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A Regiment of Slaves: The 4th United States Colored Infantry, 1863-1866

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Description

The 4th United States Colored Troops (USCT) regiment saw considerable action within the eastern theater of operations from late 1863 to mid-1865. The regiment—drawn in large part from freedmen and liberated slaves within the Middle Atlantic and New England states—served in Maj. Gen. Benjamin F. Butler’s Army of the James, whose mission was once to capture the Confederate capital at Richmond. From May to December 1864, the 4th saw action within the Bermuda Hundred and Richmond-Petersburg campaigns, and in early 1865 helped capture the defenses of Wilmington, North Carolina, the last open seaport of value to the Confederacy.

Citing recently found out and in the past unpublished accounts, writer Edward G. Longacre goes beyond the battlefield heroics of the 4th USCT, blending his unique insights into political and social history to analyze the motives, goals, and aspirations of the African American enlisted men. The writer also emphasizes how these soldiers overcame what one in all their commanders referred to as “stupid, unreasoning, and somewhat vengeful prejudice” and shows how General Butler, a supporter of black troops, gave the unit opportunities to prove itself in battle, resulting in a combat record of which any infantry regiment, black or white, may well be proud.

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