Shoulder scales were not normally worn on service or fatigue uniforms. They were colored according to service branch:īrass shoulder scales were worn on dress uniforms, with different features to signify enlisted ranks. Ranks were worn as chevrons on the right and left sleeves above the elbow. While there was no official insignia distinction for different grades of general, all wearing three stars in a wreath on the collar, some major generals adopted the pattern of their Union counterparts by wearing two rows of nine buttons in groups of three. Generals could be recognized by the eagles on their buttons and the placement of the buttons in groups of two. Most junior officers wore tunics and coats with a single row of seven buttons while field officers wore two rows, however there were exceptions. In addition the regulation Kepi had a similar knot pattern on sides and top but other hats without insignia were frequently worn. In 1862 those were ordered not be worn on the field uniform and thus mostly relegated to parade dress. The secondary insignia were Austrian knots, elaborate patterns sewed on the lower sleeves with the number of lines indicating the rank. This was occasionally substituted for, or coupled with, shoulder straps. The primary insignia was a number of bars or stars worn on the collar of the uniform coat or tunic.

Officers wore, according to regulations, a combination of several rank indicators on their uniform.

They usually were similar or influenced by both their own militia traditions and those used by the regular United States Army. The ranks and insignia of the Confederate States were a rank insignia system devised for the Military of the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War.Ĭonfederate States Army (CSAA) Color plate from the War of the Rebellion Atlas depicting Union rank insignia (top row) and Confederate uniforms and ranks (bottom row) Officers Īt the beginning of the civil war the ranks and rank insignias for the fledgling Confederate States Army had to be developed while the volunteer forces of the individual states that formed the Confederacy made up their own ranks and insignias. ( Learn how and when to remove this template message) ( March 2017) ( Learn how and when to remove this template message)

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