Black Confederates/Black Rebels: Myth Versus Reality

As many scholars emphasize, particularly in the study of historical subjects like the Civil War, nuances abound, and the narrative is seldom black or white. History's truth often resides in the gray zones, and this holds especially true for the complex society of the Confederate States of America (CSA). Rather than a simple dichotomy of Blacks and Whites, the antebellum South witnessed a blend of races over two centuries leading up to the Civil War.

This unique sociological and racial intermingling manifested itself in a surprising and peculiar manner within the Confederate Armed Forces during the Civil War. While it may seem paradoxical, historical records indicate the presence of Black and partial-Black Southerners among the ranks of the Confederate military. This essay aims to delve into intriguing questions surrounding this phenomenon:

1.              How did the inclusion of Blacks or partial Blacks in the Confederate ranks become possible?

2.              Were Blacks or partial-Blacks willing participants in serving the Southern cause?

3.              To what extent were Blacks or partial-Blacks involved as active combatants?

4.              What insights can be gleaned about Civil War History from the loyalty of some Blacks and partial-Blacks to the South?

In delving into the history of Black Confederates, it is essential to contextualize their presence within the broader historical narrative of Blacks in North America. The arrival of Africans, or Blacks, in North America traces back to 1619 during the era of the English Empire Building program. While the English Empire was a prominent practitioner of slavery, it is crucial to recognize that slavery was a pervasive institution worldwide with the Spanish, French and Portuguese also using people as human-cattle to build out their empires, extending beyond the English Empire (which would become the British Empire after the Act of Union in 1707 uniting England with Scotland, Wales and the American colonies). Various historical periods, such as the Viking Age (793-1066) and the expansion of slavery under Islamic rule (where the Quran does not explicitly prohibit slavery), attest to the widespread nature of this practice throughout human history.

Acknowledging this historical reality, it becomes evident that slavery was not confined to a specific race or ethnicity. The Bible, encompassing both the Old and New Testaments, contains passages endorsing and regulating slavery. For instance, Exodus sanctions the ownership of slaves and even permits physical punishment, stating, "If a man beats his male or female slave with a rod and the slave dies as a direct result, he must be punished, but he is not to be punished if the slave gets up after a day or two since the slave is his property" (Exodus 21:20-21). This scriptural dichotomy, allowing severe beatings as long as the slave does not immediately perish, presents a troubling acceptance of brutality based on ownership of other human beings.  Unfortunately, the New Testament did not put an end to this.

For instance, the endorsement of slavery is also evident in the Gospel of Luke, specifically in chapter 12, where it is suggested that slave owners should exercise restraint in their punitive actions, taking into account whether the slaves knowingly sinned, unknowingly erred, or deliberately disobeyed (Luke 12:47-48). This perspective raises profound questions since the text provides a tacit endorsement of enslavement policies. This alignment with ideologies supporting slavery mirrors the sentiments expressed by many Southern Confederate racist leaders who used the Bible to support their laws and society.  One must never forget that most Southerners in the Confederacy were deeply religious and felt their Christian beliefs supported slavery. 

The repercussions of these teachings are starkly illustrated in narratives one has read from the likes of Frederick Douglass’ Narrative of the Life of an American Slave.  Douglass recounts an incident where a slaveholder, quoting Luke’s Gospel, mercilessly tied up “a lame young woman,” and whipped her with a cowskin until blood dripped off her shoulders.  As he did this, people heard him reciting Luke from memory, saying: “He that knoweth his master’s will, and doeth it not, shall be beaten with many strips.” Unfortunately, the Rebels of history had the New Testament on its side since it “encouraged the beating of slaves.”  This troubling alignment of New Testament teachings with practices of subjugation echoes the sentiments of the Confederacy which indeed used the Bible to persecute and subjugate Africans in its slave-based economy. 

