During the Civil War, they had to have many medicines, operations, and surgeries done to themselves or others in order to survive (Jenny Goellnitz, Paragraph 1). Some of these medicines we still use today. Medical technology and scientific knowledge have changed dramatically since the Civil War, but the basic principles of military health care remain the same. The deadliest thing that faced the Civil War soldier was disease. For every soldier who died in battle, two died from disease.
The soldiers undertook many different diseases and sicknesses, mentally and physically. The faced outbreaks of measles, small pox, malaria, pneumonia, or camp itch. Soldiers would get malaria when camping in damp areas surrounded by mosquitos, while camp itch was caused by insects or skin disease. They were more likely to get these diseases if the didn’t keep up with their hygiene, insects and vermin, exposure, lack of clothing or shoes, or poor intake of food and water.
They had no knowledge of the causes of any diseases. There were too few surgeons to handle the huge numbers of sick and wounded. Many rural soldiers became sick because for the first time they were in a large group of people and had no immunity to diseases such as chickenpox, smallpox, scarlet fever, measles, mumps, and coughs (Jenny Goellnitz, Paragraph 3). These epidemics ran rampant through many units. Troops from rural areas were crowded together for the first time with large numbers of other individuals and got diseases they had no immunity to. Lacking camp hygiene was a common problem as well. Not having camp sanitation and scanty knowledge about how disease was carried led to a sort of "trial and error" system.
London 2
Both Armies faced problems with mosquitos and lice....
... middle of paper ...
...d, 2014.
“Caught in the Line of Fire: Civil War Medicine” The Army Heritage Center Foundation. December 28, 2011. Accessed April 23rd, 2014.
“Civil War Preservation Trust” August 19th, 2009. Accessed April 23rd, 2014.
“Civil War Medicine: Overview” Jenny Goellnitz. Copyright 2014. Accessed April 23rd, 2014
C. Keith Wilbur, M.D. “Civil War Medicine, 1861-1865” Globe Pequot Publications; 1st edition. Published October 1st, 1998.
Frank R. Freemon. “Gangrene and Glory: Medical Care during American Civil War” University of Illinois Press Publications. Published in June, 2001.
To make matters worse they had to deal with smallpox more dangerously than that is Lice because they rarely bathed or washed themselves or had laundered clothing. Another horrible things that Martin and his soldiers had to deal with was typhus a potential killer disease characterized by usually high fevers and red sports on the skin. Typhus took the lives of most of the Valley Forge Martin was under the brigade command of General James M. Varnum but his actual commander was Colonial John Durkee of the 4th Connecticut regiment, since Varnum was elsewhere. Washington’s continentals fairly well- supplied with food, but in the months preceding a major reason for so much privation at Valley Forge. Martin’s statement about Washington’s main army was misleading about them residing in the White Plains as they crossed the Hudson River and established winter quarters in Middlebrooks, New
The soldiers lacked basic necessities such as clothing and food. In Document B it Dr. Albigence Waldo states, "There comes a Soldier, his bare feet are seen thro' his worn out Shoes, his legs nearly naked from the tatter'd remains of an only pair of stocks". In other words, these soldiers clothing were very worn out due to being used so often and were not provided with brand new attire. Since there were many mouths to feed, food became scarce, which left many soldiers starving. Around the camp soldiers cry
Heidler, David Stephen, and Jeanne T. Heidler, eds. Encyclopedia of the American Civil War: a
We have had to deal with, “poor food- hard lodging- cold weather- fatigue, “(Document B). In this diary by Dr Waldo, a doctor we have at camp, he has accurately described what life is like at camp. The factors that we undergo make us sick both physically and mentally, these factors make us lose all sense of empowerment to win this war that we once felt, these factors make us want to go home more than anything just to hear our mother’s voice just once more. The absence of encouragement from other colonists and countries, and how I have to go to bed with my stomach empty every single night pushes me over the edge to give up and just
The day to day life for the regular soldier was not glorious. Many times the regiments were low on supplies such as food and clothing. They lived in the elements. Medical conditions were grotesque because of the lack of advanced equipment and anesthesia. “Discipline was enforced with brutality” as if all the other conditions were not bad enough.
Soldiers faced diseases like measles, small pox, malaria, pneumonia, camp itch, mumps, typhoid and dysentery. However, diarrhea killed more soldiers than any other illness. There were many reasons that diseases were so common for the causes of death for soldiers. Reasons include the fact that there were poor physicals before entering the army, ignorance of medical information, lack of camp hygiene, insects that carried disease, lack of clothing and shoes, troops were crowded and in close quarters and inadequate food and water.
