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Dublin Surgeons Death

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Death Notice  

 

Death - 4th December 1935 at Roscommon County Hospital, as result of an accident. Thomas Gerard Brown of 38 Elgin Road Dublin, second eldest son of the late R.L. Brown R.M. Funeral from Saint Patrick’s Dundalk to New Cemetery.

 

 Obituary  

 

We regret to announce the death which took place last Wednesday as the result of an accident, of Dr Gerard Brown of 38 Elgin Road Dublin. He was the second son of the late Mr R.L. Brown Resident Magistrate and educated at Clongowes Wood College and Trinity College Dublin. During the Great War Dr Brown served with the Connaught Rangers in France and was awarded the Military Cross. As a medical student he played on the St. Vincent’s Hospital Rugby team when they won the hospital’s cup. He was one of the oldest members of the Three Rock Rovers Hockey Club and also for many years a member of the Royal Dublin and Portmarnock golf clubs. A keen fisherman he was a popular member of Kells Anglers Association and a most successful dry fly fisherman.

 

Dr. Brown’s personality endeared him to the members of the various social clubs to which he belonged, including the Hibernian Catch Club, the Strollers, the University Club and the Royal Irish Yacht Club. He was beloved by his friends and by many in other walks of life, whom he always helped and tried to make their lot in life less difficult. His invariable courtesy, his geniality and his consideration for all with whom he came in contact, were true to the Irish type of family from which he sprang. The sincere sympathy of all who knew him will be with his widow and daughter and surviving brother, Mr Harry Brown, in their great sorrow.

 

Inquest - Accidentally Shot

 

Dr. O’Beirne Coroner for Roscommon opened an inquest at the County Hospital here today on the body of Mr. Thomas Gerard Brown L.R.C.P., of 38 Elgin Road, Dublin, who died this morning as a result of a gunshot wound accidentally received on Monday. Dr. Oliver Chance, Merrion Square, Dublin, stated that on Monday last, he was shooting with Dr. Brown at Rathconnor Bog. They crossed a drain within a few yards of each other and the witness carried the gun in his left hand with the catch at “safe”.

 

“When we crossed the drain we came together and exchanged a few words. My gun was pointing to the ground a few yards in front and slightly to my right, on which side Mr. Brown was standing. With the gun still in that position I took it off “safe” and it fired. Mr Brown stepped forward with his left leg at the same time and the charge entered his leg at a range of not more than two yards. He fell to the ground. I did what I could for him and remained with him until he was removed and accompanied him to the hospital”.

 

Dr. Brown, the witness added, was a personal friend of his and they had known each other for ten years or longer and came to Rocommon together from Dublin for the shoot. The gun must have gone off as a result of catching a button. Patrick Fahy Gortalina Ballina, who carried the game bag corroborated and added,

 

”I have assisted those gentlemen at the shooting for three or four years. They were always on the most friendly terms. There was a happy week or four days every time they came.”

 

Dr. W.G. Ridgeway Co-Surgeon stated that Dr. Brown was suffering from severe shock and gunshot wounds in the left leg. Guard McCoy, Rockfield, stated that after the accident he found Dr. Brown lying on the ground wounded. He asked him what had happened and Dr. Brown replied, “it was an accident”. The jury, without retiring returned a verdict that the cause of death was shock and heart failure, following gunshot wounds received as a result of an accident.

 

Source

Irish Times 6th December 1935

Last Updated on Tuesday, 02 March 2010 09:30
 

Ulster’s Roll of Honour - Fallen Officers 1914 - 1915

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Rank/NameRegimentAdditional InformationDied
Lt Adair, J.T10th Battalion Bedfordshire Regiment, attached 1st Battalion Border Regimentson of the late Mr. Henry T Adairdied on 22nd August 1915 of wounds received at the Dardanelles
2nd Lt Ainslie, J. Elliott 12th Battalion Royal Scotsonly son of Rev. W.J. Ainslie M.A. some time minister of Spamount (Evangelical Union) Church Belfast.Killed in action in France between 25th & 27th September
Lt-Col Armstrong, Charles Arthur 2nd Battalion Northumberland Fusiliersformerly Adjutant of the Belfast University Contingent of the Officers Training CorpsKilled in action France 1st October
2nd Lt Barker, C.M.A. 6th Battalion Royal Irish Fusiliersyoungest son of the late Mr. Lindsey Bucknall Barker of Dublin and a former pupil of Campbell College Belfast.Killed in action at the Dardanelles 10th-11th September 1915
2nd Lt Bohill, James 2nd Battalion Royal Irish Riflesbrother of Mrs M.J. Horner 111 Manor Street Belfast.Killed in action on western front 19th November
Maj Bond, Reginald Edwin 4th Rajputs Indian Armyson of the late Lt Col C.F. Bond 105th Madras Light Infantry and husband of Kathleen, third surviving daughter of Mr. Thomas Gallagher J.P. Belfast.Killed in action in the Persian Gulf  3rd March 1915
2nd Lt Bourke A.W. 3rd Battalion Royal Irish Fusiliers, attached 2nd Royal Irish Rifles,only son of Mr.C.E. Bourke Killala Cyprus Avenue Bloomfield Belfast,Killed in action 9th May 1915
2nd Lt Brown T.F. 7th Battalion Manchester Regiment,eldest son of Mr & Mrs William Brown 204 Shankill Road BelfastKilled in action at the Dardanelles 2nd June 1915
Lt Burges, William A. 1st Battalion Royal Irish Riflesson of Mrs Frederick Scroope National Bank Belfast.Killed in action at Neuve Chapelle on 10th March 1915 while leading his platoon
Hon. Captain Chichrster, the Honourable Richard C.F. Servian Armyyoungest son of Lord Templemore.Died 31st July 1915 at Nish of typhoid fever. He was acting honorary secretary to the first hospital unit of the Servian Relief Fund 
Lt Col Clark James C.B 9th Battalion Argyll and Sutherland Highlandersbrother of Mr. George S. Clark D.L Belfast and cousin of Lady Dixon wife of Sir Thomas J. Dixon Bart.Killed in action on western front 11th May 1915
 
Rank/NameRegimentAdditional InformationDied
2nd Lt Coates George W.T. Royal Field Artilleryson of Mr G.D. Coates manager of Royal Avenue Branch of Northern Bank,killed in action on the western front on 10th May 1915.He was mentioned in despatches by Sir John French in June
Capt Corley,  Anthony H. 11TH Battalion Australian Infantry  
Lt Curley Francis Royal Engineersson of Mrs Alex Curley and of Mrs Curley  Mentmore Lisburn Road Belfast and nephew of Mr Francis Curley J.P. killed in action in France on 25th September
2nd Lt Forbes, John Donald 10th Battalion Lancashire Fusiliersyoungest son of Mr John Forbes 72 Eglantine Avenue Belfast.Died of wounds received in action on the western front 29th September
2nd LtFraser ,William 1st Battalion Black Watchonly son of Mr Ewen Fraser 15 Willowbank Gardens Antrim Road Belfast.Died of wounds received in action on the western front on 27th September
2nd Lt Frizelle, Edwin S  5th Battalion Lancashire Fusiliersson of Mr W.G. Frizelle Drumreagh Alliance Avenue Cliftonville Belfast.Killed in action the Dardanelles 3rd August
 
Rank/NameRegimentAdditional InformationDied
Lt Gordon, Geoffrey 12th Lancersfourth son of Rev. Alexander Gordon M.A. formerly minister of First Presbyterian Church Rosemary Street Belfast.Killed by a shell at Ypres Belgium on 30th April 1915
2nd Lt Grubb, Donald James 5th Battalion Royal Inniskilling Fusiliersonly son of Rev. James Grubb Donegall Square Belfast, aged 26 years.Killed in action at the Dardanelles 15th August
Lt Joy, F.C.P. 3rd Battalion Royal Irish Rifles attached 2nd Battalion,a member of a well-known Belfast family.Killed in action on the western front 16th June 1915
Capt Joy, Thomas Cyril Bruce 1st Battalion Devonshire Regiment, attached 2nd Battalion Dorset Regiment,eldest son of Mr & Mrs George W Joy The Red Lodge Palace Court London and a member of an old Belfast family.Killed in Mesopotamia 11th December
Capt Lanyon, William Mortimer 5th Battalion Royal Irish Rifles attached 1st Battalion,son of the late Mr. H.O. Lanyon and grandson of the late Sir Charles Lanyon the eminent Belfast architect.Killed in action on the western front 5th April 1915
Lt Letts, Bertram Chiene M.B. Royal Army Medical Corpsonly child of Professor E.A. Letts of Queen’s University Belfast.Died 21st October 1915 from dysentery contracted at the Dardanelles
 
