Born in Dublin in 1841, and later educated at Clongowes Wood College in County Kildare, Albert Delahoyde was not yet 19 years of age when he volunteered to fight with the Papal Battalion of St Patrick in Italy in 1860. His story provides an interesting case study on increased literacy levels in nineteenth-century Ireland, told through the surviving correspondence of an Irish migrant and member of the diaspora. The letters of Delahoyde are particularly instructive about mid-nineteenth century Irish interactions with Italy, as they tell of the difficult relations between the Irish and the Italians, the level of Irish nationalism and patriotism among Irishmen abroad, and the influence of the Catholic faith amongst Irishmen in Italy at the time. Delahoyde's letters also showcase another effect of improved literacy in Ireland, as they reveal his ability with languages. It appears that he was already proficient in German and French when he left Ireland, and he later learned Italian and Spanish, while not neglecting Irish. Overall, the writings of Albert Delahoyde are an example of the practical effect of improved literacy in Ireland, as his correspondence reveals much about the links between writing, identity, and nationalism. This chapter begins by briefly relating the background to the arrival of the Irish soldiers in Italy in 1860, before recounting the short conflict that followed, as well as Delahoyde's service in the Papal Battalion and the Papal Zouaves. It then focuses on Delahoyde's letters, in order to ascertain what they tell us about him, the Irish soldiers in Italy, Irish-Italian relations in this period, and wider literacy in nineteenth-century Ireland.

The experience of the Papal Battalion of St Patrick in Italy was relatively neglected in historical scholarship until 2005. Thus, little is known on the thoughts and beliefs of the Irish soldiers of the Papal Battalion. Many of them were only in their late teens or early twenties when they arrived in Italy, and for the majority it was the first time not only outside of Ireland, but also outside the immediate area in which they had been born.