 Within less than 24 hours of the proclamation Bagwell was released.He continued serving with the army after the end of the Civil War and in 1927 succeeded General Peader McMahon as Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces He resigned from this post in 1929 after a dispute with the then Minister of Defence, Desmond Fitzgerald.Shortly after leaving the army he emigrated to New York, on board the liner “George Washington” and it is more than likely that it was at this time that he gifted the sword to Eoin O’Duffy, as the two remained good friends and O’Duffy travelled to the port with him to see him off to America.