Those Were the Days!
Thursday, 01 November 1990 00:00
Anonymous
GENERAL ROUTINE ORDERS
by
General Eoin O’Dubhtaigh
General Officer Commanding the Forces
General Headquarters
Dublin 23 August 1924
326 - Army Horses - Riding of1. Under no circumstances are horses supplied for service with G.S. Wagons to be ridden. Horses supplied for service with watering cats may be ridden when drawing the watering cart, and then only by the NCO or man in charge of the watering cart. When so ridden they should not travel at more than a walking pace.
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Gongs for Peace Work
Saturday, 01 February 1992 00:00
Michael Walsh
Civil servants are said to be reacting coolly towards proposals by senior military men for a new medal for humanitarian aid. The medal, which would reward servicemen for their efforts in earthquake relief, helping the Kurds and in other non-combat zones, has the support of the Service Chiefs of Staff. But it has run aground in Whitehall.
Mandarians, it seems, are employing tried and trusted stalling techniques to ensure that the proposal is lost somewhere between the sixth floor of the Ministry of Defence and Buckingham Palace, where any proposals for decorations will go. “The proposal is under discussion internally. It’s a very long procedure. We’re looking at many months, maybe years” says an MOD spokesman.
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Military Stations - The Curragh
Friday, 01 February 1991 00:00
Anonymous
“The Regiment” May 1896In Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin, is the recumbent figure of a warrior sheathed in complete armour, with his shield upon his left arm, his hands clasped as if in prayer, his limbs crossed like those of dead Crusaders. Close under the shield is a figure as of one sawn in twain. Features and dress indicate that this is the memorial of a woman. An inscription set into the wall informs the stranger that three centuries ago Christ Church fell down and broke the monument. Deciphering the old characters we learn that the mailed figure is that of Strongbow, conqueror of Leinster, and that the mutilated effigy beside him represents the doom of Eva, his wife, daughter of King Dermot. The legend runs that once, when Strongbow had but ninety knights to hold the castle of Dublin, Eva betrayed the weakness of the garrison to her countrymen, and Strongbow, in the excitement of victory, condemned the traitress to be sawn in two. One portion of the body was cast to the dogs, the other was reserved for hallowed ground.
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The Dirty Shirts - Origin of the Nickname
Thursday, 01 August 1991 00:00
Michael Walsh
(From the History of the Regiment)Bhurtpor, 6 February 1805. The officers and men of the Regiment (Royal Munster Fusiliers) were conspicuous for their exertions in the trenches, the Commander-in-Chief, who personally supervised the siege works, frequently expressing his warm thanks for the unremitting activity of the Irish in the performance of their arduous duties. On one of these occasions some of the men apologised to the C-in-C for their dirty appearance, urging as an excuse that they had not found time to change their shirts for several weeks. The general remarked approvingly that those dirty shirts were an honour to their wearers, showing that they had willingly sacrificed comfort to duty. He used frequently to address the Regiment as his own “Dirty Shirts,” a name which has been cherished with pride ever since those days in the trenches before Bhurtpor.
The Mountbatten Medal
Friday, 01 November 1991 00:00
Michael Walsh
At the suggestion of our member Hugh Mason-Fennell, Mr. Pat McMahon, recipient of the Mountbatten Medal and the Certificate of the Council for Deeds of Bravery (JOURNAL 16, p22) has presented his awards on permanent loan to the City of Limerick. The Medal, its documentation and the Certificate were accepted by Mayor Jim Kemmy TD at a ceremony at City Hall on 1 August 1991 and will be displayed in the City Museum.
Postcard from a Munster Fusilier
Tuesday, 01 May 1990 00:00
Ed Sullivan
By Ed Sullivan I recently purchased an undated picture postcard of The Barracks, Tipperary and although the stamp had been neatly removed it clearly dated from the WWI period and was addressed to Mrs. Lily Hughes, Newport, South Wales.
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An Incident in Limerick
Wednesday, 01 May 1991 00:00
Anonymous
It is sometimes forgotten that the Volunteer movement of seventy-five years ago was not regarded favourably by all the people of Ireland, including those who would call themselves Nationalists, and on many occasions before the Easter Rising of 1916 things took a turn for the worse. The following extract from the LIMERICK CHRONICLE of 25 May 1915 may be of interest to those who study the period.
