structure removed. Continued adjustments to the number of soldiers per regiment and troop made throughout the early part of the war were finalized in April 1863, when the authorized strength for a Union cavalry regiment was set at between 1,040 to 1,156. Although permanent battalions were removed, Union forces continued to operate in the field as squadrons and battalions. Independent battalions and companies of the Volunteers were also formed throughout the war. The Confederates organized their cavalry regiments along the same principles as the old Regular Army regiments with ten companies. In November 1861 each company was to have at minimum sixty privates, later increased to eighty in October 1862, also commanded by a captain with a number of other officers and NCOs. Each regiment was commanded by a colonel, assisted by a lieutenant colonel and a major, with its own regimental staff. As with Union forces, the Confederates also formed independent battalions and companies of cavalry forces, and many partisan groups were formed which operated both within and outside of Confederate territory. Additionally, at least one cavalry legion was formed early in the war by combining infantry and artillery forces into one large regiment, but the concept was soon abandoned for being too unwieldy. The actual size of cavalry regiments rarely if ever conformed to their paper strength. Sometimes they could be much larger: Turner Ashby for example grew his 7th Virginia Cavalry Regiment to over 1,400 troopers split between twenty-two and twenty-six companies in April 1862 by refusing to allow them to be divided into multiple regiments. More often, regiments were worn down by attrition until they were a fraction of their authorized size: Union regiments averaged between 400 to 600 total, while Confederate regiments averaged between 160 to 360 total. In one extreme example, an unnamed Union regiment at the Battle of Five Forks numbered only 45 men. The fate of most regiments once they were reduced to a certain size was either disbandment or consolidation with other units, much to the chagrin of the veteran troopers. The states were mostly responsible for recruitment and many governors were more inclined to create brand new units as a form of political patronage rather than return an existing unit to full strength. Nevertheless, the Confederates did a better job than the Union at funneling replacements to existing regiments. Above the regiment was a brigade which consisted of several regiments,