The Black Soldiers by C.J. Blake

The Black Soldiers by C.J. Blake

All through our country's history, African Americans have had to choose

whether they were meant to live in the States or if they should go live

somewhere else. Slavery without a doubt had a strong impact on their

decisions. Despite the troubles African Americans have had, they made

a great contribution and a very big impact on our military and armed forces

since the Revolutionary War.

The black man has fought against his country's

wars, and he has also fought the war with their country to gain

the right to fight and the right to freedom.

America's first war was the war for independence from Great

Britain was a major achievement. This accomplishment could not have

been done if it was not for the African American soldiers in the armies. The

first American to actually shed blood during the revolution that freed America

from being under British rule was Crispus Attucks, a Black seaman. Attucks and

four white men were killed in the Boston Massacre on March 5, 1770. Attucks

was still willing to fight against England along with other whites, althoug he

was a fugitive slave running from his master.

The colonists probably would have kept African Americans out of the

military during the war if it was not for the proclamation by the Lord of

Dunmore. He said "I do hereby... declare all... Negroes... free,

that are able and willing to bear arms, they joining his Majesty's

troops, as soon as may be, for the more speedily reducing this colony

to a proper dignity." This meant that if any black man was willing to

fight for the British they would become legally free. Then, the

Americans could not afford to not let black men from joining the army. After that General George Washington officially reversed his policy about letting

"free Negroes to enlist."

"Of the 300,000 men that served in the Continental American Army

during the War of Independence, about five thousand were

Black. In addition to several all-Black companies, there was also an all-Black

regiment was from Rhode Island.

Between 1775 to 1781 there were no battles without Black

soldiers. African American soldiers defended for the colonies at Lexington,

Ticonderoga, Concord, Benington, White Plains, Saratoga, Brandywine,

Savannah, and Yorktown. There were two Blacks with George Washington on the day he crossed

the Delaware River on Christmas Day in 1776. Unfortunately

despite African Americans' help to the war effort and the large

amount of deceased Blacks, only few of them were freed.

Another war Black Americans fought in was the American Civil War. This war would eventually result in

the end of slavery it began between "Northern industrialists

and Southern Slave owners to decide

who would have more power over

the federal government and who would be able to expand into the new

territories of the West". The question of slavery would come later. "In the

beginning of the Civil War, blacks were not allowed to fight for the Union

army." Unfortunately, Abraham Lincoln was more concerned with political

relations than the treatment of Afro-American slaves."

The Union army and the federal government only began to "adopt

a policy of allowing and even encouraging the recruitment of Blacks

when it became clear that the war would be a long and drawn out

conflict in which it was essential to mobilize all the resources

possible and to weaken the enemy as much as possible.Even then Black troops

weren't really used. In Muly 1862, Congress authorized the use of black

soldiers in the Civil War, but there "was no follow-up until January 1, 1863"

when Abraham Lincoln put the "Emancipation Proclamation into effect."

After the Emancipation Proclamation, the War Department moved

quickly to start the enlistment of Black Americans. During January

1863, the War Department authorized Massachusetts to raise two Black

regiments. Because of this nearly 200,000 Black American soldiers were

serving the army and an another 300,000 were serving as laborers,

spies, servants or general helpers.

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