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First World War Graves in Ireland
Sunday, 01 March 1987 00:00
Martin Staunton
by Martin Staunton First published in “An Cosantor,” The Journal of the Irish Defence Forces. While most of the Irish dead of the Great War lie buried in France and Flanders, a considerable amount are among the 3,755 British Empire war graves from that period located in Ireland. Most of these died from accidents, sickness or of wounds while at home but some events during the war did result in significant military fatalities and subsequent burials here.
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Defence Forces Exhibition
Sunday, 01 August 1993 00:00
Michael Walsh
During All-Army week in June this year, the Defence Forces put on an impressive display of both current and past equipment. The display, which was open to the public was held in a tented village at the back of the shooting range in the Curragh, and included live firing of the Vickers medium machine gun (MMG) the Lewis light machine gun (LMG) and a parachute drop from the CASA 235 transport aircraft of the Air Corps. Items ranged in age from the Rolls-Royce armoured car of the Civil War era to the latest SISU A.P.C.
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The Auxiliaries in Ireland
Sunday, 01 May 1994 00:00
John Enticknap
By John EnticknapSince the Easter Rising of 1916 the situation had continued to deteriorate so that by 1920 it was proving very difficult to police Ireland. The Royal Irish Constabulary and the Dublin Metropolitan Police had their numbers increased by a special recruitment of ex N.C.O.’s from the British Forces, most of whom had seen service during the First World War. These reinforcements were insufficient to combat the campaign organised by the I.R.A. for Home Rule. The ‘Black and Tans’ as these ex N.C.O.’s became known they wore a mixture of R.I.C. and Army tunics and trousers depending on what was available) were becoming extremely unpopular with the population but what was even more of a problem was that they, the ‘Tans,’ were completely unmanageable by the Police.
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A Volunteer’s Medal
Monday, 01 August 1994 00:00
D. McKinley
by D. McKinleyAs a medal collector I have in the past made many interesting and sometimes valuable discoveries amongst auctions, antique shops and car boot sales. However, a recent phone call regarding a medal of Southern Ireland origins aroused my curiosity even more than usual. So, armed with some advice from a friendly collector from Wexford, I made my way to a small shop in County Down owned by a friend aware of my hobby. He had three medals, two belonging to a Royal Air Force gunner wounded twice between 1939-’45, and a separate medal which I recognised as a Service Medal with the bar ‘COMRAC’ bearing emblems of Ireland’s four provinces (see photo).
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Enlistment Dates for the Royal Munster Fusiliers as obtained from the Silver War Badge Rolls
Tuesday, 01 February 1994 00:00
Michael Walsh
by Peter Bruck, John Enticknap, Pat O’Daly, Martin Staunton
In an article in Journal No 22, November 1992, Peter Bruck showed how enlistment dates for individuals in the Royal Munster Fusiliers can be obtained using the WW1 Silver War Badge Rolls together with supplementary information indicating the Battalion of enlistment. If known enlistment dates are classified against individual’s regimental numbers as in the Table below, it is possible to deduce enlistment dates for individuals whose date of enlistment could otherwise not be determined. For example, from the Table below, a 1st or 2nd Battalion man with a regimental number of 8650 would have enlisted between 8/10/1907 and 23/10/1907, while a 4th Battalion individual with a serial number of 7050 would have enlisted between 23/9/1913 and 25/10/1913.
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Ceremony at Casement Aerodrome
Sunday, 01 March 2009 00:00
Liam Dodd
by Liam Dodd A special ceremony took place at Casement Aerodrome Baldonnell Co. Dublin on the 20th June 2008 to present the Distinguished Service Medal to the relatives of the four Air Corps personnel who lost their lives at Tramore, Co. Waterford while on a search and rescue operation in July 1999. The medal was awarded posthumously to Captain Michael Baker, Captain Dave O’Flaherty, Sergeant Paddy Mooney and Corporal Niall Byrne. The Minster of Defence Willie O’Dea presented only three of the medals to the next-of-kin. The parents of Captain Michael Baker chose to stay away from the ceremony because of lingering concerns over the investigation of the crash and the long delay in awarding the medals. However, the sister of Captain Baker and his former partner attended. Also present was the wife of Captain O’Flaherty and his daughter Davina who was born shortly after her father’s death.
