Glory (1989) is a movie that depicts the story of the very first troop to fight in the Civil War for the Northern America. This troop was known as the fifty-fourth contingent. Two young men who hailed from Boston were its leaders. The troop’s sergeant, played by Matthew Broderick, inspired them all the way, and made sure that the troop stayed united throughout the war. It also has a runaway slave, played by Denzel Washington, who represents the unconquerable spirit of the 54th regiment of Massachusetts.
The movie is a celebration or appreciation of courage of almost an unknown troop during the period of the Civil War because the heroes of this troop were all blacks, however, history does not recognize them because of racism that was rampant during that period. The Civil War occurred between 1861 and 1865 according to James Davidson in his book US: A Narrative History (163). The major cause of the war is when Abraham Lincoln was elected the president of the United States.
He was against slavery, therefore, it caused almost seven states in the Southern America to secede (163). The blacks were fighting for their total freedom from slavery. In the movie, the Civil War is headed by whites. The troop of the blacks was disallowed to have any privileges and amenities which the white soldiers possessed. The tasks given to them were humiliating and tedious, nevertheless, black people did not force the whites to quit the troop.
During this period slaves contributed to the victory of the war by running away from their masters to help the Union; they worked tirelessly for the army of Northern American (Davidson 167). The runaway slave in the movie, Trip, is a representative of such slaves. Additionally, black people put their lives at risk in battle, knowing that they were fighting for the victory of their freedom. Some people believe that the slaves won the battle by themselves; nonetheless, their efforts were rarely recognized in the books of history because all the credit went to the Northern army, mainly made up of white Americans.
It was only after the year 1862, when the president passed the Militia Act and the Lincoln’s Confiscation Act that confirmed that the blacks fought in the Civil War (Davidson 168). The uprise encouraged most of the blacks to go back to the South and free their relatives or even take over their master’s plantations in their absence since the able-bodied men had gone to fight for the Confederation army (Southern army 168).
The 54th regiment was a unit of all black people, who by and large played a huge role in the efforts of the Northern army to win the war (Davidson 168). This unit was a symbol of a new establishment in terms of unity among the blacks. The Governor of Massachusetts made a request to come up with a troop of volunteers, mainly for the blacks. This unit not only consisted of the black people from Massachusetts but from all over the country.
The movie ends up with a triumph over the war due to the 54th regiment, but this was not recognized, as there was still some form of racism going around. However, during the Civil War the blacks were of great help to the Northern army because they had vast knowledge of the Geography of the South. They managed to push for their own freedom and they were free.
Works Cited
Davidson, James W. Us: A Narrative History. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2012. Print.