Rank/NameRegimentAdditional InformationDied
Lt Martin J.S. 5th Battalion Royal Irish Rifles attached 1st Battalion only son of Mr. R.T. Martin B.A. College Gardens Belfast.Killed in action 9th May 1915 .”leading his company against the first line of the German trenches”
Lt Col Maxwell William Leigh,Headquarters Staff Royal Naval Division,son of Mr David A Maxwell formerly of Belfast and an old pupil of Methodist College. He served in the Antwerp Expedition as Brigade Major,2nd Brigade Royal Naval Division and was mentioned in despatches. He was killed in action at the Dardanelles on 12th May 1915
Capt Kennedy Megaw, William Cecil1st Battalion Norfolk Regiment,youngest son of Mr Kennedy Megaw formerly of Belfast and of Brighton England and nephew of the late Mr. Robert Megaw J.P. The Prairie Holywood Co. Down,Captain Megaw who was mentioned in despatches by Sir John French and awarded the Military Cross, fell in action near Ypres Belgium 30th March
Lt Millar, A.J. 3rd Battalion Royal Irish Fusiliers,son of Mr. James Millar 87Eglantine Avenue Belfast.Killed in action on the western front 25th April
Lt Morton, W.J.E. 5th Battalion Royal Irish Rifles attached 2nd Battalion,eldest son of Mr. W Morton 26 Fountain Street Belfast and Hollydene Holywood Co. Down.Killed in action on the western front in September
Lt Mackay, James 3rd Battalion Gordon Highlanders attached 1st Battalion,son of Mr William Mackay 63 Castlereagh Street Belfast.Killed on the western front 25th September

 
Rank/NameRegimentAdditional InformationDied
2nd Lt. Maccabe, R.M8th Battalion London Regiment (Post Office Rifles) son of Thomas Maccabe 40 Avoca Street Belfast, formerly a telegraphist in the General Post Office Royal Avenue Belfast.Mortally wounded on the western front 23rd April 1915
Lt McCurry, Walter Tennyson Royal Army Medical Corps attached 1st Battalion Norfolk Regiment,eldest son of Mr. Joseph McCurry manager of the Western Branch Belfast Bank Shankill Road.Killed 15th March 1915 while attending the wounded at Ypres Belgium
Lt Col Neile, John commanding 4th Battalion King’s Own Scottish Borderers,eldest son of the late Mr Henry Hugh McNeile D.L. of Parkmount Belfast and nephew of the first Earl Cairns, who sat as M.P. for Belfast from 1852 to 1866 and was afterwards twice Lord Chancellor of Great Britain.Killed in action at the Dardanelles 12th July 1915
Lt Neill, Robert Larmour 5th Battalion Royal Irish Rifles, attached 1st Battalion,Youngest son of Mr. Sharman D.Neill 32 Donegall Place Belfast and Ardmoyle Marino.Killed in action in France 9th May 1915 aged 21 years
 
Rank/NameRegimentAdditional InformationDied
Capt O’Lone, Robert J. 2nd Battalion Royal Irish Rifles,Third son of QM-Sgt John O’Lone Victoria Barracks Belfast who not withstanding his 73 years ,is serving at the depot of his old regiment the Royal Irish Rifles. Mortally wounded while on reconnoitring duty on the western front 12th November
2nd Lt Ross, Melbourne 4th Battalion Royal Irish Rifles attached 2nd Battalion,Second son of Mr. G.H. Ross, head of the firm of William Ross & Sons Ltd. William Street South Belfast.Killed in action at Hooge Flanders 25th September
Lt Somerville, Richard Newman Royal Engineers,eldest son of Mr. R.N. Somerville Osborne Park Belfast and grandson of the late Rev. J.D. Martin Tullyallen County ArmaghKilled in action France 9th October
Capt Stewart, Robert Hanna 10th Battalion Western Canada Regiment,eldest son of Mr. W.J. Stewart 39 Distillery Street Belfast.Killed in action France 22nd May 1915
Lt Wisely, Francis Royal Army Medical Corps,son of Mrs Margaret Wisely Ravenhill Road Belfast,Died at Alexandria on 16th September 1915 of wounds received at the Dardanelles

Last Updated on Tuesday, 02 March 2010 10:05
 

Fleet Surgeon Coolican

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The death took place on Monday at his residence , Clarinda Park East , of Dr. John P. Coolican, retired Fleet Surgeon of the Royal Navy. Dr. Coolican was a son of the late John Coolican of Ballina and son-in-law of Sir John Moyers, D.L., J.P., County Dublin. He was Staff Surgeon of the Thetis during the South African war, and in November 1899, landed with the troops for the defence of Durban. He was awarded the South African medal. He was in medical charge of the Sand Pareil at the King’s Coronation Naval Review. He retired from service at an early age owing to failing health.


Source
Bray and South Dublin Herald - Saturday 20th January 1906.

 

Deserter Arrested

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Private John Berry Royal Irish Regiment was arrested in Wexford on Saturday on the charge of having been a deserter from the army. It appears that Berry who had been on active service in France, was home on furlough some months ago and left his home in Stonebridge Lane to cross to England by the Rosslare boat. When at Rosslare he left his kit at a house stating that he would call for it again, but as he failed to turn up the owner notified the police. Since then the authorities have been on the look-out for him, but it was not until this week that he was apprehended. He was escorted back to his regiment. 

 

Source

Free Press Wexford 9th February 1918 

 

17th Century Ship’s Pass Presented to the National Library of Ireland

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 A 17th century ship’s pass for the vessel Mary of Cork signed by King James II and Samuel Pepys was formally presented to the National Library of Ireland on Thursday August 5th 2010 by Enda Connellan, CEO Dublin Port Company,  previously  the Dublin Port and Docks Board. In presenting the pass which was acquired by the Dublin Port and Docks Board in 1924, Mr. Connellan said that the Dublin Port Company was delighted to present this interesting and rare historical document to the National Library of Ireland as this will ensure that it will be appropriately conserved and displayed and will be more accessible to the public in its new home.

The pass is one of the few known examples of the 17th century ships’ passes in the world with other examples held by the National Archives in Kew and the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich.  The pass presented to the National Library of Ireland was issued to the Mary of Cork to provide it passage free from English warships or warships of states maintaining diplomatic relations with England. The Mary of Cork, under Captain Zachary Peebucket and manned by a crew of five, by sailed from Dublin in late 1687 bound for the Canary Islands which at that times were major exporters of sugar and Malvasia, a fortified white wine  which travelled well  and was extremely popular in Britain. 

It’s believed that the vessel may have been trading in these foodstuffs in exchange for products such as salted Irish beef. The pass was issued at the Court of Whitehall, London, on September 29th 1687 and signed by King James II (Lord High Admiral 1685 to 1688) and Samuel Pepys in his capacity as Secretary to the Admiralty. On April 18th 1688 the ship’s pass was returned to Ireland where Thomas Williamson entered it into the registry of the High Court of Admiralty of Ireland. 

In the near future the pass will be displayed in the National Library of Ireland’s Department of Manuscripts.

Last Updated on Thursday, 24 November 2011 11:43
 

The ‘Hut’.

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Saint John Ambulance Brigade of Ireland

In O’Connell Street, on the central island between where Nelson Pillar used to stand (where stands the Spire today) and the Parnell Monument stood a small cream painted hut. This was probably the last standing First Aid Post of the Saint John Ambulance Brigade of Ireland. It vanished when O’Connell Street was modernised some years ago. 

