What's it like being a Reenactor?
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What's it like being a reenactor?By Captain John (Johndog) Zdroj,
Commander of Co.E 2nd Missouri Cavalry C.S.A.
describing his first battle that took place many years ago.
Having been part of this great American past-time of re-enacting the American Civil War as some call it (I prefer to call it the War for Southern Independence, after all the south was fighting for self determination to govern themselves, as it is part of my birth right being born in Missouri) since 1996, I have made some observations on why people are more than willing to wear wool clothes when the temperature outside is in the 90's plus and sometimes sub-freezing.
It's really not insanity folks! Some of us participate to honor our forefathers that fought this war over whether one country was going to be a republic as the founding fathers had decided on, or a democracy that was run by mob rule as we have today. Well we all know how that turned out. Some of us love the adventure of it just as the young soldiers back then did at the start of the war. Only we can go home after the battle with only a few pounds of sweat being lost instead of life and limb. Have no fear folks, the Yanks and the Rebs in these reenactments do not despise or hate each other as in days of old. However, during a lull in the battle we do yell at each other by calling each other foul names such as blue bellies etc. It adds to the realism. Both sides need each other to have a reenacting event and both sides attend these events for the same reasons. Sometimes at these events, if not enough Rebels show up some of the Yanks put on the gray and vice versa. Others participate in this reenacting because they are just down right hard-core history nuts of this part of American history! Some are tired of being arm chair Generals reading and playing computer games and board games (battles) of the war. Others enjoy the camping and friendships that develop and last a lifetime. Many folks in the reenacting community believe the war was completely unnecessary and could have been settled with a friendly game of checkers instead of the wholesale slaughter of over 620,000 American lives!
What's it like being on the battleline?
Well, I'll tell you my experience of my first battle. It was totally awesome!!!!!!!! We form up in ranks while in camp and march to the battlefield and I'm hoping I don't make a fool out of myself by not knowing what to do because of all the new commands that they never used when I was in the real military. But have no fear, I am surrounded by the old grizzled vets of many battles (why some of them might be 16 years old!) that know just what to do when those commands are barked out by the Captain and then parroted by the 1st Sergeant.
As I'm marching to the front I kind of take a quantum-leap back to the 1860's! I am totally lost in awe! I hope the Yanks really aren't as tuff and mean as my Rebel buddies say they are. My unit makes a column right, march and there I see the so called battlefield, it doesn't look like all hell is going to break out there any time soon so I'm just marching along listening to the drum and fifers playing "Stonewall Jackson's Way" while not giving much thought about anything else other than trying to stay in step with everyone else. When all of a sudden 12 Yankee cannons volley fire (they all shoot at the same instant)! It's very loud! I jump out of my wits! Welcome to the civil war trooper! My heart starts beating rapidly, sweat starts pouring out of my forehead, I look to the battlefield, cannon smoke is drifting across it and then the Rebel artillery counterfire with 15 of their monsters that belch fire, what a rush of adrenaline! At that same instant 20 dismounted Yankee cavalry are sent out as skirmishers against this mighty army wearing these hot grey and butternut coats. I think to myself, that's all they have to sacrifice to our mighty army to slaughter?
My thoughts are then interrupted by our Captain yelling something like front into line, march! I wonder about this command, after all I've only had one hour of drill since I joined up last weekend, ah' but never fear, I'm surrounded by these 16 year old veterans, they'll steer me right! I'm still trying to tell myself that this is not real, I live in 1995, not 1862. Open ranks to the right at intervals of 10 feet. This is all done in a heart beat. Yankees are shooting at us while we perform this feat. Everyone stops and kneels on one knee.
Load and cap! Our brave Captain bellows! By this time my nerves are shot! My right hand is holding the cartridge, I bring it up to my mouth, (just like those 16 year old vets) and I copy the vets by putting it in my mouth and tearing the end off the cartridge with my teeth. However because my hand is shaking so badly that I accidentally bite off about 10 grains of the powder instead of just the end of the cartridge. It doesn't taste too good either.
By this time the artillery smoke from both sides is covering the battlefield with that peculiar smell of black powder (rotten eggs). And as I'm trying to pour the powder from the cartridge down the muzzle of my carbine I am shaking so badly that half the powder only reaches the ground. There! I got some powder into the gun, now if I can only get one of those small musket caps on the nipple of the gun I can help my comrades kill those measly 20 Yankees! I did it! I only drop two of them from shaking so badly! Volley fire our brave commander yells out! Our line fires all at once, everyones gun sounds like a cannon but mine, of course I was only able to get 20 grains of powder into my gun, everything else became fertilizer for the weeds in the field. I get better with each additional shot, more and more powder makes it into my gun.
I feel more confident but my hand still shakes. As I'm loading I look towards the Yankee line. Where did all that blue infantry come from, we are out numbered big time! We'll all be butchered! We fall back! Who can deliver us from this carnage going on around us? At last while making a hasty retreat I see many beautiful flags of my beloved country forming into battleline! Our infantry has finally arrived on the scene. Maybe we'll survive this battle to tell the folks back home about it?
We form up on the left flank of our infantry into battleline, another dismounted cav unit forms on their right flank. Our brave and modest size army marches forward with the sounds of drums and bugle calls which I had no idea what they meant, to avenge all the evil deeds done by those blue devils! We will surely be victorious now! We fire volley after volley, the battle is still a toss up. Out of nowhere we see mounted men wearing the blue trying to flank us! Should we run? No! Our brave commander has decided we should all die a noble death by staying and fighting it out to the last man. Our Captain is crazy, I thought to myself.
