"USCT" redirects here. For the Senegalese basketball team, see USCT Port.
USCT
United States Colored Troops
USCT recruiting poster
Unidentified private
24th US Colored Troops banner
U.S. Colored Troops medal[a]
Captain Meriam[b]
Active
May 22, 1863 – Oct 1865
Disbanded
October 1865
Allegiance
Union
Branch
Army
Type
infantry, cavalry, artillery, engineering
Size
175 regiments; 178,000 men
Motto(s)
Sic semper tyrannis "Thus always to tyrants"
Engagements
American Civil War
Military unit
United States Colored Troops (USCT) were Union Army regiments during the American Civil War that primarily comprised African Americans, with soldiers from other ethnic groups also serving in USCT units. Established in response to a demand for more units from Union Army commanders, by the end of the war in 1865 USCT regiments, which numbered 175 in total, constituted about one-tenth of the manpower of the army. Approximately 20 percent of USCT soldiers were killed in action or died of disease and other causes, a rate about 35 percent higher than that of white Union troops. Numerous USCT soldiers fought with distinction, with 16 receiving the Medal of Honor. The USCT regiments were precursors to the Buffalo Soldier units which fought in the American Indian Wars.[1]
The courage displayed by colored troops during the Civil War played an important role in African Americans gaining new rights. As Frederick Douglass said in an 1863 speech:
Once let the black man get upon his person the brass letter, U.S., let him get an eagle on his button, and a musket on his shoulder and bullets in his pocket, there is no power on earth that can deny that he has earned the right to citizenship.[2]
Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).
^"Black Soldiers in the U.S. Military During the Civil War". National Archives. August 15, 2016. Retrieved January 5, 2021.
^Douglass, Frederick (July 6, 1863). Speech at National Hall, for the Promotion of Colored Enlistments (Speech). Mass meeting held at National Hall, Philadelphia. National Hall, Philadelphia. Retrieved December 7, 2023.
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