Military history of African Americans in the American Civil War The history of African Americans in the American Civil War is marked by 186 , 097 ( 7 , 122 officers , 178 , 975 enlisted ) African Americans comprising 163 units who served in the Union Army during the Civil War , and many more African Americans who served in the Union Navy . Both free African Americans and runaway slaves joined the fight . On the Confederate side , both free and slave blacks were used for labor , but the issue of whether to arm them , and under what terms , became a major source of debate , and no significant numbers were ever raised or recruited . Union Army . The issue of raising African American regiments in the Union ' s war efforts was at first met with trepidation by officials within the Union command structure , Abraham Lincoln included . Concerns over the response of the border states ( of which one , Maryland , surrounded Washington D . C . ) , the response of white soldiers and officers , as well as the effectiveness of a colored fighting force were raised . Despite official reluctance from above , a number of officers in the field experimented , with varying degrees of success , in raising black regiments , including David Hunter , James H . Lane , and Benjamin F . Butler . On July 17 , 1862 , Congress passed two acts allowing the enlistment of African Americans , but official enrollment occurred only after the issuance of the Emancipation Proclamation in January 1863 . However , state and local militia units had already begun enlisting blacks , including the Black Brigade of Cincinnati , raised in September to help provide manpower to thwart a feared Confederate raid on Cincinnati . In actual numbers , African American soldiers comprised 10 % of the entire Union Army . Losses among African Americans were high , and from all reported casualties , approximately 20 % of all African Americans enrolled in the military lost their lives during the Civil War . Notably , their mortality rate was significantly higher than white soldiers ; Early battles in 1862 and 1863 . In general , white soldiers and officers believed that black men lacked the ability to fight and fight well . In October 1862 , African American soldiers of the 1st Kansas Colored Volunteers silenced their critics by repulsing attacking Confederate guerrillas at the Skirmish at Island Mound , Missouri in October 1862 . By August , 1863 , 14 Negro Regiments were in the field and ready for service . At the Battle of Port Hudson , Louisiana , May 27 , 1863 , the African American soldiers bravely advanced over open ground in the face of deadly artillery fire . Although the attack failed , the black soldiers proved their capability to withstand the heat of battle , with General Banks recording in the his official report ; " Whatever doubt may have existed heretofore as to the efficiency of organizations of this character , the history of this days proves . . . in this class of troops effective supporters and defenders . " Fort Wagner , Fort Pillow , and beyond . The most widely known battle fought by African Americans was the assault on Fort Wagner , South Carolina , by the 54th Massachusetts Infantry on July 18 , 1863 . The 54th volunteered to lead the assault on the strongly fortified Confederate positions . The soldiers of the 54th scaled the fort ' s parapet , and were only driven back after brutal hand - to - hand combat . Despite the defeat , the unit was hailed for its valor which spurred further African - American recruitment , giving the Union a numerical military advantage from a population the Confederacy did not attempt to exploit until the closing days of the war . African American soldiers participated in every major campaign of 1864 – 65 except Sherman ' s Atlanta Campaign in Georgia . The year 1864 was especially eventful for African American troops . On April 12 , 1864 , at the Battle of Fort Pillow , Tennessee , Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest led his 2 , 500 men against the Union - held fortification , occupied by 292 black and 285 white soldiers . After driving in the Union pickets and giving the garrison an opportunity to surrender , Forrest ' s men swarmed into the fort with little difficulty and drove the Federals down the river ' s bluff into a deadly crossfire . Casualties were high and only sixty - two of the U . S . Colored Troops survived the fight . Many accused the Confederates of perpetrating a massacre of black troops , and the controversy continues today . The battle cry for the Negro soldier east of the Mississippi River became " " Remember Fort Pillow ! " " The Battle of Chaffin ' s Farm , Virginia became one of the most heroic engagements involving African Americans . On September 29 , 1864 , the African American division of the Eighteenth Corps , after being pinned down by Confederate artillery fire for about 30 minutes , charged the earthworks and rushed up the slopes of the heights . During the hour - long engagement the division suffered tremendous casualties . Of the twenty - five African Americans who were awarded the Medal of Honor during the Civil War , fourteen received the honor as a result of their actions at Chaffin ' s Farm . Discrimination in pay and assignments . Although black soldiers proved themselves as reputable soldiers , discrimination in pay and other areas remained widespread . According to the Militia Act of 1862 , soldiers of African descent were to receive $ 10 . 00 a month , with an optional deduction for clothing at $ 3 . 00 . In contrast , white privates received sixteen dollars per month plus a clothing allowance of $ 3 . 