General Strong, like Col. Shaw, fell in this battle. 14 Union regiments in all fought, two of them, the 54th Mass and the 2nd S Carolina, composed of "Colored" troops. The 67th Ohio, another regiment present, had in its ranks two of my great-great-great uncles, Tobias and Stephen Miller, who also fell that day, July 18, 1863.
Leaving this here for those who had trouble hearing it properly in the clip: Fort Wagner's arsenal included 14 cannons, including: 1x - 10 inch columbiad (firing 128-pound shells) 3x - 32 Pounders (smooth bore) 1x - 42 Pounder Carronade 1x - 10 inch coast mortar 4x - 12 pound howitzers plus a garrison of about 1000 men (1700 according to the Wiki). Balls of steel going up against that kind of opposition. Great movie despite some minor nitpicks. Just brilliant.
and all they had to do is just sit there and wait and cut off their supplies and they surrendered on their own. when they ran out of food they ate their dogs, grass and each other. all those black soldiers died for nothing
I saw this movie when it first came out in 1989. I started reenacting in 1990 because it as well as several others including North & South, and we had a minor reenactment near my hometown. I was hooked because of the influences of movies like this to reenact and it's been 30+ years and I'm still reenacting this terrible four year war.
My Papa used to host re-enactments for a group representing the 26th NC, Co. E on our family property near Siler City when I was a kid. It was fun but there were other things I would have rather have been doing at the time. Then I saw this movie on VHS about a year after it came out and his re-enactments took on a whole new meaning. I'm sad that they stopped before I could partake....
George C. Strong was mortally wounded at Fort Wagner, along with Haldimand Putnam, who was killed later in the battle leading one of the follow-up Vermont regiments. Both men were graduates of West Point's class of 1857.
Although this movie only portrays one assault of Fort Wagner there were actually many. General Strong was so guilt ridden at sending commanders into this fight that he decided to lead the last charge himself. He was mortally wounded by grape shot from a cannon while attempting to rally the men.
They didn't. They got butchered because they were stupid. Ran up on sand, not even solid ground. Attacked where they were expected to attack from. 1,000 guns pointed on a sandy strip supported by a sh!t ton of artillery. Thats a wrap, sir. That isn't "giving them hell"
Someone else may have already mentioned this, but General Strong was mortally wounded in the attack on Fort Wagner. He got tetanus from the wound and died a few weeks later.
@@mikeyburns4200 yes it is true. The Union promoted him posthumously to Major General backdated to the day of his death and Fort Strong in Boston Harbour was named after him in 1899
@@mikeyburns4200 Yup, many of the higher ranked officers involved with the attack died during the assault. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Battle_of_Fort_Wagner
General George Crockett Strong himself died as a result of the attack on Fort Wagner, though he did not die immediately on the battlefield. He was wounded the same day as the 54th Massachusetts's assault depicted in the movie. He survived long enough to make it off the battlefield but died a few weeks later of a tetanus infection from the wound he had received.
whoever did that was an idiot when you think about the history- but i assure you not all blm people are like that- the rioters and looters give the rest a bad name
"As many Of you are aware, Our Navy has weakened Wagner with a constant barrage." Me "Excuse me, sir, but then shouldn't that mean that none of those weapons you just mentioned are in commission and the Garrison should be maybe about five or six guys?"
I hear this is a popular phrase all throughout history "Our artillery weakened the German line" "Our Navy weakened Iwo Jima/Okinawa" Guess Linebacker II and onwards broke that curse for the most part
Well there's a reason why military intelliigence is considered an oxymoron. I kid, a little...military ultimately is hypothesizing the blind spots in their intel.
@@Jukeboxster the film also gets this wrong. The union command thought that Wagner’s numbers had been reduced. It was believed only a few hundred remained garrisoned
Fighting for freedom. Worth giving your life for. That is what my ancestors did. According to Shelby Foote, the great US Civil War scholar the charge should not have been ordered. Better to go down standing up and fighting for freedom with dignity and honor.
Those men who have experienced war and have seen their fellow units and comrades dead on the field and them not participating in the thick of action, their zeal would increase in doing their duty. Only the dead have seen the end of war
The 54th Massachusetts participated in the second battle of Fort Wagner. The first took place on July 10th, 1863 when Strong and his men landed on Morris Island. They were able to drive the rebs back from the outposts of the position but failed to take the fort itself.
The "rebs" were Confederate military soliders who knew how to fire a cannon and a .54 cal rifle and reload it, and many had families and homes they left to take up arms, both sides fought and suffered, even though I don't agree with chattel slavery, The South deserved some respect for defending their rights too.
Federal forces sustained heavy losses, and Gillmore realized that Fort Wagner could not be taken by a direct assault. Instead, Gillmore began a land and sea siege of the fort. After 60 days of shelling and siege, the Confederates abandoned Fort Wagner and Fort Gregg nearby on September 7, 1863.
it's not how long you live, but how you live. Everyone will die, today or tomorrow. These men die knowing, they're doing something worthwhile to fight for. They might not conquer the fort but they conquer the heart and mind of the people for generations to come.
@Doran Krotan you can say that because you're not in their position. The thinking during that time is different than our modern soldiers. We actually learned from experience. The trojan horse b.s. only works in the old days too. Why don't you say use bombers to bomb the shit out of them? Or use mg for support fire while they attack? They also never spread wide instead of clamping all together. Even their guns is slow. It's like comparing apple to an orange. Easier said than done.
