They fought for their family. They fought for their freedom.
I'm into genealogy and if there's one thing I've learned over the years, it's that one has to keep politics, patriotic feelings and wishful thinking out of it. Historical accuracy is of utmost importance, or your research will go in a completely wrong direction. To correct these errors can take a very long time. Been there, done that.
Nowadays I only add a person to my family tree if I have 100% proof -- i.e., church books, civil records, tax registers, censuses. For the time before the introduction of church books, it's 80% guess work. You are lucky if you find tax registers or similar documents, and you are even more in luck if you can actually read them.