Yes, and the Yankees took those same poor immigrants off the ships, put U.S. uniforms on them, and sent them on suicide charges like those at Fredericksburg. The war was a tremendous “stimulus package” for Northern industry.
My family were Blue Bellied Yankee abolitionist from Maine and severed at all of the great battles in the Virginia Theater. (20th Maine, 2nd Maine, 31st Maine Volunteers) Several fell in the war—one on the second day at Gettysburg. My wife’s family were from North Carolina and Virginia. They served under Lee and Stonewall Jackson. They were slave owners to boot. Both sides fought for want they believed was right. Both fought for their nations. We must not forget what happened and what cause they gave their lives for. Those who do not study and learn from their history are doomed to repeat it.