I enjoyed this film and have seen it many times. Even with a good understanding of the tactical problems Fort Wagner posed, there are still some obvious questions: The fort was surrounded by ocean and swampland, with a narrow traversible approach. While this made the Union frontal assault difficult (nearly impossible), it also would have made a Union Siege a good option. With Wagner cut off by the Union Army by land, and blockaded by the Union Navy at sea, the fort could only stand for a short while before being forced out due to lack of food, water, and munitions. There was no adequate Confederate naval force to relive the siege by sea, nor a strong enough Confederate army nearby to break the ground siege. The fort could have been softened continually through indirect artillery and mortar fire until the defenders surrendered or were annihilated. The Confederate fort's defenses and narrow approach were built to draw in piecemeal Union attacks that could be destroyed in detail. And then the Union proceeded to do just what the Confederates hoped they'd do. This is a microcosm of the entire Civil War. There was never much in the way of strategic brilliance on the Union side. Over and over the Union threw frontal assaults against fixed positions and were massacred. Grant did not deviate from this strategy much, he just continued to press attacks after most other generals would have called a retreat. He used the north's resources to overwhelm the Confederates, regardless of casualties. The south's last hope for independence was the 1864 presidential election. If McClellan had beat Lincoln, he would have negotiated peace and separation. Lincoln campaigned on winning the war and restoration of the union. Once he won, the south had no further chance to gain independence.
It’s too simplistic to say Grant only won by attrition. He displayed maneuvering during the Battle of the Wilderness if IIRC. In the end Grant won. That’s what matters.
as an engineer i am really impressed that a bunch of hillbilly built a sand castle that actually lasted the bombardment and that also people were living there
"Hillbillies"? have smarts and they probably were not. Go to a black ghetto or a liberal leftist run blue city, yeah they run great, right? Great places to live., right?70%fatherless rate, racism against whites. Blaming all their failure and cap on a people group is true ignorance. I have more respect for country folk and hillbillies than c.u.l.t. progressive liberal types who are smug and have the gall to tell people to "just go buy an electric car." The guy who invented Coca Cola was a Southerner and Confederate surgeon and doctor.
As Bruce CATTON said," THEY TOOK NO FORT, BUT THEY PROVED THAT BLACK MEN WERE JUST AS BRAVE AND COULD GET SHOT TO PIECES JUST AS WELL AS WHITE MEN COULD.." VIST THEIR MONUMENT ON BOSTON COMMON...
blueonblack83 They were zouaves all right but not French. There were many Zouaves regiments during the Civil War that fought on both sides. However, the North had notably more. Most Northern regiments originated in Pennsylvania and New York. It was basically a traditional practice paying homage to the French however these Zouave regiments also served as light infrantry. The Zouaves were usually more agile than close-quarter (shoulder to shoulder) infantry ranks and were more mobile. Typically, a Zouave could reload his weapons lying down and then roll over onto his stomach for open fire.
blueonblack83 No problem. I believe the Zouave uniform concept was created by the French while fighting enemies in North Africa. The baggy pants were called "pantaloons" from the French word "pantalon" for pants. The baggies were very appropriate to wear because they were light and very comfortable for very hot and dry climates like desert North Africa. It also allows more leg movement.
This is a great movie. The real event is probably quiet different in many cases however, I always wonder if they attacked with only their bayonets, why wouldn't they have done it under darkness.
Like Iwo Jima. At Iwo, General Holland 'howling mad' Smith, commander of the Marine force, demanded at least one week bombardment before landing his invasion force. The Navy gave him only three, In fact, military fortifications ar Wagner were superior to what had been previously known to be effective. So tragedy happened here.
Bombardments rarely soften up a target as planned. Men can hide in caves, wait out the barrage, restock and rebuild in a shorter amount of time than is usually thought. They even shelled the hell out of the beaches of Normandy prior to invasion, we know how well that worked.
I appreciate Shaw's tenacity and spirit, but he should have allowed his men to get some rest. Especially for such a suicidal frontal assault, you need every man rested and 100%.
Wouldn't have mattered much. Frontal assault in an area the enemy knows you have to take. A thousand guns bearing down on you backed up by heavy artillery. It is a pure kill zone. Nothing survives that, which is why that fort was surrendered at the end of the civil war and never taken.
waste of man power. wicked waste of men. cut off the fort. no supplies for 1000 men, how long can they hold out... eating their horses and drinking the brackish water from the well in the fort that is that close to the sea?
They are just infantry, specifically of the 76th Pennsylvania Infantry present at the battle. They were a Zouave Regiment whose uniforms were inspired by the French Algerian Zouaves, specialist light infantry regiments.
Gettysburg had actually some misperceptions too. the wounding of Pettigrew shows him getting wounded durring the battle witch he was not. Pettigrew was wounded durring the retreat back from Gettysburg at some place called Falling Waters
he was wounded trying to get to the copse, falling off his horse and also receiving a wound on his arm from shrapnel. His wound was akin to what Trimble is shown having.
I love the explosions in the beginning… The fort must have its proton shield up. All the shots the navy are taking are being blocked in mid-air by the fort’s invisible proton shield… Crazy stuff. I bet that really messed with the troops morale.. Lol
Cary Elwes' s character Major Cabot Forbes is probably wanting to say, "Now before we going volunteering for anything, maybe we should take some time to think it over. Maybe sleep on it".
Naval bombardment needed to continue. In addition mortar and artillery groups should have been formed to lay coverage while a two prong attack commence... the initial planning of this operation was doomed from the beginning as it was a fortified problem
He wanted to show the Union Army what the 54th Massachusetts could do and after this both sides had more respect for the color troops. Especially the Confederate Army who after this battle viewed color soldiers the same as whites and did not killed them when they were captured but treated them as regular soldiers instead of viewing them as nothing but property.
@@jtm726 actually, the south continued to treat blacks very, very poorly. At the battle of the crater, for example, colored troops attempted to surrender, but were slaughtered to a man
It's an American copy of a French copy of the Zouaba tribes dress, whom they fought in Algeria. The uniform was more comfortable than the standard issue French uniforms, and allowed for more flexible movement. The French adopted it for their elite light infantry , along with adoption of the Zouaba tactical system. The US adopted it from the French. Now you know.
