Prisoners suffered great hardships during their captivity, and neither side treated them well by today’s standards. They were held in extremely crowded ships off the coast, where thousands died from starvation and exposure. Initially, a system of paroles and exchanges was used, with prisoners released to their homes after signing a document pledging not to bear arms until formally exchanged.

Prison camps during the Civil War were potentially more dangerous and more terrifying than the battles themselves. A soldier who survived his ordeal in a camp often bore deep psychological scars and physical maladies that may or may not have healed in time.

Hardened veterans, scarcely strangers to the sting of battle, nevertheless found themselves ill-prepared for the horror and despondency awaiting them inside Civil War prison camps. While they often wrote frankly of the carnage wrought by bullets smashing limbs and grapeshot tearing ragged holes through advancing lines, many soldiers described their prisoner of war experiences as a more heinous undertaking altogether.