As a result, one will not be surprised that during the American Civil War, Confederates invoked the Bible often to validate their enslavement of Black individuals.  President of the Southern States of America, Jefferson Davis, claimed, “Slavery was established by a decree of Almighty God…it is sanctioned in the Bible, in both Testaments, from Genesis to Revelations.” Such assertions were bolstered by the Confederacy’s Constitution, which legally mandated slavery. So the Bible condoning slavery in Exodus and Luke have indeed been used to justify abhorrent practices across time and geography.  This illustrates the alarming trend of using religious texts to legitimize the subjugation of fellow human beings because the oppressors have divine permission to do so!  Understanding this historical context and the religious background of the South is crucial for gaining insight into how both White and Black individuals perceived slavery. It becomes particularly significant when examining the perspectives of those who, having experienced oppression, still found ways to support it.  Think about it—many Blacks of that time embraced Christianity, a religion based on Judaism, both of which supported slavery!  Moreover, exploring the narrative of the Black population in the South who earned their freedom, a substantial portion that warrants thorough exploration, is essential for a comprehensive understanding of the phenomenon of Black Rebels since these Free Blacks supported Southern society and its laws. 

In 1830, a year meticulously examined by Carter G. Woodson in his study of Free Blacks in the South, approximately 13.7 percent (319,599) of the Black population had achieved freedom. Among these liberated individuals, 3,776 free "Negroes" were slave owners, collectively owning 12,907 slaves out of a total of 2,009,043 slaves held in the entire United States at that time. While the numerical ownership of slaves by Black individuals was considerably smaller than that of their White counterparts, it is noteworthy that, when given the opportunity, some Blacks engaged in the prevailing slave culture that dominated southern America at the time, illustrating how they, too, could embrace a racist society for their own benefit.

By 1860, right before the war broke out, there were around 262,000 Free Blacks in the South. The reasons for the subsequent decline in this population are uncertain, but it is plausible that many chose to move North to escape the oppressive environment of the South. Furthermore, it is interesting to note that 40% of all Free Blacks in the cities of the South were mulattos, or “half-Blacks,” suggesting a prevalence of mixed-race unions during that period. While some of these unions might have resulted from the rape of plantation owners, others may have been consensual, resembling relationships such as the one between Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings, which spanned from circa 1787 to 1826. This historical context indicates that many men in the Confederate army likely had African ancestry in their background, with varying degrees of awareness about this fact, depending on their physical appearances.

When the war erupted between the States, many Free Blacks across the Confederacy volunteered for military service and pledged their support to the Southern cause. Even before the battle of Fort Sumter in April 1861, a group of Free Blacks in Charleston and Columbia, South Carolina, wrote to Governor Francis Wilkinson Pickens, expressing their allegiance: “We are by birth citizens of South Carolina—in our veins flows the blood of the white race, in some half, in others much more than half white blood…Our allegiance is to South Carolina, and in her defense, we are willing to offer up our lives, and all that is dear to us.” After the battle of Fort Sumter, a company of armed Blacks was seen passing through the streets of Charleston in defense of the city. In Georgia, another group wrote to the Commanding Military District officer, General Alexander Robert Lawton, offering their service: “…in this hour of danger, [we] tender to yourself our service, to be employed in the defense of the state, at any place or point, at any time, or any length of time, and in any service for which you may consider us best fitted, and in which we can contribute to the public good.”

An observer in Charleston noted that a “thousand Negroes who, so far from inclining to insurrections, were grinning from ear to ear at the prospect of shooting Yankees.” A group of Black musicians in Richmond, Virginia, calling themselves the “Confederate Ethiopian Serenaders,” donated the proceeds from one of their concerts to the Confederacy to fund gunboats and ammunition. In Memphis in 1861, a procession of several hundred Free Blacks marched through the streets under the command of White Confederate officers. It was noted, “They were brimful of patriotism, shouting for Jeff Davis and singing war songs.” In Virginia, the state passed a law in February 1862 for “the impressment of free Negroes for military service.”

Understanding that many of the Blacks who declared loyalty to the South and served in its military were Free Blacks raises the question: How many Free Blacks were there within the Black Slave population? The exact number is uncertain, but some historians estimate, as mentioned before, around 262,000 Free Blacks were living in the Southern states at the outbreak of the Civil War in 1861. This population consisted of individuals who had gained their freedom through manumission, were born free, or had acquired their freedom through various means. They constituted roughly around 7.5% of the overall Black population of 3,500,000, and as one has just learned, many, if not most, were remarkably loyal to the South and tried to serve in the uniform of the gray.  Many were probably able to eventually pass as “White” and served, but it is unclear how many actually saw combat or were introduced into front line units.  But whether they served or only wanted to serve begs the question about how they really felt when they flocked to the colors. 

