One would be remiss to neglect the absolute importance that African Americans played throughout the course of the Civil War, both North and South. From the war's outset, Southern Confederate leadership recognized their value as laborers, hard workers, and the unquestionable impressment into service they could leverage.
Nevertheless, Northern whites and Southern whites held widely disparate views of the role that these black men should play. For Southerners, there was no question that these black men would never be armed. "In the eyes of Southern whites, free blacks were the least trustworthy and most unessential segment of Southern society, and as the sectional controversy became more critical, whites began to restrict their limited freedom"(Glatthaar, 3). For Northern whites, the sentiment was that black men should not be used whatsoever, despite the fact that thousands of free black men were clamoring all across the Union at recruitment centers, courthouses and town halls offering up their services. To the Northern blacks, this would afford them opportunity to prove their worth, and essentially validate their freedom.
From the executive on down, Northern feelings varied greatly: Lincoln, at first, did not wish for the black men to join the armed forces. Prominent abolitionists such as Frederick Douglass clamored for the opportunity for black men to prove their mettle. And Union commanders such as General Butler would take it upon themselves to do things such as his issuance of General Order #3. Further complicating matters were the confiscation acts, which thus dictated that slaves could be held as contraband if they escaped Southern lines and came to the Union lines for succor. Despite all of this, the idea of arming the black man was far more progressive than either side wished to entertain during the initial phases of the Civil War.
As the war progressed, a movement began to form an all-black regiment under the encouragement of several prominent Massachusetts individuals and statesmen, such as the governor as well as Frederick Douglass, who himself volunteered two of his sons to fight in it. Chosen to lead this unit was a young Harvard graduate, Colonel Robert Gould Shaw, scion of a prominent and wealthy Massachusetts family. His selection could not have been more fortuitous. At first reticent to take on the role, Shaw felt that the "negro would be difficult to train," and was quite worried about what this would do to his career. Simultaneously, Lee and Davis of the Confederacy had issued their order that any black troops fighting for the Union army would not only be confiscated and enslaved by the South, but that their white commanders would summarily be executed. Thus this was a difficult time for all involved.
Nevertheless, Shaw (then a captain) tacitly agreed to take the assignment, and was promoted as regimental Colonel of what was designated the 54th Massachusetts Regiment. They began to muster in Readsville, Massachusetts, and the response was overwhelming; so much so that the 55th Massachusetts would be formed shortly thereafter to accommodate all of the willing conscripts. Under the tutelage of Sergeant Major Forbes - a rough and tumble Irishman - the grueling process of training began. Shaw himself remarked in a letter to his sister back in Boston that he found it remarkable how quickly the men learned and, in many instances, were superior in many facets to the white soldiers he had trained previously. This would prepare them for their first engagement, the Battle of Grimball's Landing, a spit of land on the plantation of Solomon Legare adjacent to James Island, South Carolina. An inauspicious, inhospitable and malarial region of the Lowcountry, Shaw's men would prove their mettle for the first time on July 16, 1863, as they ferried up the Stono River to disembark on Sol Legare Island. Shaw led his men, under the auspices of Union General Alfred Terry, to reconnoiter a Confederate artillery battery under the command of General Johnson Hagood. Though a short skirmish, the 54th Regt. did not turn tail and flee, as many Northern pundits predicted would happen. Rather, they proved themselves a worthy adversary and, though Union casualties were greater than the Confederate's, nevertheless forced the rebels to withdraw back towards the neighborhood of Secessionville as well as towards Battery Wagner, an as yet incomplete fort built in the sands of nearby Morris Island. This would be the prelude for a major conflict to come.
Though incomplete, Fort Wagner (as the battery was known) was considered to be one of the most formidable beachheads ever constructed in the United States Civil War. The battle was, in effect, two entirely separate engagements: the first took place prior to the Battle of Sol Legare, on July 11, 1863. The real battle for the 54th Massachusetts Regt. to cut their teeth came later on July 18, 1863 - two days after the skirmish on Mr. Legare's plantation. With Col. Shaw leading the charge up the ramparts, the 54th Mass. proved fallacious the Northern belief that blacks were inferior fighters. Quite the contrary: though the casualties were heavy, and the losses bloody, the 54th. Mass. proved itself a worthy adversary, both bold and brave. Despite this, Col. Shaw would be lost as he attempted to scale the parapet, and would disrespectfully be thrown into a mass grave on Shute's Folly (present-day Folly Beach), apparently with the bodies of his dead Massachusetts soldiers atop him, a desecration the Southerners felt was befitting any man who would command African Americans into battle. The engagement would go on until September before the South would finally capitulate; however, the North's Pyrrhic victory served as impetus for an influx of new black recruits to the Union army, and renewed the vigor of Northern whites to the Union cause. The victory would also set the stage for Union artillery to gain a foothold for the future shelling of downtown Charleston.