50 . Many regiments struggled for equal pay , some refusing any money until June 15 , 1864 , when Congress granted equal pay for all black soldiers . Besides discrimination in pay , colored units were often disproportionately assigned laborer work . General Daniel Ullman , commander of the Corps d ' Afrique , remarked " I fear that many high officials outside of Washington have no other intention than that these men shall be used as diggers and drudges . " African American contributions to Union war intelligence . Blacks , both slave and free , were also heavily involved in assisting the Union in matters of intelligence , and their contributions were labeled Black Dispatches . One of these spies was Mary Bowser . Harriett Tubman was also a spy , a nurse , and a cook whose efforts were key to Union victories and survival . Tubman is most widely recognized for her contributions to freeing slaves by the Underground Railroad . However , her contributions to the Union Army were equally important . She used her knowledge of the country ' s terrain to gain important intelligence for the Union Army . She became the first woman to lead U . S . soldiers into combat when , under the order of Colonel James Montgomery , took a contingent of soldiers in South Carolina behind enemy lines , destroying plantations and freeing 750 slaves in the process . Union Navy . Like the army , the Union Navy ' s official position at the beginning of the war was ambivalence towards the use of either Northern free blacks or runaway slaves . The constant stream , however , of escaped slaves seeking refuge aboard Union ships , forced the navy to formulate a policy towards them . Secretary of the Navy , Gideon Wells in a terse order , pointed out the following ; In time , the Union Navy would see almost 16 % of its ranks supplied by African Americans , performing in a wide range of enlisted roles . In contrast to the Army , the Navy from the outset not only paid equal wages between white and black sailors , but offered considerably more for even entry - level enlisted positions . Food rations and medical care were also improved over the Army , with the Navy benefiting from a regular stream of supplies from Union - held ports . Becoming a commissioned officer , however was still out of reach for black sailors . Only the rank of petty officer would be offered to black sailors , and in practice , only to free blacks ( who often were the only ones with naval careers sufficiently long to earn the rank ) . Union relief workers . " Approximately 10 percent of the Union ’ s female relief workforce was of African descent : free blacks of diverse education and class background who earned wages or worked without pay in the larger cause of freedom , and runaway slaves who sought sanctuary in military camps and hospitals . " Confederate States Army . " Nearly 40 % of the Confederacy ' s population were unfree . . . the work required to sustain the same society during war naturally fell disproportionately on black shoulders as well . By drawing so many white men into the army , indeed , the war multiplied the importance of the black work force . " Even Georgia ' s Governor Joseph E . Brown noted that " the country and the army are mainly dependent upon slave labor for support . " The impressment of slaves , and conscription of freedmen , into direct military labor , initially came on the impetus of state legislatures , and by 1864 six states had regulated impressment ( Florida , Virginia , Alabama , Louisiana , Mississippi , and South Carolina , in order of authorization ) as well as the Confederate Congress . Slave labor was used in a wide variety of support roles , from infrastructure and mining , to teamster and medical roles such as hospital attendants and nurses . The idea of arming slaves for use as soldiers was speculated on from the onset of the war , but not seriously considered by Davis or others in his administration . As the Union saw victories in the fall of 1862 and the spring of 1863 , however , the need for more manpower was acknowledged by the Confederacy in the form of conscription of white men , and the national impressment of free and slave blacks into laborer positions . State militias composed of freedmen were offered , but the War Department spurned the offer . One of the more notable state militias was the all black 1st Louisiana Native Guard , a militia unit composed of free men of color . It was the first of any North American unit to have African American officers . The unit was short lived , and forced to disband in February 1862 . The unit was " intended as a response to demands from members of New Orleans ' substantial free black population that they be permitted to participate in the defense of their state , the unit was used by Confederate authorities for public display and propaganda purposes but was not allowed to fight . " A Union army regiment was later formed under the same name after General Butler took control of the city . Despite the suppression of Cleburne ' s idea , the question of enlisting slaves into the army had not faded away , but had become a fixture of debate amongst the columns of southern newspapers and southern society in the winter of 1864 . Representative of the two sides in the debate were the " Richmond Enquirer " and the " Charleston Courier " : On January 11 , 1865 General Robert E . Lee wrote the Confederate Congress urging them to arm and enlist black slaves in exchange for their freedom . On March 13 , the Confederate Congress passed legislation to raise and enlist companies of black soldiers . Originally black slaves were able to be forced into the army without the acknowledgement of their masters . On February 27 , 1864 , Confederate Congress had passed a law that allowed the army to impress slaves with consulting their owner , however this was not a law that was frequently implemented . The legislation was then promulgated into military policy by Davis in General Order No . 