# Military Academies during American Civil War **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 17, 2008, 4:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/military-academies-during-american-civil-war/473091 "2008-11-17T04:38:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Enola\_Straight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dec6dc/32.png) [@Enola\_Straight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enola_Straight)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2008, 4:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/military-academies-during-american-civil-war/473091/1 "2008-11-17T04:38:01Z")
The main Army academy is known as the West Point Military Academy, located in NY…in the North. The main Navy academy is known as the United States Naval Academy, located in Annapolis, MD…in the South. At the outbreak of the Civil War, each academy consisted of a student body hailing from both the northern states AND the break-away confederate south. Now, these academies were supposed to generate officers for the United States military…not the Confederate rebels. What did West Point do with a Plebe hailing from a southern state? Order him to maintain allegiance to the united north or be arrested for treason on the spot? Did the sothern controlled Annapolis academy hold hostage northern Plebes? ---
**Author:** ![Boozahol\_Squid\_P.I](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/d9b06d/32.png) [@Boozahol\_Squid\_P.I](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boozahol_Squid_P.I)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2008, 4:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/military-academies-during-american-civil-war/473091/2 "2008-11-17T04:43:19Z")
> [@Enola\_Straight](#): > > The main Army academy is known as the West Point Military Academy, located in NY…in the North. > > The main Navy academy is known as the United States Naval Academy, located in Annapolis, MD…in the South. > > At the outbreak of the Civil War, each academy consisted of a student body hailing from both the northern states AND the break-away confederate south. > > Now, these academies were supposed to generate officers for the United States military…not the Confederate rebels. > > What did West Point do with a Plebe hailing from a southern state? Order him to > maintain allegiance to the united north or be arrested for treason on the spot? > > Did the sothern controlled Annapolis academy hold hostage northern Plebes? I imagine that msot Plebes/Cadets that didn’t want to serve the north would have left by the time actual hostilities broke out. Annapolis, like much of the state of Maryland, was well garrisoned by Union troops during the Civil War. ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Carrot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f0a364/32.png) [@Captain\_Carrot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Carrot)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2008, 5:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/military-academies-during-american-civil-war/473091/3 "2008-11-17T05:06:51Z")
Maryland wasn’t exactly a Southern state. It supported the Union, though it contributed troops to both sides. ---
**Author:** ![aldiboronti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9fc348/32.png) [@aldiboronti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aldiboronti)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2008, 5:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/military-academies-during-american-civil-war/473091/4 "2008-11-17T05:14:41Z")
I don’t know how accurate it was but in the movie _They Died With Their Boots On_, the beginning of which deals with Custer’s time at West Point, at or soon before the outbreak of the Civil War a parade of all the cadets was held. One of the senior Southern cadets marched to the front and gave the order, “Gentlemen of the South, fall out!” They then formed up and marched away while the rest stood at attention. I can well imagine that this was the way it might have been done, with respect and honor on both sides. ---
**Author:** ![paperbackwriter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/53a042/32.png) [@paperbackwriter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/paperbackwriter)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2008, 5:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/military-academies-during-american-civil-war/473091/5 "2008-11-17T05:33:25Z")
The USNA moved to Newport, RI for the duration of the Civil War. The main dormitory building is still there and its now a nursing home. The period between Lincoln’s election (11/6/1860) and the shelling of Fort Sumter (4/12/1861) gave officers and future officers enough time to travel to the South, if they so chose. ---
**Author:** ![mks57](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b9bd4f/32.png) [@mks57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mks57)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2008, 7:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/military-academies-during-american-civil-war/473091/6 "2008-11-17T07:24:30Z")
It’s the U.S. Military Academy (USMA) at West Point. What about VMI? ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2008, 7:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/military-academies-during-american-civil-war/473091/7 "2008-11-17T07:31:45Z")
http://www.historynet.com/americas-civil-war-comes-to-west-point.htm"]This is a pretty good article on the subject. ---
**Author:** ![Shinna\_Minna\_Ma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f08c70/32.png) [@Shinna\_Minna\_Ma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shinna_Minna_Ma)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2008, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/military-academies-during-american-civil-war/473091/8 "2008-11-17T14:23:44Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > http://www.historynet.com/americas-civil-war-comes-to-west-point.htm"]This is a pretty good article on the subject. I can’t get the link to work. ---
**Author:** ![UncleRojelio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/unclerojelio/32/3160_2.png) [@UncleRojelio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleRojelio)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2008, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/military-academies-during-american-civil-war/473091/9 "2008-11-17T14:35:51Z")
[Fixed link](http://www.historynet.com/americas-civil-war-comes-to-west-point.htm) ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2008, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/military-academies-during-american-civil-war/473091/10 "2008-11-17T16:59:54Z")
> [@mks57](#): > > What about VMI? VMI is not a federal service academy, and commissioning is optional for graduates. That said, VMI cadets fought as a unit of the Confederate Army under Stonewall Jackson. I suspect that there were few if any Union cadets there in 1861, and presumably any who were would have decamped before hostilities erupted. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Moto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9de0a6/32.png) [@Mr.Moto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Moto)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2008, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/military-academies-during-american-civil-war/473091/11 "2008-11-17T18:09:24Z")
The Citadel carries on its standard nine Confederate streamers as well. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2008, 6:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/military-academies-during-american-civil-war/473091/12 "2008-11-18T06:34:16Z")
> [@UncleRojelio](#): > > [Fixed link](http://www.historynet.com/americas-civil-war-comes-to-west-point.htm) Thanks. For some reason I can’t link correctly since the change over in software happened.