Excerpts

What was Zouave Fever? It was a fad, a craze, something that had almost never been seen before. In the late 1850s and early 1860s, thousands, perhaps even hundreds of thousands of Americans caught the fever for the Zouaves. Dressed more like acrobats than soldiers, and performing drills that elicited deep-throated cheers, the Zouaves were para-military groups that formed all across the nation: North and South, East and West. All Zouave groups took their name and part of their identity from the French Foreign Legion, which had used special tactics to fight a group of Algerian tribesmen of that name. By 1859, the year Elmer Ellsowrth's group toured, Americans were thrilled, even bowled over by the athletic young men that delighted in showing their tricks to audiences. One imagines that Ellsworth was completing a dream he had nursed in youth: a dream of glory, beauty, and above all, fun. No one expected that Zouave Fever would lead to, or help along the Civil War. That is precisely what happened, however. When the recruiters--North and South--went into different cities and towns, they spoke of the glories of the military life, and thousands of boys and young men--many of whom had seen the Zouaves on parade--were quick to sign the rosters. What was it about the b'hoys? B'hoy was an imitation of the Irish speech in New York City, and Ellsworth wanted to create a Zouave Brigade composed entirely of New York City firemen. By imitating their speech--at least on occasion--and by inspiring them to join the Union cause, Ellsworth performed a great service for the North. He made military service fashionable. On arriving in New York City, Ellsworth declared his intention to enlist 1,000 men. He had that number within a single day. The New York firemen were volunteers, aggressive men, and natural brawlers. What did the British government have to say about secession and war? Queen Victoria issued a statement in April 1861, declaring that England was happily at peace with all "Sovereigns, Powers, and States" and given that she was at peace with the United States, she enjoined her subjects to observe a "strict and impartial neutrality" in the American Civil War. It is difficult to say precisely what the feeling was on the part of the English people. Historians, generally, believe that the upper class of England was somewhat favorable to the Confederacy, while its working class was distinctly favorable to the Union. It should be pointed out that the British laborer, in Manchester, Liverpool, or Leeds had more to gain from an alliance with the Confederacy than he had to lose with an alliance with the Union. Even so, the British working class generally remained sympathetic to the North throughout the war, a powerful testimony to the importance of Uncle Tom's Cabin. When did the New York Times go to a Sunday printing? On Sunday, April 21, 1861. One day after the amazing Union flag day, on April 20, the Times became a seven-day-a-week newspaper, and it has never looked back. What was the Baltimore riot of 1861? Baltimore was known as one of the most contentious cities in the nation. Back in 1812, there had been a mob attack on a newspaper headquarters: one of the persons badly injured that day was Light Horse Harry Lee, father of Robert E. But things were much worse in 1861, thanks to Baltimore's position as the northernmost of all southern places, and the southernmost of all northern ones. On April 19, 1861, which just happened to be the anniversary of the Battles of Lexington and Concord, the Massachusetts Sixth Regiment of volunteers was attacked by a crowd as it changed trains in Baltimore. Three soldiers were killed, as were several civilians, and there was an undetermined number of wounded. The Massachusetts Sixth made it through to Washington D.C., to Abraham Lincoln's great relief, but it was more apparent than ever that the national capital was imperiled by the proximity of Maryland in general and Baltimore in specific. When did the Old Dominion make its first move? On April 17, 1861, the Virginia convention voted to secede from the Union, making Virginia the eighth state to join the Confederacy. Excerpted from The Handy Civil War Answer Book by Samuel Willard Crompton All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.