How Did Black Southerners Respond When War Was Declared?
When the war
started in 1861 there were public demonstrations of support for the Confederacy
by blacks throughout the South (Wesley, 1937, p. 141; Rollins, 1994, p.
2).
The largest
demonstration came in New Orleans. A mass meeting attended by black
residents was held just after the news arrived from Fort Sumter. They organized a regiment of
black Confederate troops with black officers (New Orleans Picayune, 24 Nov 1861; Annual Cyclopedia,
1864, p. 202.)
In Nashville a company of
free blacks offered their services to the Confederate government, and in June
the state legislature authorized Gov. Harris to accept into Tennessee service all
male persons of color (Wesley, 1937, page 153).
In Memphis in 'September
a procession of several hundred free blacks marched through the streets under
the command of Confederate officers. "They were brimful of patriotism, shouting for Jeff Davis and
singing war songs" (Memphis
Avalanche, 3 Sept 1861).
In Montgomery, blacks were
seen being drilled and armed for military duty (Wesley, 1919, p. 242).
Two companies
of black Confederates were formed in Ft. Smith, Arkansas (Rebellion Record, 46,
in Rollins 1994).
Similar
occurrences took place in Virginia. In Lynchburg, 70 men
enlisted to fight for the defense of Virginia soon after it
seceded; a local newspaper raised "three cheers
for the patriotic Negroes of Lynchburg" (Ibid;
Wesley, 1937, p. 142).
One hundred
free Negroes reported for service to aid the Confederacy in Petersburg, Virginia, on 26 April 1861, and were addressed by the mayor.
One of the Negroes stepped forward to receive the Confederate flag, and
said “We are willing to aid Virginia’s cause to
the utmost of our ability … there is not an unwilling heart among us … we
promise unhesitating obedience to all orders that may be given us” (Petersburg Daily Express, April
23, 26, 1861).
In late April
1861 in Richmond, 60 black men carrying a Confederate flag asked to be enlisted. In Hampton, 300 blacks
volunteered to serve in Artillery batteries (Quarles, 1955, p. 36).
In Petersburg, a group of
blacks who had volunteered to work on defenses held a mass rally at the
courthouse square. The former Mayor,
John Dodson, presented them with a Confederate flag, and promised them "a
rich reward of praise, and merit, from a thankful people” (Oblatala,
1979, p. 94).
In April of
1861, a company of 60 free blacks marched into Richmond with a
Confederate flag at the head of their column.
They volunteered their services to the military, but were sent home
after being complimented for their show of Southern patriotism (Barrow,
2001).
Conclusion: How did black
Southerners respond? They responded in the same ways that white
Southerners responded.
Why did blacks fight for the South? Because an enemy army was
invading their country, raping women, burning and looting homes, and attacking
the only life they knew.
References
Barrow, C. K., Segars,
J. H., & R.B. Rosenburg, R.B. (Eds.) (2001). Black Confederates. Gretna: Pelican Publishing Company.
Oblatala, J.K. (1979).
The Unlikely Story of Negroes Who Were Loyal to Dixie. Smithsonian, 9, page 94.
Quarles, Benjamin (1955). The Negro in the Civil War. Boston: Little, Brown.
Rollins, Richard, Ed. (1994). Black
Southerners in Gray: Essays on
Afro-Americans in Confederate Armies. Rank and File Publications,
Redondo Beach, California, 172 pages.
Wesley, C. H. (1919). The Employment of Negroes as Soldiers in the Confederate Army.
Journal
of Negro History, 4, 242.
Wesley, C. H. (1937). The Collapse of the Confederacy. New York: Russell & Russell.