A question on "parole"

I have always wondered how they kept track of who was paroled, who was exchanged, how you would know if someone assumed a fake name to beat the system,etc. I would have thought it would be next to impossible to keep track back in those days.

LOL... m.E.Wolf is positively frighting...someone raises a topic and he's got three posts from OR, regt history and god knows where ...all with highlights...

Yes, flattened me also! I thought I had been looking in some of the right places, was pretty frustrated, then showed up here to be handed information on relatives which has been hugely helpful. Gets you off and running again, with gratitude!

Thanks for the info on the whole parol thing- always wondered how on earth they knew whether or not these soldiers just went home. Now I see a lot probably didn't.

Ditto....I have always wondered how they were able to be successful (mostly) at keeping track....

If I were then and there (ahem!)....and true to my avatar....I think I might have tried to re-enlist under another name to get the sign up bonus money, sign up as a substitute, etc.....desert and do 'er all over again....and depend on 'Blondie' to shoot the hangman's noose from around my neck.

LOL....I admire a person who admits he would be a bounty jumper!
but to depend on someone to make that shot...kind of a risky exit strategy!

This is true....but....it would be dramatic as hell,...and probably make for a good movie don't cha' think?

There were confinement camps on both sides. Camp Douglas was once used to confine Union troops who hadn't been properly exchanged. These guys finally went on a rampage and set the camp on fire.

Brilliant, I was wondering how the Parole system worked.

The experience of my ancestor's 31st Alabama Infantry might shed some light, at least on the Confederate side of things in the West.

The 31st were surrendered at Vicksburg. It took several days for the paperwork to be set up and the paroles issued. The commander of each regiment was required to submit a list of the names and ranks of those under his command who had been surrendered. Printing presses were employed to print a Certificate of Parole (titles varied), which each individual signed on his honor to not take up arms against the United States until properly exchanged. The Union officer kept a copy, and the soldier had his own copy which he could show the provost marshal as an excuse for not being where he was otherwise expected to be.

Each solder was given a final search and required to turn over any "contraband" (including medicine) and "government property" meaning everything other than the clothes on the men's back and their shoes and hats, except for personal possessions such as a Bible, diary, pipe, etc. They then were marched out of the Union lines.

They were still part of the Confederate army, and were ordered to a camp near Talledega, Alabama (I forget the name right now) where they had originally been organized and equipped. At that point they were given a thirty-day pass to visit their homes (most of which weren't very far away). This relieved the government of the obligation to feed them while they were awaiting exchange, as they were expected to eat at home.

The first problem occured when, at the end of thirty days, only a fraction of the men reported back to the camp. The regimental commander was in a bit of a fix - he could list 3/4 or so of his men as deserters, or think of something else. He decided to extend the men's leave by another thirty days, and sent out those who had reported back into the countryside to visit their comrades and convince them to return, and to bring in a few more recruits in the process. This was successful, more than 85% returned for duty.

Then by November they were ordered to report to Chattanooga. Four Union armies Thomas/Grant, Hooker, Sherman, and Burnside) were bearing down on Bragg's army, and the Confederates needed everyone they could get under arms. But the men of the 31st hadn't received any documentation that they had yet been properly exchanged. Finally Davis himself visited the camp, and assured the men of the 31st and the rest of the Brigade that it was just a paperwork tangle, and they had in fact been already exchanged. Only then did the veterans agree to pick up arms and head off towards Chattanooga. Two companies of the 31st arrived just in time to take part in the battle of Lookout Mountain, although it had pretty much been decided at the point where they arrived. The remainder were posted toward the north end of the line on Missionary Ridge, which had held pretty well against Sherman's assault. They were suprised to hear that the center and right of the line had collapsed, and they retreated eastward from Missionary Ridge.

So I'm thinking that Pettus Brigade, of which the 31st Alabama Infantry was a part, was at least one of the units which turned Grant against the issuance of paroles.

Great post, rhp, thanks.
really interesting and well written...I love this site!

Paroles were a bit of a dodge. Paroled men could use it as an excuse not to continue fighting, but those that wanted to continue fighting did so.

Capt Corbitt of the 1st Delaware Cavalry was captured and paroled at Westminister, MD by Stuart and his men during their march to Gettysburg. The Army decided that the parole was invalid because he and his men had been abandoned and thus, not under the control of the enemy. Apparently, COL McClellan, Stuart's Chief of Staff, agreed with this position as he complained to Stuart that they would waste too much precious time preparing the worthless paroles. Anyway, Corbitt was lionized for his gallant fight and offered a promotion to COL and a regimental command. Corbitt declined the offer, saying that he had given his word to await a proper exchange and so sat out the rest of the war.

General George Patton's grand Uncle also had a similar experience but from the Confederate side.

Camp Parole, MD, outside of Annapolis, was a training/holding facility for units under parole. Today, Parole,MD is essentially a huge shopping area.

Men were also paroled to work outside the prisons, on wood details, burial details, as nurses etc., at Andersonville. The Parole merely stated that they gave thier word of honor that they would not use the freedom of work to run. Dorence Atwater, who created the now Famous Atwater Death List, was a paroled prisoner.

Early on in Missouri, many paroled from the Missouri State Guard (secessionist) did not honor their paroles. There is a record of some of these paroles such as the Camp Jackson affair (where some considered the parole invalid--with some justification), but not of others such as Boonville, etc. There were also problems with some other CSA paroles in Missouri. This combined with guerrilla activity, non-CSA secessionist units, and behind the lines recruiting created an ugly situation for everyone.

There were a few executions as a result, but also some "revolving door" releases, prison escapes, etc. Eventually, the units primarily responsible for hunting bushwackers became less likely to bring in prisoners.

The US military does not now allow parole. Developed in 1955, the Code of Conduct outlines in six precepts the expected behavior of American military personnel regarding capture, surrender, POW behavior, etc.

The 3rd precept is, "If I am captured I will continue to resist by all means available. I will make every effort to escape and aid others to escape. I will accept neither parole nor special favors from the enemy."

The explanation for the part regarding parole states, "One such privilege is called parole. Parole is a promise by a prisoner of war to a captor to fulfill certain conditions such as agreeing not to escape nor to fight again once released—in return for such favors as relief from physical bondage, improved food and living conditions or repatriation ahead of the sick, injured or longer–held prisoners. An American POW will never sign nor otherwise accept parole."

Parole was a carry over from European War tactics. With even exchange at the center of the system. Colonel for colonel, captain for captain and down the line. While waiting for parole, many problems surfaced in the system. Soldiers in detention camps suffered from lack of food, clothing, sanitation and were victimized by the criminals among them. They became pawns for the officers who denied parole until exchanged. Grant insisted that parole and exchange for guerrillas, bushwhackers, and blockade runners be stopped as soon as he took command. This resulted in retaliation by the south. Andersonville would have been one of the results of Grants policy to end exchange. The horrors at Andersonville was the result of the Souths inability to supply basic needs to the prisoners or their fighting men. The problem was two fold, return the men and have to fight them again, or detain them at great expense for the duration. A lose, lose situation.