Transcripts For CSPAN3 The Civil War 20141221

Battle of franklin. He came to the United States in 1850 and later enlisted in the Confederate Army where he rose through the rank of major eventually proposing to emancipate slaves in order to enlist them in the confederate party. This is part of a series organized by the tennessee civil war sesquicentennial commission. I will use my big voice to get everyone rounded back up for the next part of the program here today. In franklin, talking about the battle of franklin, the battle of nashville, and what this final campaign that we have talked about has meant to tennessee, southern history and american history. Thanks for coming out. Because it is sort of like introducing a rock star. You have had the wellknown acts and all the front acts, and i82 have the special event with our next speaker. Damien shields is an engaging young scholar. Hes an archaeologist by trade. A historian by emotion. Actually gets the way you have to do all those things. Lets not just have the false divide between archaeology and history, and pretend that objects and place dont matter. It is only what words someone wrote on a piece of paper. It all matters. It is all evidence of how history unfolded and impact on us today. Sell yesterday was a great pleasure of mine. I picked up mr. Shields. Here in franklin. Graduateseminar for my students and other students in archaeology. Dazzled everyone. We went over to Stones River National battlefield and i managed to not lose him totally. And we got over to franklin just in time. It was dusk. The perfect time to take a man who has studied Patrick Cleburne so often. All of this means we a unique opportunity to have a perspective and learn from a perspective that sometimes we dont take in here in tennessee. We do have civil war historians aplenty. Sometimes you can shake a tree and a whole bunch will fall down. But we dont get that International Perspective so often. I think we are blessed and honored to have damien shields among us today. With no further fanfare, because i know who everyone came to hear is not me. It is damien shields. So i introduce mr. Damien shields. [applause] good morning everybody. I cant describe what is an indescribable honor for me to be here. I spent all of my time looking at the Irish American civil war. I spend my professional career looking at archaeology, the archaeology of battlefields, how you can preserve battlefields. I have for years look at what has gone on in this city with admiration. It is an international standard, what you are setting here to reclaim the battlefield from development. I am unaware of any other example that has been so successful. And the fact that it has Patrick Cleburne involved makes it all the more relevant for me. I cant congratulate you enough for that. Having been to a number of places around the south, i have never enjoyed the welcome i had to a city over the last two days. Im going to have to offer an apology. Im fighting my own battle today with a throat infection. Which is obviously the ideal preparation when youre giving it talk. A talk. In any event, we get cracking. When we look at history, we can have an overwhelming temptation to simplify it. We try to place order on the past looking at its series of , defining moments. Each one causing an alteration in history, each one making one future possible and another less likely. We can sometimes look at peoples lives, even our own lives in a similar way. Of course, history, as of life, seldom is straightforward. The reality is more opaque, more complex, more convoluted. Despite that, the fascinating exercise to consider what might have been the key moments, in one persons life, particularly the life of a historical figure. The moments which set them on their path to what seemed to be the ultimate destiny. Ive spent a considerable amount of time studying irish immigrants impacted by the civil war. Many thousands of them breathed their last on American Battlefields. 150 years on ive been fortunate enough to stand on some of the fields were many of them fought. Notorious places like the bloody angle at spotsylvania. On each occasion ive traveled from ireland to see these battlegrounds i always find myself turning toward an specific idea of the irish to who fought there. And the irish who died there. What were their personal stories . What became of their loved ones . What were their Life Experiences which culminated in their premature death on an American Battlefield . We are to discuss one of those men and to wonder. What were the defining moments in Patrick Cleburnes life . What were the events that led him from county cork to the city of franklin where we are meeting , today . All of the 200,000 irishborn man who fought in the civil war shared one common experience. For each of them it was a defining moment in their lives. That experience was immigration from the country of their birth. If we want to look at what led Patrick Cleburne to franklin, we have to ask what led him to immigrate . The vast majority of irish immigrants in 1840s america came from poor backgrounds of the catholic faith. Such was not the case with Patrick Cleburne. The future Major General was born march 16, 1828, a little more than 6000 kilometers away from here, in the upstairs room of this house. It is a rural home not from the far from cork city. His father was a medical doctor. His mother was from a welltodo landowning family in county cork. Patrick was the third of four children baptized in st. Marys protestant church. Rnes lived a relatively comfortable life of a middleclass professional family and 19th century ireland. In addition