Read a story of a huge Irish Officer who led his men in a charge while carrying the flag wrapped around his massive body, after sharpshooters had killed those before him who had carried it.After the battle there was no more fighting..... so he and his men invaded Canada..?
Anyone have any idea who 'Murphy O'Moose' was...???
Sorry Moose, I missed your post while I was on vacation. There were several Irish Officers that planned on invading Canada and were using the Civil War to gain financial and political leverage to accomplish that. The Irish Brigade that was represented by the Wolfhound monument used the message that the US war was a way to practice war to gain independence for Ireland.
The most likely candidate for who you are thinking of was Thomas Frances Meagher who led a very colorful life. He had planned on leading his unit into Canada after the war, but his troops were so decimated that he dropped the plan. Several years after the war, he died when he either fell/jumped or was pushed off a steamer on the Missouri River. He had suffered from major depression after the war and had become an alcoholic.