Synopsis/Details
Inspired by true events: In the heart of the Civil War, Robert Smalls—an enslaved Black man with courage far beyond his chains—seizes a moment that will echo through history. A trusted wheelman aboard the Confederate gunboat Planter, Smalls risks everything when he masterminds a daring escape. Under cover of night, he impersonates the ship’s captain, steers the vessel past five heavily fortified Confederate checkpoints, and sails into Union waters—delivering freedom to himself, his family, and a dozen others.
But Smalls’ story doesn’t end with liberation. Overnight, he becomes a symbol of Black resistance and hope. Welcomed by Union commanders, he lobbies President Lincoln directly, using his newfound fame to champion African American enlistment. Smalls ultimately becomes the first Black man to captain a U.S. military vessel and later serves five terms in Congress during Reconstruction, fighting injustice with the same boldness he once used to command the seas.
Command the Dawn is a soaring tale of bravery, defiance, and legacy—a story of how one man’s courage helped shift the tides of war and history itself.
