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What does courage look like when your work is to stand beside men under fire?
In Father Duffy's Story, Francis Patrick Duffy follows the soldiers he serves as Catholic chaplain of the 165th Infantry, the Fighting Sixty-ninth. His memoir takes you through long weeks of training, cold billets, and the trenches of Lorraine. This is war seen from the ranks, where a priest goes where his men go.
As the regiment faces the hard fighting of 1918, Duffy keeps officers and privates in view. He records their jokes, songs, letters, faith, and grief alongside the combat. Drawing on his own notes and experience, he shows a New York militia unit becoming a fighting force—and explores what a chaplain can offer men under fire.
What you’ll discover
- A scholar among soldiers Follow a seminary teacher into wartime service, where his work brings him close to fighting men.
- The Fighting Sixty-ninth Meet an Irish regiment whose old name carries weight as it prepares for a new war.
- Life beyond the fighting Find jokes, songs, and letters beside the cold billets and grief of soldiers' daily lives.
- From Lorraine to Champagne Move from the regiment's first trench duties to the hard fighting of the summer.
- A chaplain's practical care Explore what service means for Duffy through his place beside the men who trust him.
Who will love it
Readers who love first world war history told by someone who stood in the trenches, fans of Irish American stories, and anyone drawn to faith, friendship and humor in wartime.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A chaplain stands beside his men
- Strange places become lessons in friendship
- The wagons keep the regiment going
- Courage and loss arrive together
- Care follows the men into hospitals
- Steadiness holds the defensive line
- Obedience carries a human cost
- Nerve cannot repair a battle plan
- Every name belongs to a person
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Father Duffy's Story
by Francis Patrick Duffy · 1919
A Bronx priest follows the Irish 69th from Camp Mills to the Rhine, hearing confessions under shellfire.
Medium level5–10 hours to read20 languages
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“Never disobeyed an order, never lost a flag.”
In short
What does a priest do when his regiment is ordered to the front? In Father Duffy's Story, he hears confessions in village squares, says Mass on the steps of a ruined church, carries wounded men through trenches, and writes it all down in a diary as he goes.
Father Duffy's Story at a glance
- Reading time
- About 8 h 30 min6 h 45 min fast, 10 h 5 min slow
- Length
- 120,800 words
- Library level
- Medium longer sentences, everyday words
- First published
- 1919by Francis Patrick Duffy
Reading time at 238 words a minute (fast 300, slow 200). How long the classics take to read · Updated
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A regiment picked man by man
When war with Germany was declared on April 6, 1917, the 69th New York began recruiting at once, and without much noise. Duffy says the regiment wanted quality, not numbers. Men came in crowds anyway, and the reception rooms were packed every night with recruits taking physical exams.
The standards were strict. Age, height, weight, eyesight and chest measurement all counted. Most recruits came from Irish county societies and Catholic athletic clubs, yet about five percent were neither Irish by ancestry nor by faith. Then the 69th was chosen to represent New York in the 42nd, or Rainbow, Division, and its ranks grew to 3,600 men. At Camp Mills Duffy sketches his officers, from Colonel Charles Hine to Major William Donovan, whom the men called Wild Bill.
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Details
- First published
- 1919
- Language
- English
- Reading time
- 9 h 30 min
- Level
- Medium level
Cite this edition
Duffy, Francis Patrick. Father Duffy's Story. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/father-duffys-story.
Duffy, F. P. (2026). Father Duffy's story. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/father-duffys-story (Original work published 1919)
Duffy, Francis Patrick. Father Duffy's Story. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/father-duffys-story.
@book{duffy2026father,
author = {Duffy, Francis Patrick},
title = {Father Duffy's Story},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/father-duffys-story},
note = {First published 1919}
}
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What is Father Duffy's Story about?
It is the diary of Francis Duffy, chaplain of the Irish 69th New York, later the 165th Infantry. It follows the regiment from recruiting in 1917 through trenches, battles and occupation in Germany to the parade in New York in 1919.
Who was Joyce Kilmer in this book?
Kilmer was a poet who became a sergeant in the regiment and Duffy's close friend. He was meant to write the regiment's history and died in battle at the Ourcq, and his unfinished pages appear as an appendix.
Is Father Duffy's Story a true story?
Yes, it is a firsthand account written by the chaplain from his own diary and records. It covers the years 1917 to 1919, and Duffy says its only merit is that it is true.
The author
Francis Patrick Duffy
1871–1932 · American priest and military chaplain
Francis Patrick Duffy (1871–1932) was a Roman Catholic priest born in Cobourg, Ontario, Canada. He lived and worked in New York City and served as a United States Army chaplain during the First World War. He wrote Father Duffy’s Story, published in 1919. He died in New York City.
“Never disobeyed an order, never lost a flag.”
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