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<\/a>In 1849 he made two anti-Union speeches that were transcribed by English agents.As a consequence he was arrested, charged with treason and sentenced to be hung, drawn and quartered. His body was to be disposed of as determined by the English queen. The colonial governor of Ireland exercised the option of transportation, and on the 29th July 1849, he, with O\u2019Brien, McManus, and O\u2019Donohue was sent to Van Diemen\u2019s Land (Tasmania), Australia. Early in 1852 he escaped from Tasmania and arrived in New York in late May via San Francisco. He soon became a popular lecturer, and in 1853 published a volume of his speeches on \u201cThe Legislative Independence of Ireland.\u201d He traveled a great deal during that period and drew large crowds to hear him speak for the cause of Irish freedom.<\/p>\nMeagher was admitted to the New York Bar in 1855.In 1856, together with John Savage he started the \u201cIrish News\u201d, which continued publication for several years.<\/p>\n
At the onset of the civil war in 1861, he choose to support the Union cause and raised a company of \u201cIrish Zouaves\u201d for the 69th N.Y. Regiment. At the first battle of Bull Run he served as acting Major of the regiment and led his men in battle with characteristic gallantry. He next organized the Irish Brigade, raising over 7,000 men. In November of 1861 he left New York for Washington with the first regiment of the Irish Brigade; other regiments followed in rapid succession. In 1862, he was appointed Brigadier General.<\/p>\n
Meagher\u2019s Irish Brigade went on to distinguish itself at Mechanicsville, Fair Oaks, Peach Orchard, Malvern Hill and later at Antietam. Here in Western Maryland, Meagher\u2019s Brigade of five regiments approached a well-protected Confederate force in a lane bordered with a stone wall, triggering a fierce engagement that left hundreds of dead and wounded on both sides, giving the scene its memorable name, The Bloody Lane. One observer described the Irish troops, with green flags flying (made by Tiffany, using embroidered ancient Fenian and Gaelic mottoes, and even today on view at the Armory on Lexington Avenue in New York), comparing them as if a brigade on parade, with bayonets fixed, in serried ranks and closing in on the Confederates, their purpose to insert themselves between the men of the brilliant Stonewall Jackson and the gallant campaigners of General Longstreet. Even under fire, the Irish were halted by General Meagher to allow a few solemn moments permitting their immortal Chaplain William Corby of Notre Dame to bless his men. About 30 percent of Meagher\u2019s gallant brigade would fall that day, dead or wounded. The last four of the hastily-buried warriors were accidentally found and exhumed for a formal burial in 1994 at the adjacent military cemetery. In 1997 Antiem\u2019s last war memorial was finally installed,honoring the Irish Brigade. with a fine bas-relief bronze image of Meagher looking out upon the fields where his faithful fighting men gained immortal fame for American arms. After the war ended he was appointed Secretary then later Acting Governor of Montana.<\/p>\n
On July 1st, 1867 Meagher of the Sword was drowned under mysterious circumstances in the night when he was traveling aboard the steamer Thompson, on the Missouri River opposite Fort Benton under mysterious circumstances. A monument honoring Meagher has been erected on the grounds of the Montana State Capitol. Meagher and the Tricolour When Thomas Francis Meagher was in his 20s he sailed to France in 1848, seeking military support for a planned Young Ireland uprising, but was unsuccessful. However, while in France, he witnessed the unifying effect of the French flag on the populace and felt Ireland needed a similar unifying symbol – so he created one.<\/p>\n
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<\/a>The National flag of green White and orange designed by Thomas Francis Meagher in 1848. The Green represents the older Gaelic and Anglo-Norman element of the population, while the Orange represents the protestant supports of William of Orange, while the White represents the peace between the two. \u201cThe tricolour concept had been around for many years — it was usually worn as a button or as a sash by supporters of O\u2019Connell,\u201d says Hearne. \u201cHowever, it was not then regarded as a national symbol. Meagher recognised the potential of the tricolour as both a national symbol and a unifying force between Catholics and Protestants in Ireland.\u201d Later, Meagher\u2019s memory proved to be an inspiration for the leaders of the 1916 Rising, and in 1937 his tricolour was adopted as the national flag.
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<\/a><\/strong>Thomas Francis Meagher<\/h1>\n