Charleston In Ruins: Holy City Knows Adversity

The recent violence in a historic church in Charleston, South Carolina, reminded me that the city of churches lay in ruins by the end of the Civil War.

St. John and St. Finbar Cathedral, Charleston, 1865.

Today, Charleston is one of the most beautiful cities in the United States. But along with Richmond and Columbia, Charleston probably suffered more destruction than any major city in American history. Because it was the cradle of the rebellion, it fought off Union siege and bombardment for years. By 1865, most of its architecturally significant buildings were reduced to little more than piles of rubble.

In my book, Soldiers Just Like You, a Civil War novel,  the city and its diverse population is the backdrop for what is arguably one of the most dramatic and unlikely trials of the Civil War.

Detail of 54th Massachusetts Monument.

When a Union force attacks Battery Wagner, a sand fort guarding Charleston Harbor, the 54^th Massachusetts Infantry is sent in for the first time in the war. The 54^th is the famous black regiment whose story is chronicled in the movie, “Glory.” But the movie ends with the failed Union assault, when in real life, about sixty black soldiers are captured by the Confederates. For them, the story is just beginning.

South Carolina decides to make an example of black men who take up arms against the South and puts the men on trial as “rebellious slaves.” What ensues is a court room drama like no other. The shooting war becomes a war of words, presided over by Judge Andrew McGrath, who later becomes the governor of the state. His brother Edward is serving in the Confederate army, as the colonel of the 1^st South Carolina Infantry.

The question at hand is: Are the black men Union prisoners of war, due all the rights of fair treatment that white men in uniform are afforded, or will they be returned to slavery or even executed?  Another question: Can black men who have attacked Charleston and killed white men get a fair trial in this southern city? An unsung hero of the city, a local attorney named Nelson Mitchell, steps up to defend the soldiers. He is paired with a Confederate officer, Colonel Edward McCrady, who is home on convalescence after being wounded in Virginia.

Col. Edward McCrady, a Confederate officer, defended the 54th.

Without giving too much away, the outcome of the trial is surprising. But knowing the verdict, I was not surprised at how positively Charleston has responded to its latest tragedy. The Holy City has been laid low before and still is an example for the rest of the country today.

If you like interesting takes on the Civil War, set in graciously beautiful places like Charleston, read Soldiers Just Like You or my newest novel, Burning Rage: A Ced Buckley Civil War Mystery. Both are available in Kindle or paperback at Amazon.com.