so, after 21 months of fighting to save the union, abraham lincoln turns the civil war into a fight to free the slaves. if my name goes down in history, it will be for this act. that will do. in giving freedom to the slave, we assure freedom to the free. we shall nobly save or meanly lose the last, best hope on earth. it is coming! it s on the wire! [ cheers and applause ]
that was going to end slavery. his mission at that point was to reunite the country. if they fear that you wish to start a war to take their slaves away, you should remind the south that those fears are unfounded. once the war starts, enslaved african-americans see it for what it truly is a chance to be free. [ men shouting, cannons firing ] fort monroe is a union outpost in confederate territory, defended by 4,500 men, including a zouave regiment, and commanded by general benjamin butler. general butler? fugitive slaves captured just outside the fort. please, sir. we re just loong for safe harbor. we ve escaped colonel mallory and the confederate army. i see. the three men that come in to butler, they happen to come in after virginia votes to secede.
henceforth shall this day take rank with the 4th of july. henceforth it becomes the date of a new and glorious era in the history of american liberty. now we ll see if lincoln is as good as his word. the emancipation proclamation and the militia act paved the way for lincoln to fulfill one of frederick douglass goals allowing black soldiers to fight for their own freedom. douglass himself recruits 100 men to join the new 54th massachusetts regiment, including his son, lewis. right shoulder. shift arms. the governor of massachusetts chooses robert gould shaw to lead the regiment. right face. with the emancipation proclamation lincoln makes explicit what frederick douglass already knows the civil war and the fight to end slavery are
they don t come in the day before. cause if they d come in the day before, virginia s not a confederate state, not a secessionist state. virginia claims she s no longer part of our union. i suppose the law no longer holds water. these men are to be considered contraband of war. butler understood that white southerners saw their slaves as property. for instance, they were being used to support the confederate war effort. their capture, their seizure, and their retention was well within the laws of war. please, make yourself comfortable. right this way, boys. congress approved of what butler had done. they liked that solution. in august 1861, they pass a confiscation act. from there on in, escaped slaves then were called contrabands.
butler understood that white southerners saw their slaves as property. for instance, they were being used to support the confederate war effort. their capture, their seizure and their retention was well within the laws of war. please, make yourself comfortable. right this way, boys. congress approved of what butler had done. they liked that solution. in august 1861, they pass a confiscation act. from there on in escaped slaves then were called contrabands. does this mean that. that we re free? that s not my part to say. it is for the president. despite his rank, benjamin butler has no strategic military experience, and is considered a disaster on the battlefield. but his tenacity as a lawyer and deft political mind