14 on March 23 , 1865 . The emancipation offered , however , was reliant upon a master ' s consent ; " no slave will be accepted as a recruit unless with his own consent and with the approbation of his master by a written instrument conferring , as far as he may , the rights of a freedman " Despite calculations of Virginia ' s state auditor , that some 4 , 700 free black males and more than 25 , 000 male slaves between eighteen and forty five years of age were fit for service , only a small number were raised in the intervening months , most coming from two local hospitals - Windsor and Jackson - as well as a formal recruiting center created by General Ewell and staffed by Majors Pegram and Turner . A month after the order was issued , the number was still " forty or fifty colored soldiers , enlisted under the act of congress " . In his memoirs , Davis stated " There did not remain time enough to obtain any result from its provisions " African Americans in the CSA . A few other lesser known Confederate militia units of free men of color were raised throughout Louisiana at the beginning of the war . These units included : the Baton Rouge Guards under Capt . Henry Favrot , portions of the Pointe Coupee Light Infantry under Capt . Ferdinand Claiborne , and the Augustin Guards and Monet ' s Guards of Natchitoches under Dr . Jean Burdin . The only official duties ever given to the Natchitoches units were funeral honor guard details . After an August 1861 battle near Hampton , Virginia , Union army Colonel John W . Phelps , of the 1st Vermont Infantry reported on the Confederate forces he faced there . Colonel Phelps ' report reflects his scouts as reporting that among the Confederate artillery there was the Richmond Howitzer Battery that was manned by negroes . One account of an unidentified African American fighting for the Confederacy , from two Southern 1862 newspapers , tells of " a huge negro " fighting under the command of Confederate Major General John C . Breckinridge against the 14th Maine Infantry Regiment in a battle near Baton Rouge , Louisiana , on August 5 , 1862 . The man was described as being " armed and equipped with knapsack , musket , and uniform " , and helping to lead the attack . The man ' s status of being a freedman or a slave is unknown . Following the July 1862 Surrender of Murfreesborough , Tennessee , Lieutenant Colonel John G . Parkhurst of the 9th Michigan Infantry reported on African Americans serving with the Confederate First Regiment Texas Rangers and the First Georgia Rangers . His report states " There were also quite a number of negroes attached to the Texas and Georgia troops , who were armed and equipped , and took part in the several engagements with my forces during the day . " . Several African Americans are known to have participated in some capacity on the Southern side in the Battle of Gettysburg . After the battle in July 1863 , " reported among the rebel prisoners were seven blacks in Confederate uniforms fully armed as soldiers . " Dr . Lewis Steiner , Chief Inspector of the United States Sanitary Commission while observing Gen . " Stonewall " Jackson ' s occupation of Frederick , Maryland , in 1862 : " Over 3 , 000 Negroes must be included in this number [ Confederate troops ] . These were clad in all kinds of uniforms , not only in cast - off or captured United States uniforms , but in coats with Southern buttons , State buttons , etc . These were shabby , but not shabbier or seedier than those worn by white men in the rebel ranks . Most of the Negroes had arms , rifles , muskets , sabers , bowie - knives , dirks , etc . . . and were manifestly an integral portion of the Southern Confederate Army . " Union Brigadier - General D . Stuart observed that " . . . the enemy , and especially their armed negroes , did dare to rise and fire , and did serious execution upon our men . The casualties in the brigade were 11 killed , 40 wounded , and 4 missing ; aggregate , 55 . . . " . The number of African - Americans , both slave and free , that served in the Confederate Army in a direct combat capacity was minor , and was never official policy . After the war , the State of Tennessee granted Confederate Pensions to nearly 300 African Americans for their service to the Confederacy . Discussions amongst CSA officers on the potential enlistment of slaves is highlighted in the section above . While an accurate estimate of the number of African Americans who served in the Confederate armed forces may never be known , the United States Census of 1890 lists 3 , 273 African Americans who claimed to be Confederate veterans Confederate Navy . Naval historian Ivan Musicant has written that there were blacks who served in the Confederate Navy . Musicant wrote : United States colored troops as prisoners of war . Prisoner exchanges between the Union and Confederacy were suspended when the Confederacy refused to return black soldiers captured in uniform . In October 1862 , the Confederate Congress issued a resolution declaring all Negroes , free and slave , that they should be delivered to their respective states " to be dealt with according to the present and future laws of such State or States " . In a letter to General Beauregard on this issue , Secretary Seddon pointed out that " Slaves in flagrant rebellion are subject to death by the laws of every slave - holding State " but that " to guard , however , against possible abuse . . . the order of execution should be reposed in the general commanding the special locality of the capture . " However , Seddon , concerned about the " embarrassments attending this question " , urged that former slaves be sent back to their owners . As for freemen , they would be handed over to Confederates for confinement and put to hard labor . Some have claimed that the experience of colored troops and their white officers in prison life was not significantly different than members of white units . However , African American prisoners of war were forced to construct entrenchments around Richmond in 1864 . There are no reports of white prisoners doing such forced labor under fire . When Ulysses S . Grant became Commander of the Union Army , all exchanges were ceased . Union General Benjamin Butler later stated that : " He ( Grant ) said that I would agree with him that by the exchange of prisoners we get no men fit to go into our army , and every soldier we gave the Confederates went immediately into theirs , so that the exchange was virtually so much aid to them and none to us . "