How Historically Accurate is the Film "Glory". Glory tells the story of the 54th Regiment of Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry in the United States Civil War. The 54th was the most celebrated of all black units in the war because it was the first su

not begin training until February 1863. Also, in the movie, we see white union soldiers cheering towards the 54th before they charged Fort Wagner, however, I doubt this actually happened because even though the union stood for abolition, most of the whites felt superior to blacks and doubted whether they were actually good soldiers. In addition to that, the confederate stronghold guarding Charleston Harbor was depicted in the movie as taking place from south to north when it was actually from north to south.One of the more major inaccuracies is the way in which Colonel Robert Gould Shaw is depicted in the movie as first choice to command the regiment, when actually, the command was offered to him, and he hesitated before deciding to accept. Also, the 54th is portrayed in the movie as being made up largely of runaway slaves, like John Rawlins or Private Trip. In fact, it was actually mostly a regiment of freed men like Thomas Seares, not only recruited from Massachusettes, but also New York and Pennsylvania. The assault on Battery Wagner was attacked on the wrong side in the movie, and it also suggests that over ½ of the regiment was lost during the assault. However, official records state that they had 272 casualties, which is closer to 40%. Lastly, the way in which they whipped and flagged the black soldiers is historically inaccurate because the practice of flogging had been outlawed before the civil war, and Robert would not have whipped them because it symbolizes slavery, which is what they were trying to abolish. Despite these inaccuracies, there were some aspects of the film which were historically accurate. Firstly, the way Colonel Shaw died is factual. His final words were actually “forward, fifty-fourth!”. The final scene shows Shaw’s body being thrown into a burial pit alongside his fallen men. This is historically accurate, but his body was first stripped of its uniform. For obvious reasons, they cannot show that in the movie. Also, I found one of the letters of Col. Robert Gould Shaw online, which generally verifies the burning of the town which was shown in the film. Glory also does a great job in emphasizing the fact that the mentality towards black people was negative at first, including Northerners and even Abraham Lincoln. In the scene when the men of the 54th regiment meet the white regiment coming from a battle, they were mocked and called “niggers”, and this further emphasizes the prejudice towards blacks at the time. In conclusion, it’s clear to see that the historical inaccuracies outweigh the accuracies, however, they are minor compared to the spirit, fear, anger, courage, resentment and acceptance that can be found in the movie. After all, if the movie was completely historically accurate, what would be the point if it does not have much of an effect?BIBLIOGRAPHY: http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Aegean/6732/Shaw/darien.htmlhttp://www.bitsofblueandgray.com/june2003.htmhttp://www.americanhistory.abc-clio.com/http://www.epinions.com/review/mvie_mu-1008415/content_22618214020