Glory

Captain Robert Shaw is wounded at Antietam and returns home to Boston on medical leave. He accepts promotion to Colonel and takes command of the newly formed 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry. He recruits a diverse group of volunteers, including Cabot Forbes, Thomas Searles, John Rawlins, Jupiter Sharts, Trip, and a mute drummer.

Following the Emancipation Proclamation, the 54th is told that Confederate forces will execute Black soldiers in Union uniforms along with their white officers. Despite this, the men decline an honorable discharge and begin rigorous training under Sergeant-Major Mulcahy.

Trip is arrested for being AWOL and is flogged. Shaw learns he left camp to replace his worn-out shoes, exposing the strain on the troops and the fragility of discipline.

Shaw directly confronts the base's racist quartermaster who is withholding supplies from the unit. The confrontation highlights the systemic racism and the obstacles Black soldiers face even before seeing combat.

The men learn that Black soldiers are paid about three-quarters of what white soldiers receive. Trip encourages them to refuse their pay, and Shaw tears up his own pay stub in solidarity with the others.

Thomas Searles, known for his bookish intellect and leadership, is promoted to Sergeant-Major in recognition of his mentorship and morale-boosting counsel to the younger troops.

Under General Charles Harker and Colonel James Montgomery, the 54th is ordered to sack and burn Darien, Georgia. Shaw initially refuses the assignment, but agrees under threat of relief from command.

Tired of seeing his men used for manual labor and raids on civilians, Shaw tells Harker and Montgomery he will report profiteering to the War Department unless the 54th is given a combat assignment.

The 54th goes into battle at James Island, South Carolina and repels a Confederate attack. Thomas Searles is wounded while saving Trip's life, demonstrating the unit's courage under fire.

General George Strong informs the regimental commanders of a major campaign to secure Charleston Harbor, describing Morris Island and the foreboding Fort Wagner as the next objective. Shaw volunteers the 54th for the assault.

The night before the assault on Fort Wagner, the Black soldiers hold a religious service to give thanks and seek God’s help. The moment underscores their resolve and unity in the face of danger.

At dawn, the 54th makes a frontal assault on Fort Wagner and suffers devastating losses as they advance across the open beach. Shaw is killed during the assault, and Trip lifts the regimental flag, guiding the remaining troops toward the fort before he is mortally wounded. Forbes leads a party into the fort's outer defenses where Charlie Morse is killed and Thomas is wounded. A small group of survivors, including Forbes and Rawlins, faces a Confederate gun as the scene fades to black.

After sunrise, Confederate soldiers recover the bodies and raise their flag over the fort while burying the fallen in a mass grave. Shaw's body is found in the trench beside Trip, symbolizing their shared sacrifice.

The epilogue notes that although Fort Wagner was not captured, the 54th's courage helped persuade the Union Army to recruit thousands more Black soldiers for combat. President Lincoln credits this shift as a turning point in the war.