According to some estimates, around 25% of Free Blacks owned slaves in 1860, indicating that approximately 65,500 out of the 262,000 Free Blacks were slave owners. While some Free Blacks purchased family members to protect them, historian Richard Rollins suggests that others saw "slavery as the best way to [obtain] economic wealth and independence themselves."

Historian Richard Rollins effectively challenges the misconception that the Confederate Armed Forces comprised exclusively of Caucasian individuals. By 1861, the South, resembling its contemporary demographic, was a biracial caste society. The composition of the Rebel armies during the Civil War reflected this distinctive social reality, with thousands of Black individuals—both Free and enslaved and often of mixed-ethnicity—serving President Jefferson Davis in diverse roles. These roles included bearing arms as slaves, serving as musicians, acting as servants, medical orderlies, and engaging in labor-intensive tasks. It is crucial to acknowledge, as highlighted by historian Kevin M. Levin, that the majority, being slaves, were treated as second-class citizens and compelled to serve in their master-servant relationships.

Within the Confederacy, there were mixed-race units as well as exclusively Black units. By the war's conclusion, around 1,082,119 soldiers had passed through the CSA ranks, and an estimated 40,000-50,000 were identified as Black, a figure likely higher when considering individuals of half-Black ("creoles" as they were known) or quarter-Black heritage. Some, as mentioned before, known as mulattoes, appeared so White that they could pass as Caucasians, with a few even serving as officers.  A noteworthy example is found in the relationship of Thomas Jefferson, who had four children with his slave Sally Hemings. Sally, half-Black and a half-sister to Jefferson's late wife Martha, bore quarter-Black children who seamlessly integrated into society, often being perceived as White.  Concerning Black Rebels, a compelling instance is Madison Hemings, one of Jefferson’s and Sally's offspring, whose sons went on to serve in the Confederate Army during the American Civil War. This exemplifies cases of mulattoes assimilating into Confederate service, likely numbering in the tens of thousands.

Revisiting the narrative of Black Rebels, it becomes evident that a significant portion of those serving in the ranks did so under duress as slaves, compelled to carry out the commands of their masters. Their contributions included manual labor such as digging trenches, breastworks, and building forts at pivotal battle sites and cities like Vicksburg, Richmond, Petersburg, and Atlanta. However, there were remarkable instances of Blacks serving in combat units, including General Nathan Bedford Forrest's elite cavalry outfits. Reportedly, the later infamous leader of the KKK had approximately 60 Black soldiers in his cavalry units, a relatively minor fraction considering his overall command of 3,500 men. Nonetheless, within the context of slavery and the Confederacy, such occurrences are rightfully viewed as disturbing and shocking although rare. These instances underscore that some Blacks in the South, particularly Free Blacks, harbored a strange loyalty to the Southern cause and willingly participated in the war with apparent enthusiasm. This prompts a further inquiry into the proportions of Blacks compelled into service versus those actively engaged in combat units.

Historical estimates suggest that approximately 8,000-10,000 out of the 50,000 Blacks within the Southern military served in combat units. This represents roughly 1% of the overall number of servicemen who served President Jefferson Davis during the Rebellion. The majority of Black individuals were consigned to forced labor roles, and as seen with hundreds of them after the Battle of Gettysburg, a significant number would later willingly and fervently defect to the Union lines when opportunities arose. Intriguingly, upon their return to the South in Union uniforms, many engaged in combat, fighting and even killing Confederates they had once served under as compelled laborers.  But I digress. 

Examining the potential 8,000-10,000 Black combat veterans, it is imperative to recognize that the government did not officially acknowledge the vast majority as Confederate soldiers. Despite actively participating in combat and engaging with Union forces, they likely served among the Confederate regulars as bodyguards, personal servants, and forced laborers. Thus, while these individuals fought valiantly and made sacrifices in the service of the Confederacy, they continued to be perceived as sub-human and inferior by the very government they were defending. This degrading perspective persisted, evident in the maintenance of master-servant relationships even when they were under arms.

