Rape in the Civil War

Essay by MojasrcaUniversity, Bachelor'sA, June 2004

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Throughout historical discussion, articles, etc., we barely hear of the acts of the atrocities against women during the Civil War. The Civil War was made to appear as though it was a "clean cut" war with two sides fighting over one cause. They have showed plenty of evidence of robberies, killings, etc. during the Civil War, however, in my research - it was very difficult to find information about the actual rapes that had occurred.

Rape has had a history of its placement in war strategies. It is a method to psychologically "defeat" an enemy. Though there are many times that rape during war can be also seen as not having a place in strategy, but rather, as random acts of violence of men over women. There are many psychological aspects behind rape during warfare. One, it is the morale of the opposing side that is targeted. Two, the rapist while serving as a soldier, feels the need of power over another.

Third, the rapists' needs and desires overwhelm them while serving rank as a soldier.

Rape has always been known to society at that time with historical artifacts of white slave holders raping black slaves, etc. However, little is said about the rapes that took place during the Civil War by the "soldiers" of both the Union and Confederate armies. According to the United States War Department, "During the war, rape is a capitale offense punished by death (Gl order N°100, april 1863, US War dpt)." There are many documented rape cases that took place during the Civil War. From http://hometown.aol.com/cwrapes/page3.htm website, there are listings of cases in which the soldiers were caught, apprehended, and punished. Some example of these cases are as follows (all taken from the above mentioned web site): "Cox William T, pvt co I,