The history of the religious communities represented among the sister-nurses who ministered to the soldiers in the Civil War. -- Foreword.

The contributions of more than six hundred Catholic nuns to the care of Confederate and Union sick and wounded made a critical impact upon nineteenth-century America. Not only did thousands of soldiers directly benefit from the religious sisters' ministrations, but both professional nursing and Catholics' acceptance within mainstream society advanced significantly as a result. In To Bind Up the Wounds, Sister Mary Denis Maher writes this heretofore neglected Civil War chapter in rich detail, telling a riveting story shot with suspicion and prejudice, suffering and self-sacrifice, ingenuity, beneficence, and gratitude.

"The country had only 600 trained nurses at the start of the Civil War. All were Catholic nuns. This is one of the best-kept secrets in our nation's history," Father William Barnaby Faherty once wrote. When the Civil War broke out, the Union and the Confederacy were prepared to fight, but they weren't prepared to care for the wounded that their fighting created. While many people volunteered to care for the soldiers, the only ones with any experience were Catholics sisters. Among the sisters, the most-experienced were the Daughters of Charity based in Emmitsburg, MD. When war broke out, they had already been caring for the sick for decades. However, the brutality of the war would test even their abilities as they ran hospitals, served on troop transports and provided care in battlefield hospitals and ambulances. They even had their own Central House occupied by armies from both sides of the war. The Daughters of Charity had such a high level of trust among the government officials that they were allowed in the early part of the war to move back and forth across the border between the two warring countries. Nor did they betray that trust as they served officers and soldiers, Union and Confederate, with the same level of care. With their wide, white cornettes looking almost like wings, the Daughters of Charity did resemble battlefield angels. The sight of those wing-like cornettes told soldiers that relief was on the way; someone who cared for them was coming.

The work of American Catholic nuns during the war between the States It is both tragic and inspirational that those who pray for peace, when those prayers have gone unanswered, and motivated by their humanity and a willingness to sacrifice themselves, venture onto fields of conflict to administer to those who desperately need them. This book concerns the work of the Catholic Sisterhoods during the American Civil War. Catholic nuns worked among the sick and wounded on both the Union and Confederate sides, in hospitals, on campaign and even on battlefields--where some of them lost their lives while aiding others. Within these pages readers will learn of The Sisters of Mercy who were with the Irish Brigade in the West, of the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth, The Sisters of the Holy Cross and others. Here are the exploits of Sister Anthony at Shiloh and of many other nuns during famous battles of the war such as Antietam and Gettysburg. As the author points out, unlike the veterans who wore blue or grey, these sisters never held reunions after the war had ended to keep alive their memories of these terrible times, and so it was fitting that this book was written to memorialise the sacrifice and heroism of these modest women. Originally published in two volumes this special Leonaur edition has combined them for good value. Leonaur editions are newly typeset and are not facsimiles; each title is available in softcover and hardback with dustjacket; our hardbacks are cloth bound and feature gold foil lettering on their spines and fabric head and tail bands.