Harvard Press to Publish Book on Irish in U.
S. Civil War
Many people associate the 'Fighting Irish' with the University of Notre Dame.
However, for Susannah Bruce, Sam Houston State University assistant
professor of history, the fighting Irish have taken on a whole
new meaning.
The Irish Americans who chose to fight in the American Civil War are the topic
of a book recently contracted by Harvard University Press to be published. The
book, which does not have a formal title yet, was written by Bruce as her doctoral
dissertation and will probably be printed within the next two to three years.
"It's about Irish volunteers in the American Civil War, what motivates them
to serve in the war and how their support for the war changes," Bruce said.
"Basically what it argues is that they're fighting as much for Ireland and their
interests as Irishmen as they are as Americans."
Through research in local, state and national archives, letters and memoirs
written by the soldiers themselves and Irish-American newspapers, Bruce concluded
that the Irish struggle to liberate themselves from British rule can be tied
to their decisions to fight in the Civil War.
"Some of Irish Americans in the United States belonged to an organization
called the Fenian Brotherhood, and some of the Fenians supported the idea of
serving in the American Civil War to gain military experience. Then they're
going to go to back to Ireland and fight a war to liberate Ireland," she said.
"Some of these Irish soldiers literally had landed at the docks, then signed
up in an Irish regiment to serve in the American Civil War.
"You get a very fascinating perspective on why they are actually fighting,
and that's when I started to discover it's as much tied to getting military
experience for future war to liberate Ireland from British rule, maintaining
a proud image of a military heritage within Irish history and really securing
their own interests as Irish Americans within the United States," she said.
Bruce also found as the interests of the war changed, so did the Irish's interests
in the war.
"Once, for example, emancipation becomes a goal for the Union armies in the
American Civil War, a lot of Irish volunteers were opposed to that and their
support tends to dwindle; they don't re-enlist," she said.
Her interest in both military history and the Irish are what sparked Bruce's
decision on the topic.
"I found that the soldiers tend to be very passionate," she said. "Their families
at home tend to be very passionately involved in what they're doing in their
lives, and they tend to be a very enjoyable group to study."
The title of the book is "evolving," due to the decision by Bruce and Harvard
to expand the book, originally from a Union perspective, to include the experience
of the Irish Americans fighting on the Confederate side as well.
"I'm thinking of 'The Blue, the Green, and the Gray' representing the North,
the green for Ireland, of course, and the gray for the South," she said. "I'm
also thinking of 'Harps, Eagles and Cavaliers'. I love 'The Harp and the Eagle'
because the harp is a classic symbol of Ireland and the eagle, the United States;
it's just now I need something for the Confederacy."
Bruce said she is ecstatic that Harvard University Press will publish her
book, especially because of the prestige associated with the press.
"They were one of the earliest presses to show interest in the project, but
it's Harvard University Press-it's one of the top presses in the country, just
for the name of Harvard," she said. "I'm really ecstatic.
"I think Jim Olson, the chair of our department, deserves a lot of thanks-he
really helped me go over this. He really helped with editing
it and helping me revise it before I sent it out," she said.
"I think he deserves a lot of credit for giving me the support
to continue to work on it."
- END -
SHSU Media Contact: Jennifer Gauntt
June 23, 2003
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