Jill S. (brainybibliophile) -
Reading The Immortal Irishman is like reading a well-written history book: full of interesting facts and names but requiring continual concentration. It's not light reading, and you can't let your mind wander. Luckily, the story of Thomas Francis Meagher is larger-than-life, and an active reader will be rewarded with tales of courage and patriotism.
The book hints of its title character's mysterious death, then flashes back to Meagher's birth and youth in Ireland and his rise, to his wealthy father's dismay, as a fiery public speaker against English oppression. It traces his critiques of England's horrific treatment of the Irish (think of laws forbidding cultural expression, land ownership, etc.), especially during the "Great Hunger" when potato crops failed for years, to his farcical trial and exile to Tasmania. Meagher eventually escapes and travels to the U.S., where he becomes embroiled in the Civil War, then travels west to Montana and attempts to govern in a lawless territory before dying under mysterious circumstances.
Here is the story of a true Renaissance man with a silver tongue, a willingness to brazenly fight for his Irish heritage and country, and persistence in horrid circumstances. It is also the story of a shackled Ireland struggling against her bonds and the story of young America defining itself, with brother fighting brother in its search for unification and the eradication of slavery.
The most vivid portions of the book, and those hardest to read, are those from the battlefield, which Egan paints with sensory descriptions and stylistic sentence fragments.
Early in the book, Egan explains the historical origins of the phrase "beyond the pale." You'll have to read the book to find out what they are!
While Meagher was truly an Irish and American hero, I had never heard of him before reading Egan's book. While Meagher gave a voice to so many of those who yearned for independence, Egan gives Meagher a voice: thoughtful, sympathetic, and rich in spirit.
The book hints of its title character's mysterious death, then flashes back to Meagher's birth and youth in Ireland and his rise, to his wealthy father's dismay, as a fiery public speaker against English oppression. It traces his critiques of England's horrific treatment of the Irish (think of laws forbidding cultural expression, land ownership, etc.), especially during the "Great Hunger" when potato crops failed for years, to his farcical trial and exile to Tasmania. Meagher eventually escapes and travels to the U.S., where he becomes embroiled in the Civil War, then travels west to Montana and attempts to govern in a lawless territory before dying under mysterious circumstances.
Here is the story of a true Renaissance man with a silver tongue, a willingness to brazenly fight for his Irish heritage and country, and persistence in horrid circumstances. It is also the story of a shackled Ireland struggling against her bonds and the story of young America defining itself, with brother fighting brother in its search for unification and the eradication of slavery.
The most vivid portions of the book, and those hardest to read, are those from the battlefield, which Egan paints with sensory descriptions and stylistic sentence fragments.
Early in the book, Egan explains the historical origins of the phrase "beyond the pale." You'll have to read the book to find out what they are!
While Meagher was truly an Irish and American hero, I had never heard of him before reading Egan's book. While Meagher gave a voice to so many of those who yearned for independence, Egan gives Meagher a voice: thoughtful, sympathetic, and rich in spirit.
Thomas F. (hardtack) -
Thomas Meagher (pronounced Marr) was an almost unbelievable character in Irish and American history, and the author does a great job in telling us who he was. What he endured was almost unbelievable. Yet Meagher was also a very tragic figure. He might have been more of a success if he had been just a bit more practical and a bit less idealistic. That's not to say he had to compromise his values, but perhaps he should have listened to more advice.
The author obviously did his research on Meagher. However, he also should have done more research on the American Civil War, as he gets a number of things wrong, some almost laughingly so. Here are just a few examples.
First, he has Lee's "missing orders" before Antietam "....wrapped in cigar leaves." Actually, the cigars were wrapped in Lee's "missing orders" How did he make a mistake like that?
Second, he totally misrepresents how Union forces turned the tables on the Confederates at the "Bloody Lane," a part of the Battle of Antietam. How this happened is to long to discuss here and not applicable to the review.
Third, the author praises Meagher for arming his Irish Brigade with smooth-bore muskets instead of rifled muskets. Smooth-bore muskets were inaccurate at 100 yards. Whereas, rifled muskets were pretty accurate up to several hundred yards in the hand of the common soldier and even farther in the hands of experienced rifleman. And that's why the Irish Brigade took such heavy casualties during the Civil War. These heavy casualties took a severe toll on Meagher's reputation.
Fourth, the author pretty much comes right out and states Union General U.S. Grant was drunk for most of the war. That myth has been disproven more times then we can count. But then the author also claims Confederate General Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson was the greatest general of the war. Both of these statements make me wonder if the author is a closet believer in the Southern Lost Cause Mythology.
Mistakes like these makes you wonder what else the author got wrong in the book that we're not aware of.
Meagher was a great leader, but he wasn't a great general. In fact, he was a political general. A famous Irishman who could raise a brigade of Irish soldiers. But he had no talent for war, and apparently wasn't interested in learning. Unfortunately, I think this attitude carried over into his "governorship" of the Montana Territory after the War.
Fortunately, history didn't forget him. And he is renowned as a man who stood up for what was right!
One interesting piece of trivia I learned from the book, and which may also interest well-read members here, is when he was sentenced in Ireland for treason and transported to Tasmania---where incidentally one of my grandfathers was born---he left behind a girlfriend (Jane Elgee) who later married Sir William Wilde. One of their sons was Oscar Wilde.
The author obviously did his research on Meagher. However, he also should have done more research on the American Civil War, as he gets a number of things wrong, some almost laughingly so. Here are just a few examples.
First, he has Lee's "missing orders" before Antietam "....wrapped in cigar leaves." Actually, the cigars were wrapped in Lee's "missing orders" How did he make a mistake like that?
Second, he totally misrepresents how Union forces turned the tables on the Confederates at the "Bloody Lane," a part of the Battle of Antietam. How this happened is to long to discuss here and not applicable to the review.
Third, the author praises Meagher for arming his Irish Brigade with smooth-bore muskets instead of rifled muskets. Smooth-bore muskets were inaccurate at 100 yards. Whereas, rifled muskets were pretty accurate up to several hundred yards in the hand of the common soldier and even farther in the hands of experienced rifleman. And that's why the Irish Brigade took such heavy casualties during the Civil War. These heavy casualties took a severe toll on Meagher's reputation.
Fourth, the author pretty much comes right out and states Union General U.S. Grant was drunk for most of the war. That myth has been disproven more times then we can count. But then the author also claims Confederate General Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson was the greatest general of the war. Both of these statements make me wonder if the author is a closet believer in the Southern Lost Cause Mythology.
Mistakes like these makes you wonder what else the author got wrong in the book that we're not aware of.
Meagher was a great leader, but he wasn't a great general. In fact, he was a political general. A famous Irishman who could raise a brigade of Irish soldiers. But he had no talent for war, and apparently wasn't interested in learning. Unfortunately, I think this attitude carried over into his "governorship" of the Montana Territory after the War.
Fortunately, history didn't forget him. And he is renowned as a man who stood up for what was right!
One interesting piece of trivia I learned from the book, and which may also interest well-read members here, is when he was sentenced in Ireland for treason and transported to Tasmania---where incidentally one of my grandfathers was born---he left behind a girlfriend (Jane Elgee) who later married Sir William Wilde. One of their sons was Oscar Wilde.
