African American Soldiers in the Civil WarAfrican Americans helped shape the Civil War from various perspectives. In fact, if you think about it in depth, they were the basis of the war. African Americans were slaves and had been treated as property since their arrival in America. The likelihood of opportunity for these slaves created a huge commotion in the South. The issue of equal rights for African Americans created a divide between the states. The United States Civil War began as an effort to save the Union and ended with a fight to abolish slavery. The Civil War, often known as the War Between the States in the United States, was a civil war fought from 1861 to 1865, after seven Southern slave states proclaimed their secession and formed the Confederate States of the United States. More Americans died in the Civil War than in World War I, World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War combined. Two-thirds of the people killed during the civil war died of disease. At the time of the Civil War, the medical world and advanced disinfectants that could have greatly reduced the spread of disease and illness did not exist. After years of bloody fighting that killed more than 600,000 soldiers and destroyed much of the South's infrastructure, the Confederacy collapsed, slavery was abolished, and the difficult process of Reconstruction began to restore national unity and secure the rights of freed slaves . By December 1865, the 13th Amendment had abolished slavery throughout the United States (Waldstreicher). As an abolitionist and former slave, Frederick Douglass understood that the path to opportunity and full citizenship for African American men walked straight. ......fortune. There are endless statues, celebrations, books and archival accumulations. The war had an enormous cost, but the benefits will be eternal. We lost a considerable number of bold individuals fighting for equality that day. Those individuals who fought in the Civil War will never be forgotten and will always be appreciated. There are so many ways that African Americans benefited from their courageous acts. They opened the door for many African Americans to speak out and come forward. Without those brave African American soldiers risking their lives for freedom, who knows if the Union could still have won by granting rights to freed slaves. Without their courage the United States would be in a totally different situation than it is today. Slaves and those who fought in the Civil War will always be appreciated and congratulated.