In addition to the respect that African American soldiers were now receiving by virtue of their fighting valiantly for the Union Army was their eagerness to learn and their ability to hungrily absorb knowledge. The various regiments of colored troops set up both formal and informal educational programs for their soldiers, and this enabled the men not only to uplift themselves, but also to produce a smarter, better warrior. The implications of education on the military indoctrination process are obvious; and the benefits were certainly evident. Heretofore the simple act of educating blacks was considered a crime; now, its benefits recognizable, it was fostered and encouraged. Individuals such as Edwin Pierce of Boston found the former slave troops to be "apt pupils, quick to grasp at the opportunity to learn"(Cornish, 369).
Following the cessation of conflict, black troops played an incongruous role that often appeared to be retributive towards the former rebels: as martial patrol and guards in cities such as Savannah and Charleston, and as local overseers of the Freedmen's Bureau in cities all over the South. For many of their former masters, this was seen as an especially personal affront, yet was one that the African American soldiers from the North relished. As to be expected, conflict arose at various points in the postbellum years which some have - correctly or incorrectly - attributed as a reason for the prolonged regression of civil rights that led into the Jim Crow era.
Nevertheless, the positive contributions and value the African Americans played in helping secure a Northern victory can not be downplayed. The manpower they provided; the skilled labor they brought to bear; and their mental and military acuity were immeasurable. The shear number of these men alone undoubtedly marked a tipping point for the North, especially when juxtaposed to the racist attitudes of the Southern leadership, who refused to utilize this terrific resource.
Nevertheless, Northern whites and Southern whites held widely disparate views of the role that these black men should play. For Southerners, there was no question that these black men would never be armed. "In the eyes of Southern whites, free blacks were the least trustworthy and most unessential segment of Southern society, and as the sectional controversy became more critical, whites began to restrict their limited freedom"(Glatthaar, 3). For Northern whites, the sentiment was that black men should not be used whatsoever, despite the fact that thousands of free black men were clamoring all across the Union at recruitment centers, courthouses and town halls offering up their services. To the Northern blacks, this would afford them opportunity to prove their worth, and essentially validate their freedom.
From the executive on down, Northern feelings varied greatly: Lincoln, at first, did not wish for the black men to join the armed forces. Prominent abolitionists such as Frederick Douglass clamored for the opportunity for black men to prove their mettle. And Union commanders such as General Butler would take it upon themselves to do things such as his issuance of General Order #3. Further complicating matters were the confiscation acts, which thus dictated that slaves could be held as contraband if they escaped Southern lines and came to the Union lines for succor. Despite all of this, the idea of arming the black man was far more progressive than either side wished to entertain during the initial phases of the Civil War.
As the war progressed, a movement began to form an all-black regiment under the encouragement of several prominent Massachusetts individuals and statesmen, such as the governor as well as Frederick Douglass, who himself volunteered two of his sons to fight in it. Chosen to lead this unit was a young Harvard graduate, Colonel Robert Gould Shaw, scion of a prominent and wealthy Massachusetts family. His selection could not have been more fortuitous. At first reticent to take on the role, Shaw felt that the "negro would be difficult to train," and was quite worried about what this would do to his career. Simultaneously, Lee and Davis of the Confederacy had issued their order that any black troops fighting for the Union army would not only be confiscated and enslaved by the South, but that their white commanders would summarily be executed. Thus this was a difficult time for all involved.
