page_title: United States Zouave Cadets
section_title: Under command of Elmer Ellsworth
hierarchical_section_title: United States Zouave Cadets / History / Under command of Elmer Ellsworth
caption_attribution_description: English: Have you ever seen soldiers dressed like this before? Probably not! They belonged to a volunteer drill team organized in 1859 by Elmer Ellsworth (1837-1861) of Chicago. He copied their name and colorful uniforms after the French Zouaves of the Crimean War. In the summer of 1860, Ellsworth led his troupe on a triumphant tour of twenty eastern cities, including Utica, New York, where J. Graff, a local painter, captured the festive scene. He also included some members of the Untica Brass Band in his painting. Can you find them? Graff was an amateur artist, and the style of this painting shows the simplicity and attention to detail that untrained artists are known for. Notice the flat, bright colors, and the carefully painted buttons on the uniforms. The boldly painted title of the image resembles sign paintings, which many amateur artists often made. Ellsworth and the Zouaves returned to Chicago after their tour and disbanded. Ellsworth moved to Springfield to study law with Abraham Lincoln, and campaigned for him in the 1860 presidential campaign. When the Civil War began, Ellsworth volunteered as the Colonel of the 11th New York Infantry, also known as the “Fire Zouaves” because the members were firefighters in New York City. Ellsworth died on May 24, 1861 while trying to take down a Confederate flag in Alexandria, Virginia, the first Union officer to die in the war. Lincoln mourned his death deeply and gave him a state funeral at the White House. Other Chicago Zouaves also joined the Union army, serving with the Nineteenth Illinois Infantry and wearing the colorful uniforms that Graff documented in his 1859 portrait.
context_page_description: The United States Zouave Cadets was a short-lived zouave unit of the Illinois militia that has been credited as the force behind the surge in popularity of zouave infantry in the United States and Confederate States in the mid-19th century. The United States Zouave Cadets were formed by Elmer Ellsworth in 1859 from the National Guard Cadets of Chicago, established three years earlier. The unit's 1860 tour of the eastern United States popularized the distinctive zouave appearance and customs, directly and indirectly inspiring the formation of dozens of similar units on the eve of the American Civil War.
  During the governorship of William Henry Bissell, the United States Zouave Cadets were granted the ceremonial designation of Governor's Guard of Illinois on 23 January 1860. Its march was the "Zouave Cadets Quickstep".
context_section_description: While commanding officer of the Rockford Greys militia company, Elmer Ellsworth introduced his men to drills inspired by those used by French zouave units. Ellsworth, himself, had been introduced to zouave military customs by his fencing instructor, Charles A. De Villiers, a French physician, immigrant, and veteran of a zouave unit during the Crimean War. In 1859, soldiers of the National Guard Cadets of Chicago saw the Rockford Greys performing zouave-inspired drills and offered Ellsworth command of their unit. Ellsworth accepted the offer, transforming the National Guard Cadets of Chicago into the United States Zouave Cadets.
  On July 4, 1859, the United States Zouave Cadets – now 46 members strong – first publicly appeared in their new Zouave uniforms and executed the unique Franco-Algerian Zouave drill in front of Chicago's Tremont Hall. With a training schedule of three evenings per week, the United States Zouave Cadets established a reputation for parade ground excellence, described by one observer as "unsurpassed this side of West Point". The United States Zouave Cadets saw their biggest audience, estimated to be 70,000 in number, the following September during the seventh annual United States Agricultural Society Fair which was hosted by Chicago.
  In March 1860, the invalid and partially paralyzed Governor of Illinois, William Henry Bissell, succumbed to pneumonia. The Zouave Cadets formed part of the military escort during Bissell's state funeral, occupying a position in the cortège between the Quincy City Guards and a volunteer company of veterans of the Mexican–American War. Having previously been named as the Governor's Guard of Illinois by Governor Bissell on January 23, 1860, the Zouave Cadets were also given the task of firing three volleys during the interment.
  That May the unit was again in the public spotlight when it executed its exotic drill and maneuver for the 1860 Republican National Convention, held that year in Chicago.
caption: An oil painting showing the Chicago Zouaves in Utica, New York during their 1860 national tour
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