To all the people claiming that Gen. Strong is Will Ferrell are so very wrong. Strong is played by Jay Olcutt Sanders. Yes, there is a resemblance in both appearance and voice, but it is not Ferrell.
"How can I possibly be expected to handle a frontal assault on a beautiful day like this?" "This is my 9th sick day this campaign. If I go for 10, I'll probably be court martialed." "War moves pretty fast - if you stop to look around once in a while you get f***ing shot."
The writers of this movie wanted to emphasize this particular regiment going up against the evil confederacy even though there were other assaults on battery wagner.
The Confederacy was not evil; you are simply mindlessly repeating propaganda.. The majority of the country felt the Union must be preserved. And so it was, and a good thing too for the course of 20th century world history. But we killed a million Americans and destroyed te Republic. Think about it.
No, those were called Zouaves, american dressed like French soldiers in their north african campaigns. with those red pants they were walking bullseyes if you ask me. quite the opossite, the french supported the South in the Civil War.
I guessing they are called Zouaves. The 76th Pennsylviania Infrantry were collectly known as the Keystone Zouaves and were present at the Fort Wagner assault. The men in the movie a rather flashy and look more like their French Algerian counterparts. Which, historically, is where the Zouaves Light Infantry originated. It seems there were many nationalities involved in this war.
After the assaults failed, the Union besieged Ft Wagner. On August 26, 1863, the 24th Massachusetts Infantry captured the fort's advanced rifle pits, just 240 yards in front of the battery. On the night of September 6-7, 1863, after enduring continual shelling for nearly 60 days, the garrison was evacuated to avoid it's capture or destruction.
@@mikeyburns4200 yes it is. Beauregard ordered the position evacuated on the night of September 6th, 1863 because the next morning the union had planned another massive assault which would've overwhelmed the remaining defenders.
@@snuffy19608 the Union only had one way in or out because they were attacking from the beach, but the Confederates still controlled Morris Island and Cummings Point, which was the area on the north side of the fort between Wagner and Charleston harbor, they escaped out the back side of the fort, which the Union did not have access to at that time.
The guys in the red pants are members of what’s known as a “Zouave regiment,” who took the inspiration for their uniforms from the French colonial troops in North Africa. Napoleon was still kind of a big deal to these guys.
Why didn't the Union just bombard the fort with ships then go in? Is that because they didn't want the fort to be destroyed because they wanted to use it for the strategic position being so close to Charleston?
+SgtBaker16 after the assault by the 54th and the other Regiments in General Strongs brigade, the fort was bombarded for 60 days straight. The defenders finally withdrew from the fort but not because of the bombardment but because of the stench of the rotting union soldiers they had buried 2 months before.
One answer maybe to do with sand. I don't know the exact composition of Fort Wager but sand berms are one of the hardest materials to bombard. It can absorb huge force and when it does get blown up it falls back into almost exactly the same form it started in. It;s easy to repair and on a beach there is a ready supply of materials. Im sure this would have been discussed by the Union commanders but sand is also a perfect for digging saps. Saps were the old word for trenches cut diagonally across the front to get close to the walls of a fortification. It can either create less ground to cover or so you can collapse a part of the wall itself. Its where military engineers got their title Sapper. I would have expected saps protected by high berms to be built right up to the walls. The tide and water table may have something to do with why they went cut, it is also very time consuming.
1860s technology. They were using black powder naval shells against earthen fortifications - that will only do so much. Targeting in those days was much more difficult, especially without firing computers to compensate for wave action. Firing rates were much lower since you didn't have breech loading and modern metallurgy, with few exceptions.
You can ask the same question today....Why won't you just bomb x into the ground, then send the troops in? Because bombing either by air or artillery will only get you so far, before you have to send men in.
You're right about the sand. The Union General who planned the bombardment and assault had previously wrecked a brick and mortar Confederate fort and tried for a repeat here. Most of Wagner's walls were sand which absorbs energy and shifts around rather than crumble. The troops inside were well-provisioned and just waited. The bombardment might as well have never happened for all the good it did.
LMAOF Its not Will Ferrell playing General Strong its a entirely different actor named Jay O Sanders.Will Ferrell is to much of a goof ball 😂 lol.Ben Mills you are funny.
The debate over the tactics of this battle has been great. I don't claim to be an expert, nor am I second guessing the men who were on the field doing the fighting. The wasteful slaughter of men on the battlefield didn't start or end with the American Civil War. The bottom line is that Fort Wagner could have been isolated by a small ground force and eventually starved out. The Union Navy could have enforced the blockade from the sea, and with no munitions, food, or water coming, it would be a matter of time. An isolated Fort Wagner would be able to do nothing for the overall Confederate cause and could be isolated and rendered a non-factor. If I were to speculate, I'd say the main Union motivation to raze the fort was that it was a pesky Confederate holdout in an area otherwise strongly under union control. Perhaps Union high command and / or political leaders saw it as a symbol of defiance and just wanted to be rid of it. None of them would feel so strongly about it if they were personally obligated to storm the fort with the Army though.
If I had it my way I would have surrounded the fort cutting its supplies off by both land and sea. Weaken the fort even more as you have now trapped them inside their own fort. By which at a certain time you can then make your charge on it without taking so much casualty.
@@hhds113 i didn't say you were wrong, it's just that clearly the Union had no interest in a long term strategy. These people thought the war was going to be over in 90 days.
The artillery in the background looks pretty mild. I wonder what they are going after. The theaters of the ACW were so different and to even compare them is difficult. Both sides had more than just one good army, but anything that's titled "Department" is usually less effective units. If you had spent a year fighting in places like Mississippi or Missouri you'd be a veteran no doubt. You would probably be very useful to help win the War and you would probably know a lot about iron. However, if you were to then get transferred to the East to fight in the larger campaigns in Virginia you would be in a whole new world. What could work in many places out West, did not work in the East. Anyone who was in contact with the Army of NV or the Army of Potomac and the Tennessee would know the difference.
