Race and Radicalism in the Union Army

Identifying elements of radicalism and reform in the interactions among blacks, Indians, and whites, Mark A. Lause examines how a multiracial vision of American society developed on the western frontier during the Civil War. Focusing on the radical followers of John Brown in territorial Kansas, Lause examines the impact of abolitionist sentiment on relations with Indians and the crucial role of nonwhites in the conflict. He discusses the radicalizing impact of this triracial Unionism upon the military course of the war in the upper Trans-Mississippi. Assessing the social interrelations and military impact of nonwhites in the Union forces,Race and Radicalism in the Union Armygreatly expands the historical narrative on the Civil War in the West.