Edmund English was born in Cappawhite Tipperary Ireland, on November 16, 1841, the seventh of eight children of Thomas English (1795-1874) and Anne Nancy Hogan (1793-1888). They immigrated to the United States around the time of the famine to New York but were in Philadelphia by the 1850 census.[2]
From December 12 to 15, English and the 2nd New Jersey fought at the Battle of Fredericksburg. After the winter encampment and the infamous Mud March, in January 1863, English and the 2nd fought were reorganized into the 1st Brigade of the 1st Division of VI Corps with whom they would serve to the war's end. In May, they fought in the Chancellorsville Campaign seeing action at the Second Battle of Fredericksburg May 3–4 where they took the stonewall that had stopped them almost five months before.
During this mad rush for the rear the Second New Jersey, along with other regiments, had been ordered to fall back. The command aroused Sergeant English's indignation. “Is there nobody to make a stand?” he exclaimed. “This is disgraceful!”
He decided to act on his own responsibility, even though it be insubordination. Quickly he seized the colors of his regiment, placed himself in front of the men, waved the colors high in the
His bravery was infectious; the men caught his spirit and one by one rallied around the flag, till at last quite a little band was gathered about the sergeant. They did not only “stem the tide,” but repulsed and drove the Confederates back in wild confusion.[1]
After the war, he returned to Philadelphia and opened a grocery market in Philadelphia.[2] In 1866, he married Elizabeth "Lizzie" M. Mahaffy (1845-1868), a fellow Irish immigrant from Ulster. He moved in with her family. He and Lizzie had two daughters who did not survive infancy, and Lizzie passed away in 1868.[2] In 1869, he married her younger sister, Jane Anastasia Mahaffy (1846-1899). With her, he had three daughters and two sons of whom Francis Xavier English (1874–1935), Anne Estella English(1875–1941), and Agnes Hortense English (1876–1897) survived to adulthood.[2]
By the 1880 census, they were residing at 1129th Ellsworth St, in Philadelphia with her parents, Charles and Annie Mahaffy, her sister, Susan Mahaffy, and Francis, Annie, and Agnes.[2]
The ongoing review of official War Records by the War Department in the second half of the nineteenth century led to English's nomination for the Medal of Honor. His medal was awarded to him on February 13, 1891.[7]
On April 13, 1897, Jane and Edmund lost their youngest daughter Agnes. On March 5, 1899, Jane passed on. Edmund continued on running the grocery store with Francis and Anne. On May 31, 1912, Edmund English died, survived by his son and daughter, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and was buried in the Old Cathedral Cemetery there.
Medal of Honor citation
Rank and organization: First Sergeant, Company C, 2d New Jersey Infantry. Place and date: At Wilderness, Va., May 6, 1864. Entered service at: Newark, N.J. Born: November 16, 1841, Ireland. Date of issue: February 13, 1891.
Citation:
The President of the United States of America, in the name of Congress, takes pleasure in presenting the Medal of Honor to First Sergeant Edmund English, United States Army, for extraordinary heroism on 6 May 1864, while serving with Company C, 2d New Jersey Infantry, in action during the Wilderness Campaign, Virginia. During a rout and while under orders to retreat First Sergeant English seized the colors, rallied the men, and drove the enemy back.[8]
"Edmund English". ancestry.com. Ancestry. Retrieved 9 August 2020.
"Civil War (Recipients A-F)". Medal of Honor Recipients. US Army Center of Military History. Archived from the original on 2009-08-06. Retrieved August 6, 2009.