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Camp Followers

Camp followers, the women, children, and noncombatant men who follow an army during wartime, are the forgotten stagehands whose work helped produce the dramas of the great battles of the 18th century. Often viewed as parasites that attached themselves to an army and progressively weakened it, camp followers, particularly women, actually performed many important functions. They offered crucial logistical support essential to the effective operation of the army. They also provided much of the social structure that helped make military life bearable, creating a family atmosphere that smoothed rough edges. Differing gender roles, and the presence of camp followers, would have created methods for socializing and motivating male soldiers that would bear little resemblance to the techniques used in armies of the later 19th and early 20th centuries. This presence of large numbers of women and children living intimately and closely with soldiers created a military world that contrasts sharply with that of the 21st century.

Roles of Camp Followers

Camp followers were essential to the operation of an 18th-century army, and most commanders made arrangements to secure their presence. The largest portion of camp followers consisted of the families of the soldiers, but noncombatant men also contributed significant numbers of camp followers. Many of these were artisans, such as blacksmiths and carpenters, who provided skills needed by the army. Others were private servants and sutlers (merchants licensed to follow the armies and sell provisions to the soldiers). These individuals, many of whom were women, provided various goods, including fresh foods and vegetables, that the army did not generally stock. Women also performed other important functions, such as cooking, nursing, and laundry.

Camp followers, on the whole, had an unsavory reputation. Included among them was usually a large group of prostitutes, entertainers, and others. Prostitution and other forms of sexual misconduct were perhaps not as common as imagined, but a certain percentage of female camp followers and male soldiers took part.

Camp followers were often accused of looting or encouraging other forms of reckless behavior, particularly drinking. Drunkenness constantly troubled commanders, yet alcohol (in moderation) was deemed necessary to the smooth functioning of an army, and camp followers often supplied the spirits. From the point of view of authority, camp followers could be a nuisance that tempted soldiers from their duty and encouraged disorderly behavior. The fact that camp followers were subjected to military law and sometimes kept under military discipline highlights the important role of these civilians and the difficulties that commanders sometimes encountered keeping them in order.

Women, Children, and Families

Most of the camp followers were the wives and children of soldiers. Adult female camp followers cooked, nursed the ill and wounded, sewed, laundered clothing, cleaned the camp, acted as servants to officers, and performed many other necessary daily tasks. Customarily some were allowed rations in return for doing the cooking and cleaning for a company, but usually far more women were following the army than were officially allowed rations.

The commonly held view was that most female camp followers were prostitutes. One reason for this assumption was that marriage customs were much more informal and unregulated among the “lower orders” of 18th-century American and European armies. Moreover, the custom was for a woman widowed by the death of a soldier husband to take another husband in the army almost immediately. As a result, many marriages, which were probably considered valid by the parties concerned, were often judged to be unsanctioned and immoral by outside observers.

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