During the Civil War, African American war correspondent Thomas Morris Chester was so inspired by the men of the 36th United States Colored Troops that he declared the group to be "a model regiment." Composed primarily of former slaves recruited from Union-occupied areas of eastern North Carolina and southeastern Virginia, the 36th USCT participated in large-scale expeditions to liberate slaves, guarded Confederate prisoners at major POW camps, served in the trenches before Petersburg and Richmond, and stood as one of the first units to enter the abandoned Confederate capital on April 3, 1865. This volume, which includes a complete regimental roster, explores the background of these former slaves and their families, examines their initial recruitment and chronicles their military contributions throughout the war. More than a unit history, the story of the 36th USCT offers a vivid portrait of the challenging transition from slavery to freedom.

The story of an enormous step forward in both the struggle for black freedom and the defeat of the Confederacy: turning former enslaved men into Union soldiers. After President Lincoln issued the final Emancipation Proclamation of January 1, 1863, Confederate slaves who could reach Union lines often made that perilous journey. A great many of the young and middle-aged among them, along with other black men in the free and border slave states, joined the Union army. These U.S. Colored Troops (USCT), as the War Department designated most black units, materially helped to win the Civil War—performing a variety of duties, fighting in some significant engagements, and proving to the Confederates that Northern manpower had practically no limits. Soldiering for Freedom explains how Lincoln’s administration came to recognize the advantages of arming free blacks and former slaves and how doing so changed the purpose of the war. Bob Luke and John David Smith narrate and analyze how former slaves and free blacks found their way to recruiting centers and made the decision to muster in. As Union military forces recruited, trained, and equipped ex-slave and free black soldiers in the last two years of the Civil War, white civilian and military authorities often regarded the African American soldiers with contempt. They relegated the men of the USCT to second-class treatment compared to white volunteers. The authors show how the white commanders deployed the black troops, and how the courage of the African American soldiers gave hope for their full citizenship after the war. Including twelve evocative historical engravings and photographs, this engaging and meticulously researched book provides a fresh perspective on a fascinating topic. Appropriate for history students, scholars of African American history, or military history buffs, this compelling and informative account will provide answers to many intriguing questions about the U.S. Colored Troops, Union military strategy, and race relations during and after the tumultuous Civil War.

When soldiers in the Civil War called on their religious beliefs in order to cope with the horrors of battle, many looked to the regimental chaplain for guidance and understanding. Clergy were always present to address the spiritual needs of the common soldier and administer to the wounded and dying. But as Warren Armstrong shows, military chaplains provided more than comfort. In a country profoundly shaped by religion, each side adapted its version of Christianity to support its political views. This book documents the role played by Union chaplains in making better soldiers and supporting the North's military efforts. These ministers in uniform focused on preserving the Union and reminding soldiers that slavery was the central issue in the war, preaching the righteousness of abolition in services held in the mud of campgrounds, and often serving as advocates for freedmen. Armstrong has drawn on a wide range of documents to explain the duties of Union chaplains and differentiate them from their Southern counterparts. He examines the organization of the chaplaincy and reviews its manuals for guidelines on such matters as cultivating desirable character traits and building makeshift churches. He also sheds light on the personalities of the men who served, examines their attitudes toward the war, and assesses their unofficial role as morale officers for the Union army. Wherever possible, Armstrong uses chaplains' letters, diaries, and written reports to explain their thoughts and actions in their own words. His book is narrative history with a richly human element, including such episodes as a chaplain who took a fallen soldier's place and died in battle and two chaplains of different faiths who slept together for warmth on a cold winter night at Fredericksburg. Before the Civil War, the need for a military chaplaincy had been challenged on the grounds of separation of church and state, but the valiant service of chaplains during that conflict helped prove their worth and establish a lasting military tradition. In relating their story, Armstrong's work faithfully documents the contributions chaplains made both to the Union victory and to the form that victory took.

Master index to a series that chronicles in full the events of the American Civil War 1861-1865.

In his estimation, Northerners were just as active as Southerners in myth-making after the war. Crafting a "Cause Victorious" myth that was every bit as resonant and powerful as the much better-known "Lost Cause" myth cherished by Southerners, the North asserted through commemorations the existence of a loyal and reunified nation long before it was actually a fact. Neff reveals that as Northerners and Southerners honored their separate dead, they did so in ways that underscore the limits of reconciliation between Union and Confederate veterans, whose mutual animosities lingered for many decades after the need of the war. Ultimately, Neff argues that the process of reunion and reconciliation that has been so much the focus of recent literature either neglects or dismisses the persistent reluctance of both Northerners and Southerners to "forgive and forget," especially where their dead were concerned.