This First Aid Post was one of two established in 1922, the other was in Foster Place. Both of these played major roles during the Civil War period. The First Aid care provided to the people of Dublin from these posts was very significant. The work of the O’Connell Street Post had to be transferred to the Metropole Hotel for a period due to the heavy fighting in that area.  

The O’Connell Street Post continued to provide a First Aid Service for many more years, being staffed daily but from the 1950s the service operated each evening and on Sunday mornings. It was used as a base during major events such as the military parades at Easter and the industrial parades on St. Patrick’s Day. 

The Brigade over the years had many First Aid Huts from Dollymount Strand, Merrion Strand at the railway station (the remnants of the long closed station disappeared with the arrival of the DART rail service), Killiney Beech, Bray Promenade and at the football pitches in the fifteen acres of the Phoenix Park. In addition posts were established in the Zoo and at the show grounds of the Royal Dublin Society. 

The story of the St. John Ambulance Brigade is a rich source of information about the social history of Ireland. Some examples will show the importance of its work, a mother and childcare scheme for new babies was provided, this included dinners and baby clothes; a blood transfusion service was set up and this predated the National Blood Transfusion Service. This year 2011, being the 70th anniversary of the bombing of the North Strand in Dublin brings to mind the major input of the Brigade in the Air Raid Precautions organisation. The City Manager requested the Brigade to be the official emergency first aid service for the city. 

The St. John Ambulance Brigade in Ireland was founded in 1903 as part of the British Order of St John. In 1945 at the request of the Government the Brigade became an Irish organisation and it continues, actively, to serve the people of Ireland to the present time. Initially, service in the Brigade was recognised by the award of the service medal of the Order of St. John. This medal on the obverse had the head of Queen Victoria. The ribbon had alternate black and white stripes Since the Brigade became an Irish organisation a revised service medal was introduced, this has a Maltese cross with shamrocks between the arms of the cross on the obverse and the new ribbon has green edges outside the black and white stripes. It is awarded in silver for fifteen year and in gold for fifty year’s service.  

References.

“Air Raids on Ireland during the Second World War”, David J.Murnaghan, Medal Society of Ireland Journal, No.86, December 2009. 

“Air Raids on Ireland during the Second World War, An Addendum”, David J.Murnaghan. Medal Society of Ireland Journal, No.89, September 2010.

Last Updated on Thursday, 24 November 2011 12:14
 

Record of Irish Police Force in the Great War

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Part 1 of 2

Royal Irish Constabulary

Enlisted 696, Killed 143,Wounded  182, Missing 4, Prisoners 23

Medals and Distinctions - 4 D.C.M.’S, 1 Military Cross, 24 Military Medal’s, 4 Medal Militaire, 44 Commissions

 

 

Dublin Metropolitan Police

Enlisted 55, Killed 10, Prisoners 1

Medals and Distinctions - 1 D.C.M., 4 Military Medals, 4 Mons Stars, 4 Commissions

 

R.I.C. Officers

 

Burke,  Major F.C.

Connaught Rangers  - Dangerously wounded 21st August 1915 at the Wells of Kabak Kuyu Suvla Bay. On recovering from his wounds was appointed Intelligence Officer at the Curragh to 59th and 65th Divisions. On being recalled to the force was selected by Brigadier General  J.A.Byrne C.B. to fill the responsible post of Adjutant at the R.I.C. Depot

 

Carlisle, Captain D.W.

Royal Garrison Artillery – Appeared in a casualty list as severely wounded

Davies, Major C.F.F.

Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers – Wounded while serving in Salonika, awarded the decoration of the Serbian White Eagle with Swords, subsequently moved to France. Second in command 5th Connaught Rangers .

Foley, Major G.R.E.

Royal Irish Regiment – Most of whose service has been spent in the East,

Holmes, Major P.A.

Royal Irish Regiment – Having been severely gassed was sent to a hospital in England, later he was attached to the Royal Irish Rifles and soon in the firing line again, when he was severely wounded in the head and arm. Again fit and well he is serving as Intelligence Officer at the Curragh.

Jackson, Captain F.

Royal Irish Fusiliers – Badly wounded in the early stages of the war, did valuable work in training young officers, received a Staff appointment which he still holds in the War Office, attached to the Intelligence Branch.

Martin, Captain C.P.

Royal Irish Regiment – Severely wounded in action, is now convalescent and reported to soon re-join the force.

Regan, Captain J.M.

African Rifles – Twice mentioned in despatches , awarded Military Medal and is stated to have accepted permanent appointment to Captaincy in the Army.

Rigg, Major W.T.

Royal Irish Rifles – Three times wounded and awarded the Croix de Guerre for gallantry.

Rodwell, Major G D’U

Acted in the capacity of Instructor of Musketry in the first years of the war, was appointed A.P.M. to the 57th Division in France.

Viller, Captain R.P.

Liverpool Regiment – Who served in County Clare, Kerry and Cork, appeared in a recent casualty list as killed whilst gallantly leading his men.

 

Non-Commissioned Officers and Men

 

Irish Guards

Allingham Robert C.

 

Bell George R.

Previously wounded, now killed

Bell John

Wounded, has re-joined R.I.C.  Served in the County Down force.

Bergin Michael

Wounded

Black Daniel

Gained the Military Medal and given a commission

Bowler P.J.

Discharged medically unfit and re-joined the R.I.C.

Boyle Farigle

Wounded, discharged medically unfit, re-joined the R.I.C.

Bray H

Promoted sergeant, awarded the D.C.M.

Brien John J

Killed

Brien Patrick

Awarded Military Medal, has re-joined the R.I.C.

Browne Mark W

Several times wounded, won Military Medal, has been promoted Quartermaster-Sergeant, served in County Down Force.

Buckley John

Held the rank of sergeant in R.I.C. Volunteered several times before receiving permission to serve, refused a commission, but accepted sergeant’s rank, badly wounded. Discharged medically unfit and re-joined R.I.C.

Cantwell Henry

Killed

Carey Daniel

Killed

Carr William

Wounded

Carroll John

Wounded, discharged medically unfit, has re-joined R.I.C.

Chestnut William T

Wounded, re-joined R.I.C.  Served in Belfast force

Church Joseph

Discharged medically unfit

Clancy Patrick J

Wounded and gassed. One of Belfast R.I.C. volunteers from Henry Street Barracks, was a sergeant in the Guards

Clarke Patrick M

Reported missing, now reported killed

Considine Michael

Discharged medically unfit

Corcoran Thomas

Killed, joined up from Castlewellan Station. He was the last of three constables who volunteered from that station to make the supreme sacrifice, The other two were Constables Cowper and Heancy

Coulter Alexander

Killed

Cronin James

Wounded, discharged medically unfit

Dempsey John

Discharged medically unfit, re-joined R.I.C.  Formerly served in Belfast

Devaney B

Killed

Doherty Michael

Wounded, discharged medically unfit

Dolan Charles

Discharged medically unfit, re-joined R.I.C.

Dowling A.M.

Killed

Dwyer Bernard

Received Military Cross

English J

Killed, held the rank of Corporal

Fallon Thomas

Discharged medically unfit, re-joined R.I.C.

Finlay O.M.

Killed

Flower William J

Discharged medically unfit, re-joined R.I.C.

Friel Michael

Prisoner of war

Gavin Thomas

Discharged medically unfit

Glynn Martin

Wounded, has been given a commission

Greally John

Has been given a commissioned rank and gazetted to the Indian Army. Member of Belfast City force

Healy Richard

Wounded, son of the late Sergeant Healy of Kinlough Co.Leitrim

Henahan Patrick

Killed

Hewitt T

Wounded by shell 1917 and again in 1918, at present in hospital

Hickson T W

Wounded, discharged medically unfit

Hillock Edward

Wounded, won Military Medal for bravery, taken prisoner of war

Hunter William

Discharged medically unfit, re-joined R.I.C.