to his medical practice, joseph was a contract surgeon for the british barracks and gunpowder mill. One of the things i think we often forget is Patrick Cleburne grew to adulthood in ireland. He spent the vast majority of his life in ireland. Not america. His experience in the culture of country of his birth shaped him. It is impossible for us to understand his achievements in america without first understanding his disappointments in ireland. The first of what we might term the defining moments came just 18 months into it when his mother died. His father remarried quickly, wedding Isabella Stewart in 1830. Would he woman who patrick would refer to as mama for the rest of his life. Who would follow him to america. But for now that was all in the , future. Er cl josepheburne josephs marriage, things looked good. He was an upwardly mobile man and decided to try his hand as a farm owner. He moved his family to a manor house, one of the few buildings that is smaller than it was then. It lost a winger. He rented another 206 acres. Initially things went well for them. There seem to be a chance they were set on the road to prosperity. What occurred next was one of the major factors in determining the familys immigration. On the 27th of november 1843 dr. Joseph cleburne died. He was buried in st. Marys church yard, where he still rests. He continued to combine the practice of medicine with farming and the revenue placed them on economic strain. Much like my voice. Patricks or brother returned from college to manage the estate. Soon, 16yearold patrick was en route to north cork. It was decided he would follow in his fathers footsteps and become a medicaldoctor. Medical doctor. He started as an apprentice to dr. Thomas justice. I want to turn to one of the most Important Documents when we look at Patrick Cleburne. The ledger entry behind the records what i think are the key formative experiences in his early life. These are from the hall in dublin, when he first applied for exams he needed to begin medical studies. He was rejected but told to try again the following year. He did. In 1846 he set the exam hoping and probably expecting to set out on the path that would lead to security and comfort in the years ahead. But he failed. That failure altered the course of his life. If the 17yearold Patrick Cleburne had entered the hall as he had hoped, it is unlikely his life would have let him here to franklin and we would be discussing him. These moments are very fascinating. As it was, the young man was mortified by his failure and was unwilling to return home to cork. He was too ashamed to face his family. Instead he made the rash decision of enlisting as a private a decision he ultimately , regretted. A year passed in the army without anybody hearing from him. He never wrote home. He completely disappeared. Finally, a friend recognized him and informed his loved ones. By now the year was 1847. The great irish famine was at its height. Private Patrick Cleburne witnessed many dreadful sites as he moved to the country with his regiment, helping to keep peace. During those years, poverty forced many families onto the immigrant boat. Although unaware at the time patrick would see some of them , again wearing union and confederate uniforms on the other side of the atlantic a decade later. The catastrophic famine killed hundreds of thousands of the countrys poor. But it also had a telling impact on struggling landowners like the cleburnes. Increasing rent and poor returns for produce forced patricks mama to consider moving to america. Patrick, eager to escape a life which have thus far offered only disappointment volunteered to lead the way. , he succeeded in buying his discharge from the army for 20 pounds in 1849, and then wasted little time. By november he was en route to new orleans with three of his siblings. 21 years old, a grown man. A slight exaggeration to say Patrick Cleburne proved america that for Patrick Cleburne proved america the land of opportunity. Religion, and finances placed him in a better condition than many of his poor catholic counterparts, but much hard work lay ahead. What america gave cleburne was a chance to reset his life. If he had remained in ireland his future may have have been defined by his failed exam. In the United States, the society offered the chance to undo past failings. This was an opportunity to work he took with both hands. Arrived innnati, he a Frontier Town in arkansas in early 1850. Over the course of the next a drugstoreew from prescriptionist to a Major Community leader. In 1851 he graduated into drugstore owner and began his social rise with membership in the Masonic Lodge in 1852. By 1854 he decided to study law. By 1855 he had become involved in local politics. He was particularly active in efforts to prevent the american party, and antiimmigrant party often referred to as the know nothings, from gaining a foothold. He became firm friends with a fiery democratic politician, also later aan, general. They ran a paper together called the states rights democrat. This illustrates how closely his views aligned with his friends and neighbors in arkansas. His association also nearly got him killed in 1856 when a politically motivated shootout aimed at heineman left one man dead and cleburne clinging to life when a bullet in his chest. He recovered and time went on to refocus his interest. In 1860 his military experience and social position led to him named captain of the yell rifles, and with the arkansas secession from the union this stage was set for the last 3. 