Conclusion
In summation, Thomas’ Legion was lead by a skilled man that had a great deal of power and ties to the local cultures, the Legion itself seemed little more than a band of misfits that proved to be quite valuable on the northwestern front, and though they displayed a great deal of loyalty toward their colonel, they were still considered of a class unfit for citizenship, though citizens deserted all around them. Thomas’ Legion gives us an example of existence of a social social hierarchy in nineteenth century America, furthermore it is another proof that the American civil war was not simply about slavery. William Holland Thomas for example fought not for slaves, but for an opportunity for his home region to prosper and for the many business benefits that the new north west could offer him. The Cherokee Indian soldiers fought, if not out of honor to a Cherokee chief that had done a great deal for them, then for the chance to be recognized as a people deserving of citizenship, and the right to their own lands.