Hurley Michael

Wounded, given a commission

Joyce Patrick

Awarded Military Medal, was stationed in Mountpottinger Barracks

Kavanagh Michael

Discharged medically unfit

Kavanagh T.P.

Wounded, discharged medically unfit

Keeffe Patrick

Discharged medically unfit, re-joined R.I.C.

Kinsellagh Patrick

Wounded, taken prisoner

Lafferty Bernard

Killed

Lavelle John

Formerly of Cullingtree Road Barracks, accepted for service early in the war

Lavin Patrick

Wounded

Lennon Patrick

Wounded, re-joined R.I.C.

Logan Daniel

Wounded, discharged medically unfit, has died of pneumonia

McAdoo Samuel

Died

McCarthy Timothy

Wounded, received a commission

McCaughey Michael F

Gained a commissioned rank and posted to Indian Army. He belonged to the Co.Cavan force.

McKinney Michael

Discharged medically unfit, re-joined R.I.C.

McNamara Patrick

Gained a commission

MaGuire James

Won the Military Medal , discharged unfit for further military service

Masterson P.J.

Wounded, has obtained a commission

Moody Thomas

Killed

Morris John

Prisoner of war

Murphy M.J.

Killed in action, son of the late Head Constable Murphy of Downpatrick, was attached to Glenravel Street Barracks Belfast and formerly at Depot

Murphy W.J.

Discharged medically unfit, re-joined R.I.C.

Nolan Peter A

Awarded Military Medal for gallantry 15th September 1916 and the first bar in December 1916, gained the second bar for supreme gallantry during the battle of Cambrai November 1917. He was then acting as company sergeant-major and almost immediately on going over the top his Captain the Hon. H.A.V.S. Harmsworth M.C. was knocked out, Nolan’s superiors all being killed he took command and led the men on to their objective a distance of one and a quarter miles from the starting point. During this advance his escapes were miraculous, his equipment being blown off his back and his rifle smashed in his hand. We regret to record that the brave Nolan has made the supreme sacrifice but not before he had received the Distinguished Conduct Medal. His mother Mrs Nolan of Woodview Omagh, wife of Mr Martin Nolan ex-Sergeant R,I,C, In November 1918 received a bequest of £50 from the estate of Captain Harmsworth who left the legacy to Sergeant Peter Nolan.

O’Dea Timothy

Killed, awarded the Military Medal

Ormsby J.J.

Killed

Prunty Joseph P

Prisoner of war

Purdy W.R. McD.

Wounded, awarded the Military Medal

Rainey William J

Killed, one of three soldier sons, two killed, third awaiting discharge on account of wounds, sons of Mr & Mrs George Rainey Garvaghey Ballygawley Co.Tyrone

Regan John

Gained Distinguished Conduct Medal

Shine Peter

Wounded and missing, now reported killed

Spraggit J.E.

Wounded

Tease J.G.

Wounded a third time and gassed, son of ex-Sergeant William Tease Kells Co.Meath, served in Mountpottinger Belfast

Waters Edward

Discharged medically unfit, re-joined R.I.C.

White Joseph

Discharged medically unfit, re-joined R.I.C.

Wren Edward

Killed, was stationed at Streamstown Co.Westmeath

 

Royal Irish Rifles

Hannah Henry H

Held sergeant’s rank in R.I.C.

Hilliard George

Wounded, held sergeant’s rank in R.I.C.

Howe Charles

 

Jones William J

Wounded, received a commission

Peters John

Sergeant became musketry instructor in the Royal Irish Rifles, and promoted sergeant in the R.I.C.  Volunteered in 1914 for active service, had served in the Boer War

Thompson R.A.J.

Wounded, formerly in the Irish Guards, but obtaining a commission and was transferred to the Royal Irish Rifles

Trotter Thomas J

 

Wilson J.J.

 

 

Royal Irish Regiment

Carney M.J

 Held sergeants rank in the R.I.C.

Fahy Thomas

 Discharged medically unfit, re-joined R.I.C.

Mahony Patrick

 Prisoner of war

Reilly Edward

 Prisoner of war

Taylor Patrick

 Twice wounded once severely, received a commission

 

Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers

Barr Jeremiah

 Wounded, has had service in Salonica, Palestine and France, is a brother of Constable James Barr Dungannon, served in Newtownstewart

Bergin John J

 

Boyle Hugh P

 Killed

McKeen John C

 Was given a commission, won the Military Cross

McKenzie Martin

 Killed

McQuillan James

 Wounded

Mullaney Hubert

 Wounded

Murtagh James

 Wounded, discharged medically unfit, re-joined  R.I.C.

 

Leinster Regiment

Conlon James J.

 Wounded, belonged to the Connaught’s, was attached to the Leinster Regiment, a native of Castlerea, served in Cavan and Co.Armagh, obtained a commission

Minnock Andrew

 

Moloney Thomas

 Wounded

O’Connell M.W.

 Wounded

Ryan James

 Killed, obtained a commission, was acting Captain, wounded six times. Ryan was a contributor to both home and foreign magazines being a poet of a high order of merit, born in Wexford, he joined the R.I.C. in 1906


 

Royal Munster Fusiliers

Brennan James

 Gained a commission

Casey William

 Missing

Cremin Daniel

 Killed

Fitzgerald Michael

 Gained a commission

Gallivan Michael

 Gained a commission

Good James

 Killed

Loftus Patrick

 Gained a commission

Mahony Jeremiah

 Prisoner of war

Moroney Timothy

 Wounded

 

Royal Irish Fusiliers

Bannon Thomas H.

 

Beirne Patrick

 Killed

Callaghan John

 Wounded

Cole Michael A

 Wounded, won Military Medal and a commission

Graham E M’I

 Commissioned, later taken prisoner

Igoe John P

 Discharged medically unfit

Newman J.R.

 Discharged medically unfit

Scanlon Michael J

 Discharged medically unfit, re-joined R.I.C.

Scott Hugh

 Prisoner of war

Short John

 Wounded, given a commission

Ward William P

 Wounded, discharged medically unfit, re-joined R.I.C.

 

The Harp and the Lyre.

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An ornate badge of a harp superimposed on a lyre is a part of Irish musical heritage. The lyre is an ancient musical instrument with strings fixed in an open frame; this dictionary description could be taken to indicate that the lyre is a form of an early ‘harp’. So, a harp superimposed on a ‘harp’ needs some explanation. An explanation is not evident but what it represents today is important. This interesting badge is worn on the uniform collar of members of the Irish Defence Forces School of Music.

This School of Music consists of a central headquarters where the Army No.1 Band is stationed. Both the Southern and Western Brigades have their own bands. In addition, there are Pipe Bands. When the Pipes and Military Band combine a unique sound is produced. In 2011 at the International Military Pilgrimage to Lourdes, when the English speaking armies from around the world attended Mass at the Grotto, Irish Pipers accompanied by the Band of the Royal Corps of Signals played the piece “Highland Cathedral”. It was a glorious moment.

It is unfortunate, that in these difficult times, the number of Irish Military Bands has been reduced from four to three. The Band of the Curragh Training Camp (formerly The Curragh Command) is no longer in existence. 

Let us look back at where all this came from. Shortly after the foundation of the State, it was decided to introduce military bands into the army. Initially, assistance was sought from the French but results failed to materialise, so an approach was made to Germany. In 1923 Fritz Brase who had served as the Bandmaster of the Grenadier Guards in Berlin was invited to Ireland and appointed the first Director of the Army School of Music with the rank of Colonel. Another German, Frederick Sauerzweig was also appointed with the rank of Captain. The selection of soldiers for musical training was started and very quickly a nucleus for military bands was formed. While the main purpose was to provide martial music for troops, public concerts were soon a part of the schedule. These were popular with the public. The bandstand in the hollow in the Phoenix Park is a part of that legacy.

Soon the School of Music expanded and more Band Conductors would be required. To meet this need Cadets were recruited to be trained as Officer Bandmasters. Following the retirement of Colonel Fritz Brase and the death of his successor Colonel Sauerzweig, James M. Doyle, (one of the first class of army music cadets) was appointed Director with the rank of Lieut-Colonel. 