5 years of his life. Years which would immortalize him. The irish who fought for the north and south during the American Civil War did so for myriad reasons. Some enlisted on ideological grounds, such as preserving the union, or on states rights. Many of them did so for economic reasons to take advantage of pay , and bounty. It was an irish tradition to do that. Some were persuaded by fighting for the north or the south they could support ireland or strike at britain. Others felt service may help them gain acceptance in america and become part of american society. For a large number, this included cleburne, they fought for the preservation of their society and that of their friends. Arkansas had provided cleburne with something he had never had in ireland. A community of which she felt he felt a part, a place filled with his friends, somewhere he could call home. Went torick cleburne war in 1861, he went to war for arkansas, and he was more than willing to die for arkansas. By the time Patrick Cleburne surveyed the scene, that awaited him at franklin in 1864, he was a Major General. Commanding perhaps the most famed division in the western theater. He had risen from captain of the rifles to captain of the 15th arkansas, commanded a brigade at shiloh, let a and ultimately led a division. Famed for his reliability and coolness under pressure, claver and and his men became the go to division of the army of tennessee, as demonstrated at ringgold gap georgette on 1863. They saved the Army Following missionary ridge. An action with which he would earn the thanks of the confederate congress. By the time he came to franklin, that was a year in the past, and the army had lost more men and more resources as a result of the attrition on atlanta campaign. Of confederate success were dwindling to a flicker. Franklin presents cleburne with his greatest challenge. Horse andted from his resting his fieldglass on a tree stump, surveyed the union position. Marksk in the impressive thrown up by the waiting yankees. Then he said aloud to nobody in particular, they are very formidable. The events at franklin 150 years ago our inextricably linked with those that occurred to the south in previous days. Johne 29th of november, bell hood created a seemingly golden opportunity to trap part of the union force. , he sentft stephen lee them across the river, where they converged on spring hill and threatened the federal line with retreat to nashville. The very real possibility of destroying or mauling the yankee force presented itself. Wasthat appeared necessary for the confederates to assault spring hill and cuts the franklin columbia turnpike. Corps played a prominent role. In what remains one of the most inexplicable failures of the war, when the fighting petered out the columbia turnpike remained untaken. Despite the fact thousands of rebels were only yards from it. Through the night union troops that should have been trapped marched north past the sleeping confederates towards franklin. In later years, Union Soldiers would remember passing in plain view of the rebels. One recalling thousands of fires burning brightly. Nobody was more aware of what had slipped away than John Bell Hood. In his words, thus was lost a great opportunity of striking the enemy, for which we had labored so long. The greatest this campaign had offered, one of the greatest of the war. On thefederates awoke morning of the 30th of november to find their enemy gone. Just who was to blame for this failure is a topic that continues to generate debate even today. But there is little doubt that as they moved towards franklin, the events of the previous day were in the minds of many confederate generals. In the 150 years since the battle many have speculated of s state of mind that day. His fellow Division Commander recalled that during the march cleburne asked to see him1 riding into the field alongside the columns. He described how cleburne was angry and deeply hurt. The irishman had been told general hood blamed him for the failure at springhill the previous day. Cleburne said he couldpr rious. Cleburne said he could not rest under such an imputation, and he would have the matter fully investigated. Brown recalled asking cleburne who he thought was responsible. Cleburne placed culpability at the feet of his commanderinchief. But a counterpoint has been put forward. Found in hoods personal papers. Written by former army of tennessee commander stephen. Lee, he recounts a conversation he had with a former corps commander. Stewart had heard under that cleburne felt remorse for the failure at spring hill due to his decision not to launch a night attack. Stewart believed cleburne regretted it immediately afterwards and said no such way should be on his mind for similar cause again, and in that feeling lost his life at franklin soon afterwards. The accounts have to be treated with a degree of caution. Both were written after the war in the context of an acrimonious dispute of who was responsible for the events that spring hill. Suffice it to say, whatever cleburne actually felt, he must undoubtedly have been disappointed and angry. As he surveyed the fortified union positions, that disappointment must have been magnified. As cleburne waited for the troops to arrive, he whiled away the time in a game of checkers with his staff. Boardthe outline of the in the sand, he gathered different colored leaves to use for gaming pieces. But it wasnt long until he was ordered to harrison house, where he expressed reservations about the proposed attack on franklin, saying it would be a terrible and useless waste of life. Hood determines the assault should go ahead. He instructed him to form his division and charge. The irishman replied general, i will