Nevertheless, Shaw (then a captain) tacitly agreed to take the assignment, and was promoted as regimental Colonel of what was designated the 54th Massachusetts Regiment. They began to muster in Readsville, Massachusetts, and the response was overwhelming; so much so that the 55th Massachusetts would be formed shortly thereafter to accommodate all of the willing conscripts. Under the tutelage of Sergeant Major Forbes - a rough and tumble Irishman - the grueling process of training began. Shaw himself remarked in a letter to his sister back in Boston that he found it remarkable how quickly the men learned and, in many instances, were superior in many facets to the white soldiers he had trained previously. This would prepare them for their first engagement, the Battle of Grimball's Landing, a spit of land on the plantation of Solomon Legare adjacent to James Island, South Carolina. An inauspicious, inhospitable and malarial region of the Lowcountry, Shaw's men would prove their mettle for the first time on July 16, 1863, as they ferried up the Stono River to disembark on Sol Legare Island. Shaw led his men, under the auspices of Union General Alfred Terry, to reconnoiter a Confederate artillery battery under the command of General Johnson Hagood. Though a short skirmish, the 54th Regt. did not turn tail and flee, as many Northern pundits predicted would happen. Rather, they proved themselves a worthy adversary and, though Union casualties were greater than the Confederate's, nevertheless forced the rebels to withdraw back towards the neighborhood of Secessionville as well as towards Battery Wagner, an as yet incomplete fort built in the sands of nearby Morris Island. This would be the prelude for a major conflict to come.
Though incomplete, Fort Wagner (as the battery was known) was considered to be one of the most formidable beachheads ever constructed in the United States Civil War. The battle was, in effect, two entirely separate engagements: the first took place prior to the Battle of Sol Legare, on July 11, 1863. The real battle for the 54th Massachusetts Regt. to cut their teeth came later on July 18, 1863 - two days after the skirmish on Mr. Legare's plantation. With Col. Shaw leading the charge up the ramparts, the 54th Mass. proved fallacious the Northern belief that blacks were inferior fighters. Quite the contrary: though the casualties were heavy, and the losses bloody, the 54th. Mass. proved itself a worthy adversary, both bold and brave. Despite this, Col. Shaw would be lost as he attempted to scale the parapet, and would disrespectfully be thrown into a mass grave on Shute's Folly (present-day Folly Beach), apparently with the bodies of his dead Massachusetts soldiers atop him, a desecration the Southerners felt was befitting any man who would command African Americans into battle. The engagement would go on until September before the South would finally capitulate; however, the North's Pyrrhic victory served as impetus for an influx of new black recruits to the Union army, and renewed the vigor of Northern whites to the Union cause. The victory would also set the stage for Union artillery to gain a foothold for the future shelling of downtown Charleston.
 |
| Black soldiers of the Union Army removing burying war dead. |
In addition to the respect that African American soldiers were now receiving by virtue of their fighting valiantly for the Union Army was their eagerness to learn and their ability to hungrily absorb knowledge. The various regiments of colored troops set up both formal and informal educational programs for their soldiers, and this enabled the men not only to uplift themselves, but also to produce a smarter, better warrior. The implications of education on the military indoctrination process are obvious; and the benefits were certainly evident. Heretofore the simple act of educating blacks was considered a crime; now, its benefits recognizable, it was fostered and encouraged. Individuals such as Edwin Pierce of Boston found the former slave troops to be "apt pupils, quick to grasp at the opportunity to learn"(Cornish, 369).
 |
| Young black children on the portico of the Circular Congregational Church, Charleston, 1865. |
Following the cessation of conflict, black troops played an incongruous role that often appeared to be retributive towards the former rebels: as martial patrol and guards in cities such as Savannah and Charleston, and as local overseers of the Freedmen's Bureau in cities all over the South. For many of their former masters, this was seen as an especially personal affront, yet was one that the African American soldiers from the North relished. As to be expected, conflict arose at various points in the postbellum years which some have - correctly or incorrectly - attributed as a reason for the prolonged regression of civil rights that led into the Jim Crow era.
Nevertheless, the positive contributions and value the African Americans played in helping secure a Northern victory can not be downplayed. The manpower they provided; the skilled labor they brought to bear; and their mental and military acuity were immeasurable. The shear number of these men alone undoubtedly marked a tipping point for the North, especially when juxtaposed to the racist attitudes of the Southern leadership, who refused to utilize this terrific resource.
JAMES ALFRED MOLNAR
Graduate School of Arts & Science Wake Forest University
http://www.CharlestonGraveyards.com
http://www.CharlestonBattlefields.com
http://www.facebook.com/charlestongraveyards
molnja7@wfu.edu
Graduate School of Arts & Science Wake Forest University
http://www.CharlestonGraveyards.com
http://www.CharlestonBattlefields.com
http://www.facebook.com/charlestongraveyards
molnja7@wfu.edu
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