However, the Army School of Music played another important role in the musical culture of Ireland. Lieut-Colonel Doyle was a talented musician. He was to become the conductor of the orchestra of the Dublin Grand Opera Society (DGOS). Captain William O’Kelly, a cavalry officer, played a major role in the formation of the DGOS and for many years was active in an important organizational capacity. The orchestras of the newly formed Radio Eireann (then know as station 2RN) needed conductors. Lieut-Colonel Doyle often conducted the symphony orchestra. Other Officer Bandmasters, Arthur Duff, Michael Bowles and Dermot O’Hara played their part in the development of music in Radio Eireann. Michael Bowles was appointed musical director. Dermot O’Hara, following his army musical career was well known, for many years, as the popular Conductor of the Radio Eireann Light Orchestra.

It is only possible here to give a brief and inadequate account of the importance of the Defence Forces School of Music to the army itself but also to the Government and the people of Ireland. They always play a major part at State ceremonies and parades. For those interested in learning more about the early days of Irish military music. Colonel Doyle’s article “ Music in the Army” is most informative. It appeared in “Music in Ireland - A Symposium”, edited by Professor Aloys Fleischmann and published by Cork University Press in 1952.

 

The Memorials of St. Brendan’s Church, Birr

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St. Brendan’s (Church of Ireland) church, Birr, which is situated in Oxmanstown Mall is by all accounts a fascinating church. While the exterior may look like a normal church the memorials on the walls inside are an interesting incite into Birr’s long history and association with the Leinster Regiment and the British Army.

Many of the memorials in the church where erected by the comrades, friends and relatives of the deceased, this article will examine theses memorials and the names that they commemorate. Information has been gathered about each of the names from different sources.

 

In Memory of

Captain Richard Trench Kirkpatrick DSO

Lieutenant Henry Edward Clonard Keating

And

Corporal Frederick Gale

1st Battn Leinster Regiment

Who were Killed on Service

In Africa During the Year 1898

This Tablet

Is Erected by the Officers

1st Battn Leinster Regt

 

Richard Trench Kirkpatrick was born on 25th September 1865 in Celbridge, Co. Kildare. His parents were Alexander Richard and Catherine Louisa (nee Trench) Kirkpatrick. 

Richard was educated in Rugby, Warwickshire. Afterwards in February 1885 he entered Sandhurst College, for training as an officer. He graduated in April of the same year. Upon leaving Sandhurst he was commissioned as a Lieutenant in the Leinster Regiment.

Lieutenant Kirkpatrick was promoted to Captain in September 1893. Captain Kirkpatrick became a fellow of the Royal Geographic Society in 1897 and contributed information to the interest of geographic knowledge. Awarded the Distinguished Service Order in May 1898 in recognition of services preformed in Uganda, Captain Kirkpatrick had been under fire at least nine times while in Uganda and had been present when the Soudonese troops, who had formed the escort of Major MacDonald’s expedition mutinied. 

Captain Kirkpatrick along with seven other men where murdered by natives on 25th November 1898. Captain Kirkpatrick had left the main column of Major MacDonald’s expedition to northern Uganda for survey purposes. 

Along with the Distinguished Service Order, Captain Kirkpatrick is entitled to an East and Central Africa medal with claps Lubwa’s and Uganda 1897-98.

Henry Edward Clonard Keating was the son of Edward and Mary Keating. He was born on 13th December 1872 in Colchester, Nova Scotia, Canada. 

In December 1891 Henry was admitted to Sandhurst Military. He gave his former trade as being a civil engineer. He had an exemplary record and graduated in September 1892. He was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the 1st Battalion, Leinster Regiment. Keating was promoted to Lieutenant in August 1894.

In August 1898 Lieutenant Keating was mention in the London Gazette for service with the Colonial Office, this presumably led him to serve with the West African Frontier Force in Nigeria. On 9th October Lieutenant Keating was leading a party of men close to Yelwa on the River Niger when they were ambushed by natives. Lieutenant Keating along with Corporal Frederick Gale and 12 native soldiers where killed. 

In response to the attack a British force returned to the scene of the ambush and burnt several native villages and shot over 100 enemy and hung 7 who were thought to be responsible for the unprovoked attack.

Lieutenant Keating was buried at a British Fort in Yelwa, he is also commemorated on a family grave in Saint James Cemetery, Toronto, Canada. 

Frederick Gale served as a Corporal in the Leinster Regiment. Not a great deal is known about him other than he was killed in the same ambush as Lieutenant Henry Keating.

 

“In Memory of

John Courtenay

Julian

Captain XXX Regiment

Who Died 23rd May

1879

Erected by His Brother Officers in Affectionate Remembrance”

 

John Courtenay Julian was born around 1845, not much is know about his life before he joined the British army.

John’s military career began on 14th October 1868 when he purchased a commission as an Ensign. John further purchased promoted to Lieutenant on 24th December 1870. John was promoted to Captain on 30th November 1878.

 

Captain Julian died on 23rd May 1879. He was interned in Clonoghill Cemetery, Birr, Co. Offaly. 

 

“In Memory of

William Henry Kerans

Captain 3rd Leinster Regiment

Acting District Commissioner

Died at Idah. S. Nigera West Africa

29th July 1907 Aged 31 Years”

 

William Henry Kerans was born in Punjab, Indian on 14th May 1876. He was the son of William Robert and Anne Kerans. William Robert Kerans was a Surgeon Major in the Army Medical Department and lived in Parsonstown towards the end of his life. William enlisted in the 13th Hussars at Birr on 11th November 1894. He was 5 foot 6 inches, had blue eyes and fair hair. William only served for 3 months buying his discharge for 10 pounds on 13th February 1895. He spent his limited service at home. William rejoined the army in October 1900 gaining a commission into the 3rd battalion, Leinster Regiment as a Second Lieutenant.

Second Lieutenant Kerans served in the Boer War with the 3rd Battalion. His service entitled him to Queen’s South Africa Medal. William continued to serve in the Army as a professional soldier after the Boer War. He made the rank of Lieutenant on 11th April  1903, further more he was promoted to Instructor of Musketry on 20th February 1904. Then in April of the same year William was promoted to Captain. Captain Kerans was seconded for service under the Colonial Office in October 1904 and he served in Nigeria. Here he became appointed Acting District Commissioner. Kearns died on 29th July 1907 after a few hours of contracting blackwater fever.

 

“In Memory of

Adrien Patrick Woods

Lieutenant 1st Battn

The Prince of Wales Leinster Regt

who died at Birr Barracks November 11th 1907

Aged 25 years

Placed by his Brother Officers”

 

Adrian Patrick Woods was the second son of William E. Woods J.P. and Francis Woods (Nee Lucar) of 8 Oxmanstown Mall, Birr. He was born on 17th March 1882.

He originally joined the King’s County but was subsequently commissioned in January 1901 as a Second Lieutenant. The 3rd Battalion was stationed in the barracks at Birr. Second Lieutenant Woods served in South Africa during the Boer War and was awarded the Queen’s South Africa Medal with 5 Clasps for his service. He was promoted to Lieutenant in July 1906. 

Lieutenant Adrian Patrick Woods died in Birr Barracks on 11 November 1907 from pneumonia. He was just 25. It was noted in his obituary that he was popular amongst the ranks and was a keen sportsman.

 

1st World War Memorials

 

“To The Glory of God

And

In Loving Memory Of

George J.C. Ryall

Royal Munster Fusiliers

Killed In Action In France on 21st of March 1918

Aged 23 Years

Only Son of Gerald F. Ryall, of Glenacurrach, Dromoyle.

Also of Robert Sheppard 1st Irish Guards

Killed in Battle at Festubert 18th of May 1915,

Aged 25 years.

Son of the Late B. Sheppard, of Kilcolman Parish.

 

Erected as a Token

Of Esteem by the Late Parishioners of Kilcolman

And Rector.”

 

George I.C. Ryall was the only son of Gerald Ryall. He was born in Aghacon, King’s County. George was schooled in Dublin. During the War he served as a Corporal in the Royal Munster Fusiliers. He was killed in action on the 21st March 1918. This was the 1st day of the German Spring Offensive. George is commemorated on the Pozieres Memorial, France.