take the works or fail in effort. Before writing off toward his men. The position assigned to him on each side of the turnpike saw him aimed at the federal work dominated by a cotton gin. Cleburne requested his division be allowed to advance in columns to reduce exposure across open ground, before deploying for the final assault. He had a final meeting with his brigade commanders to outline what was expected of them. One of them, who had known cleburne, recalled the meeting many years later. I quote general cleburne seemed more despondent than i ever saw him. I was the last one to receive any instructions from him, and ,s i saluted i remarked general, they will not be many of us when we get back to arkansas. He replied, if we are to dieme, men. S die like he rode forward to his advanced sharpshooters. Taking one of their scopes, he surveyed the union marks. He took a long look before remarking, they have three lines. His eyes swept across the federal position before he added they are all completed. He was soon thundering back down the pike to his division. Around 4 00 p. M. On november 30, almost 20,000 men of the Confederate Army of tennessee swung forward to the attack in franklin. It made for an awesome site. Among them was the talismanic figure of Patrick Cleburne, with a new uniform jacket. He was mounted on a borrowed horse, as his regular animal was wounded the previous day at spring hill. It seemed as promised he was determined to lead by example. Personally taking his men over the federal works. The prospects of success for the advancing rebels should have been slight. A grievous error committed by Union General george c wagner gave them an opportunity. He left two of his brigades exposed half a mile beyond the main federal line. They were small to 4 far too small to stem the confederate assault. When the army of tennessee hit them the position crumbled. As wagners men turned, cleburne s soldiers thought to chase after them. Captain sam foster described how the union men would fire a few shots and break into a run, and our men break after him. They had nearly half a mile to run. Here we go right after them. Yelling like fury, shooting at them at the same time. Kill some of them before they reach their works. Those in the second line not able to shoot because of their own men are in front of us, and between us. Although cleburne and his men were shielded by wagners slain troops, eventually the federal lines simply had to open fire. For those caught in this, union or confederate, the result was the same. By this time Patrick Cleburne had crossed wagners position and was heading for the mainline when he was catapulted from his horse, which was killed under him. With the fire intensifying one careers couriers offered the horse and offered it to his general. Then, artillery of a serrated it. The courier went down, his site side shattered. Cleburne decided to press on. General governor saw him waving his cap before he disappeared into the smoke of battle. It was the last time he ever saw him. Many of his men did reach the mainline. Where they became intermingled with those from other units as they struggled for possession with the works. Patrick cleburne was no longer with them. When the fighting finally ceased in the darkness, rumors began to circulate that cleburne did not survive. The federal withdrawal during the night left the battlefield in confederate hands. The next morning the previous days horrors were revealed. John mcquaid was out early looking for the general. He describes what he found not too far from the cotton gin. He was about 50 yards in the works. He lay on his back. As if asleep. His military cap over his eyes. He had on a new uniform. It was unbuttoned and open. The lower part of his best was are vast was unbuttoned and open. He wore a linen shirt stained with blood. This is the only sign of a wound i saw. I believe it is the only one he received. I have always been inclined to aid himself down to die, or his body was carried there. He was in his sock feet, his boots stolen, his valuables gone. His body robbed during the night. Cleburnes body was placed in an ambulance alongside that of general john adams, who had also fallen. They were taken to the house, where they were placed on the back porch. There they were joined by the bodies of four more officers, including two more generals. The battle of franklin was over. It was an engagement that effectively destroyed the army of tennessee. After 36 years, it ended Patrick Cleburnes life. 150 years since the battle of franklin people have speculated the reason behind Patrick Cleburnes actions that day. Why did he choose to take them place himself so far forward when he could have chosen operation further back . Was it anger at a perceived slight for the conduct at spring hill . Was it a determination to show John Bell Hood is worth . Or to redeem himself or remorse he felt for personal failings that it before . We will never know the answer to that. Then again, perhaps it is worth considering that Patrick Cleburne consistently placed himself in dangerous positions on the battlefield. His devotion to the cause of arkansas was absolute. Accepteds a cause he has serious risks. In october of 1864 cleburne had cause so dearhis to my heart is doomed to fail, i pray heaven may let me fall with thewith my face toward enemy and my arm battling for that which i know to be right. By november 1864, anyone above the degree of idiocy must have known the chances for final success of the confederacy were desperate. And Patrick Cleburne was no idiot. At spring hill he had just witnessed the last, best hope of the army of tennessee