The orientation of this scene is wrong, the sea should be on the righthand side as the Union positions were on the south of Wagner being on the east coast
@Glinkling Smearnops I realize that my friend, but in todays times he would sound hilarious ordering some food. Listen to him again when hes describing whats on the other side of that hill
You could sense a collective sigh of relief from the other colonels.
Abso fuckin’ lutely
And a hearty "Oh, fuck." from Ethan Hawke...
@sgu02nsc - Lol. Truth.
And I’m pretty sure they would be thinking “operation blacks in front”
Carl Elwes face...lol
My dad, was the one walking with Matthew Broderick, standing next to him in the beginning. RIP dad
xxwalkamongus84 where?
Batou3 next too shaw dummy
Holy crap, your dad starred in Glory? NO WAY!!!!!
Hes the one with the moustache, and the hat next to Matthew Broderick.
My family was part of the civil war reenacting at Fort Clinch.
General Strong, like Col. Shaw, fell in this battle. 14 Union regiments in all fought, two of them, the 54th Mass and the 2nd S Carolina, composed of "Colored" troops. The 67th Ohio, another regiment present, had in its ranks two of my great-great-great uncles, Tobias and Stephen Miller, who also fell that day, July 18, 1863.
Leaving this here for those who had trouble hearing it properly in the clip:
Fort Wagner's arsenal included 14 cannons, including:
1x - 10 inch columbiad (firing 128-pound shells)
3x - 32 Pounders (smooth bore)
1x - 42 Pounder Carronade
1x - 10 inch coast mortar
4x - 12 pound howitzers
plus a garrison of about 1000 men (1700 according to the Wiki).
Balls of steel going up against that kind of opposition.
Great movie despite some minor nitpicks. Just brilliant.
and all they had to do is just sit there and wait and cut off their supplies and they surrendered on their own. when they ran out of food they ate their dogs, grass and each other. all those black soldiers died for nothing
moneysnappin - lol!
Lord Regent thank you for the info
@@moneysnappin what is a "so called black" you watch too much TV
Thanks for telling us again after the genera did
Every scene in this film is one emotional gut punch after another
From this scene to the very last scene.
“It’s Shaw isn’t it?” As soon as he says that the goosebumps start.
That moment where you feel like you're invisible.....But you're not. At all.
I saw this movie when it first came out in 1989. I started reenacting in 1990 because it as well as several others including North & South, and we had a minor reenactment near my hometown. I was hooked because of the influences of movies like this to reenact and it's been 30+ years and I'm still reenacting this terrible four year war.
My Papa used to host re-enactments for a group representing the 26th NC, Co. E on our family property near Siler City when I was a kid. It was fun but there were other things I would have rather have been doing at the time. Then I saw this movie on VHS about a year after it came out and his re-enactments took on a whole new meaning. I'm sad that they stopped before I could partake....
We re-enacted this actual event on the shores of Asbury Park, NJ in the late 90s ... Now there are only memories.
George C. Strong was mortally wounded at Fort Wagner, along with Haldimand Putnam, who was killed later in the battle leading one of the follow-up Vermont regiments. Both men were graduates of West Point's class of 1857.
Although this movie only portrays one assault of Fort Wagner there were actually many. General Strong was so guilt ridden at sending commanders into this fight that he decided to lead the last charge himself. He was mortally wounded by grape shot from a cannon while attempting to rally the men.
@SgtBaker16 For the honor.
It wasnt general strong call u clearly hear him say headquarters
A Maine man.
A white unit went in right after them, they failed too that fort was never taken, but the battle will never be forgotten.
@@kwolf43 the white regiment went in the day before.
First rule in the Army: NEVER volunteer for anything.
LOL. Yes.
I absolutely love this film, but you never, ever volunteer for anything in the Army.
Eventually you'll be voluntold.
Especially when it’s up against a Fort that holds a thousand men and a lot of Cannons. Yes I’m talking about the Fort itself
You have to volunteer to get in the army, you don't sound like a true soldier.
@3321far - Fact.
@@straydog2002 conscription can be reinstated. The main reason why Selective Service is still a thing
Jay O. Sanders. Terrific, underrated actor.
" We were a sight to see "
Colonel Gould Shaw: *inside his head he’s thinking: we’re dead
Today is the anniversary of the attack on 18 July 1863. Give 'em hell, 54th!
They didn't. They got butchered because they were stupid. Ran up on sand, not even solid ground. Attacked where they were expected to attack from. 1,000 guns pointed on a sandy strip supported by a sh!t ton of artillery. Thats a wrap, sir. That isn't "giving them hell"
I was there that day Strong gave the speech in 1863. Remember it like it was yesterday.
Ft. Strong (Fallout 4) is named after the general in the beginning giving the tactical info on Wagner.
Strong was a mutant companion 🤣
@@therealwewin my grandmother, was amused to see her family recognized in a videogame.
Someone else may have already mentioned this, but General Strong was mortally wounded in the attack on Fort Wagner. He got tetanus from the wound and died a few weeks later.
Is that true?
@@mikeyburns4200 yes it is true. The Union promoted him posthumously to Major General backdated to the day of his death and Fort Strong in Boston Harbour was named after him in 1899
@@mikeyburns4200 Yup, many of the higher ranked officers involved with the attack died during the assault. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Battle_of_Fort_Wagner
There were more than one assault on Fort Wagner.
Two days of sleep deprivation may be affecting his judgement a bit...
He's an officer you can bet that he's had plenty of sleep
Lol he doesn’t no what the he’ll he was saying
God's will.
@jabberw0k - It might just be.
