical service)
Captain
(marine corps)
First lieutenant
(artillery)
Second lieutenant
(cavalry)

Non-commissioned officers

Ranks were worn as chevrons on the right and left sleeves above the elbow. They were colored according to service branch:

  • Infantry = Blue
  • Artillery = Red
  • Cavalry = Yellow
  • Engineers = Yellow (or gold)
  • Ordnance = Crimson
  • Militia = Black (or gray)
Enlisted rank structure
Sergeant major Quartermaster sergeant Ordnance sergeant First sergeant Sergeant Corporal Musician Private
File:Union Army Infantry Sergeant Major.svg File:Union Army Infantry Quartermaster Sergeant.svg File:Union Army Infantry Ordnance Sergeant.svg File:Union Army Infantry First Sergeant.svg File:Union Army Infantry Sergeant.svg File:Union Army Infantry Corporal.svg No insignia No insignia

Brass shoulder scales were worn on dress uniforms, with different features to signify enlisted ranks. Shoulder scales were not normally worn on service or fatigue uniforms. When in full dress and sometimes also in battle, sergeants in non-mounted service branches carried the M1840 NCO sword suspending on a leather belt (except for hospital stewards who carried a special sword model). Additionally all ranks above sergeant (i.e. first sergeant, ordnance sergeant, hospital steward, sergeant major etc.) wore crimson worsted waist sashes (in the Confederate States Army, all sergeant ranks wore swords and worsted waist sashes: red for artillery and infantry, yellow for cavalry).

Confederate States Navy (CSN)

Script error: No such module "Unsubst".

Officers

Officers of the Confederate States Navy used, just like the army, a combination of several rank insignias to indicate their rank.[1]Template:Better source needed While both hat insignia and sleeve insignia were used here the primary indicator were shoulder straps. Only line officers wore those straps shown below as officers of various staff departments (medical, pay, engineering and naval construction) had separate ranks and different straps. Likewise the anchor symbol on the hats was substituted accordingly and they did not wear loops on the sleeve insignias.

Template:Ranks and Insignia of Non NATO Armed Forces/OF/Blank
HatTemplate:Sfn File:Csn cover flag.png File:Csn cover capt.png File:Csn cover cmdr.png File:Csn cover lieut.png File:Csn cover mast.png File:Csn cover pmid.png File:Csn cover mid.png
ShoulderTemplate:Sfn File:Csn strap flag.png File:Csn strap capt.png File:Csn strap cmdr.png File:Confederate States of America Lieutenant strap-Navy.png File:Confederate States of America Master strap-Navy.png File:Confederate States of America Passed Midshipman strap-Navy.png No insignia
SleeveTemplate:Sfn File:Confederates-Navy-Flag officer (sleeve).svg File:Confederates-Navy-Captain (sleeve).svg File:Confederates-Navy-Commander (sleeve).svg File:Confederates-Navy-Lieutenant (sleeve).svg File:Confederates-Navy-Master (sleeve).svg File:Confederates-Navy-Midshipman (sleeve).svg File:Confederates-Navy-Midshipman (sleeve).svg
Flag officer Captain Commander Lieutenant Master Passed midshipman Midshipman

Enlisted

Boatswain Petty officer
(Boatswain's mate and equivalent)
Petty officer
(Quartermasters and equivalent)
Seaman
Sleeve File:Confederate States of America Midshipman-Navy.png File:Confederates-Navy-Boatswain's Mate.png File:Confederates-Navy-Petty Officer.svg File:Confederates-Navy-Seaman.svg

Confederate States Marine Corps (CSMC)

The small Confederate States Marine Corps utilized insignia almost identical to that of the Army with the major difference being changes in color or facing direction of chevrons.

Officers

Colonel-commandant Lieutenant colonel Major Captain First lieutenant Second lieutenant
File:Confederate States of America Colonel-Marines.png File:Confederate States of America Lieutenant Colonel-Marines.png File:Confederate States of America Major-Marines.png File:Confederate States of America Captain-Marines.png File:Confederate States of America First Lieutenant-Marines.png File:Confederate States of America Second Lieutenant-Marines.jpg

Non-commissioned officers

Sergeant Major Quartermaster sergeant Ordnance sergeant First sergeant Sergeant Corporal
File:Confederate States of America Sergeant Major-Marines.png File:Confederate States of America Quartermaster Sergeant-Marines.png File:Confederate States of America Ordnance Sergeant-Marines.png File:Confederate States of America First Sergeant-Marines.png File:Confederate States of America Sergeant-Marines.png File:Confederate States of America Corporal-Marines.png

See also

Script error: No such module "Side box". Script error: No such module "Portal".

References

<templatestyles src="Reflist/styles.css" />

  1. Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".

Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".

  • Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  • Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  • Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".

External links

Template:Military ranks by country