The 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment : So Brave

On 18th June 1863 the 54th Massachusetts regiment tried to attack Battery Wagner by day, they had many Black Soldiers killed.
Col. Shaw and his army retreated into sand bunkers to re-group, and decided to attack again at night fall. The 54th Regiment decided to attack Battery Wagner, the Army opened fire.
Most of the soldiers who died in this battle were black, Col. Shaw tried to continue the fight on his own, but he was soon killed, and as an insult the opposition threw his body into the ditch where they threw all the Black Soldiers who had been killed.
The 54th Regiment tried to carry on the fight, the managed to get to the middle of the Fort, but found they were surrounded, they had to beat a hasty retreat because of the ambush.
17 Black Union soldiers and 4 Black Sailors, were awarded the Congressional Medal of Honour. America's highest

Military award.  Two of them      were the 2nd Flag carrier Thomas Jackson and Sgt. William. H. Carney.

Official records show that a total of 186,107 men served in the Black Regiments, which was about 10% of the Union Army.
Black Soldiers fought in 449 Battles.
An additional 2000,000 blacks served the Union Army as labourers, cooks and nurses.
37,3000 Blacks lost their lives whilst serving in the Union Army.

54th Massachusetts regiment

Interview with AlexanderStephens vice president USA 1863 :
We fight for our homes, our       fathers, our mothers, our wives,      sisters, brothers, sons and     daughters ! We can call out a  million men if need be and when they are cut down we call another and still another until the last man of the south finds a bloody grave

My opinion on the American Civil War is that it only happened because the South's were too big headed to realise that it was wrong to imprison people if they were a different colour  to do work that they wouldn't do themselves because they thought the Black as a less of a person towards the Whites and when Lincoln stopped slavery they carried on with slavery.

Interview with a Black Soldier:
" The iron gates of our prison stand half open, One gallant push from the North will fling it wide open. While 4 Million of our Brothers and Sisters shall march out in Liberty, This is our Golden opportunity".

Col. Shaw of the 54th Massachusetts