Editing Union army (section)

====African Americans in the Union army====
{{Main|Military history of African Americans in the American Civil War|United States Colored Troops}}
[[File:Unidentified African American Union soldier with a rifle and revolver in front of painted backdrop showing weapons and American flag at Benton Barracks, Saint Louis, Missouri LOC 5229147154 (cropped).jpg|thumb|Portrait of an African American Union soldier at [[Benton Barracks]]]]
By 1860, the [[African American]] or Black population of the United States consisted of four million [[Slavery in the United States|enslaved]] and half a million [[Free Negro|free Blacks]].  When the Civil War began, many freedmen in the North attempted to enlist in federal service but were barred from doing so. Popularly-held prejudices doubted whether Black people could be effective soldiers, and President Lincoln believed allowing their enlistment would anger Northern whites and alienate not just the South but the [[Border states (American Civil War)|Border States]] too.  However he eventually changed his mind and persuaded Congress to authorize the first official Black enlistment system in late 1862, which evolved into the [[United States Colored Troops]].<ref name=USCT>American Civil War: The Definitive Encyclopedia and Document Collection [6 Volumes]: The Definitive Encyclopedia and Document Collection. (2013). United States: ABC-CLIO. p. 10-12, 14–15</ref>

Before they were allowed to enlist, many Black people volunteered their services to the Union army as cooks, nurses, and in other informal roles, and several volunteer regiments of Black troops were raised by the states. These included the [[1st Kansas Colored Infantry Regiment]], the first Black regiment to be raised and the first to engage in combat; the [[1st Louisiana Native Guard (Union)|1st Louisiana Native Guard]], raised from both freedmen and escaped slaves after the [[Capture of New Orleans]]; and the [[54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment]], which became the most famous Black unit after their valiant participation in the [[Battle of Fort Wagner, Morris Island|Battle of Fort Wagner]].  Their efforts helped to dispel the notion that Black soldiers were a liability, allowing about 200,000 Black soldiers to serve in the Union army during the Civil War.<ref name=USCT/>

Even as they served their country, Black soldiers were subject to discrimination. They were more often assigned to menial labor. Some Union officers refused to employ them in combat, but when they were they often had to use inferior weapons and equipment.  Black soldiers were paid less than white soldiers ($10 vs $16 per month) until Congress yielded to public pressure and approved equal pay in June 1864. Black units were led predominantly by white officers, and while more than a hundred Black men were eventually made officers (not counting those [[Passing (racial identity)|passing]] as white), none were promoted to a rank higher than major.  If captured by Confederate forces, Black soldiers risked being made slaves or [[summarily executed]].<ref name=USCT/>