National Flags of the Confederate States of America 1861-1865

National Flags of the Confederate States of America 1861-1865. . , First National Flag (Stars and Bars) , The first official flag of the confederacy was the Stars and Bars, and was reported to the provisional congress of the C.S. by the flag committee on March 4, 1861. It appears to have not had a recorded vote. It was written into the journal of the congress. It is said to have been designed by Nicola Marschall, a Prussian artist and to have been inspired by the Austrian flag. The reason for the variation in number of stars in the Stars and Bars was due to lack of centralized purchasing. The original ones had 7 stars and more were added as additional states joined and the flag makers became aware of the number of states. , Second National Flag (Stainless Banner) , Because of its similarity to the Stars and Stripes (Union), the Stars and Bars were replaced with the Second National, also called the Stainless Banner on May 26, 1863. This flag has a square canton with the familiar Southern Cross on a white field. The specs were not very strictly adhered to and in many cases the canton was rectangular. , Third National Flag , Because it could be mistaken for a flag of truce, the Stainless Banner was modified to include a red bar on the fly. It was to be 1/4 of the area of the flag beyond the now rectangular canton. The width was to be 2/3 of length. The canton was to be 3/5 of width and 1/3 of length. This was signed into law on March 4, 1865. Few flags of this version were issued and few survived. The flag was published in newspapers in December 1864 when it was first proposed in the CS Congress. The first example of it flew over Chimborazo Hospital in Richmond starting in January 1865 - two months before it was officially adopted by law! , Confederate Regiments of Georgia , 5th Infantry Regiment was organized in May 1864, and had its first combat and casualties at Pensacola in October 1861. Its members were recruited from Warren County and in the surrounding counties of Clinch, Spalding, Dawson, Camden, Schley, and Upson. During the war it served under the command of J.K. Jackson, Taliaferro, and G.P. Harrison. The 5th participated in the campaigns of the Army of Tennessee from Murfreesboro to Atlanta, then served at Savannah and fought in North Carolina. This unit lost thirty-seven percent of the 173 engaged at Murfreesboro and fifty-five percent of the 317 at Chickamauga. It totaled 227 men and 137 arms in December 1863, and had 250 effectives in March 1865. In April it surrendered. The field officers were Colonels William T. Black, C.P. Daniel, John K. Jackson, and Samuel W. Mangham; Lieutenant Colonels Thomas Beall, Charles B. Day, and John F. Iverson; and Majors David H. Ashley, W.B. Hundley, John F. Kiddoo and W.L. Salisbury. , 22nd Infantry Regiment was formed at Big Shanty, Georgia, in September 1861, with men from Warren, Schley, Glascock, Bartow, Lincoln, Washington, Dawson, and Henry counties. Sent to Virginia the unit first served in the Department of the Peninsula, ten was assigned to General A.R. Wright's and Sorrel's Brigade, Army of Northern Virginia. It participated in the difficult campaigns of the army form the Seven Days Battles to Cold Harbor, enduring the hardships of the Petersburg trenches south of the James River, and saw action around Appomattox. It lost 10 killed and 77 wounded at Oak Grove, had 6 killed, 32 wounded, and 18 missing at Malvern Hill, and 13 killed and 50 wounded at Second Manassas. Of the 400 engaged at Gettysburg, more than forty percent were disabled, then it sustained 25 casualties enroute from Pennsylvania and 50 at Manassas Gap. On April 9, 1865, it surrendered with 9 officers and 197 men. The field officers were Colonels George H. Jones, Robert H. Jones, and Joseph Wasden; Lieutenant Colonels B.C. McCurry and J.W. Pritchett; and Major Lawrence D. Lallerstedt. , 48th Infantry Regiment completed its organization at Macon, Georgia, during the winter of 1861-1862. Its companies were recruited in the counties of Burke, Glascock, Warren, Richmond, Jefferson, Emanuel, and Harris. Ordered to Virginia, the 48th was brigaded under Generals Ripley, A.R. Wright, and Sorrel. It served on many battlefields of the Army of Northern Virginia from the Seven Days Battles to Cold Harbor, then was involved in the long Petersburg siege south of the James River and the Appomattox Campaign. This regiment reported 33 casualties at Mechanicsville, 44 at Malvern Hill, 61 at Second Manassas, and 72 at Chancellorsville. It lost more than fifty-five percent of the 395 at Gettysburg, and there were 32 disabled at Manassas Gap. On April 9, 1865, it surrendered 13 officers and 193 men. Colonels William Gibson and Matthew R. Hall, Lieutenant Colonel Reuben W. Carswell, and Major John R. Whitehead were in command. , These infantry regiment officers were natives of Warren County.