In the South, there were those who recognized the practicality of drafting all their Black population into the army, though this was never established as a universal law until the very end. The idea gained traction in 1863 when General Patrick R. Cleburne proposed emancipation and enlistment, a suggestion that faced rejection from the Davis administration. However, in the face of impending defeat, Congressman Ethelbert Barksdale introduced a bill in February 1865, supported by the Davis administration, allowing the enlistment of Black men with their enslavers' permission. Narrowly approved by the Senate on March 8, Davis signed it into law on March 13, 1865. Despite this legislative change, the actual enlistment of Black soldiers was modest, resulting in only two units created in Richmond, numbering a few hundred—these could be labeled the only truly kosher Black Rebels since they were the only ones so recognized by the South. The history of the Louisiana Native Guards or the "hospital" company formed in Richmond in March 1865 also reveals that some Black men chose to fight for the Confederacy for personal or familial reasons. However, it's crucial to acknowledge that this does not diminish the fundamental realities: The primary foundation of the Confederate States of America was to protect the institution of slavery, an institution rooted in violence and exploitation of Blacks. Furthermore, the limited enlistment of Black soldiers near the war's end did little to impede the dominance of Union troops led by Generals Ulysses S. Grant and William T. Sherman, who played pivotal roles in breaking the back of Southern resistance and ending slavery by 1865.

The motivations behind the service of Blacks in the Confederate Army were diverse and multifaceted. Free Blacks, as mentioned earlier, were driven by a desire to maintain the existing social order, from which they had directly benefited as Free Blacks, and some even owned slaves themselves. Exactly what their roles were and duties in the Confederate armed forces were remains unclear, but it does seem some indeed served.  Additionally, it is plausible that other Blacks who enlisted at the very end or enthusiastically fulfilled their duties as armed servants harbored the hope that a Confederate victory, a scenario that remained conceivable, especially when Abraham Lincoln's re-election in 1864 was in doubt, might have led to preferential treatment and potential freedom for their services rendered to the Confederacy.  However, the predominant and overriding factor compelling most Confederate Blacks, much like their White counterparts, into service was coercion by the government—they simply had no other viable option.  They were, in the end, forced, probably most often against their wills, to work for the Confederacy and not as official soldiers, but as forced laborers. 

Analyzing the motivations further, it's important to recognize the complex interplay of individual agency and systemic forces. The Free Blacks, despite enjoying a degree of freedom, found themselves navigating a society deeply entrenched in slavery. Their allegiance to the Confederacy, at times paradoxical, may have been influenced by a pragmatic calculation to safeguard their own status and well-being within a system they could not easily escape.

The prospect of earning freedom through service reveals a stark reality—as already mentioned, many enslaved individuals may have seen military service as a potential avenue for emancipation, a striking illustration of the lengths to which people would go to secure their liberty. This dynamic adds layers to the narrative, underscoring the desperation and limited options available to those in bondage, most of whom were uneducated, illiterate, and uninformed of the issues.  Even decades after the war, at a Confederate/Rebel Union, probably in the 1920s, one of these Black Confederate bodyguards, Steve Eberhardt Perry, said, “I shall ever remain in my place and be obedient to all the White People… I have always been a White man’s Nigger. And the Yankees can’t change me, suh!” The crowd at that time erupted in applause. Perry indeed served in the ranks with Confederate men, but does his statement sound like it is coming from a man who understood human rights and ethical treatment? No, he was a brainwashed and an abused individual echoing his upbringing that made him serve in the ranks of the Confederacy as a slave and continue to support its mandates long after it had been defeated. Such were probably the vast majority of the men who were the Black Confederates. It is probably appropriate here to quote Adolf Hitler when he said, “the great strength of the totalitarian state is that it forces those who fear it to imitate it.” Perry’s statement proves Hitler’s observation in droves.

Ultimately, the motivations for serving in the Confederate Army were shaped by a complex web of individual aspirations, societal structures, and the coercive power of the government. Examining these motivations provides a nuanced understanding of the intricate dynamics that influenced the choices made by Blacks during a tumultuous period in American history.  In the end, it is important to note that most Blacks who found themselves in the service of the Confederacy in one form or another were forced to do so and most often in no combat-roles like food-preparation, working on defense works and repairing equipment.  Those few who did fight and killed Union troops prove that human nature is often complex and often paradoxical.  In the end, one would hope with the benefit of hindsight, that both freed Blacks and the Free-Blacks from the Confederacy recognized that the freedoms the Union provided them were better than anything the Confederacy had given them or would have given had it won.  And as Americans can now surely all agree, we are grateful that the Union emerged victorious, putting an end to slavery in all its forms, which the Confederacy had supported and would have continued to do so had it won.