evaporate. Once the orders were given to attack in franklin he decided to roll the dice one more time. Perhaps hoping courage and devotion might be enough to win the day. Given the circumstances and his character, what would have been truly remarkable is if Patrick Cleburne had survived franklin. Patrick cleburne was far for the only man with links to ireland on the field that day. One of the men who lay beside , Brigadier General john adams was the son of an immigrant. Irish and irishamericans were to be found spread throughout both armies. , for many the 13th of 1864 would be their last day. November some of the confederate irishman had even found time for humor. A particularly irish trait in these situations. The breathtaking sight of the Confederate Forces forming for attack that afternoon led one rebel to recall nelsons words before trafalgar. England expects every man to do his duty. Sergeant Danny Callahan of the irish first missouri said damned Little England would get out of this irish crowd. By the end of the day they would have the dubious honor of having sustained the highest casualties of any brigade in the army. One of the casualties was danny down planting the colors on the works and taken prisoner. His countrymen was leading the third fifth missouri into the maelstrom on horseback. He took a bullet to the right shoulder. Before he could get off a second projectile ripped through the top of his head. His body was found the next morning lying near his horse. Today patrick is one of those who rests in the cemetery. He shares the cemetery with a number of other irish and irishamericans, men like thomas sixth tennessee. He was a tennessee born son of an irish immigrant. In some respects, they were the lucky ones. For many fallen confederate en, there would be no known grave. One of the regiments that charged that day felt a particular affinity to the general. Many of its number shared his country of birth. The fifth confederate infantry consisted largely of memphis by then, formed amalgamation of the second and tennessee infantry. 21st their particular claim to corporalthat it was Robert Coleman credited with shooting general James Mcpherson in atlanta, the same day that their colors were captured. One of their number recalls how the men of the regimen hero worship cleburne almost to idolatry. Unsurprisingly they were ready to claim his final moments , recording that at franklin cleburne sought out the regiment, charged with it, and died with it. Another of those who died, his body was found on the first of december, 10 feet inside the union marks near the cotton gin punctured with bayonet wounds. ,but just as it was a bad day for irish confederates, franklin also severely impacted many irish who fought for the union. The records that survive for those in federal service allow us to paint a picture of the impact of battle on those left behind. Take some of the men of the 72nd illinois. Part of stricklands brigade, who faced james monroe and other confederates at the columbia turnpike. They originally manned a mainline before being forced to the retrench line. One of their number was irish born Josh Flannery of company c. Like so many he was never heard from again after franklin. His men would recall he is saw him a few minutes before he withdrew in the face of confederate attack. It was the last time he would ever see him. Flannery was never reported as a prisoner, and there was no doubt he was killed or disposed of in some way by the enemy. John flannerys suppose it death must have been hard to bear for his mother ellen in beardstown, illinois. Her loss is brought into focus when we consider that her husband had died just before the war, and she was reliant on john and his brother michael to support her and her for younger children. Michael had been a member of the 28th illinois, and he was killed in action the Previous Year in jackson, mississippi. Now franklin had robbed her of not only a second son but also her economic security. Other illinois soldiers who endured the violent trauma of fighting in franklin had almost certainly borne witness to another great trauma in their lives, that of famine. Many irishmen who fought in the civil war immigrated during the years of the great famine between 1845 in 1852. We know Michael Nugent witnessed it. He was living in dublin in 1848, the year he married in the innercity. This is their marriage certificate. He immigrated to chicago, presumably in hope of a better life. Little could he have imagined that the life would and in november 1864. Another was john curry who served in company k. Like many other irish immigrants he had landed in north america via canada. In 1848 in canada, he married Ellen Driscoll and their first child was born. They moved illinois before john enlisted in the 62nd and was ultimately killed in action at franklin. Ellen had five children to support. It was not long before she sought security in another marriage. We often forget battles like franklin were responsible for mens death after the gun stopped firing. Many unfortunates lingered on for weeks months, years with , wounds. For others, their capture sign ed their death warrant. Whoof them, in irishman enlisted from lebanon, ohio. Franklin was his first fight. He was a member of company g. They were deployed as skirmishers in front of the main works. Taken prisoner with six others, he would contract diarrhea, died during the night under a blanket beside a friend into below, in tupelo, mississippi in january 1865. He left behind a widow and four children. As with the confederate side there are many americanborn , sons fighting for the union. One of the