@@Sparker408
Slim would like a word with you
General George Crockett Strong himself died as a result of the attack on Fort Wagner, though he did not die immediately on the battlefield. He was wounded the same day as the 54th Massachusetts's assault depicted in the movie. He survived long enough to make it off the battlefield but died a few weeks later of a tetanus infection from the wound he had received.
He will be missed. 😢💔
He's buried at Greenwood Cemetery in Brooklyn
I love the U. S Civil war, “we will proceed with a direct frontal assault”. Love the courage of both sides.
@@gaffgarion7049 Why? It was the South that lost. They're still crying more than 150 years later.
@Christian Guerilla oh give it up. Clearly you are looking for some excuse to support your kind.
there's really no other way to take a fort without support from artillery- which the Navy provided later when they actually took the fort.
@@SantomPh They never took it fool
@@OptimusWombat ua-cam.com/video/fAZFeyJ56D8/v-deo.html
The 54th's memorial (in front of the Massachusetts State House) was defiled during the riots of May 31, 2020.
Yup. Uneducated idiota. Shame on them.
whoever did that was an idiot when you think about the history- but i assure you not all blm people are like that- the rioters and looters give the rest a bad name
The commies will never learn, that's why I'd fight on the Southern side of history.
Fuckin' Woke idiots
@@BoogalooBoy Then you'd be fighting for the commies.
The democrats were the South.
Love this movie. the only thing that bothers me is the sea is on the wrong side.
They did that for aesthetics
Gen. Strong: "Needless to say, casualties in the leading regiment will be extreme."
When generals were brutally honest.
"As many Of you are aware, Our Navy has weakened Wagner with a constant barrage."
Me "Excuse me, sir, but then shouldn't that mean that none of those weapons you just mentioned are in commission and the Garrison should be maybe about five or six guys?"
yeah you wish that's the case but the fortress garrison exists so stuff is getting repaired even as the navy destroys it.
I hear this is a popular phrase all throughout history
"Our artillery weakened the German line"
"Our Navy weakened Iwo Jima/Okinawa"
Guess Linebacker II and onwards broke that curse for the most part
@@simunator Everyone always overestimates the effect of an artillery barrage.
Well there's a reason why military intelliigence is considered an oxymoron. I kid, a little...military ultimately is hypothesizing the blind spots in their intel.
@@Jukeboxster the film also gets this wrong. The union command thought that Wagner’s numbers had been reduced. It was believed only a few hundred remained garrisoned
General strong was mortally wounded at battery Wagner , he returned to his home state where passed away. Rip general strong
I'd have been like, "nah, it's okay, we'll go last".
Rob Hill with people like you we would never get anything done
@@manoffaith6952 he's right Mr Tyray save live just bomb the Mf'r from the sea, we can always seen spies on reconnsence mission's.
Didn't work at Iwo Jima, I note, and they plastered that place for three days.
Fighting for freedom. Worth giving your life for. That is what my ancestors did. According to Shelby Foote, the great US Civil War scholar the charge should not have been ordered. Better to go down standing up and fighting for freedom with dignity and honor.
Those men who have experienced war and have seen their fellow units and comrades dead on the field and them not participating in the thick of action, their zeal would increase in doing their duty. Only the dead have seen the end of war
One of the things the movie got wrong is that the Union command thought the garrison was small instead of holding 1000 men.
Never forget when we faught together
The 54th Massachusetts participated in the second battle of Fort Wagner. The first took place on July 10th, 1863 when Strong and his men landed on Morris Island. They were able to drive the rebs back from the outposts of the position but failed to take the fort itself.
The "rebs" were Confederate military soliders who knew how to fire a cannon and a .54 cal rifle and reload it, and many had families and homes they left to take up arms, both sides fought and suffered, even though I don't agree with chattel slavery, The South deserved some respect for defending their rights too.
There character, there's strength of heart.
Federal forces sustained heavy losses, and Gillmore realized that Fort Wagner could not be taken by a direct assault. Instead, Gillmore began a land and sea siege of the fort. After 60 days of shelling and siege, the Confederates abandoned Fort Wagner and Fort Gregg nearby on September 7, 1863.
it's not how long you live, but how you live. Everyone will die, today or tomorrow. These men die knowing, they're doing something worthwhile to fight for. They might not conquer the fort but they conquer the heart and mind of the people for generations to come.
@Doran Krotan you can say that because you're not in their position. The thinking during that time is different than our modern soldiers. We actually learned from experience. The trojan horse b.s. only works in the old days too. Why don't you say use bombers to bomb the shit out of them? Or use mg for support fire while they attack? They also never spread wide instead of clamping all together. Even their guns is slow. It's like comparing apple to an orange. Easier said than done.
There’s character ❤️ Strength of Heart Will be ready sir
I enjoyed this film and have seen it many times. Even with a good understanding of the tactical problems Fort Wagner posed, there are still some obvious questions: The fort was surrounded by ocean and swampland, with a narrow traversible approach. While this made the Union frontal assault difficult (nearly impossible), it also would have made a Union Siege a good option. With Wagner cut off by the Union Army by land, and blockaded by the Union Navy at sea, the fort could only stand for a short while before being forced out due to lack of food, water, and munitions. There was no adequate Confederate naval force to relive the siege by sea, nor a strong enough Confederate army nearby to break the ground siege.
The fort could have been softened continually through indirect artillery and mortar fire until the defenders surrendered or were annihilated. The Confederate fort's defenses and narrow approach were built to draw in piecemeal Union attacks that could be destroyed in detail. And then the Union proceeded to do just what the Confederates hoped they'd do.
This is a microcosm of the entire Civil War. There was never much in the way of strategic brilliance on the Union side. Over and over the Union threw frontal assaults against fixed positions and were massacred. Grant did not deviate from this strategy much, he just continued to press attacks after most other generals would have called a retreat. He used the north's resources to overwhelm the Confederates, regardless of casualties. The south's last hope for independence was the 1864 presidential election. If McClellan had beat Lincoln, he would have negotiated peace and separation. Lincoln campaigned on winning the war and restoration of the union. Once he won, the south had no further chance to gain independence.
