The 1989 war drama, Glory, directed by Edward Zwick and starring Matthew Broderick, Denzel Washington, Cary Elwes, and Morgan Freeman, is based off of personal letters written by Colonel Robert Gould Shaw and the books One Gallant Rush and Lay this Laurel. The film was nominated for five Academy Awards and won three, as well as other awards from the Golden Globes, the NAACP, the British Academy, and more. It tells the story of the first unit of the Union army that was entirely African-American men under the commandment of Colonel Shaw during the American Civil War. Shaw is offered a job promotion to command this unit and not only accepts, but also asks his friend, 2nd Lieutenant Cabot Forbes, to assist him as his second in command. Many volunteer,