 

Robert Sheppard worked as a postman before the War. He was the son of Benjamin and Hester Sheppard of Kilcolman, King’s County. Robert was born in 1883. Robert joined the Irish Guards at Birr and served in France. He was a Lance Corporal. He was killed in action on the 18th May 1915 during the Battle of Festubert.Robert has no known grave and is commemorated on the Le Touret Memorial, France.

 

 

“The Windows in the Adjacent Aisle,

Have Been Erected in Proud and

Thankful Memory of the Men

Of This Parish Whose Splended

Self-Sacrifice Helped to Win

The Great War 1914 – 1918”

 

The names on this brass memorial plaque are as follows, addition information is also included about the individuals.

 

W.S. Ball

The Commonwealth War Graves Commission’s search engine only produces one hit for “W.S. Ball”, a private in the King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry who was killed in action on 11th January 1917. A connection to Birr has yet to be established and there is always the possibly that this W.S. Ball is the wrong person.

 

Geo. Frederick Coore Mein

George was the eldest son of Major Fredrick Coore (King’s Shropshire Light Infantry) and Jane Mein (Nee Frend). They had married in Roscre, Ireland in 1877. George was born in Newport, Shropshire on 7 December 1881.  However his mother died in 1884, and Frederick remarried in 1892. The connection with Birr comes in the form of one of George’s sisters, Norah living in Birr with an uncle (a brother of Jane). 

George was educated in Chatham House, Ramsgate. Afterwards he followed in his father’s footsteps and also served in the army. He served as a private during the Boer War with the 25th Company Imperial Yeomanry. He is entitled to a Queen’s South Africa medal with the clasps Cape Colony, Orange Free State, Transvaal, South Africa 1901 and South Africa 1902.

Between the interim of the Boer War and First World War George moved to Auckland, New Zealand and took up farming. During the outbreak of the First World War he joined up for Imperial service and served as a private with the Auckland regiment. Private Mein took part in the capture of Samoa, both New Zealand and Australian forces helped captured the German controlled island in August 1914. Then after returning to New Zealand, George again volunteered for active services and embarked for Gallipoli. George was killed in action on 7th August 1915 during the battle of Chunuk Bair, while advancing along Rhododendron Spur.

George has no known grave and is commemorated on the Chunuk Bair memorial in Turkey. George is entitled to a 1915 star trio and memorial plaque.

 

John Eades 

A native of King’s county John was born in Parsonstown on 17th May 1896. His parents were William, a carpenter and Hanna Eades. They lived at 17 in Cappaneale Street, Birr.

John enlisted sometime in mid 1915 into the 9th (Tyrone) Battalion Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers. The 9th battalion went overseas in October 1915. John made the rank of Lance Sergeant. 

Lance Sergeant Eades died from wounds on 6th December 1916. He rests in Bailleul Communal cemetery extension, France. John is entitled a British War medal and Victory medal.

 

 Robert Eades

An older brother of John Eades, Robert Eades was born on 10th October 1893 in Parsonstown. 

Robert like his father was a carpenter by trade. At some time after 1911 Robert moved to Quebec Canada. Robert joined up on the 30th November 1915. He enlisted in the 73rd Battalion Canadian Infantry. He was 5 foot 10, ad grey eyes and brown hair.

Private Eades died on 5th April 1917, just a few days before the battle of Vimy Ridge.     Robert is buried in Barlin Communal Cemetery, France.


Patrick Hemphill

The son Rev. Samuel Hemphill and Flora Margaret Delap Hemphill, Richard Patrick was born in King’s county on 17 March 1894. Richard’s father was Minister at St. Brendan’s church from 1892 – 1914. 

Patrick was educated at St. Columba's College, Rathfarnham, Dublin, Campbell College, Belfast and Trinity College, Dublin were he studied medicine. In both Campbell and Trinity College he had been a member of the Officers Training Corps. (Campbell College was the only secondary school to have an O.T.C. in Ireland).

Patrick was commissioned into the 6th Battalion, Leinster Regiment as a Second Lieutenant in December 1914. He served overseas in France and Flanders with the British Expeditionary Force from May to November 1915 entitling him to a 1914-15 Star trio. For 14 months from November 1915 Second Lieutenant Hemphill was stationed in Salonika and was in charge of a company. He was attached to the Royal Flying Corps in Egypt and promoted to Captain. On the 24th March 1917 he was killed in a flying accident at Heliopolis, Egypt. He was interred in the Cairo War Memorial Cemetery, Egypt. 

Lt-Col H W Weldon, late 1st Battalion, Leinster Regiment wrote: For nearly a year he was under me during 1915 when I was Adjunct, and for a short time his Company Commander,  and I can honestly say I never knew a more conscientious, capable or pluckier soldier. He was loved by his men, and had he been spared, I feel sure he would have made a great name for himself, if opportunity occurred.  I think he was  one of the nicest boys I ever met, and one I shall never forget.


Frederick Hill

Joseph Leopald Frederick Hill was born in Tipperary in 1895. Joseph served as a Sergeant in the 1st battalion, Irish Guards. He died of wounds on the 13th April 1918.He has no known grave and is commemorated on the Ploegsteert Memorial and also on a family headstone in Clonoghill cemetery, Birr.

 

“J L F Hill Fred

Serg 2nd Bat Irish Guards

Killed In Action At Borre France

April 17th 1918 Age 21 Years”

 

As inscribed on the family grave.


Charles W. Howes

Born in India in 1887, Charles’ parents were William Robert, a British army officer and Lucy Howes. 

Charles entered Trinity College to study medicine in October 1908. Whist in Trinity he was a member of the Officer Training Corps. After he graduated he was a teacher and taught in Co. Cavan and at Birr.

It would appear Charles’ father William moved to Birr for a period of time. Charles enlisted in the Leinster Regiment in November 1914. Charles married Mabel Gick on 25th September 1915 in St. Brendan’s church, Birr. He had been commissioned into the Durham Light Infantry as a second lieutenant in July 1915. 

Shortly after getting married Charles went overseas to France with the Durham Light Infantry. He was promoted to lieutenant in 1916.  He served for almost 3 years before being killed in action on 22nd April 1918 whilst leading his company, 'W' on an attack at Martinsart Wood on the Somme. Sadly and unknown to Charles, his wife had given birth to a baby girl a day before is death.

Major Howes was laid to rest in Bouzincourt Communal Cemetery Extension, France.

 

Henry T.K. Mitchell

Born around 1891, Henry Theophilus Kelly Mitchell was the son of Thomas and Fanny Mitchell of 19 Oxmanstowns Mall, Birr. Henry was commissioned in the 1st Battalion, Royal Sussex Regiment as a Second Lieutenant on 27th December 1914. He entered theatre in August 1915 and was serving in Asia. He died on 11th November 1915 from a fatal riding accident. He is commemorated on the Delhi Memorial, India. 

 

Thomas Mitchell

An elder brother of Henry T. K. Mitchell, Thomas was born in on 8th December 1882. Thomas was admitted to Sandhurst College to train as an officer in January 1901. He completed his training in Decemember and he was noted to have exemplary conduct. He was commissioned into the Royal Sussex Regiment as a Second Lieutenant. Promoted to Captain on 2nd February 1911

He married Elizabeth Violet Harold of 15, Goldington Avenue, Bedford, England, though the date and place is yet unknown. 

Major Mitchell was sent to Mesopotamia in January 1916. In late Feburay 1916 he was promoted to the administrative position of Deputy 'Assistant Adjutant-General, then to Staff Captain in December. Then sometime later he was promoted to Major (LG reference has not been found).

He died on 12th April 1917 from wounds received in action. He now rests in Baghdad, Cemetery, Iraq. His medals, a British War Medal and Victory Medal were applied for by his widow, Elizabeth.

