A Brave Black Regiment: The History of the Fifty-Fourth Regiment of Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry 1863-1865

Luis Fenollosa Emilio

Da Capo Press, Mar 1, 1995 - History - 452 pages

In January 1863 the Union War Department authorized the creation of "a special corps" composed of "persons of African descent"—the 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry, commanded by Col. Robert Gould Shaw. Hundreds of free blacks enlisted. When the 54th Massachusetts spearheaded the suicidal charge against Fort Wagner on July 18, 1863, the regiment was showered with acclaim, but that defining event was not its only illustrious moment. After the devastating repulse at Fort Wagner left all of the unit's ranking officers dead or wounded, Captain Luis F. Emilio (1844–1918) emerged as the 54th's acting commander. A Brave Black Regiment offers an unparalleled, moving, inside view of the entire history of the 54th Massachusetts, from recruitment through disbandment. With a new introduction, rare, previously unpublished photos of Emilio and members of the 54th, the complete regimental roster, and his lengthy appendix concerning Confederate treatment of black prisoners-of-war, this Da Capo Press/Persues Books Group edition is certain to remain definitive for a long time to come.

What people are saying

Review: A Brave Black Regiment

User Review  - Patrick Gabridge - Goodreads

This is the authoritative first-person account of the 54th Massachusetts regiment from the Civil War (featured in the movie Glory). I was reading it for research for a novel that I'm writing, but it's ...

Review: A Brave Black Regiment

User Review  - Phillip Bryant - Goodreads

Written by Louis F. Emilio after the war of his experiences as a captain in the 54th and 55th Massachusetts Volunteers, A Brave Black Regiment is a true to life account of these two regiments exploits ...

Bibliographic information

• Title: A Brave Black Regiment: The History of the Fifty-Fourth Regiment of Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry 1863-1865
• Author: Luis Fenollosa Emilio
• Edition: illustrated, reprint
• Publisher: Da Capo Press, 1995
• ISBN: 0306806231, 9780306806230
• Length: 452 pages
• Subjects: History / Military / General; History / United States / Civil War Period (1850-1877); History / United States / General