What role did the african americans play in the union war effort?

Answer 1

During the First World War the role of the African American soldier was both combat and support. There were two infantry divisions raised during that conflict, the 92nd Infantry Division and the 93rd Infantry Division. Both divisions were trained in segregated environments and owing to hostile racial attitudes of the Army senior leadership at the time they had difficulty being fairly evaluated. Nonetheless the divisions were committed to combat. First, the 93rd Division being made up of mostly draftees and National Guardsmen, lacked any sort of consistency in its experience or composition. The unit also lacked its full number of combat units and support elements, and as a result never attained full divisional strength. Seeming to have odds stacked against it, the 93d fared remarkably well when faced with battle.

The situation was desperate in France, and with exhausted and dwindling armies, the French begged the United States for men. GEN John Pershing, commander of the American Expeditionary Force, promised them four American regiments. He decided to give them the regiments of the 93d Division since the French, who had used French colonial troops from West Africa, had the perceived experience in employing black soldiers in combat. The first African American combat troops to set foot on French soil belonged to the 93d Division. Armed, organized, and equipped as a French unit, the 93d quickly adjusted to their new assignment. Although experiencing some difficulties like language problems, the black soldiers were treated as equals.

The 369th Infantry was the first regiment of the 93d Division to reach France. They arrived in the port city of Brest in December 1917. On 10 March, after three months of duty with the Services of Supply, the 369th received orders to join the French 16th Division in Givry en Argonne for additional training. After three weeks the regiment was sent to the front lines in a region just west of the Argonne Forest. For nearly a month they held their position against German assaults, and after only a brief break from the front, the 369th was placed once again in the middle of the German offensive, this time at Minacourt, France. From 18 July to 6 August 1918, the 369th Infantry, now proudly nicknamed the "Harlem Hellfighters," proved their tenacity once again by helping the French 161st "Red Hand" Division drive the Germans from their trenches during the Aisne-Marne counter-offensive.

In this three-week period, the Germans were making many small night raids into Allied territory. During one of these raids, a member of the 369th Infantry, CPL Henry Johnson, fought off an entire German raiding party using only a pistol and a knife. Killing four of the Germans and wounding many more, his actions allowed an wounded comrade to escape capture and led to the seizure of a stockpile of German arms. Johnson and his comrade were wounded and both received the French Croix de Guerre for their gallantry. Johnson was also promoted to sergeant.

Eighty years later he was finally awarded the Medal of Honor posthumously.

From 26 September to 5 October, the 369th participated in the Meuse-Argonne offensive, and continued to fight well throughout the remainder of the war. The regiment fought in the front lines for a total of 191 days, five days longer than any other regiment in the AEF. France awarded the entire unit the Croix de Guerre, along with presenting 171 individual awards for exceptional gallantry in action.

Although the 369th won much of the glory for the 93d Division, the 370th, 371st, and 372d Regiments, each assigned to different French divisions, also proved themselves worthy of acclaim at the front. The 370th fought hard in both the Meuse-Argonne and Oise-Aisne campaigns. Seventy-one members of the regiment received the French Croix de Guerre, and another twenty-one soldiers received the Distinguished Service Cross (DSC). Company C, 371st Infantry, earned the Croix de Guerre with Palm. The 371st Regiment spent more than three months on the front lines in the Verdun area, and for its extraordinary service in the Champagne offensive, the entire regiment was awarded the Croix de Guerre with Palm. In addition, three of the 371st's officers were awarded the French Legion of Honor, 123 men won the Croix de Guerre, and twenty-six earned the DSC.

The 372d Infantry also performed admirably during the American assault in Champagne, and afterwards assisted in the capture of Monthois. It was there the regiment faced strong resistance and numerous counterattacks, resulting in many instances of hand-to-hand combat. In less than two weeks of front line service, the 372d suffered 600 casualties. The regiment earned a unit Croix de Guerre with Palm, and in addition, forty-three officers, fourteen noncommissioned officers, and 116 privates received either the Croix de Guerre or the DSC.