 

George Murray

The eldest son of George and Ellen Murray, George was born in Parsonstown in 1890. George enlisted in the Leister Regiment before the War and was a professional soldier. When War broke out he was sent to France in December 1914 along with his battalion. He was commissioned in the Leinster regiment in January 1915 having worked his way up the ranks. He made his way up to Captain and served with the 1st battalion, Leinster Regiment. George was mentioned in Dispatches in June 1916.

George was killed in action on the 4th July 1916. It was reported he was trying to spot a German machine gun position when he was struck with a bullet under his ear.

He was laid to rest in Ration Farm Annexe cemetery in France.

 

Frederick Nixon Eckersall

Frederick was the eldest son of Eckersall Nixon and Constantia Mary Anne (Nee Armstrong). He was born in Castletown, Co. Meath. Frederick’s father was a Reverent and was based in Ettagh Rectory in King’s county for a period. His wife was Florence Eleanor Nixon – Eckersall of Gloucestershire

During the War Frederick served as a Major in the Royal Garrison Artillery. He entered into France in October 1915. He was mentioned in dispatched, gazetted in May 1917. Major Nixon-Eckersall was killed in action on 10th November 1917. He was buried Ypres Reservoir cemetery, Belgium.

 

Philip Anderson O’Brien

Born in Belfast in 1895. Not much can be found about O’Brien. He was commissioned in the Leinster Regiment as a Second Lieutenant and presumably he spent time living or stationed in Birr. He went overseas in December 1914 with the 1st battalion and was attached to the 2nd battalion. He died from wounds on 9th March 1915 and was buried in Boulogne Eastern cemetery, France.

 

William Odlum

A native of Birr, William was born on 12th March 1896 and the son of John and Fanny (nee Talbot) Odlum. William lived on Newbridge Street. William served as a Private in the Irish Guards. He also had a brother, John who served in the Machine Gun Corps. William was killed in action on 9 September 1917. He is buried in Artillery Wood Cemetery, Belgium.


John Perry

Born in Parsonstown on 27th December 1881, John was the son of John and Ellen Perry. They lived at John’s Place. John immigrated to Canada sometime between the end of the 19th century and the start of the 20th century. He married in Canadian and they lived in St. Edmonton, Alberta. His wife was Thomasina Perry. John joined the 49th battalion, Canadian Infantry in December 1915 and served as a private. He saw service in France and was killed in action on 9th June 1917. John Perry is commemorated on the Vimy Memorial, France

Private Perry’s name is also commemorated on the family headstone in Clonoghill cemetery, Birr.


Albert Pretty

Born on 11th October 1884 in Killoughy, Tullamore. Albert was the son of John and Sarah (nee Gill) Pretty. He appears to have immigrated to the United States and lived in Seattle Washington. His brother James lived in Canada. Albert worked as a farmer’s horseman. Albert joined the Canadian Infantry in September 1918 and upon enlisting he was described as being 5 foot 8 inches and having brown eyes and hair. Private Pretty died one month later in England on 17th October 1918. He is buried in Plymouth Cemetery, England.

 

William E. Earl of Rosse

Born on the 14th June 1873 and son of Lawrence Parsons, 4th Earl of Rosse and Frances Cassandra Hawke. William was educated at Eton and Oxford Universities. William served as a Lieutenant with the 1st battalion, Coldstream Guards in the Boer War and was entitled to the Queen’s South Africa medal. He was promoted to Captain in 1900 and then to Major in 1906. He had married in 1905 to Frances Lois Listerkaye. William Parsons rejoined the army for service in the First World War. He served with the Irish Guards. He was seriously wounded in the head in May 1915 in France. Major Parsons died from his wounds on 10th June 1918. He died at home in Birr castle. His funeral took place on the 13th June 1918 and his remains where brought to St. Brendan’s old graveyard in Birr. He had a military funeral which was very well attended.

 

John Forrest Ruttledge

The son of Colonel Alfred and Mary Ormsby Ruttledge. John was born in Birr on 1st August 1894. John attended Sandhurst Military college. He entered training to become an officer on 12th February 1913. He completed his training on 17th December 1913. He was commissioned in the 2nd battalion, West Yorkshire Regiment as a Second Lieutenant. He must have been following his father’s footsteps as Alfred had been a colonel in the same regiment. John was promoted to Lieutenant in November 1914 which was around the same time he was sent to France. Lieutenant Ruttledge was mentioned in the London Gazette in March 1915 as having been awarded the Military Cross.

Citation: 

“For great coolness and gallantry on 19th December, 1914 near Neuve Chapelle. When his company were moving over open ground under heavy fire many casualties occurred, and Lieutenant Ruttledge remained to the last helping the wounded away to cover.” 

Lieutenant Ruttledge was promoted to Temporary Captain in April 1916. Captain Ruttledge was killed in action on the 1st day of the Battle of the Somme along with thousands of men. He is remembered with honour on the Thiepval Memorial in France.


Joseph Skerritt

Joseph was the son of Daniel and Annie Skerritt. They lived in Townspark, Birr, King’s County. Joseph served as a Sergeant in the 1st Battalion Royal Dublin Fusiliers. He was killed in action in Gallipoli on 29 Apr 1915. Joseph was just 26. His name is commemorated on the Helles Memorial, Turkey.


Launcelot Studholme

A native of Birr, Launcelot Joseph Moore Studholme was born in 1884. He was the son of Joseph and Mary Studholme. Launcelot was commissioned in the Leinster Regiment in December 1914 and rose to the rank of Captain. He was Mentioned in Dispatches which appeared in the London Gazette in January 1917. Captain Studholme was killed in action on 9 September 1916 while on the Somme with the 7th battalion, Leinster Regiment. Captain Launcelot Studholme has no known grave is commemorated on the Thiepval Memorial in France.


Charles Willoughby

More research is need to determine who this mans identity is.

 

“To The Glory Of God

And

In Loving Memory of

Major Frederic Eckersall Nixon-Eckersall

(Royal Garrison Artillery)

Oldest Son of the Revd. Eckersall Nixon

Born 29th Sept. 1869.

Killed in Action 10th Nov. 1917.

And Buried at Ypres”

 

“To The Glory of God

And in Grateful Memory of

Lancelot J.J. Studholme

Captain 7th Leinster Regiment

Only Surviving and Dearly Loved Son of

The Late Joseph Studholme & Mrs. Studholme

Ballyeighan King’s County.

Killed in Action on the Somme The 9th of

September A.D. 1916 Aged 31 Years. While

Trying to Save A Wounded Comrade

 

Greater Love Hath No Man Than This

That A Man Lay Down His Life For His Friends

 

Erected As A Tribute of Esteem By The

Parishioners and Rector of Kilcolman Who

Mourn the Loss of a True Friend & Parishioner

A Valued Member of our Synod and Counci

And a Devoted Churchwarden for many

Years During Which he was a Generous Donor

To Both Parish Churches and School”

 

“In Memory of

William Edward Parson

Fifth Earl of Rosse

Major Irish Guards

Born 14th June 1873

Joined Coldstream Guards

14th May 1897 Served in the

South African War

Transferred to the

Irish Guards 2nd May 1900

Died 10th June 1918 From

Wounds Received in Action

In France 18th May 1915”


2nd World War


“In Proud and Grateful Remembrance

Of Those Who Gave Their Lives in

The Second World War

1939-1945”

 

The names on the memorial are as follows;

 

Aymer Vivian McIvor Campbell

Aymer was the son of Brevet Lt.-Col. Charles Augustus Vivian of the Indian Army and Mary Hastings Vivian (Nee Studholme, Mary was the brother of Launcelot Studholme who was killed on the Somme). Mary was a native of Birr. (Charles died during the First World War). Campbell served as a Captain in the 2nd battalion, Black Watch. He was killed in action on 21 November 1941 while fighting at Tobruk. He was 32. Aymer’s brother John was also killed during the war. John was Squadron Leader in the Royal Air Force. He died on 8 September 1941. Aymer Vivian’s name is commemorated on the Alamein memorial in Egypt

 

Robert Currie

Sadly this man is too hard to narrow down. Further research is required.

