The Effects of the Cessation of Exchange of Prisoners During the Civil War

This book examines the effects of halting the exchanges of prisoners during the American Civil War. When exchanges were ceased by General Grant in April 1864, both the Union and Confederate Armies were thereafter deprived of a badly needed source of manpower. In addition, the need for fighting men in the North persuaded the Federal Government to include a much larger number of negro regiments in the front lines of battles. Mien General Grant became General-in-Chief of the Union Army in early 1864, he was aware of the South's manpower problems, and as matter of course ordered exchanges ceased. The strategy employed by General Grant supported his plan to defeat the Confederate armies in the field and bring the war to a close.