By Hardy Kenwright
The
Invalid Corps:
Organized
under authority of General Order No. 105, dated April 28, 1863, ‘The Invalid
Corps’ was created to make suitable use in a military or semi-military
capacity of soldiers who had been rendered unfit for active field service on
account of wounds or disease contracted in line of duty, but who were still fit
for garrison or other light duty, and were, in the opinion of their commanding
officers, meritorious and deserving. to employ disabled veterans in war-related
work.
What’s
in a name?
The
name has proved unfortunate, as the same initials "I.C." are stamped
on condemned property indicating, "Inspected-Condemned".
In
recognition of this oversight, the sacrifice of the troops involved and as a
boost to morale the Corps has been re-named as the "Veteran Reserve
Corps" by General Order No. 111, dated March 18, 1864.
Organisation:
There
are twenty-four regiments in the Corps.
These regiments are organized into one division and three brigades. Originally,
each regiment was made up of six companies of the First
Battalion and four of the Second Battalion, but this method of organization is
no-longer strictly adhered to.
The
18th Regiment, for example, which rendered exceptionally good service in Virginia at Belle Plain, Port Royal, and White House Landing in the spring and early
summer of 1864, and in or near Washington DC in the latter part of the summer
and through the fall this year, was made up of only six Second Battalion
companies.
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Veterans of The Wilderness and Cold Harbor Battles
consider joining the ‘Veteran Reserve Corps’
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Soldiers
were divided up into two battalions, based on the extent of their injuries. The
first carried weapons and fought in combat. The second, made up of men with
more serious impairments, served as nurses, cooks, and prison guards. There are
from two to three times as many men in the First Battalion as in the Second,
and the soldiers in the First Battalion perform a wide variety of duties. They
furnish guards for the Union prison camps at Johnson's Island, Ohio, Elmira, New York, Point Lookout, Maryland, and elsewhere. They furnish details to the provost marshals to arrest bounty jumpers and to enforce
the draft. They escort substitutes, recruits, and prisoners to
and from the front. They guard railroads, do patrol duty in Washington DC, and even manned
the defences of the city during Jubal Early's raid against Fort Stevens in July 1864.
Bounty
Scandal:
Already, more than 50,000 men serve in the Corps within the Union army. Despite the rigorous workload, members of the Corps (sometimes referred to as the “Cripple Brigade” among their former comrades), are not offered the generous financial awards granted to re-enlisting soldiers and new recruits in the Union. This is a scandal which must be put right by the Government.
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Men of the 10th Regiment of the Veteran Reserve Corps
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