I wonder if General Henry Thomas would have approached this battle differently if he were in command.
I think protracted siege is eventually what the Union resorted to after so many failed assaults on Fort Wagner.
It’s too simplistic to say Grant only won by attrition. He displayed maneuvering during the Battle of the Wilderness if IIRC. In the end Grant won. That’s what matters.
thank you, Bobby, that was a very nice read and info on how things happen there thanks for posting.
A siege in enemy territory is very dangerous as Strong himself had to string out his lines of supply and communication.
Balls of steel on that one
Real men... with testicles... doing what's right... I read about this once.
History check... the 54th attacked from the other side. The Ocean was on their right.
Edward Zwick said they filmed it that way for lighting purposes.
as an engineer i am really impressed that a bunch of hillbilly built a sand castle that actually lasted the bombardment and that also people were living there
LOLLLL, I get the sentiment, but the South actually did have a lot of smart people, they were just largely bigoted.
"Hillbillies"? have smarts and they probably were not. Go to a black ghetto or a liberal leftist run blue city, yeah they run great, right? Great places to live., right?70%fatherless rate, racism against whites. Blaming all their failure and cap on a people group is true ignorance. I have more respect for country folk and hillbillies than c.u.l.t. progressive liberal types who are smug and have the gall to tell people to "just go buy an electric car." The guy who invented Coca Cola was a Southerner and Confederate surgeon and doctor.
Your "bunch of hillbilly" got me for some reason.:)
Even though I'm a Southerner, I laughed at the hillbilly part. 🤣🤣🤣
@@fortis6258 reminder : your double impeached god, the INDICTED trump LOST the latest presidential election 😂
that movie is a treasure trove of fine speech
As Bruce CATTON said," THEY TOOK NO FORT, BUT THEY PROVED THAT BLACK MEN WERE JUST AS BRAVE AND COULD GET SHOT TO PIECES JUST AS WELL AS WHITE MEN COULD.." VIST THEIR MONUMENT ON BOSTON COMMON...
I read somewhere it was strong who asked who will carry the flag and it was Shaw who said I will.
You can't bomb a people out of existence, they'll just dig.
The one time Major Forbes should have questioned Shaw in front of others was now.
Request the honour of using my regiment as a Forlorn hope
0:27 Those can't be French zouaves, can they? I don't know much about the American Civil War, to be honest.
blueonblack83 They were zouaves all right but not French. There were many Zouaves regiments during the Civil War that fought on both sides. However, the North had notably more. Most Northern regiments originated in Pennsylvania and New York. It was basically a traditional practice paying homage to the French however these Zouave regiments also served as light infrantry. The Zouaves were usually more agile than close-quarter (shoulder to shoulder) infantry ranks and were more mobile. Typically, a Zouave could reload his weapons lying down and then roll over onto his stomach for open fire.
Thanks for the detailed explanation :D
blueonblack83 No problem. I believe the Zouave uniform concept was created by the French while fighting enemies in North Africa. The baggy pants were called "pantaloons" from the French word "pantalon" for pants. The baggies were very appropriate to wear because they were light and very comfortable for very hot and dry climates like desert North Africa. It also allows more leg movement.
Smart.
I wonder if in the far future mankind will revert back to wearing colourful uniforms on the battlefield.
+380PPK there were coleed French algen zouaves
This is a great movie. The real event is probably quiet different in many cases however, I always wonder if they attacked with only their bayonets, why wouldn't they have done it under darkness.
Love General Strong's speech lol 😂
It's actually not a bad tactic. Soldier of a certain Ilk think of different things than people laying back in the cut.
Strong speech
What a total ball's up they had no chance but they were brave
General Strong was killed in the assault as well.
He was 30 YEARS OLD AS WELL! WHATTTTTT
Like Iwo Jima. At Iwo, General Holland 'howling mad' Smith, commander of the Marine force, demanded at least one week bombardment before landing his invasion force. The Navy gave him only three, In fact, military fortifications ar Wagner were superior to what had been previously known to be effective. So tragedy happened here.
Bombardments rarely soften up a target as planned. Men can hide in caves, wait out the barrage, restock and rebuild in a shorter amount of time than is usually thought. They even shelled the hell out of the beaches of Normandy prior to invasion, we know how well that worked.
I appreciate Shaw's tenacity and spirit, but he should have allowed his men to get some rest. Especially for such a suicidal frontal assault, you need every man rested and 100%.
Those guy’s were high on adrenaline.
Wouldn't have mattered much. Frontal assault in an area the enemy knows you have to take. A thousand guns bearing down on you backed up by heavy artillery. It is a pure kill zone. Nothing survives that, which is why that fort was surrendered at the end of the civil war and never taken.
"There's more to fighting than rest sir, there's character.'
Pretty sure a good night's sleep before the big game is important.
your funny ???
@@ramsessbilal3387 No, he smart
Lol
It's never mentioned in the movie, but General George Crockett was wounded during the battle, and died of tetanus 12 days later
waste of man power. wicked waste of men. cut off the fort. no supplies for 1000 men, how long can they hold out... eating their horses and drinking the brackish water from the well in the fort that is that close to the sea?
What branch are those soldiers from, the soldiers wearing red?
They are just infantry, specifically of the 76th Pennsylvania Infantry present at the battle. They were a Zouave Regiment whose uniforms were inspired by the French Algerian Zouaves, specialist light infantry regiments.