most notable, an officer in the 24th kentucky and an aidedecamp of general cox. He was killed not far from the cotton gin. His irish born parents in kentucky mustve been devastated by the news of the 21yearolds death. His father had been disabled for many years and unable to work. He and his wife had relied on james for everything. His sister later remembered he always made sure his parents had tea and coffee, sugar, flour and meat. Clothing, fuel, and the other necessaries of life. , both his lost companionship and his support. How did families of those men killed react to news of the deaths . It is often lost to history, and to us. But one reaction that is reported is that of susan of mobile, alabama patrick , cleburnes fiance. She was walking in her garden which overheard a newspaper boy cry out news of the battle and cleburnes death. Overcome with grief she would wear mourning clothes for a year. Cleburnes body was interned in Rose Hill Cemetery columbia before being moved. A Burial Ground cleburne had passed a few days earlier remarking that it was almost worth dying for to be buried in such a beautiful spot. The irish general was moved the last time in 1870 when his body was brought back to helena. Where it still rests in maple hill cemetery. No doubt as he would want it. Jefferson davis called Patrick Cleburne the stonewall of the west. Robert e lee said he was a meteor shining from a clouded sky. As with many similar historical figures, his premature death fighting for a cause he believed in has cemented him in the popular imagination. Something new about him, like his former business partner, wrote books about him. Veterans of his division named a town in his honor in texas, where now almost 30,000 people live. Alabama wasunty in named for him, as was one in arkansas. The confederate cemetery in johnsbury georgia also bears his name. His popularity wanes in the 20th century. In 1973 powell and Elizabeth Perdue published a study of him. The first major study in a must 70 years. Almost 70 years. Today, Patrick Cleburne is just as famous for a proposal he made on 1864 as he is for his january fighting prowess. A situation perhaps is reflected reflective of changing attitudes of the conflict. That this proposal was made it all is known because of a chance discovery of the only surviving 1880 copy, as during the war it was ordered suppressed. In it, cleburne suggested arming slaves to fight for the confederacy in return for their freedom. He posited that, as between the independence and the lot of slavery, we assume every patriot would freely give up the latter, rather than be a slave himself. Given the outraged reaction to the proposal by some generals, this was clearly not the case. Cleburne made his proposal based purely under practicality. Seatedthan any deep desire to see emancipation. More than anything else, the proposal tells us that it is a reminder that cleburne had spent the first 21 years of his life in ireland, and the by 1864 he still had a ways to go before he fully understood the south. Its been debated whether or not cleburnes proposal prevented him from achieving higher command in the army of tennessee. If it did have a negative impact on him during his own lifetime that is not the case in hours. , last february, the museum of the confederacys person of the year agencies to four symposium decided by audience phot , a vote following talks by noted scholars. Unsurprisingly given the year sherman came out on top, he was , followed by cleburne who garnered more votes than lincoln, lee, or grant. It is inconceivable that the irishman would have finished in this position were not for his proposal to arm the slaves. There is no denying in recent time he has been found centerstage, the subject of biographies, a statue erected in his honor at ringgold gap, and was recognized in the efforts to reclaim the franklin battlefield. What of Patrick Cleburnes memory in ireland . After the generals death when he waited internment turn meant, internment, a woman called naomi hayes placed at home she eight she wrote for him on his casket. Oem she wrote for him on his casket. Unfortunately, the reality is far from sending forth a wail, cleburne Patrick Cleburne Patrick Cleburne is relatively littleknown in ireland. A plaque was placed on the house of his birth by visiting americans. In more recent years, a Housing Development nearby was named ws, and some were alsorelated featured in a military exhibition. , alongthis, cleburne with 200,000 irish born men and countless other irishamericans who fought in the American Civil War remain largely forgotten in ireland. This is despite the fact that, along with world war i, the American Civil War represents irelands largest conflict in history when it comes to the number of men who served. Indeed, if you take only the republic of ireland, it is the largest war we have ever fought in, the American Civil War. It gives you a flavor of the international context. In ireland, there has been no major exploration of the role of irish people in the conflict. We have no National Memorial to those of our immigrants who suffered as result of the American Civil War. During the sesquicentennial event, we have not had a single conference to discuss it. My countrys failure to remember her famineera immigrants is hopefully something that is set to change. During an address in new orleans last week, the irish minister the equivalent of the secretary , of state, specifically referenced the experience the of the irish in the American Civil War, and in so doing for the first time officially highlighted those people i have come to refer to as the forgotten irish