This is Aiton Weinstein.

And I'm Naor Menninger, and you're listening to Two Nice Jewish Boys.

Jews are an important part of the history of the United States, and their contribution stretches across many different fields, like cinema, politics, and of course, the bagel.

But a little less known aspect of Jewish history in America is the role Jews played in wars,

and in particular the Civil War, and even the Independence War.

When the Civil War broke, there were about 150,000 Jews in America.

125,000 of them lived in the Union States and supported Lincoln.

As for the rest of them, 25,000 Jews, they were part of the Confederacy, and some even

fought for the rebels.

To shed some light on this fascinating aspect of American Jewish history, we have on the

show today, the author,

Chaim Rosenberg, who wrote a new book called Shield of David, a history of Jewish servicemen

in America's armed forces. Chaim Rosenberg has written 15 books focused largely on the role

of the individual in shaping American greatness. Rosenberg's books focus on the

1893, Chicago World's Fair, Child Labor in America, and the loyalists in the American Revolutionary

War. His book, Yankee Colonies Across America, won the 2016 nonfiction prize of the New England Society and the city of New York.

We are super thrilled to have Chaim on the show with us today to talk about his new book.

Thank you so much for joining us, Chaim.

Thank you, and I'm thrilled to be here.

So where shall we start?

I didn't even know that there were Jews in America in 1861 is when

the Civil War started. You're asking me, you were in public school in America. I didn't even know

...