Identification Parade
Monday, 01 November 1993 00:00
Michael Walsh
REPLY Following a request from Michal Denieffe for assistance in identifying a badge illustrated in JOURNAL No. 25, page 37, I have received the following from Michael J. O’Donnell in the U.S.A.
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Pay Attention There!
Monday, 01 June 1992 00:00
Michael Walsh
In a military obituary on 28 April 1992, the DAILY TELEGRAPH quoted from instructions from on high addressed to Naval officers at the turn of the century who might have occasion to ride horses in ceremonial parades: “The animal should be checked when rounding corners and extreme deflection never applied except at slow speeds. In mounting and dismounting only the port side of the horse should be used and spurs are not to be used to hold on by. The animal is steered in the same way as a boat with a yoke, but whereas in a boat the yoke is at the stern, with a horse it is in the bows. The yoke lines are called reins.”
The Irish Fire-Service, Service Medal
Tuesday, 01 November 1994 00:00
Michael Walsh
Amongst the services of the State one particular group was, until recently, at a disadvantage as far as recognition and award was concerned. The Army had their Gallantry, ‘Emergency,’ Long Service and United Nations medals, the Garda their Scott Awards … but the Fire Services were bereft of any accolade apart, that is, from public appreciation of their necessity and gratitude for their operations.
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Battle of St. Lucia, 24th May 1796
Wednesday, 01 February 1995 00:00
Bob Corrigan
by Bob Corrigan Next year 1996 we will be commemorating the 200th anniversary of the Battle of St. Lucia. It is therefore timely to remember the action of the ‘27th’ on that day which was to become one of their most revered Battle Honours. In 1789 the French Revolution and subsequent efforts to spread the doctrine of the destruction of the upper classes to other countries, shocked the English into war once more. An expedition set out from England to do battle with the French in the West Indies.
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Awards of the Medal of the Order of the British Empire for Gallantry in Ireland 1920 to 1922
Monday, 01 May 1995 00:00
M.D. Cassell
by M.D. Cassell, Iowa, U.S.A. Unlike the 1916 Easter Rising, when purely military decorations were awarded, the Army Council decided1 that the bravery of British soldiers during the Irish Rebellion of 1919-22 was to be recognised by awards of the Order of the British Empire. The Order had been established on 4 June 1917, to meet the need for a system of awards that covered gallantry and distinguished service by civilians, service by members of the Armed Forces other than in action and could be awarded without discrimination to men, women and foreigners alike. On 27 December 1918, the Order was split into Military and Civil Divisions, distinguished only by the addition of a red stripe to the plain purple ribbon in the case of awards in the Military Division.2 The Order consisted of five classes and a medal. Eligibility for appointment of members of the Army to the five classes of the Military Division was restricted to “… all commissioned and warrant officers recommended by any Commander-in-Chief …“ (London Gazette 27 December 1918). The Medal of the Order3 was to be awarded to persons not being member of the five classes. Presumably, this meant as far as the Army was concerned that non-commissioned officers and other ranks were eligible for the Medal only.4
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Irish Royal Garrison Artillery
Tuesday, 01 August 1995 00:00
Michael Kavanagh
by Michael Kavanagh
The Irish Royal Garrison Artillery were militia units of the R.G.A. recruited locally in Ireland. They were part-time soldiers and in 1907-08 were absorbed into the Special Reserve. In 1905 the following Irish units were in existence:-
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The Society for the Protection of Life from Fire
Wednesday, 01 November 1995 00:00
G. Callaghan
by G. Callaghan In the early years of the 19th Century, nowhere in Ireland or Great Britain was there any official organisation with the responsibility for rescuing persons from fire. If a house caught fire it was a matter for the insurance company which had a financial interest in the property to deal with it. For this purpose, many companies maintained their own fire brigades. In the London area in 1833, these brigades were combined into the London Fire Engine Establishment but the main aim was still the preservation of the building rather than its occupants.
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