Реферат: From Oppressed Slaves To Champion Soldiers Essay

more Union soldiers before the war was over, a good many white men would escape

death if a considerable percentage of those soldiers were colored. (Leckie 4). “Blacks

sought refuge behind the Union lines in greater and greater numbers throughout the

war” (Long 26). So why would blacks still want to fight for the country that did not

want them, but needed them to fight? Runaway slaves from the South joined the Union

army for two reasons: They wanted to protect themselves and escape the grasp of the

South, and they wanted to fight the evils of slavery. Frederick Douglas encouraged

blacks to join the Union cause. The first black regiment to be formed was the 1st

Kansas Colored Volunteers in October, 1862. There were doubts against this group from

their very beginning. In general, white soldiers and officers believed that black men

lacked the courage to fight and fight well. In October, 1862, African-American soldiers

of the 1st Kansas Colored Volunteers silenced their critics by repulsing attacking

Confederates at the battle of Island Mound, Missouri. (Park Net 1) At the battle of Port

Hudson, Louisiana, May 27, 1863, the African-American soldiers bravely advanced over

open ground in the face of deadly artillery fire. Although the attack failed, the black

soldiers proved their capability to withstand the heat of battle.

On July 17, 1863, at Honey Springs, Indian Territory, now Oklahoma, the 1st Kansas

Colored fought with courage once again. Union troops under General James Blunt ran

into a strong Confederate force under General Douglas Cooper. After a two-hour bloody

engagement, Cooper’s soldiers retreated. The 1st Kansas, which had held the center of

the Union line, advanced to within fifty paces of the Confederate line and exchanged

fire for some twenty minutes until the Confederates broke and ran. General Blunt wrote

after the battle, “I never saw such fighting as was done by the Negro regiment. The

question if Negroes will fight is settled besides they make better soldiers in every

respect than any other troops I have ever had under my command.” After this battle,

black soldiers began to receive some respect. (Park Net 1). Even though the 1st

Kansas regiment and other colored groups were beginning to win many battles,

discrimination in pay and other areas remained widespread. “According to the Militia Act

of 1862, soldiers of African descent were to receive $10.00 a month, plus a clothing