civil war camps??????

[sweetinsanity]

Born and raised in Gettysburg Pa. .... I have detected several field hospitals and still have permission on two more I haven't detected yet. I have also detected camps 6 to 8 miles out of town. My question is, how far did they march before going into battle each day? Did they move and camp closer knowing they were going in the next day? Or did you get up at 2 am and start marching?

 

[atomicbrh]

Born and raised in Gettysburg Pa. .... I have detected several field hospitals and still have permission on two more I haven't detected yet. I have also detected camps 6 to 8 miles out of town. My question is, how far did they march before going into battle each day? Did they move and camp closer knowing they were going in the next day? Or did you get up at 2 am and start marching?

From my reading, marching time from camp to firing line varied tremendously with orders from commanders which resulted from the urgency and the need reacting to the maneuvers of the opposing commanders. Thomas Jonathan Jackson's Army of the Valley infantry travelled farther and faster on foot than many could do on horseback plus go directly into battle if needed. It also must be remembered that civil war tactics and technology were foreshadowing the tactics and technology of the first World War: artillery barrages preceding infantry charges and trench warfare. Here is an interesting article from the Army War College website:

https://ahec.armywarcollege.edu/trail/CivilWarCabins/index.cfm