On December 23, 1862, Jefferson Davis, the president of the Confederate States of America, gave an order. This order said that if African-American soldiers or their white officers were captured while fighting for the Union, they would be put to death. In January 1863, the Confederate Congress made this order a law. This Confederate law said that if captured, both African-American soldiers and their white officers would be turned over to the states where the African-American soldiers had been slaves.