Fact1: Shaw asks friend to serve as second in command with rank of major, Fact2: Other recruits include John Rawlins and mute teenage drummer boy, Fact3: Black soldiers found in Union uniform be executed as white officers, Fact4: men are being denied supplies, Fact5: war result in better life for slaves
Output: During the American Civil War, Captain Robert Shaw, injured at Antietam, is sent home to Boston on medical leave. Shaw accepts a promotion to colonel commanding the 54th Regiment Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry, one of the first allblack regiments in the Union Army. He asks his friend, Cabot Forbes, to serve as his second in command, with the rank of major. Their first volunteer is another friend, Thomas Searles, a bookish, free AfricanAmerican. Other recruits include John Rawlins, Jupiter Sharts, Silas Tripp, and a mute teenage drummer boy. The men learn that, in response to the Emancipation Proclamation, the Confederacy has issued an order that all black soldiers will be returned to slavery. Black soldiers found in a Union uniform will be executed as well as their white officers. They are offered, but turn down, a chance to take an honorable discharge. They undergo rigorous training with SergeantMajor Mulcahy, which Shaw realizes is to prepare them for the challenges they will face. Tripp goes AWOL and is caught; Shaw orders him flogged in front of the troops. He then learns that Tripp left to find shoes to replace his worn ones because his men are being denied supplies. He confronts the bases racist quartermaster on their behalf. Shaw also supports them in a pay dispute, as the Federal government pays black soldiers 10, not the 13 per month white soldiers earn. When the men begin tearing up their pay stubs in protest of the unequal treatment, Shaw tears up his own pay stub in support of their actions. In recognition of his leadership, Shaw promotes Rawlins to the rank of SergeantMajor. Once the 54th completes its training, they are transferred under the command of General Charles Harker. On the way to South Carolina they are ordered by Colonel James Montgomery to sack and burn Darien, Georgia. Shaw initially refuses to obey an unlawful order, but agrees under threat of having his troops taken away. He continues to lobby his superiors to allow his men to join the fight, as their duties to date have involved manual labor for which they are being mocked. Shaw finally gets the 54th into combat after he confronts Harker and threatens to report the illegal activities he has discovered. In their first battle at James Island, South Carolina, early success is followed by a confrontation with many casualties. The Confederates are defeated and retreat. During the battle, Thomas is wounded but saves Tripp. Shaw offers Tripp the honor of bearing the regimental flag in battle. He declines not believing the war will result in a better life for slaves. General George Strong informs Shaw of a major campaign to secure a foothold at Charleston Harbor. This involves assaulting Morris Island and capturing Fort Wagner, whose only landward approach is a strip of open beach; a charge is certain to result in heavy casualties. Shaw volunteers the 54th to lead the charge. The night before the battle the black soldiers conduct a religious service, and several make emotional speeches to inspire the troops, and to ask for Gods help. On their way to the attack, the 54th is cheered by the same Union troops who had scorned them earlier. The 54th leads the charge on the fort suffering heavy casualties. At night the bombardment continues, forestalling progress. Attempting to encourage his men, Shaw is killed. Tripp lifts the flag rallying the soldiers to continue the charge. He is shot but holds up the flag until he dies. Forbes takes charge, and the soldiers are able to break through the forts outer defenses. However, Charlie Morse is killed and Thomas is wounded. At the end of the battle it is implied that Forbes, Rawlins, Thomas, Jupiter, and the two Color Sergeants were killed by canister shot. The morning after the battle, the beach is littered with bodies of Union soldiers; the Confederate flag is raised over the fort. The dead Union soldiers are buried in single mass grave, with Shaw and Tripps bodies next to each other. Closing text reveals Fort Wagner was never taken by the Union Army. However, the courage demonstrated by the 54th resulted in the Union accepting thousands of black men for combat, and President Abraham Lincoln credited them with helping to turn the tide of the war.