The American Civil War provided the Irish with a superb, if grim, opportunity to disprove the nativist claim that they would never make loyal, patriotic citizens. More than 144,000 Irish-born served in the Union Army while others fought for the Confederacy. Tens of thousands of American-born Irish also served in the war and thousands ended up giving their lives. Eighty-nine Irish-born soldiers would earn Congressional Medals of Honor for their bravery! One reason for many Irish serving in the war was their relative poverty. Many immigrants stepped off ships in America and were immediately confronted by Union Army recruiters offering two to three hundred dollar cash bonuses for enlistment. For penniless immigrants with no specialized skills, this offer (equal to a year's pay at the beginning of the war) was too good for them to refuse. Another inducement to enlistment was an appeal to nationalism. Many regiments were formed under ethnic names Like Milligan's Brigade and Corcoran's Legion. The recruiting posters often made clear that England, Ireland's historic oppressor, was sympathetic to the Confederacy. Some hoped to gain military experience that they could later use in an uprising in Ireland against British rule. Indeed, many of the most ardent Fenians of the late 1860s were veterans of the Union Army.