The Role of Women in the Civil War

The Civil War was a turning point to women and marked a new era for their roles in society. Previously, the life of women centered on ideals of what was called “the Cult of True Womanhood.” Women were viewed to be lesser than men and were expected to cook, wash, take care of their children and be submissive to their husbands. However, during the Civil War, women turned their attention to the outside world, and thousands volunteered in various roles. Some women played the role of nurses, others volunteered in the frontline, and many acted as spies. As such, women had a vital role in the American Civil War, and their involvement will continue to be a historical legacy. 

Women as Nurses

Numerous women volunteered as nurses and provided medical attention to the injured and wounded soldiers. For example, Dorothea Dix formed was the Union’s nurses and comprised of about 3000 volunteers who attended to the soldiers. Clara Barton served as a nurse and created a system that provided medical supplies to the troops. Barton was a heroine during the Civil War and was called "Angel of the Battlefield." She played a critical role in organizing the searches of the missing soldiers and helped to identify the dead. In 1881, she created the American Red Cross due to the experience she had in war. Sojourner Truth is another woman who helped to nurse the soldiers by collecting supplies for the black soldiers and devoted herself to improving their conditions.

Nurses carried the sick and injured troops from the front lines and treated them. Government built “a preventive hygienic and sanitary service for the benefit of the army” which was a sanitary commission that helped to prevent diseases and infections (Slavicek 17). The objective was primarily to improve the conditions of the troops in the hospitals and camps. The commission also provided relief to the ill soldiers. At “the end of the Civil War, the sanitary commission had given out about $15 million in supplies to the Union Army” (Slavicek 29). The army nurses moved in hospitals to provide efficient care and charitable services to the wounded and sick troops. The nurses also played the role of housekeepers and mothers for the soldiers.

Women in the frontlines

Women did not only work as nurses but also disguised as men enlisted in the army in order to take up the frontline role in the Confederacy and the Union. About 400 women volunteered to be on the frontline and fought as men out of the sense of patriotism (Hall 6). Women in the Union wanted to help eradicate slavery and free the slaves. For example “Sarah Rosetta Wakeman enlisted as Private Lyons Wakeman and served as a private in the 153rd New York Infantry Regiment” (Hall 10). Wakeman fought in the Pleasant Hill battle and shortly became sick and died. Additionally, Sarah Edmonds was known to be Franklin Thompson soldier, and she volunteered to fight in several battles such as the Second Battle at Manassas, the Battle of Williamsburg and the Siege of Yorktown (Hall 34). She also worked as a female nurse. Women who fought on the frontlines risked death and capture in their attempt to showcase patriotism.

Women as Spymasters

Obtaining information on the enemy tactics was cornerstone weaponry during Civil War. Vast women played the role of spies both for the Confederate and the Union. Harriet Tubman was well known as the “conductor” was a Union spy. She organized the former slaves in the South into a network of spies and thus acquired a lot of information from the slave network. She gave the Union the information, and this culminated in a military expeditions that eventually freed about 700 slave people in the south (Marshall 18). Besides, there was massive destruction on the Confederate Army depot. A wealthy widow called Elizabeth Van Lew brought supplies to the Union prisoners, and in her visits, she picked essential tactics and information about the Confederate position. She later passed what she found to the Union and helped to free many slaves. Mary Elizabeth Bowser was also an effective Union spy. Elizabeth worked in Jefferson Davis house who was the Confederate president. Elizabeth’s role enabled her to obtain a lot of information and passed it to the Union. Equally, spies in the Confederate were important. For instance, Isabella "Belle" Boyd was the Confederate spy and convinced the union soldiers to share information with her on their movement (Marshall 27). Isabella provided the information to the Confederate officers concerning the plans of the union on blowing the bridges in Martinsburg. Isabella's information was fundamental as it made Jackson succeed in moving the Union soldiers from the Shenandoah Valley.

Conclusion

During the Civil War, the profound role played by women helped the soldiers in one way or the other. The war provided women with the opportunities to take part in the public sphere and showcase their patriotism. Women voiced their views and played vital roles such as nurses, spies and fought in the frontline. Indeed, the outbreak of the Civil War changed the ideology of women and vitally made them to be in the public life and involved in roles that were unimaginable. Undoubtedly, the Civil War altered the definitions sphere of true womanhood and the contribution of women will remain to be a historical legacy.

Works Cited

Hall, Richard. Women on the Civil War Battlefront. University Press of Kansas, 2006.

Marshall, Anne E. "The Essence of Liberty: Free Black Women during the Slave Era, and: Women on the Civil War Battle Front". Civil War History, vol 53, no. 2, 2007, pp. 214-215. Johns Hopkins University Press, doi:10.1353/cwh.2007.0038.

Slavicek, Louise Chipley. Women and the Civil War. Chelsea House, 2009.