After Virginia seceded, Shipp and the cadets were under the command of Commandant Jackson and were sent to
Richmond for instruction. Shipp was detached to
Rockbridge County, Virginia, to recruit a company of soldiers. After a few days, he was called to Camp Lee to serve as assistant
adjutant general with the active rank of
captain in the Provisional Army of Virginia. He was appointed a
major with the
21st Virginia Infantry in June, 1861. He was with the cadets, serving under
William W. Loring during Jackson's Romney Expedition in the winter of 1861. Shipp was detailed to VMI on January 20, 1862, where he served as
commandant of cadets from 1862 to 1864 and gained the rank of
lieutenant colonel. Unofficial sources say he served as a
private in the
4th Virginia Cavalry during the summer of 1863 while on leave from VMI. In November 1863, Shipp attempted to resign from VMI because he felt guilty for having taken one alcoholic drink, but he was discouraged from doing so. He was well liked and respected by his cadets because of his strait-laced, solemn, yet amiable disposition. Shipp said in his report of the battle that the enemy fire was so fierce when he led the cadets into battle at the Bushong Orchard that "it seemed impossible that any living creature could escape." One cadet commenting on Shipp's serious demeanor and physical presence said he was "a large man with close-trimmed black hair and beard, a solemn bearing and a deep voice. Although he was then but twenty-four years of age, I thought he was forty." ==Later life==