#125 When the Irish Invaded Canada w/ Chris Klein
The Road to Now
Benjamin Sawyer
4.8 • 628 Ratings
🗓️ 18 March 2019
⏱️ 47 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In 1866, the Fenian Brotherhood, comprised primarily of Irish Civil War veterans, led a series of attacks on Canadian provinces just across the border from the United States. Their goal: seize Canadian territory and exchange it for Irish independence. Similar raids continued until 1871, and although they were ultimately unsuccessful, they are part of a greater story of the American Civil War, Irish Independence, and trans-Atlantic immigration to the United States in the mid-19th Century. In this episode, Bob & Ben speak with Christopher Klein about his new book When the Irish Invaded America: The Incredible True Story of the Civil War Veterans Who Fought for Ireland's Freedom (Doubleday, 2019).
Want to read When the Irish Invaded Canada while also supporting The Road to Now AND your local bookstore, AND getting three books for the price of one? Get your copy on libro.fm and use promo code RTN at checkout!
Christopher Klein is an author and freelance writer specializing in history. He writes stories about the past that inform us about the present and guide us to the future. He is the author of four books, including Strong Boy: The Life and Times of John L. Sullivan, America's First Sports Hero, and a frequent contributor to history.com and many other media outlets.
The Road to Now is a member of the Osiris Podcast Network. For more on this episode and all others, visit our website: www.TheRoadtoNow.com
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Oh, Cyrus. |
| 0:02.5 | Hi, this is Matt Butler with Everyone Orchestra, and the podcast you are listening to is |
| 0:08.0 | In the Loop, the Legion of Osiris Podcasts. |
| 0:12.3 | Osiris is creating a community that connects people like you with podcasts and live experiences |
| 0:18.2 | about artists and topics you love. |
| 0:21.7 | Check out Osirispod.com and stay in the loop. |
| 0:26.5 | Sign up for the newsletter to learn about the newest podcasts and events. |
| 0:34.8 | I'm Bob Crawford. |
| 0:36.1 | I'm Ben Sawyer and this is the road to now. |
| 0:39.2 | Bob, who's our guest this week? |
| 0:40.8 | Christopher Klein. |
| 0:42.0 | He's the author of a new book that just came out last week called When the Irish Invaded Canada, |
| 0:48.0 | The Incredibly True Story of the Civil War Veterans who fought for Ireland's freedom. |
| 0:53.5 | And did not win the freedom. |
| 0:56.9 | No, but it's a great topic for St. Patrick's Day-ish time. |
| 1:01.6 | Yeah, so you wake up the day after St. Patrick's Day, feeling like you were defeated. |
| 1:06.0 | You know, it's a great theme for your day. |
| 1:09.4 | You know what amazes me about the Irish in America and being Irish in 2019 is that the Irish were among the most persecuted groups. |
| 1:23.3 | I mean, they were not in bondage. |
| 1:26.2 | They weren't enslaved like African Americans were, but they were considered worse than slaves by many Protestants. |
| 1:36.6 | Because a lot of the people who were anti-Irish and anti-immigrant were abolitionists. |
| 1:42.5 | They believed to African Americans, if they had their freedom, they would work hard. The problem was the Irish were Catholic. They were considered lazy, drunks, and docile. So they were the lowest of the low if you were a Protestant in the United States in the 1840s. |
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