@@thatonecrytian8997 thank you
Gettysburg had actually some misperceptions too. the wounding of Pettigrew shows him getting wounded durring the battle witch he was not. Pettigrew was wounded durring the retreat back from Gettysburg at some place called Falling Waters
lars kuno Andersen Pettigrew was wounded at Gettysburg during Pickett's Charge. His mortal wound came at Falling Waters.
he was wounded trying to get to the copse, falling off his horse and also receiving a wound on his arm from shrapnel. His wound was akin to what Trimble is shown having.
I love the explosions in the beginning… The fort must have its proton shield up. All the shots the navy are taking are being blocked in mid-air by the fort’s invisible proton shield… Crazy stuff.
I bet that really messed with the troops morale.. Lol
Bro behind him like "dude calm down with this leading the charge" stuff
Cary Elwes' s character Major Cabot Forbes is probably wanting to say, "Now before we going volunteering for anything, maybe we should take some time to think it over. Maybe sleep on it".
Naval bombardment needed to continue. In addition mortar and artillery groups should have been formed to lay coverage while a two prong attack commence... the initial planning of this operation was doomed from the beginning as it was a fortified problem
I honestly thought that was Will Ferrell for a moment, that guy looks strikingly like him. Much better actor though, Jay O Sanders.
Shaw should have realized the old saying is true in Combat:
Over confidence will either make you a hero or get you killed.
And he did.
Reminds me of the line Goku told Frieza in dragon Ball z when he was fighting him he says, "get too confident and you start making mistakes"
@@yahulwagoni4571 Yes he did.
He wanted to show the Union Army what the 54th Massachusetts could do and after this both sides had more respect for the color troops.
Especially the Confederate Army who after this battle viewed color soldiers the same as whites and did not killed them when they were captured but treated them as regular soldiers instead of viewing them as nothing but property.
@@jtm726 actually, the south continued to treat blacks very, very poorly. At the battle of the crater, for example, colored troops attempted to surrender, but were slaughtered to a man
i always wondered if the 54th did on fact volunteer for that
Will Ferrell was very capable of serious roles when necessary
RIP
George C. Strong
(1832-1863)
Was he really just 31
@@SaiquanCanty No, 30.
@@StephenLuke I looked it up. Only 7 years to hit major general
@@SaiquanCanty Wow, he will be missed. 😢💔
who are the dudes in the funky Aladdin pants?
Lionel Hutz Ah those were Zouave Units militaryhistorynow.com/2016/10/26/fighting-peacocks-the-colourful-history-of-zouaves/
oh I see
Lionel Hutz who are they
It's an American copy of a French copy of the Zouaba tribes dress, whom they fought in Algeria. The uniform was more comfortable than the standard issue French uniforms, and allowed for more flexible movement. The French adopted it for their elite light infantry , along with adoption of the Zouaba tactical system. The US adopted it from the French. Now you know.
They were from a regiment hailing from NY
To all the people claiming that Gen. Strong is Will Ferrell are so very wrong. Strong is played by Jay Olcutt Sanders. Yes, there is a resemblance in both appearance and voice, but it is not Ferrell.
Jay O. Sanders narrated a lot of PBS documentaries.
Forbes doesn't look ready at all.
Looks real. No CGI?
So this was Ranch Wilder's job before he was the Angels announcer.
At 0:50, Shaw realized his destiny...
Major Forbes in the background 😳
Bueller grew up to be a mighty fine Colonel
"How can I possibly be expected to handle a frontal assault on a beautiful day like this?"
"This is my 9th sick day this campaign. If I go for 10, I'll probably be court martialed."
"War moves pretty fast - if you stop to look around once in a while you get f***ing shot."
@@cocobot90 that did not have to be that funny
They fought hard 😢
Operation human shield my ass.
Awesome movie
The writers of this movie wanted to emphasize this particular regiment going up against the evil confederacy even though there were other assaults on battery wagner.
The Confederacy was not evil; you are simply mindlessly repeating propaganda.. The majority of the country felt the Union must be preserved. And so it was, and a good thing too for the course of 20th century world history. But we killed a million Americans and destroyed te Republic. Think about it.
@@yahulwagoni4571Uh, yeah. They were evil.
well yeah, the entire movie is about the 54th.
@@yahulwagoni4571 nope, they were shallow and callous. Lost Cause supporter detected, ignoring.
@@yahulwagoni4571 yes they were. To think enslaving human beings is ok is an evil thought and act.
were those french soldiers at 0:26?
No, those were called Zouaves, american dressed like French soldiers in their north african campaigns. with those red pants they were walking bullseyes if you ask me. quite the opossite, the french supported the South in the Civil War.
One of the historical errors is they are attacking in the wrong direction.
I would be so pissed at this COL for volunteering me for this mission....
What unit are the guys in red pants?
76th Pennsylvania (although in reality they had light blue pants)
The 54th Massachusetts led the second assault on Fort Wagner not the first as Glory appears to suggest.
I would love to hear more about the soldiers in red if anyone has any idea as to who or what they are, militarily.
I guessing they are called Zouaves. The 76th Pennsylviania Infrantry were collectly known as the Keystone Zouaves and were present at the Fort Wagner assault. The men in the movie a rather flashy and look more like their French Algerian counterparts. Which, historically, is where the Zouaves Light Infantry originated. It seems there were many nationalities involved in this war.
@@anthonywilson7304 Very cool. Thank you for the insight
After the assaults failed, the Union besieged Ft Wagner. On August 26, 1863, the 24th Massachusetts Infantry captured the fort's advanced rifle pits, just 240 yards in front of the battery. On the night of September 6-7, 1863, after enduring continual shelling for nearly 60 days, the garrison was evacuated to avoid it's capture or destruction.
Wait a second. Is all this true?
@@mikeyburns4200 it is
@@mikeyburns4200 yes it is. Beauregard ordered the position evacuated on the night of September 6th, 1863 because the next morning the union had planned another massive assault which would've overwhelmed the remaining defenders.
