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Civil War and Its Aftermath
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The American Civil War: A “Terrible Swift Sword” lesson unit, National Endowment for the Humanities

Abraham Lincoln on the American Union: “A Word Fitly Spoken” lesson unit, National Endowment for the Humanities

Civil War and Its Aftermath: 54th Regiment | Activity

A white man in military uniform rides a horse in front of a regiment of five rows of Black troops in this sculpture, which is painted entirely in gold. The artist created a shallow, stage-like space with an arched top so the men are sculpted in three dimensions, though they become more compressed as they move back in space. The men and horse face our right in profile in this view. The man on the horse has a pointed, straight nose and a goatee. He wears a cap with a flat top and narrow brim, a knee-length coat, gloves, and knee-high boots with spurs. He holds a thin sword down by the side of the horse with his right hand and holds the reins of the horse with his left. The horse’s head is pulled upward by the short reins, and its mouth is open around the bit. About twenty soldiers are lined up in rows beyond the horse, and they march in unison. They carry blankets rolled atop knapsacks, canteens, and rifles resting on their right shoulders. However, the details of how their uniforms bunch up around their equipment and the way their caps have been molded and fit is unique to each person. Their ages also vary from young and cleanshaven to bearded, older men. Two men carry furled flags near the back, to our left, and a drummer boy plays at the head of the regiment, to our right. All the men look straight ahead, their lips closed. A woman in a billowing robe floats above them under the arched top of the sculpture with her eyes closed. Her left arm is outstretched, and she holds a laurel branch and poppies close to her body with her right arm. An inscription in the upper right corner is created with raised capital letters: “OMNIA RELINQVIT SERVARE REMPVBLICAM.” A longer inscription is carved into the base along the bottom edge of the memorial, also in all caps: “ROBERT GOVLD SHAW KILLED WHILE LEADING THE ASSVLT ON FORT WAGNER JVLY TWENTY THIRD EIGHTEEN HVNDRED AND SIXTY THREE.” The artist’s signature is inscribed In the lower right corner, in smaller letters: “AVGVTVS SAINT GAVDEN M-D-C-C-C-L X X X X V I I I.”

Augustus Saint-Gaudens, The Shaw 54th Regiment Memorial, 1900, patinated plaster, U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service, Saint-Gaudens National Historic Site, Cornish, New Hampshire, X.15233

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For black people living in the United States during the Civil War era, the abolition of slavery throughout the nation was the goal, and some who were free decided to form their own regiments to fight for the Union in pursuit of that goal. They were paid less than white soldiers or were not paid at all, received poor equipment, and often ran out of supplies. To make matters worse, Confederate soldiers threatened to enslave or kill any black soldiers they captured and kill their white commanders. Overcoming these hardships, black soldiers proved themselves heroically in battle. The bravery of the 54th Regiment of Massachusetts, an all-black regiment, is among the most well known and is remembered in the Shaw Memorial, a sculpture by Augustus Saint-Gaudens.

At the beginning of the Civil War, Richard Harvey Cain was among a group of black students from Wilberforce University who attempted to join the Union army in Ohio. Cain was turned down. He wrote about the events after the first shots were fired at Fort Sumter and the importance of the 54th Massachusetts:

I shall never forget the thrill that ran through my soul when I thought of the coming consequences of that shot. There were one hundred and fifteen of us students at the University, who, anxious to vindicate the stars and stripes, made up a company and offered our services to the Governor of Ohio; and sir, we were told that this is a white man’s war and that the Negro had nothing to do with it. Sir, we returned, docile, patient, waiting, casting our eyes to the Heavens whence help always comes. We knew that there would come a period in the history of this nation when our strong black arms would be needed. We waited patiently; we waited until Massachusetts, through her noble Governor, sounded the alarm, and we hastened to hear the summons and obey it.

Letter by Richard Harvey Cain written at the time of the Civil War, quoted in Zak Mettger, Till Victory Is Won: Black Soldiers in the Civil War (New York: Puffin Books, 1997), 2.

Why do you think Cain and his fellow students were eager to fight? Is there a cause for which you would feel the same and take action? Have students write a short essay on a cause they feel strongly about and what can be done to address it. For older students, have them write an op-ed and encourage students to submit their writing to local and national publications.