Blue-Eyed Child of Fortune
Robert Gould Shaw was a child of the Boston aristocracy. At the outbreak of America's Civil War, his strong sense of duty compelled him to enlist in the Union cause. And though he did not, at first, share his parents0 abolitionist views, in 1863 Shaw agreed to take command of the 54th Massachusetts, the nation's first all black fighting regiment —and, by doing so, helped to change the course of history. Composed between his enlistment in 1861 and his tragic death in battle at age 26, these collected Civil War letters of Colonel Robert Gould Shaw are a moving testament to courage, commitment and honor —painting with Shaw's own words an unforgettable portrait of an extraordinary soldier and an extraordinary time.