We refuse the line to the left! The Captain has us draw pistols and then the command "volley fire", "ready", "present", "fire"! We did this till our pistols were empty and finally the horse riders fell back to harass the other flank! Several of our veteran 16 year olds went down around me, I felt like my best friends had vanished from this earth. This battle must have been going on for hours, it felt to me anyway.
Finally the Confederate General whoever he was decided that for the honor of our beloved and invaded state of Missouri we should make a charge so as not to disgrace ourselves and maybe route the Yankees! All the field officers advanced to the front of their men and drew sabers and the charge was ordered, the Rebel yell went out, (it is more like a loud roar) it was almost as loud as the cannon fire, the hair stood up on the back of my neck, this was definently real! I was with our forefathers in 1862! By the way, a real rebel yell is not a yea haw as many people believe. The books describe it as an indian war whoop, like whoop, whoop, whooooop. It was probably a morale booster for us Rebs and a scare tactic which worked against the Yanks. According to my brother (a US Marine during the Vietnam War) the marines were told to yell and scream like wild banshees when in hand to hand combat (it terrifies the enemy).
We made our brave and fearless charge, firing as we advanced. We made it to some log breastworks the Yanks quickly threw up in the course of the battle. Here their mighty army stood their ground! They would yield no more! Quickly our infantry and cavalry were over the breast works and hand to hand combat took over. (Hand to hand is agreed upon prior to a battle to ensure no one gets hurt.) The two armies clashed muskets, rifles, canteens and men colliding into each other. Note: If you are touched by the butt of a rifle you are wounded or dead, that's the rules in hand to hand. In the life and death struggle I somehow survive, the General calls retreat, we fall back.
There is death and carnage everywhere! I'm in the cavalry I recall, we are the rear guard! We cross the battlefield, the men of blue and grey are scattered everywhere, the dead in heaps, the wounded calling for help and water, I can't stop, my duty is protecting our armys skeedaddle! Those blue devils are advancing on our thin line of grey! Their infantry fire a volley, the few remaining men in my unit are all hit and go down. They advance to where we are lying and stop, they fire three more volleys at our retreating army. Smoke, fire, and bits of cartridge paper fly everywhere! I flinch with each volley. I think to myself, so this might be what it felt like to a wounded soldier back then or now?
Our army has been defeated. The Yanks won the day. Us wounded hear a loud Yankee hurrah! Out come the Yankee medical folks, load us wounded into wagons and start stacking up the dead for burial. I am only wounded in the leg. I am a prisoner! They lay me on the ground outside the hospital tent next to a wounded Yankee, his guts have burst out of his abdomen by a 6 pound cannon ball, he's screaming in pain, I see his intestines etc. Legs and arms are being amputated, blood is everywhere! (It's amazing how these hollywood effects can stimulate a persons stomach and add to the realism). Carnage is everywhere you look.
Finally, there is a bugle call, the wounded Yankee with his intestines flowing onto the ground told me it meant resurrection, we were no longer dead or wounded. Everyone forms back up into their units and stands at attention, both the blue and the grey. Both armies uncover (remove their hats), a bugler plays taps for the real men that actually perished at this place or the historic battle we just fought. Then the Yankee General steps forward and has his army give three cheers to us Rebels and then our army gives them three cheers. The Generals shake hands. Peace has returned to America and our country is reunited once again. At least until tomorrow when war will again be declared and our country ripped apart by one nation seeking independence and the other calls for union!
Both armies march past the spectators who cheer for their respective team (we lovingly call them "sports fans" the hobby needs them because after all we are only actors in a play). They encourage us defeated rebels by telling us we'll get those evil Yankees tomorrow and even the score and God save the South! Though defeated today we proudly march back to camp. All this took 45 minutes! I'm in camp and finally have a steady hand. I've had my first taste of combat, my eyes are as big as silver dollars, I am happy and satisfied, hot and sweaty and dirty with black powder all over my face and arms. I have survived the War for Southern Independence! My 16 year old veterans tell me that I just saw the elephant! I can't shut up, I keep talking about the battle. I am doomed! I am now an addicted civil war reenactor, forever I hope! My war is over until tomorrow, when those Yankees will pay dearly for their victory today. It's the Confederates turn to win tomorrow!
This scenario actually took place around 12 years ago, it's been a long war and I'm still waiting for my first payday, I have since been promoted from private to captain so I figure they really owe me some back pay! I wonder if the Yanks have better paymasters than the Rebels? I have only one regret about reenacting this war. And that is, I didn't start sooner! The Civil War reenacting community is made up basically just as it was back in the 1860's. Folks from all different walks of life, doctors, lawyers, farmers, factory workers, rich, poor, young, old, white, black or red etc. They're are no requirements only that of having fun, everything else included in the hobby will happen with time. Why even if your 16 years old, you will find yourself going home from an event instead of putting modern day music in your boom box you'll find yourself putting a music tape/cd in it and singing along to music that is 140 years old! And you'll love it! Of course your friends will all think your a wacko! As I read somewhere recently, there are only about 75,000 CW reenactors (counting the civilians) throughout America so we all can't be wrong about it! Reenactors are some of the most truest and patriotic Americans I have ever met, even though some are patriotic to the north and others to the south. And just maybe before Americans let the politicians destroy our country again, we can just pick out a Yankee and Rebel from the 21st century to play that friendly game of checkers that should have been played 141 years ago. After all, we are a band of brothers. ***A quote to remember for all present and future Officer and NCO's. "Leadership is action, not just position". This is good advice, not just for reenacting but anytime you are placed in a position of leadership. Please click 2nd Missouri Cavalry Membership Application for an application form.
Captain John (Johndog) Zdroj (of Irish decent from the Murphy Clan),
Commander of Co.E, 2nd Missouri Cavalry C.S.A. with his
purebred, registered, Arabian mare, Maggie. She's Irish too!
What's it like being a Reenactor?
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