The second division, the 92d Infantry Division was created in October 1917 and put under the command of BG Charles C. Ballou, who had organized the first African American officer candidate school. Organized in a manner similar to the other American divisions, the 92d was made up of four infantry regiments, three field artillery regiments, a trench mortar battery, three machine gun battalions, a signal battalion, an engineer regiment, an engineer train, and various support units.

Although in no case did a black officer command a white officer, most of the officers (up to the rank of first lieutenant) in the unit were African American. Unlike just about every other American unit training to go into battle, soldiers from the 92d were forced to train separately while in the United States. The War Department, fearing racial uprisings, was willing to sacrifice the unit's ability to develop cohesion and pride. The lack of a strong bond between the men was one of the factors that led to the unit's poor performance in the Meuse-Argonne campaign.

The personal animosity between LTG Robert Bullard, commander of the American Second Army, and BG Ballou was another problem. Bullard was not only a staunch racist, but he also had a rivalry going with BG Ballou. In order to make both Ballou and the black soldiers appear completely incompetent, Bullard spread misinformation about the successes and failures of the 92d.

Even COL Allen J. Greer, Ballou's chief of staff, was in on the plan to sabotage the reputation of his African American unit, and helped put a negative twist on stories from the front lines. Regardless of how well the 92d Division actually did on the battlefield, it was virtually impossible to overcome the slander from prejudiced officers.

Following some initial successes in Lorraine in mid-August, on 20 September 1918, the 92d was ordered to proceed to the Argonne Forest in preparation for the Meuse-Argonne offensive. The division reached the front lines just before the first assault. The 368th Infantry Regiment immediately received orders to fill a gap between the American 77th Division and the French 37th Division. However, due to their lack of training with the French, shortages of equipment, and unfamiliarity with the terrain, the regiment did not successfully complete this important assignment. The failure to accomplish this crucial mission blemished the 92d's combat record, and it was often used by military authorities for more than thirty years to prove the inadequacy of African American soldiers in combat.

After the disaster in the Argonne, the entire division was sent to a relatively quiet area of the front in the Marbache sector. Their primary mission was nevertheless a dangerous one: harass the enemy with frequent patrols. The danger of the assignment was reflected in the 462 casualties sustained in just the first month of patrolling. Although American commanders were dissatisfied with the unit's performance, the French obviously had a different opinion--they decorated members of the 365th Infantry and 350th Machine Gun Battalion for their aggressiveness and bravery.

By late 1918, the German Army was in full retreat, the Allied Commander in Chief, Field Marshal Ferdinand Foch, wanted to apply heavy pressure for a decisive breakthrough and defeat. The 92d was ordered to take the heights east of Champney, France, on 10 November 1918. Although only lasting one day, the attack was fierce and bloody, costing the division over 500 casualties.

The balance of African American troops in France were assigned to labor units, graves registration and other support roles.

Answer 2

African Americans played a big role in the American Revolution. Specifically, freedom was offered to slaves who served in the Continental Army, so many African Americans fought for the colonies. Many free men fought, too.

Answer 3

African-Americans fought on both sides during the Civil War, although many more fought for the North than for the South. The Confederacy promised eventual freedom to any African-American who fought on their side.

Answer 4

By mid -1862 the Union Army was dealing with declining white volunteers the escalating former slave numbers and the growing personnel needs of the Army, which pressured the Government to overturn an imposed ban on black enlisted men stemming from a 1792 federal law prohibiting the arming of Negroes for service. Once this ban was lifted black soldiers served gallantly for the Union in predominantly supporting roles that sustain an army in the form of Carpenters, chaplains, guards, laborers, steamboat pilots, surgeon and teamsters. Black women also served, although they could not enlist, in the Army as nurses, spies and scouts. The most famous of which was Harriet Tubman.