Irish Confederates: The Civil War's Forgotten Soldiers

by Phillip Thomas Tucker

Overview

Contemporary Civil War scholarship has brought to light the important roles certain ethnic groups played during that tumultuous time in our nation's history. The axiom that the winners of wars write the histories is especially valid in regard to the story of the Irish who fought for the Confederacy from 1861-1865. Throughout the course of the Civil War, Irish Confederates made invaluable contributions to all aspects of the war effort. Yet, the Irish have largely been the forgotten soldiers of the South. In Irish Confederates: The Civil War's Forgotten Soldiers, author Phillip T. Tucker illuminates these overlooked participants. Phillip Thomas Tucker, winner of the Douglas Southall Freeman Award in 1993, has written fifteen books on Civil War, Irish, and African American history. He is a historian for the United States Air Force in Washington, D.C., and lives in Upper Marlboro, Maryland.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781893114531
Publisher:	State House/McWhiney Foundation Press
Publication date:	01/23/2007
Pages:	128
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.30(d)
Age Range:	9 - 18 Years

About the Author

Phillip Thomas Tucker, Ph.D., has been recognized as "the Stephen King of History." Tucker has authored more than 70 groundbreaking books in history and more than 130 works, both books and scholarly articles, in total in the field of history. After earning a Ph.D. in History from St. Louis University, St. Louis, Missouri, in 1990, the author embarked upon a more than 20-year career with the Department of Defense primarily in Washington, D.C. Dr. Tucker has specialized on a wide variety of aspects of the American experience. He has focused heavily on some of the most iconic moments in the annals of American history, including books like Alexander Hamilton's Revolution, Death at the Little Bighorn, and How the Irish Won the American Revolution. In addition, the author has also written a great deal about the lives of remarkable African Americans and dynamic women of all colors, who deserve greater recognition for their outstanding courage and character at this late date. He has written four volumes of the groundbreaking Harriet Tubman Series and four volumes of the Cathy Williams Female Buffalo Soldier Series. Other books by one of America's most prolific authors include Mulan and the Modern Controversary and Exodus From the Alamo, The Anatomy of the Last Stand Myth. Tucker lives and writes full-time at his home in Central Florida.

Read an Excerpt

In 1982, two respected scholars, Dr. Grady McWhiney and Dr. Perry D. Jamieson, produced the ground-breaking book: Attack and Die: Civil War Military Tactics an the Southern Heritage. The central thesis of this work was that the Confederacy bled itself to death by an over-reliance on the tactical offensive in part because of the offensive lessons of the Mexican War, before advances in weaponry--primarily the rifled musket--made those offensive tactics largely obsolete. This work maintained that the Southerners' heavy reliance on the tactical offensive throughout the war resulted from the cultural and historical legacy of a Celtic past. For centuries, Celtic warriors were not only noted for their ferocity in combat but also for their over-reliance on offensive warfare, regardless of the odds or situation.

Table of Contents

Contents

Introduction                                                                                                                                                                  11
Chapter 1                                                                                                                                                                      40
The Irish Rebels of the Tenth Louisiana Clash with the Irish Brigade at Malvern Hill, July 1, 1862
Chapter 2                                                                                                                                                                      47
Irish Confederates from Georgia Helped Defend Burnside's Bridge at Antietam, September 17, 1862
Chapter 3                                                                                                                                                                      54
The Celtic-Gaelic Brothers' War: The Twenty-fourth Georgia Meets the Irish Brigade at Fredericksburg
Chapter 4                                                                                                                                                                      65
Irishmen of the First Missouri Confederate Brigade at the Battle of Champion Hill. Mississippi. May 16,1863
Chapter 5                                                                                                                                                                      77
The Irish Rebels of the Fifteenth Alabama Infantry Storm Little Round Top, July 2, 1863
Chapter 6                                                                                                                                                                      87
Irish and Southern Nationalism Merge During "Pickett's Charge" and at the "High Water Mark of the Confederacy." July 3, 1863
Chapter 7                                                                                                                                                                      95
The Rebel Sons of Erin of the "Davis Guard" Rise to the Challenge at Sabine Pass
Chapter 8                                                                                                                                                                    101
Celtic-Gaelic Rebels of the Tenth Tennessee Infantry Regiment of Volunteers (Irish)
Conclusion                                                                                                                                                                 107
Bibliography                                                                                                                                                               111
Index                                                                                                                                                                            117
 

Interviews

Ages 9 to 99.

Editorial Reviews

A free-flowing history . . . easy reading as well as informational.

The Rebel Rouser

4 stars. . . . very readable . . . This book is highly recommended to Civil War enthusiasts and those interested in Irish American history or culture.

Curled Up with a Good Book