Commanding Boston's Irish Ninth

by Patrick R. Guiney

These are the collected Civil War letters of Patrick Robert Guiney, an Irish immigrant lawyer who volunteered for duty and rose to command the Ninth Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry Regiment. An outspoken supporter of Lincoln and an opponent of slavery, Guiney was often criticized for his views by other Irish-Americans, some of whom tried, in vain, to derail his rise to command. These letters reveal a deeply affectionate husband and father who was, at the same time, a brave soldier, disciplined commander, and devoted advocate of the causes for which he fought.