Duffy's War

by Harris, Stephen L.

• ISBN13: 9781574886528
• ISBN10: 1574886525
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2007-12-01
• Publisher: Potomac Books Inc

Summary

The legendary 'œFighting 69th' took part in five major engagements during World War I. It served in the front lines for almost 170 days, suffering hundreds killed and thousands wounded. This highly decorated unit was inspired by its chaplain, the famous Father Francis Duffy (whose statue stands in Times Square), and commanded by the future leader of the OSS (predecessor of the CIA), 'œWild Bill' Donovan. One of its casualties was the poet Joyce Kilmer. Due in large part to the classic 1940 movie The Fighting 69th, starring James Cagney and Pat O'Brien (as Duffy), the unit still has strong name recognition. But until now, no one has recounted in detail the full story of this famous Irish outfit in World War I. The exciting Duffy's Warbrings to life the men's blue-collar neighborhoods'”Irish mostly and Italian and overwhelmingly Catholic. These boys came from the East Side, the West Side, Hell's Kitchen, the Gashouse, and Five Points; from Brooklyn, Queens, Long Island City, and Staten Island; and from Father Duffy's own parish in the Bronx. They streamed out of the tenements and apartment houses, enlisting en masse. Brothers joined up, oftentimes three and four from one family. Published during a resurgent interest in the doughboy experience of World War I, Duffy's Waralso tells the fascinating history of New York City and the Irish experience in America. With this book, Stephen L. Harris completes his outstanding trilogy on New York National Guard regiments in World War I.

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations	p. ix
Preface	p. xi
Prologue: "The War Was the Making of Me"	p. xvii
"Give Me A Man's Job"	p. 1
"Shall We Fight for England?"	p. 19
"Rainbow-There's the Name for the Division"	p. 31
"Did You Ever Go Into an Irishman's Shanty?"	p. 55
"Good-bye Broadway, Hello France!"	p. 69
"It's a Huge Regiment Now"	p. 77
"The People I Like Best Are the Wild Irish"	p. 89
"A Willing, Bright, Strong, Clean Lot"	p. 103
"Not a Gloomy Man in Town"	p. 113
"Most Pitiful and Unsightly Bunch of Men I Have Ever Seen"	p. 123
"We Are All Volunteers in This War"	p. 137
"In the Wood They Call the Rouge Bouquet"	p. 153
"Quiet Sectors Are Not Necessarily Quiet"	p. 177
"From a Canny Scot to a Bold Irishman"	p. 193
"It Will Be a Happy Day"	p. 209
"The Last Joy Ride Any of Us'll Ever Get"	p. 233
"All You Want Now Is Guts and Bayonets!"	p. 249
"I Guess I Have Been Born to Be Hanged"	p. 267
"We Sure Hated to See Him Get Killed"	p. 281
"I Have Been Very Happy in Command of the Regiment"	p. 297
"Not a Fight, But a Promenade"	p. 311
"Over the River a Thousand Yawning Dead"	p. 331
"You Expected to Have the Pleasure of Burying Me"	p. 349
"We Looked Down from the Last Crest Above Sedan"	p. 361
Epilogue: "We Want Him. We Need Him. He Has Earned It."	p. 373
Notes	p. 381
Selected Bibliography	p. 413
Index	p. 423
About the Author	p. 435
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