If there was only the one way in our out, and the Union controlled that, how did the garrison escape?
@@snuffy19608 the Union only had one way in or out because they were attacking from the beach, but the Confederates still controlled Morris Island and Cummings Point, which was the area on the north side of the fort between Wagner and Charleston harbor, they escaped out the back side of the fort, which the Union did not have access to at that time.
I wonder who hq was at the time Meade or grant?
His bro in the background " dude wtf are you doing? Stop talking, stop talking now! "
When you're asked to do something. Do it.
The guys in the red pants are members of what’s known as a “Zouave regiment,” who took the inspiration for their uniforms from the French colonial troops in North Africa. Napoleon was still kind of a big deal to these guys.
They wouldn't have been standing that close either. One well placed round from Wagner's cannon would have wiped them out.
Why didn't the Union just bombard the fort with ships then go in? Is that because they didn't want the fort to be destroyed because they wanted to use it for the strategic position being so close to Charleston?
+SgtBaker16 after the assault by the 54th and the other Regiments in General Strongs brigade, the fort was bombarded for 60 days straight. The defenders finally withdrew from the fort but not because of the bombardment but because of the stench of the rotting union soldiers they had buried 2 months before.
One answer maybe to do with sand. I don't know the exact composition of Fort Wager but sand berms are one of the hardest materials to bombard. It can absorb huge force and when it does get blown up it falls back into almost exactly the same form it started in. It;s easy to repair and on a beach there is a ready supply of materials.
Im sure this would have been discussed by the Union commanders but sand is also a perfect for digging saps. Saps were the old word for trenches cut diagonally across the front to get close to the walls of a fortification. It can either create less ground to cover or so you can collapse a part of the wall itself. Its where military engineers got their title Sapper.
I would have expected saps protected by high berms to be built right up to the walls. The tide and water table may have something to do with why they went cut, it is also very time consuming.
1860s technology. They were using black powder naval shells against earthen fortifications - that will only do so much. Targeting in those days was much more difficult, especially without firing computers to compensate for wave action. Firing rates were much lower since you didn't have breech loading and modern metallurgy, with few exceptions.
You can ask the same question today....Why won't you just bomb x into the ground, then send the troops in? Because bombing either by air or artillery will only get you so far, before you have to send men in.
You're right about the sand. The Union General who planned the bombardment and assault had previously wrecked a brick and mortar Confederate fort and tried for a repeat here. Most of Wagner's walls were sand which absorbs energy and shifts around rather than crumble. The troops inside were well-provisioned and just waited. The bombardment might as well have never happened for all the good it did.
I believe Will Ferrell's role as General Strong is his second best acting performance , after Elf.
LMAOF Its not Will Ferrell playing General Strong its a entirely different actor named Jay O Sanders.Will Ferrell is to much of a goof ball 😂 lol.Ben Mills you are funny.
The debate over the tactics of this battle has been great. I don't claim to be an expert, nor am I second guessing the men who were on the field doing the fighting. The wasteful slaughter of men on the battlefield didn't start or end with the American Civil War. The bottom line is that Fort Wagner could have been isolated by a small ground force and eventually starved out. The Union Navy could have enforced the blockade from the sea, and with no munitions, food, or water coming, it would be a matter of time. An isolated Fort Wagner would be able to do nothing for the overall Confederate cause and could be isolated and rendered a non-factor.
If I were to speculate, I'd say the main Union motivation to raze the fort was that it was a pesky Confederate holdout in an area otherwise strongly under union control. Perhaps Union high command and / or political leaders saw it as a symbol of defiance and just wanted to be rid of it. None of them would feel so strongly about it if they were personally obligated to storm the fort with the Army though.
I’m sure they had supplies in great abundance as up to that point the reds were in their own territory.
If I had it my way I would have surrounded the fort cutting its supplies off by both land and sea. Weaken the fort even more as you have now trapped them inside their own fort. By which at a certain time you can then make your charge on it without taking so much casualty.
how long would that have taken? I'm thinking a long protracted conflict wasn't anything they were interested in
@@Jukeboxster Throughout history you never charge a fort or castle. Take out their provisions and they will fall. A general tactic.
@@hhds113 i didn't say you were wrong, it's just that clearly the Union had no interest in a long term strategy. These people thought the war was going to be over in 90 days.
@@Jukeboxster Well both sides did underestimated each others ability.
@@hhds113
which history the assyrians, medes, persians, romans .... do not agree
I blame George Crockett strong
Ryan Osenga is my name and My name still stands strong on both Wagner and Gettyesburg
The artillery in the background looks pretty mild. I wonder what they are going after. The theaters of the ACW were so different and to even compare them is difficult. Both sides had more than just one good army, but anything that's titled "Department" is usually less effective units. If you had spent a year fighting in places like Mississippi or Missouri you'd be a veteran no doubt. You would probably be very useful to help win the War and you would probably know a lot about iron. However, if you were to then get transferred to the East to fight in the larger campaigns in Virginia you would be in a whole new world. What could work in many places out West, did not work in the East. Anyone who was in contact with the Army of NV or the Army of Potomac and the Tennessee would know the difference.
The orientation of this scene is wrong, the sea should be on the righthand side as the Union positions were on the south of Wagner being on the east coast
He said needless to say casualties may be extreme. You don't say. Also I would like to here the General order fast food, that would be hilarious.
@Glinkling Smearnops I realize that my friend, but in todays times he would sound hilarious ordering some food. Listen to him again when hes describing whats on the other side of that hill
The actor was a bizzare actual look-a-like to actual Gen GCS who perished in the seige.
But seems they didnt send that following regiment when 54th got into the fort if they did they had taken the fort.
The sad part of this futile attack was the 54th was shot at from both sides.
Who are guys in red?
French Zouaves
Zouave regiment, light infantry meant for harsh terrain