Original Item: Only One Available. This is a fantastic example of a small VI Corps, 3rd  Division badge as worn on the various types of uniform caps of the Union Army. The badge measures approximately 1 3/4” x 1 3/4” and is in great shape for its age. The felt backing is in great shape with minimal material loss and the bullion border is all retained.

Corps badges in the American Civil War were originally worn by soldiers of the Union Army on the top of their army forage cap (kepi), left side of the hat, or over their left breast. The idea is attributed to Maj. Gen. Philip Kearny, who ordered the men in his division to sew a two-inch square of red cloth on their hats to avoid confusion on the battlefield. This idea was adopted by Maj. Gen. Joseph Hooker after he assumed command of the Army of the Potomac, so any soldier could be identified at a distance.

Maj. Gen. Daniel Butterfield, Hooker's chief of staff, was assigned the task of designing a distinctive shape for each corps badge. Butterfield also designated that each division in the corps should have a variation of the corps badge in a different color. Division badges were colored as follows:

Red — First division of corps
White — Second division of corps
Blue — Third division of corps

These were used in the United States' Army of the Potomac.
For the most part, these rules were adopted by other Union Armies, however it was not universal. For example, the XIII Corps never adopted a badge, and the XIX Corps had the first division wear a red badge, the second division wear a blue badge, and the third division wear white.

For Army corps that had more than three divisions, the standardization was lost:

Green — Fourth division of II, III, VI, IX, and XX Corps
Yellow — Fourth division of XV Corps (reportedly Orange was also used for a 5th Division Badge)
Multicolor — Headquarters or artillery elements (certain corps)

The badges for enlisted men were cut from colored cloth, while officer's badges were privately made and of a higher quality. Metallic badges were often made by jewelers and were personalized for the user. The badges eventually became part of the Army regulations and a great source of regimental pride.

A lovely example ready for further research and display.

VI Corps (Union Army)

The VI Corps (Sixth Army Corps) was a corps of the Union Army during the American Civil War. The corps was organized as the Sixth Provisional Corps on May 18, 1862, by uniting Maj. Gen. William B. Franklin's Division, which had just arrived on the Virginia Peninsula, with Maj. Gen. William F. Smith's Division, which was taken away from the IV Corps for this purpose. This provisional arrangement having been sanctioned by the U.S. War Department, the command received its permanent designation as the VI Army Corps, Army of the Potomac. Franklin was appointed corps commander, and Henry W. Slocum succeeded to the command of Franklin's Division. On June 20, 1862, the corps numbered 24,911, present and absent, with 19,405 present for duty, equipped; the corps artillery numbered 40 guns.

At the Battle of Gaines' Mill in the Seven Days Battles, Slocum's Division was sent to the support of Maj. Gen. Fitz John Porter and became hotly engaged, losing 2,021 men out of less than 8,000 present. The Vermont brigade of Smith's (2nd) Division took a prominent part in the fight at Savage's Station, the 5th Vermont losing 209 men in that action. The corps fought at other points during the Seven Days Battles, but at Malvern Hill it was held in reserve. After the Peninsula Campaign, the VI Corps was recalled to Washington DC and did not participate in the Second Bull Run Campaign aside from the First New Jersey Brigade of Slocum's (1st) Division having a sharp fight on August 27, at Bull Run Bridge, in which it lost 339 in killed, wounded, and missing, Brig. Gen. George W. Taylor, the brigade commander, receiving a mortal wound.

In the Maryland Campaign, Slocum's Division made a successful charge up the side of South Mountain at Crampton's Gap, driving the enemy from a strong position; Slocum's loss was 533 (113 killed, 418 wounded, 2 missing). At Antietam, the corps was held in reserve aside from Col. William Erwin's brigade, which participated in the storming of Bloody Lane. Winfield Hancock, who commanded the 1st Brigade of William F. Smith's division, was appointed to command the 1st Division of the II Corps after its commander Maj. Gen Israel B. Richardson fell mortally wounded, as the ranking brigadier in the division, Brig. Gen John C. Caldwell, was considered too junior for division command.

Important changes in the corps now took place. It received a valuable accession by the transfer of Maj. Gen. Darius N. Couch's Division of the IV Corps, which now became the 3rd Division of the VI Corps, with Maj. Gen. John Newton in command. General Franklin was promoted to the command of the Left Grand Division, VI and I Corps, and General Smith succeeded to the command of the corps. General Slocum was promoted to the command of the XII Corps, and Maj. Gen. William T. H. Brooks succeeded Slocum in command of the 1st Division, while Brig. Gen. Albion P. Howe succeeded to the command of Smith's (2nd) Division.