Recognizing Rank
In today’s army, the rank of non-commissioned officers is displayed with the point of the chevron facing up. During the Civil War, the chevrons pointed downward, except in the Marines, whose chevrons pointed up then as they do today. The chevrons or "stripes" worn on the sleeves of the jackets or coats of non-commissioned officers were essentially the same for both the Union and the Confederate armies. Although there were some differences, the differences are adequately obscure in the context of re-enacting as to do no one harm by omitting to deal with them here.
However, identifying the respective ranks of Union and Confederate commissioned officers is not so easy a task, and can be confusing. One primary difference between the two lies in the location of the rank insignia, for the Union officers’ rank was displayed on shoulder straps. The Confederate officer displayed his rank in specific on his collar, and in general on his sleeve.
Location of the rank insignia would not be confusing in itself if the designations of rank were the same, but they are not. A second lieutenant in the Union army had a shoulder strap whose field was blank; the Confederate second lieutenant had a collar insignia which was a single bar; the single bar, however, on the shoulder strap of a Union officer told everyone that he was a first lieutenant. Two horizontal bars on the collar of the Confederate officer announced that he was a first lieutenant, but two bars on the Union office meant that he was a captain. When the Union officer displayed leaves or an eagle as rank, the Confederate officer’s corresponding rank became a series of stars.
Federal Artillery Shoulder Straps
(Originals)
A lieutenant general in the Union army was recognized by the three stars on his shoulder straps. Three stars on the collar of a Confederate officer proclaimed that the man was a colonel. That is, of course, unless there were wreaths encircling the stars, in which case the Confederate officer was a general - any rank of general. All of this was complicated by the propensity of some generals, Robert E. Lee included, to wear the three stars without the encircling wreaths, which then indicated that that man was a colonel - unless you knew better.
For these reasons, we have found it important to include the ranks of non-commissioned and non-commissioned officers. We have elected not to include the contrafoil found on many officers’ kepis for this single reason: the braiding, or contrafoil, found on the sleeves of Confederate officers’ uniforms is the same pattern of braiding for rank designation found on the kepis. The easiest way to remember the contrafoil "key" to rank is this: one braid width is a second or first lieutenant; two braids side-by-side in the pattern designates a captain or major; a pattern which uses three braids wide is for a lieutenant colonel or colonel; and four braids wide tells you that he is a general.
Federal Enlisted Artilleryman Rank Insignia
Confederate Enlisted Artilleryman Rank Insignia
Federal Commissioned Officer Rank Insignia
More than simply recognizing the various rank insignia, it is important to understand the appropriate behavior before superior officers. Regulations 6 through 15 of the Army Regulations, ca 1860 (listed earlier here) deal with the behavior of soldiers, non-commissioned officers, and officers.
By the end of the War end in 1865, there were some twenty-nine enlisted categories in all branches, with but eight types of insignia of grade denoted by chevrons or other distinctive markings. For the Federal soldiers, those were worn on both sleeves of the uniform.
Some may be recognized as owning rank such as "brevet captain". Brevet rank was a temporary and often honorary commission which enabled the person so promoted to wear the uniform appropriate to the rank and collect the pay attendant to that rank, while remaining listed in official lists with the lower rank held prior to being brevetted.
The Revised Regulations for the Army of the United States, dated 1861, spell out clearly the Federal requirements for showing rank through Shoulder Straps.
Shoulder Straps
1540. For a Colonel - the same size as for a Major-General, and bordered in like
manner with an embroidery of gold; a silver-embroidered spread eagle on the centre of the
strap, two inches between the tips of the wings, having in the right talon an
olive-branch, and in the left of a bundle of arrows; an escutcheon on the breast, as
represented in the arms of the United States; cloth of the strap as follows: for the General
Staff and Staff Corps - dark blue; Artillery - scarlet; Infantry - light
or sky blue; Cavalry - yellow.
1541. For a Lieutenant-Colonel - the same as for a Colonel, according to corps,
omitting the eagle, and introducing a silver-embroidered leaf at each end, each leaf
extending seven-eighths of an inch from the end border of the strap.
1542. For a Major - the same as for a Colonel, according to corps, omitting the
eagle, and introducing a gold-embroidered leaf at each end, each leaf extending
seven-eighths of an inch from the end border of the straps.
1543. For a Captain - the same as for a Colonel, according to corps, omitting the
eagle, and introducing at each end two gold-embroidered bars of the same width as the
border, placed parallel to the ends of the strap; the distance between them and from the
border equal to the width of the border.
1544. For a First Lieutenant - the same as for a Colonel, according to corps,
omitting the eagle, and introducing at each end one gold-embroidered bar of the same width
as the border, placed parallel at the ends of the strap, at a distance from the border
equal to its width.
1545. For a Second Lieutenant - the same as for a Colonel, according to corps,
omitting the eagle.
1546. For a Brevet Second Lieutenant - the same as for a Second Lieutenant.
1547. For a Medical Cadet - a strip of gold lace three inches long, half an inch
wide, placed in the middle of a strap of green cloth three and three-quarter inches long
by one and one-quarter inches wide.
1548. The shoulder-strap will be worn whenever the epaulette is not.
Regulations for the Federal Army dealt with hat trimmings as well as shoulder straps. From the Revised Regulations for the Army of the United States, dated 1861, the regulations for trimmings for the artillerymen of the Regular Army were:
Trimmings
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