Civil War reenactors weren’t the first people to copy soldiers from old wars. The idea has been around for thousands of years! Roman gladiators dressed up like famous fighters from their history. People in Victorian England held jousts like the ones from the Middle Ages. For many, many years, people have also copied battles to help train soldiers.

Do you know who the very first Civil War reenactors were? They were the actual Civil War soldiers themselves! They put on “sham battles” or “mock battles.” When a mock battle came to town, people got very excited. Pistols cracked. Women screamed. Boys yelled. Men and horses ran around. The disorder helped soldiers practice. It helped them get ready for what war would feel like.

The battles had other purposes too. They showed how terrible the Civil War really was. The Civil War is the deadliest war in American history. More than 600,000 people died. Veterans held mock battles even before the war was over. They wanted to show how much soldiers had suffered. They had a message to send: “War is not fun and games. The people who died deserve honor.”