THE WORD OF A GENTLEMAN AND THE OATH OF A PATRIOT: Military Parole in the American Civil War

Abstract

The use and eventual demise of military parole in the American Civil War provides a key insight into the changing nature of ‘military honour’ in America’s bloodiest conflict. This thesis will use parole to examine America’s engagement and dedication to European international law, the prevalence of ‘honour’ in Union and Confederate armies and the way a pre-war culture of honour was challenged both by the harsh realities of nineteenth-century warfare and by the uniquely American way parole was employed during the Civil War.