Fighting to Fit In: The Irish Struggle to Be One with the Union

Support of the Union The “Irish Brigade” was part of the Union Army. It was led by commander Brig. Gen. Thomas Francis Meagher.

The Brigade fought in the first significant, military engagement of the Civil War: the Battle of Bull Run

Notable Local: Colonel Patrick Guiney led the 9th Massachusetts Regiment

The Massachusetts 28th Regiment was also part of the Irish Brigade.

The 69th New York State militia (“Irish Brigade”) fights for the ostensibly defeated

Unionists

Despite the fighting of Irish-Americans in the Civil War, many returned the post-war America facing the same anti-Catholicism that was so prevalent antebellum.

The Irish-Americans were the most politically involved of all the immigrant groups.

Irish-American soldiers were able to understand and take action against the same “injustices” as American born soldiers.

How did Irish-Americans share the Unionist soldiers’ sense of nationalism?

The Irish Brigade at the battle of Antietam (flying their flag alongside the American flag!)

“In the beginning of the [Civil War], many Irish favored the South as they saw the North attempting to act much as the English had in their native land of Ireland. However, when Britain began considering support of the Confederacy, many Irish threw their lot in with the North. ”

The Boston Public Library, Copley Place, Boston, MA

Credits:

Slides 3-6 artwork from Wikimedia CommonsSlide 8 & 9 artwork bySlide 9 quote fromSlides 10-12: at Boston Public Library by Patrick Condon, November 2010