"Brother against brother" is a slogan used in histories of the American Civil War

American Civil War

The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...

, describing the predicament faced in families (primarily, but not exclusively, residents of border states) in which loyalties and military service were divided between the Union

Union (American Civil War)

During the American Civil War, the Union was a name used to refer to the federal government of the United States, which was supported by the twenty free states and five border slave states. It was opposed by 11 southern slave states that had declared a secession to join together to form the...

 and the Confederacy

Confederate States of America

The Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...

. There are a number of stories of brothers fighting in the same battles on opposite sides, or even of brothers killing brothers over the issues.

The term Brother Against Brother

Brother Against Brother (game)

Brother Against Brother is a popular set of rules for miniature wargaming, recreating small skirmishes primarily of the American Civil War, as well as the French and Indian War and similar time periods. First written by Ivor M. Janci in 1996 for the Civil War, the rules were republished a year...

 is also the name of a popular rules set for miniature wargaming

Miniature wargaming

Miniature wargaming is a form of wargaming that incorporates miniature figures, miniature armor and modeled terrain as the main components of play...

 recreations of Civil War skirmishes.

Examples

• On December 26, 1861, Confederate Lt. Col. Nathan Bedford Forrest
  Nathan Bedford Forrest
  Nathan Bedford Forrest was a lieutenant general in the Confederate Army during the American Civil War. He is remembered both as a self-educated, innovative cavalry leader during the war and as a leading southern advocate in the postwar years...
  
   was ordered to probe the strength of Union troops in and around Camp Calhoun, Kentucky
  Calhoun, Kentucky
  Calhoun is a city in McLean County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 836 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of McLean County. It is included in the Owensboro, Kentucky Metropolitan Statistical Area...
  
  . Two Confederate forward scouts, Adam R. Johnson and Robert M. Martin, each had brothers stationed at the camp.
• On May 23, 1862, at the Battle of Front Royal
  Battle of Front Royal
  The Battle of Front Royal, also known as Guard Hill or Cedarville, was fought May 23, 1862, in Warren County, Virginia, as part of Confederate Army Maj. Gen. Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson's Campaign through the Shenandoah Valley during the American Civil War...
  
  , Capt. William Goldsborough of the Confederate 1st Maryland Infantry captured his brother Charles Goldsborough of the Union 1st Maryland Infantry and took him prisoner. The battle is also notable for being the only time in United States military history that two regiments from the same state with the same numerical designation have engaged each other in battle.
• The Crittenden brothers were brigadier general
  Brigadier General
  Brigadier general is a senior rank in the armed forces. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries, usually sitting between the ranks of colonel and major general. When appointed to a field command, a brigadier general is typically in command of a brigade consisting of around 4,000...
  
  s on opposite sides of the conflict—George Bibb Crittenden within the Confederate Army and Thomas Leonidas Crittenden
  Thomas Leonidas Crittenden
  Thomas Leonidas Crittenden was a lawyer, politician, and Union general during the American Civil War.-Early life:...
  
   within the Union Army.
• The Terrill brothers were also brigadier general
  Brigadier General
  Brigadier general is a senior rank in the armed forces. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries, usually sitting between the ranks of colonel and major general. When appointed to a field command, a brigadier general is typically in command of a brigade consisting of around 4,000...
  
  s on opposite sides of the conflict— James Barbour Terrill  within the Confederate Army (killed at the Battle of Totopotomoy Creek
  Battle of Totopotomoy Creek
  The Battle of Totopotomoy Creek , also called the Battle of Bethesda Church, Crumps Creek, Shady Grove Road, and Hanovertown, was a battle fought May 28–30, 1864, in Union Lt. Gen. Ulysses Grant's Overland Campaign against Confederate Gen. Robert E...
  
  ) and William Rufus Terrill
  William R. Terrill
  William Rufus Terrill was a United States Army soldier and general who was killed in action at the Battle of Perryville during the American Civil War...
  
   within the Union Army (killed at the Battle of Perryville
  Battle of Perryville
  The Battle of Perryville, also known as the Battle of Chaplin Hills, was fought on October 8, 1862, in the Chaplin Hills west of Perryville, Kentucky, as the culmination of the Confederate Heartland Offensive during the American Civil War. Confederate Gen. Braxton Bragg's Army of Mississippi won a...
  
  ).