Boy Generals of the Civil War

The Civil War was the last American conflict in which very young soldiers regularly rose to high rank. Many a youth of 16 or younger managed to enlist, in the absence of public birth records, and political influence secured commissions for a few before they reached the legal military age of 18. Those who survived three or four years of battlefield attrition often rose to the command of companies, and occasionally regiments, before they were even old enough to vote. Favored young officers, e...