Colored Troops) was one of the first all-black regiments to fight in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Captain Cailloux died heroically in the first assault.

Yet, inexplicably, the Federals left untouched the area where the Native Guards had charged the previous day--in stark contrast to their actions elsewhere on the battlefield. The bravery and courage displayed by the unit made it impossible for anyone to challenge their inferiority to other white soldiers. ( Log Out /  People of the American Civil War by state, Pages using infobox military unit with unknown parameters, Articles incorporating text from Wikipedia, Louisiana Confederate Civil War regiments, Military history of African Americans in the American Civil War, http://lsm.crt.state.la.us/cabildo/cab10.htm, Official copy of the militia law of Louisiana, adopted by the state legislature, Jan. 23, 1862, https://military.wikia.org/wiki/1st_Louisiana_Native_Guard_(CSA)?oldid=4681645. About two thousand people attended the meeting where muster lists were opened, with about 1,500 free blacks signing up. After being denied approval to join the confederacy as a military unit, the group disbanded a year later. The Regiment remained on garrison at Ship Island and mustered out on October 11, 1865. The Guard was formed when Louisiana Governor Thomas Overton Moore accepted into the state militia a regiment of approximately 1,100 free African American men. The unit had a difficult task in overcoming the 6,000 heavily armed Confederate troops that had assembled to do battle with them. Some historians think the legend of continuity of the regiments was a propaganda ploy by Union General Benjamin F. Unlike other units of African American soldiers; officers of the Louisiana Natives guards were well educated, wealthy, and highly respected members of the community eager to join forces against the confederacy. Colored Troops). ( Log Out /  Why free African Americans would organize to fight for the confederacy has been intensely debated. Poor treatment by white soldiers and difficult field conditions resulted in many black officers resigning and enlisted soldiers deserting the Corps.

The regiment participated in an expedition from Fort Pike to Pearl River September 9–12, 1864 and detachments on an expedition from Fort Pike to Bayou Bonforica January 31-February 1, 1865 and from Fort Pike to Bayou St. Louis March 28–30. The Louisiana Native Guards:  1st Black Military Unit To See Combat During The Civil War, first black troops to see combat during civil war. After New Orleans fell to Admiral David Farragut in April 1862, Union Maj. Gen. Benjamin F. Butler headquartered his 12,000-man Army of the Gulf in New Orleans. As the regular Confederate forces under Major General Mansfield Lovell abandoned New Orleans, the Native Guard were left to fend for themselves. The militia unit was the first of any in North America to have African-American officers, preceding the United States Colored Troops. He later became a famous actor as Lewis Morrison and his granddaughters, Joan, Constance and Barbara Bennett, were actresses whose Black ancestry was never revealed. Some of these men even owned slaves. [7] It was their organized meeting with Union General Benjamin Butler, to surrender their arms that led him to form the first three regiments of black soldiers in the Union Army; the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Native Guards regiments, with all their line officers being former members of the Confederate state militia regiment. Some of the unit's members joined the Union Army's 1st Louisiana Native Guard, which later became the 73rd Regiment Infantry of the United States Colored Troops. [1], P.B.S. On September 27, 1862, the Louisiana Native Guards was officially mustered into service as part of the Union Army making it the first black regiment to serve in the Union Army. https://www.warhistoryonline.com/instant-articles/the-louisiana-native-guards.html, https://www.historynet.com/americas-civil-war-louisiana-native-guards.htm.

The Louisiana Native Guards first saw combat in May 1863, Under the command of Major General Nathaniel Banks, the unit assigned to assist with the assault on Port Hudson which was a confederate stronghold near the Mississippi River.

This regiment was called the Louisiana Native Guard. [citation needed], From its formation in September 1862 until early May 1863, the 1st Louisiana Native Guard largely performed fatigue duty–chopping wood, gathering supplies, and digging earthworks. Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Story of the Indian Home Guard during the American Civil War, including their suffering as refugees in Kansas, the obstacles they faced to become soldiers in the Union Army, and their determination to retake their homes in Indian Territory after being driven out at the beginning of the war. "Their demise was only temporary, however, for Governor Moore reinstated the Native Guards on March 24 after the Federal navy under Admiral David G. Farragut entered the Mississippi River." Colored Troops) was one of the first all-black regiments to fight in the Union Army during the American Civil War.

Louisiana Native Guard Picket protecting the New Orleans, Opelousas, and Great Western Railroad, Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper, March 7, 1863. p. 369 Courtesy Library of Congress (92515036) The 1st Louisiana Native Guard (USA) was one of the first all-black regiments to fight in the Union Army during the American Civil War.