December 25: TODAY in Irish History:
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Snippets of Irish History by Conor Cunneen IrishmanSpeaks 
Conor is a Chicago based Motivational Humorous Business Speaker, Author and History buff.
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WATCH: A Short History of Ireland
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1832: Union General Thomas Alfred Smyth is born in County Cork
Smyth was born in Ballyhooly Co. Cork. He was the last Union General to be killed in the Civil War. He died on the day of Lee’s surrender at Appomattox, having been mortally wounded by a sniper two days previously. He fought at Antietam, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, and was a Brigade Commander at Gettysburg. . Following his death, he was posthumously brevetted Major General, US Volunteers.
READ: Smyth bio at the excellent Irish in the American Civil War
- Irish born Union General Thomas Smyth
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1914: Christmas Day Truce
German soldiers of the 134th Saxon Regiment photographed with men of the Royal Warwickshire Regiment in No Man’s Land on the Western Front, Christmas 1914
A truce occurs when British and German troops layed down their arms and played a game of soccer between the trenches. It is a day full of myth and legend, poorly recorded (partly due to the commanders of both sides playing down the event) and probably some exaggeration as to how large an event it was. There is no doubt that Silent Night was sung by both sides on the night. The Dept. of the Taoiseach states that some “Some Irish soldiers took part in the Christmas Truce of 1914 when there was a spontaneous cessation in the killing for a short period.” There is little record of Irish troops being involved, but given that over 200,000 Irish fought in the British army during this conflict (over 30,000 killed), it is quite likely that some Irish brogues were heard during one of the most poignant incidents in military history.
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Want to learn more about Ireland? See these images and more in the acclaimed For the Love of Being Irish
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This history is written by Irish author, business keynote speaker and award winning humorist IrishmanSpeaks – Conor Cunneen. If you spot any inaccuracies or wish to make a comment, please don’t hesitate to contact us via the comment button.
Visit Conor’s YouTube channel IrishmanSpeaks to Laugh and Learn.
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