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= **//Prisoner of War Camps During the American Civil War//** =


 * Intro:**

The confederate and union armies had to confront a unique problem during the American civil war; what to do with the large number of captured enemy forces. Never before had an American army had to deal with huge numbers of captured enemy forces. The prisoners of war had to be locked away, kept away from enemy rescue forces, and fed for extended periods of time. At the same time that massive numbers of captured soldiers were being locked up in prisons on both sides vital resources were being siphoned off to outfit the massive armies of both the North and the South that resulted in deplorable conditions for the prisoners.


 * Policy Towards Enemy Prisoners of War:**

During the American Civil War there was no system in place for dealing with large numbers of prisoners of war on either the North or The South sides. Both sides relied on, what was then the traditional European system of parole and exchange of prisoners. President Lincoln determined the union policy towards southern prisoners. He declared that the confederate states were in rebellion rather then an independent nation. The result is that captured confederate soldiers were regarded as traitors and rebels. In fact this is the same way that Great Britain had considered the American Colonists during the revolutionary war.

At the start of the war the Federal Government refused to exchange confederate prisoners for Union prisoners. However, in July of 1862 General John Dix of the Union army met with General D. Hill of the Confederate Army to determine an exchange rate for prisoners. They established an exchange rate of 60 enlisted men for every general, 15 enlisted soldiers for a colonel, 4 for a lieutenant, and 2 enlisted men for every sergeant. Unfortunately, when Ulysses S. Grant became the head of the Union army he eliminated the exchange of prisoners. General Grant believed that union soldiers who were exchanged for confederate soldiers were not physically fit to return to active duty in the Union army whereas confederate prisoners of war were fit to return to active duty and simply added to the Confederate fighting force. Once the exchange of prisoners came to an end the number of prisoners on both the North and South side began to swell.


 * Fate of Civil War Prisoners:**

An Estimated 56,000 prisoners perished in Civil War prison camps run by both the North and the South. Poor nutrition, poor sanitation in the camps, and shortages of fresh food, shelter and clothing, all contributed to the high death rate and spread of disease among the prisoners.

When the Civil War ended the War Department published figures that revealed of the 200,000 Confederate soldiers incarcerated over 26,500 died in Union P.O.W. prisons. 22,526 of the 260,526 captured Union soldiers died in Confederate prisons.

The prisoner of war camp that most exemplifies the harsh conditions that prisoners had to endure was Andersonville Prison Camp of the Confederate Army


 * Andersonville Prison:**

Anderson Prison, which was officially known as Camp Sumter was the largest P.O.W. camp built during the Civil War. It was built in 1864 on 16 ½ acres of land. The sight was chosen because it was far away from actual fighting which allowed for the prisoners to be guarded by a relatively small force. Also, by being remotely located there was less of a chance that Union raids would try to free the prisoners. A stockade was created by placing 20 ft high pine logs stuck five feet deep into the ground. The stockade was approximately 1600 ft long and 800 ft wide. Sentry stations were placed along the stockade where guards could observe the prisoners and shoot anyone trying to escape. In fact there was a “deadline” 19 feet from the stockade wall; anyone who stepped over the line was subject to being shot. The stockade had a small stream running through it. The nearby town of Andersonville was located on the railroad, which would help deliver supplies. It was also thought that since the prison was in an agricultural area, there would be enough food for the prisoners. The original stockade was planned to hold 10,000 prisoners. Prisoners started arriving in February of 1864. By August of 1864, there were more the 32,000 prisoners locked within the stockade walls. Due to severe overcrowding, and the need to supply its own fighting forces with scare vital resources the confederate army quickly found that it was unable to provide for the prisoners. There was inadequate housing, food, sanitation, and medical care for the P.O.W.s. During the 14 primary months that it operated, more then 45,000 captured union soldiers were sent to Andersonville Prison. A staggering 13,000 died during their captivity due to the poor conditions in the camp. In fact, the first American to ever be tried for war crimes in the United States was the commandant of the Andersonville Prison, Captain Henry Wirz of the Confederate Army.

Henry Wirz was born in 1822 in Zurich Switzerland. He graduated from the University of Zurich and earned a medical degree from Berlin. He immigrated to the US in 1849 and joined the Confederate Army at the outbreak of the War. He was wounded and lost the use of his right arm. He was eventually appointed as commandant of the Andersonville Prison. While he was commandant the conditions of the Union prisoners was deplorable. There was not enough food or water and soldiers were left to starve to death. In May of 1865 the Union Army entered Andersonville Prison. Photographs depicting the horrific conditions and human suffering were published in //Harper’s Weekly,// The photographs created a public outcry which demanded that the Confederate Officers responsible for the suffering of so many Union prisoners be held accountable. Wirz was eventually tried and convicted of “Wanton Cruelty” and sentenced to death by hanging. Just before his execution Wirz claimed that he was only “following orders” which is the same defense that Nazi Officers claimed after WWII.
 * Captain Henry Wirz**

When prisoners arrived at Andersonville Prison or any of the other over crowed prisons of the Union or Confederate Armies they found a lack of many of life’s basic necessities. Most had to create their own crude shelter. These dwellings were referred to as “shebang” and were constructed out of rocks, branches, brush, clothing, and whatever else the prisoners could find. Clothing was in short supply and there was no soap to launder the clothes or bathe. When a prisoner died his clothing was stripped and used by the other prisoners. Food and clean water were in short supply. It was even hard to cook what food was available since wood was scarce for cooking fires. Prisoners also had to contend with other prisoners who banded together in gangs to improve their condition by preying on other prisoners. These gangs stole food and possessions from other prisoners. In Andersonville Prison a gang of prisoners called the “Raiders” stole and even killed fellow soldiers to try to improve their condition. These gangs only added to the suffering of prisoners.
 * Life as a Prisoner:**

The horrendous conditions in the prisons lead to the death of thousands of Union and Confederate soldiers. For many captured soldiers being sent to one of these prisons was a death sentence. Most of the prisoners knew that the only way to avoid death was to escape.


 * An Elaborate Escape:**

While escape from these prisons was difficult some soldiers did mange to escape. The Libby Prison break out is the most famous escape of the Civil War. Libby Prison was a converted ship supply shop in Richmond. It was used by the Confederates to imprison captured Union officers. It was believed to be essentially inescapable. However, during the night of February 9, 1864 109 Union officers managed to escape out of the building by first breaking into a chimney which allowed them into a lower, rat infested room and then dig a tunnel to an adjacent lot of land. The confederate jailors were taken completely by surprise. Of the 109 escapees 59 eventually made it back to Union lines, 48 were recaptured and returned to the prison, and two drowned trying to escape. The ringleader of the escape, Colonel Rose, was recaptured and returned to Libby Prison. Colonel Rose eventually gained his freedom when he was exchanged for a Confederate colonel.

An area to be researched would be other Civil War era prisoner of war camps. Specifically, it would be interesting to learn more about Union Prisoner of war camps. In fact, there appears to have been a Union prison in Boston During the civil war at Fort Warren. It would be interesting to learn more about the Boston connection to Civil War prisons.
 * Future Additions/Research:**

It would interesting to get a copy of the original article in //Harper’s Weekly// about the conditions at the Andersonville prison.
 * Bibliography/Hyperlinks to External Sites**


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