THE SERGEANT

The fascinating life story of a soldier who fought for liberty across multiple continents.

Many Black Americans fought for the Union, but biographies are scarce because their lives were poorly documented. This is not the case with Nicholas Said (1836-circa 1882). The son of a brilliant general in the Bornu Empire in Africa, he was kidnapped by slavers at age 13. He served aristocrats in Turkey and then Russia, where he served as a free man (slavery was illegal in Russia). He traveled widely in Europe before sailing to the U.S. in 1860; in 1863, he enlisted in one of the first all-Black units. Award-wining journalist Calbreath makes extensive use of his subject’s vivid, hyperbolic autobiography and contemporary letters and journalism. When material runs thin, he recounts the history of the period with emphasis on the experiences of African Americans both inside and outside the U.S. Class was far more important than race in 19th-century Europe. As a high-level retainer, Said looked down on household help, socialized freely with the upper classes, and rarely encountered racism—until he crossed the Atlantic, where he encountered plenty. Other authors extol the heroism of Black units, but Calbreath emphasizes their disgraceful treatment by superiors and misuse on the battlefield. Literate and responsible, Said rose to become the senior noncom responsible for the regimental hospital. War’s end found him in South Carolina, and he remained in the South as a teacher in Black schools. He discovered a talent for public speaking, a major form of entertainment at the time, prospering on the lecture circuit for years. A popular orator, he attracted White audiences with his stories and absence of rhetoric in favor of equal rights. It’s widely believed that he died in 1882, though “two widely circulated newspaper articles in the 1890s suggested he met a very different fate, living until at least 1897, when he was allegedly shoveling coal as a prisoner in the prison mines of Alabama.”

A lively biography of an undeservedly neglected historical figure.