The Horse’s War: The Role of Equids in the American Civil War

With today being President’s Day, I thought I would share a historical article this week! I hope you enjoy!

Few of the battles in American history have more horse involvement than the Civil War. From the famous war horses of generals to the obstinate pack mules, the three million equines who entered the Civil War when it began went into a service that 1.5 million of them never returned from, making the equids of the Civil War the highest death count of either Confederate or Union sides. 

While the Civil War isn’t one of America’s most glorious parts of history, it is important to remember what happened in the past, especially now when people are trying to rewrite history.

With that being said, let’s dive in.

The Structure of the Cavalry

The cavalry was a unique part of the army that allowed a greater amount of distance to be covered than on foot and conserved the men’s energy. A man on horseback could see more of the battle than a man on foot, so often they scouted out the battle and brought back reports to their superiors. Each cavalry regiment had twelve troops, with 100 soldiers on horseback in each troop headed by a captain. Weapons in both Confederate and Union cavalries usually consisted of a saber, or sword, a revolver, and a gun known as a Maynard Carbine, although some Confederates preferred smaller weapons and muzzle-loading rifles to make the loads on the horses lighter. 

The Union Cavalry VS the Confederate Cavalry

What is most interesting about the Civil War cavalry is the difference of horsemanship. In the industrialized north, horses were little more than a mode of transport. Many Union cavalrymen did not know how to ride or even the basics of horsemanship, so the Union horses were often in poor condition and suffered from thrush and colic.  

On the other hand, in the agricultural South, horses weren’t just a form of transport: horses were their livelihoods. Most of the horsemen had grown up understanding the value of a horse, that it wasn’t just a disposable piece of equipment. In the South, horses plowed their fields, pulled their wagons, carried their doctors, fed their families through their labor. Equids in the South were a way of life deeply engrained in their culture. Kentucky was known for its fine Thoroughbreds and Saddlebreds, Tennessee for their Tennessee Walkers. Gaited, smooth-walking horses supplied the army with animals that they could comfortably ride for hours. 

Also in contrast between armies was the amount of “rented” horses. The Union army, from lack of horsemanship, burned through horses so fast there was often a death of three to six horses per rider.  Most of the horses were taken from farms and the riders made no attempt to form a connection with them. 

On the contrary for the Confederates. Many of them brought their own horses, choosing their most dependable mounts from their stables. Robert E. Lee is an exception: he bought Traveller, his gray Saddlebred, shortly after the Confederate army was formed. However, he formed a very close bond with Traveller, and the horse devoted himself to Lee. General “Stonewall” Jackson had a horse he called Little Sorrel, who soon became the mascot for the regiment based on his courage and steadfast work. After Jackson was killed, Sorrel was taken to Jackson’s wife, later living out the rest of his 36 years at the Virginia Military Institute. 

Not to say that Union officers didn’t form a bond with their handlers. General Phillip Sheridan rode a black Morgan horse he named Rienzi after a battle in the town of Rienzi, Mississippi. The horse’s incredible speed saved his life when he was ambushed by Confederates during a 12-mile trek from Washington into Winchester, where his men were waiting. Rienzi managed to carry his master all twelve miles to safety, and afterwards was named Winchester. He is now on display as a taxidermy product at the Smithsonian.

Ulysses Simpson Grant is the owner of yet another famous horse, Cincinnati. The 17-hand chestnut Thoroughbred was given as a gift to Grant, and the love the general had for the gelding was so strong he even took the horse with him to the White House. He only let a select few ride his prized gelding, among them Abraham Lincoln. 

Common Equine Breeds

The most common horse breeds used in the Civil War were Morgans (mostly in the North), Saddlebreds, and Thoroughbreds. A few were Morgan/Thoroughbred crosses. It was definitely the Morgan horse’s war, at least when it came to the Union. Morgans were developed in Vermont, while Saddlebreds and Thoroughbreds were more common in Kentucky.  

Morgans were steady, reliable, and eager to please, all excellent qualities for a cavalry horse. Five of the calvaries were entirely Morgans when they were organized: First Maine Cavalry, Second and Third Michigan Cavalries, Fifth New York Cavalry Company H, Fourth Virginia Cavalry Company H, First Rhode Island Company, Fourteen Pennsylvania Cavalry, and the unit known for the most replacement shipments of horses, the First Vermont Cavalry. Both Winchester and Little Sorrel were also Morgans.

Mules were also used in the army, but they were known for being stubborn and hard to handle. In a large section of a chapter in Co. Aytch, Sam Watkins talks about his trouble with the mule he was assigned, as well as another officer’s trouble with a young filly trying to adjust to the sounds of battle. Mules also never do anything they don’t think will be safe for them, so none of them took the inexperience of the soldiers very lightly. However, they could regulate their drinking (meaning a tired mule won’t overdrink and accidentally give himself colic like a horse will), their feet were stronger, and they ate less. Because of their stubborn nature, they were more often used as pack animals than for riding.

The Costs of War

It’s estimated that 1.5 million horses and mules died during the Civil War, twice as many as the number of human deaths. George Custer had eleven horses die. General Sherridan had 24. Confederate General Forrest holds the record for the most horses shot from under him: 39. Horses like Traveller, Cincinnati, Winchester, and Sorrel were fortunate to have outlived the war. The First Vermont Cavalry started out with 1,200 Morgan steeds, and by the end of the war, only 200 horses had survived.

War life was hard on horses. Besides saddle sores from the long days of riding, poor hoof care meant that many horses came down with thrush, a bacterial disease of the hooves, colic from the rapidly changing feed and water conditions, and there is one recorded instance of a glanders (an extremely contagious and deadly respiratory disease) outbreak in a Union regiment.⁷ Several horses were put down for lameness, and some would drop dead from exhaustion. 

With so many horse bodies to take care of and little time to dig the depth of hole needed, horses were often just left where they were— a great nuisance to citizens in populated areas. Some people made the best of it. One woman made a small fortune selling horse bones and hooves to melt into glue. 

Horses had many more uses in the Civil War than just mounts. They were also used to pull the “ambulances”, four or two-wheeled wagons used to cart injured soldiers to the hospitals. Horses were used to pull caissons and limbers, wagons that contained pieces of artillery and ammunition. Mules were used to pull the army wagon in groups of six, being too ornery to trust with the ambulances. 

Fortunately, the brave horses weren’t forgotten. Writers delved into the horses used by soldiers, such as Gene Armistead in his book Horses and Mules in the Civil War: A Complete Roster of Over 700 Horses, or the books Stonewall Jackson’s Little Sorrel: An Unlikely Hero of the Civil War, Horses in Gray, and The Real Horse Soldiers, captured the heroism of the cavalry while also reminding others that the war was not all fun and games.

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The staggering amounts of stories from the Civil War about the brave horses and mules remind people that this was truly the horse’s war. There are several places where you can see the taxidermized remains of the most famous horses. But perhaps the strongest memory of these equine heroes will remain in the tales told, battles won, and books written about these courageous steeds.