Every war, though happens for a reason and bring a better change, is often gruesome. The Civil War broke America in two groups and, at the time, was the war with the most casualties and injured men. As the fight to preserve the Union progressed, so did a number of other areas, such as weaponry and artillery. The advanced technology produced through the Civil War assisted in increasing number of casualties. The North was more fortuitous than the South in multitudinous ways. One of which includes the fact that their industrial society allowed them to produce a larger amount of weapons of a higher quality. One of the major reasons the Union triumphantly defeated the Confederate army was because of their more superior types of weapons.
One of the biggest problems was sanitation. Clean water for drinking and bathing was rare and illness from poor hygiene or contaminated water was very common. Most of the camps were in tight groups and contagious diseases such as chickenpox, colds or the flu would spread over camp within
Much of the Track was covered by a “canopy of dense rainforest, dripping with moss and leeches and, after each exhausting climb, the troops would find rocky creek beds and mosquito-infested swamps. Constant tropical downpours and searing heat and humidity meant the soldiers were almost permanently wet. Then, at night, temperatures would plummet at the higher altitudes.” (Kokoda Track Foundation) This lead to higher risks of tropical diseases such as diarrhea, dysentery, malaria, pneumonia and tinea. As well as the soldiers were given limited necessary supplies and the limited information available to them. However through this they fought extremely well against the odds. As a soldier describes “There is nothing to eat. Everybody is in a weak and staggering state … Without food, having become terribly thin and emaciated; the appearance of our fellow soldiers does not bear reflection. How could the people at home understand this state of affairs, it must be seen to be believed?” – Unknown Soldier (Ukessays.com) This extract explain how the condition in Kokoda from a soldiers interpretation. Significant
In the early years of the Civil War, it became clear that disease would be the greatest killer. Twice as many Civil War soldiers died of disease than those killed in combat. This was due to unsanitary and filthy conditions, untrained medical personnel and poor medical examination of new soldier’s. One fact from the Civil War was 315,000 soldiers died from illnesses that included: 44,558 from diarrhea/dysentery, 10,063 from malaria, 34,833 from typhoid, 958 from typhus and 436 from yellow fever. The sanitary conditions that a cured during the civil war were shocking.
Have you ever wondered what life would be like in the Civil War? What soldiers went through? How they dealt with wounds and the medicine? Many of which lead to death because medicine was not advanced as it is now. Medicine has come a long way, since the days of the Civil War. In the book, The Killer Angels, by Michael Shaara, explains the life and how it went for people in the war. There are 3 people: Robert E. Lee, John Buford, and Buster Kilrain. These 3 characters faced medical problems and with very little medicine specialties it was very difficult for their health.
Galenic practices that originated in the second century were still the predominant medical concepts almost fourteen hundred years later, and with little advancement beyond the humoral theory that promoted exsanguinations as cure, they further weakening those afflicted with fever and assured they did not survive. The chapter entitled Deadly Fevers, Deadly Doctors is, by McNeill’s own admission, rife with modern criticism and judgment that, “are not up to the standards of the historical profession” (63). That being said, the humor he injects in this chapter keeps the reader from setting aside what could easily devolve into a depressing clinical narrative of the brutish death that accompanied yellow fever. The tone may not be up to academic standards, but the research is, at least for the European contribution. Whether one agrees with his arguments or not, McNeil has proven the relevance of disease study in attempts to reconstruct historical contexts. The main take away from this chapter is that the confusion surrounding the transmission of diseases is part of the reason armies were sent over and over again in spite of the infectious disaster that repeatedly cut through the ranks, at great expense both in men and in
Being treated like slaves, prisoners each occupied tiny cages and “At Ofuna, captives weren’t just beaten, they were starves. [..] The food was infested with rat droppings, maggots, and so much sand and grit that Louie’s teeth were soon pitted, chipped, and cracked.” Under those circumstances, many captives died out and faced multiple illnesses. It’s not like the camp ‘doctors’ cared, seeing as they were only there to look good on paper. All Japanese prison camps were required to fill out forms stating that they had doctors for prisoners. In actuality, the doctors were only there for the guards. Louis once had to “crawl through the filfth of a pig sty, [...] cram handfuls of the animal’s feed into his mouth to save himself from starving to death.” (291). Luckily, Louis still hung on to that last string of life and survived through his two years of sundry prison
Because of the lack of knowledge about many ailments, many advances in hospitals were completed. Anesthetics were developed, as well as clinics for rehabilitation and new knowledge was gained on the matter of reconstructive surgery. As a result of scurvy, soldiers frequently required reconstructive bone and joint surgery, just to be able to walk again.
Some of the advancements made had a direct effect on those at home particularly children and mothers. The inspection of refugees and conscripts exposed poor health habits that led to advancements to improve health nutrition and control conditions such as scabies. Nurses roles also became more critical during war time. In July 4th, 1943 nurses were required to also have special military training. This included not only additional training in flied sanitation psychiatry and anesthetic, but also physical conditioning to build endurance. They also reviewed training in how to set up field medical