1.

Record Nr.

UNINA9910778289503321

Autore

Ural Susannah J

Titolo

The harp and the eagle [[electronic resource] ] : Irish-American volunteers and the Union Army, 1861-1865 / / Susannah Ural Bruce

Pubbl/distr/stampa

New York, : New York University Press, c2006

ISBN

0-8147-8574-3

1-4356-0046-0

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (364 p.)

Disciplina

973.7/410899162

Soggetti

Irish American soldiers - History - 19th century

Irish Americans - History - 19th century

Catholics - United States - History - 19th century

United States History Civil War, 1861-1865 Participation, Irish American

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Note generali

Description based upon print version of record.

Nota di bibliografia

Includes bibliographical references (p. 285-292) and index.

Nota di contenuto

"An Irishman will not get to live in this country" : the Irish in America, 1700-1860 -- "Remember your country and keep up its credit" : volunteering for Ireland and America -- "We are slaughtered like sheep, and no result but defeat" : the decline of Irish-American support for the war in 1862 -- "The Irish spirit for the war is dead! absolutely dead!" : battles raging in the field and at home, 1862-1863 -- "Hordes of Celts and rebel sympathizers" : the decline and consequence of Irish-American support for the war -- "Father was a soldier of the Union" : Irish veterans and the creation of an Irish-American identity.

Sommario/riassunto

On the eve of the Civil War, the Irish were one of America's largest ethnic groups, and approximately 150,000 fought for the Union. Analyzing letters and diaries written by soldiers and civilians; military, church, and diplomatic records; and community newspapers, Susannah Ural Bruce significantly expands the story of Irish-American Catholics in the Civil War, and reveals a complex picture of those who fought for the Union.While the population was diverse, many Irish Americans had dual loyalties to the U.S. and Ireland, which influenced their decisions to volunteer, fight, or end their military service. When the Union cause supported their interests in Ireland and America, large numbers of Irish



Americans enlisted. However, as the war progressed, the Emancipation Proclamation, federal draft, and sharp rise in casualties caused Irish Americans to question—and sometimes abandon—the war effort because they viewed such changes as detrimental to their families and futures in America and Ireland.By recognizing these competing and often fluid loyalties, The Harp and the Eagle sheds new light on the relationship between Irish-American volunteers and the Union Army, and how the Irish made sense of both the Civil War and their loyalty to the United States.