 

Charles Desmond Hackett

Squadron Leader Charles Desmond Hackett served in 27 Squadron Royal Air Force. Charles died on 4th April 1941, he is commemorated on the Singapore memorial. He was the son of Charles Bernard and Dorothy Hobart Hackett, stepson of Olive J. Hackett of Birr, Co. Offaly.

 

Richard Johnson

Richard Henry Johnson was the son of William and Elizabeth Johnson of Woodfield, Birr. He joined the Royal Engineers and was posted to the 17th Field Company. Lance Sergeant Johnson took part in the Normandy Landings on the 6 June 1944. His unit was responsible for laying pontoon bridges during the invasion. The 17th Field Company had the task of bridging the Caen Canal, which they did on the 8 June 1944. This is also the day that Lance Sergeant Johnson died. Lance Sergeant Johnson was laid to rest in Ranville War Cemetery in France.


Robert Leake

The identity of this man is unknown.


Robert Thomas Neville

Robert was born in Birr on 24th October 1911. He was the son of William and Emma Jane Neville. At some point during Robert’s early life he moved to Canada, an exact date is unknown as he can’t be found on passenger lists of the time. Presumably on the outbreak of War Robert enlisted into the Royal Canadian Air force. He served as a Pilot Officer in 419 Squadron. His squadron originally flew in a Handley Page Halifax heavy bomber but converted to using Lancaster Bombers. On 23 October 1944 while on a bombing mission to Essen, Germany Pilot Officer Neville’s bomber took heavy anti-aircraft fire and was shot down. The crew of seven men all lost their lives.

Robert and his comrades are buried in Reichswald Forest War Cemetery, Germany.

 

Patrick Mervyn Wilson

Patrick was the son of Dr. R. Mervyn Wilson and Mrs. N. K. Wilson of Birr. Patrick served as a sergeant in the British Columbia Regiment. Sergeant Wilson was killed on 9 August 1944. He is buried in Bretteville-Sur-Laize Canadian War Cemetery, France. 

 

Acknowledgements and Sources

 

Venerable Wayne Carney, for allowing access to St. Brendan’s church and its records

Mr. Andrew Boughton

Mr. Roger Lunt, a relative of Charles Howes, for allowing use of family photographs

Commonwealth War Graves Commission

Soldiers that Died in the Great War

De Ruvigny's Roll of Honour

The Geographic Journal

Irish Times

Kildare Observer

 

 

Last Updated on Wednesday, 05 June 2013 08:57
 

William Monahan, Royal Dublin Fusiliers

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Serjeant William Monahan, Royal Dublin Fusiliers

Service In France In World War One, a 1917 Memorial Card


Service in France in World War OneA biographical note on the service of William Monahan in the Royal Dublin Fusiliers, the Irish National Army and the Local Defence Force appeared in this Journal (Issue number 94, April 2013). As well as seeing service in the Irish Army which he joined in 1922, he also served in both World Wars.

1917 Memorial CardA memorial of his war service in France has come to light. This is a remembrance card of his reception of the Sacraments in the trenches at Easter 1917.

In 1941 while on duty with the Local Defence Force he died in Buncrana, County Donegal. He received a full Military Funeral and was buried there. He was later awarded the Emergency Service Medal.
 

Michael O’Brien – DMP

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Michael O’Brien – DMP

 

My grandfather, Michael O’Brien was born on the 3rd of December 1894 in the parish of Knocklishen in County Carlow.

Michael O’Brien joined the Dublin Metropolitan Police on the 1st of May 1914 on the recommendation of Justice of the Peace John Eagar esquire and was allocated warrant number 11225. His weekly salary on joining the D.M.P. was £1.3s.8d. On completion of his recruit training in the D.M.P. Training Depot in Kevin Street, Dublin on 24th of October 1914 Constable O’Brien was transferred to the “B” 'Division.

Michael O'Brien in DMP Band UniformDMP Band September 1922


Michael O’Brien was a member of the Dublin Metropolitan Police Band and he played the euphonium. Unfortunately the dates when he joined and resigned from the D.M.P. Band are not known. He can be seen in the photo of the D.M.P. Band taken in Ballsbridge in September of 1922 (location in Ballsbridge unknown) in the middle row on the extreme left of the photo. The Band Master in the photograph is Mr Albert Warburton. Mr Warburton was not was not a member of the D.M.P.

Having successfully sat the Civil Service Commissioners exam in 1919, Michael 0’Brien was awarded a Certificate of Education Third Class

Constable 0’Brien was then promoted to Sergeant on the 1st of April 1924 with an increase of salary to £4.7s.0d. and was transferred to “A” Division.

On the amalgamation of the Dublin Metropolitan Police into the Poilini Atha Cliath and then An Garda Siochana in 1925, Michael O’Brien transferred to the Garda Siochana retaining his rank of sergeant. This photo was taken in 1925. The members are wearing their first official issue of Garda uniforms.


First issue of new Gardai Uniforms 1925

First issue of new Garda uniforms 1925.

Michael O'Brien is standing second from the left in the back row.

In 1922 my grandfather told my father that he personally cut the crown from his helmet plate and forage cap badge having been instructed to do so (as were all members of the DMP) by order of the commissioner and wear the crownless badges as and until Poilini Atha Cliath badges could be procured.

Dublin Metropolitan Police Cap Badges

Dublin Metropolitan Police Cap Badges

 

Station Party 'A' Division 1931Sergeant O’Brien was transferred to “B” Division on the 13th of December 1929 and was promoted to Station Sergeant on the 14th of December 1929. His salary at the rank of Station Sergeant increased to £5.05.0d. Michael O’Brien returned to the “A” Division on the 7th of April 1931. Included in the photo is the station cook. As can be seen in this photo members of An Garda Siochana were still wearing Duty Armbands, the exact same type as worn by members of the Dublin Metropolitan Police since before the turn of the 20th century. Michael O’Brien is in the front row, sitting, second from the right hand side of the photo. He is wearing the oval Three Castle insignia on his right cuff denoting his rank of Station Sergeant. He then transferred to “F” Division on the 25th of August 1936. His final transfer was to the “G” Division on the 16th of March 1949. He was promoted to Inspector on the 15th of August 1948. His salarv being £450 per annum.

 

 

Inspector O’Brien retired from the Garda Siochana on the 2nd of December 1954 having completed 41 years exemplary service. He signed his Certificate of Discharge “Michael Brien”. My grandfather told my father that the midwife who registered his birth along with all the other children born in County Carlow in the era, had been instructed to omit the Mac, Mc or O from all surnames she was registering in order to make all such surnames “less Irish”. As a result my Grandfather had to sign all official documents during his entire 41 year police career Michael Brien.

On the 31st of July 1918 Constable Michael O’Brien married Ms Agnes Murray who was the niece of Constable Patrick Doran and Mrs Theresa Doran (nee Murray). Agnes Murray's father John Murray was killed by a tram in London. A year later in 1900 when her mother Annie died, Agnes returned to Dublin to her Aunt Theresa where she was reared.

Patrick Doran's MedalsPatrick Doran was born 1859 in Dunlavin, County Wicklow. He joined the Dublin Metropolitan Police on the 11th of July 1879 on the recommendation of Justice of the Peace F. W. Greene Esquire and was allocated warrant number 8520. He remained a 4th rate Constable until 16th of January 1880 when he was upgraded to Constable 3rd rate. As a Constable first rate from the 1st of June 1883 his salary was increased to £1.7s.8d. per week. Constable Doran was transferred to the “G” Division on the 22nd of April 1887 and his final transfer was to the “A” Division on the 26th of February 1892. Constable Doran’s salary had risen to £4.15s.0d by 1st of October 1918. He retired on a pension of £164.13s.4d per annum on the 13th of August 1920 having completed 41 years’ service at the rank of Constable.

 

 

Having been on duty during Queen Victoria's visit to Ireland in 1900, Constable Patrick Doran was awarded Queen Victoria's Commemoration Medal, 1900 (Ireland). He was on duty during King Edward VII’s visit to Ireland in 1903 and also King George V’s visit to Ireland in 1911. He was duly awarded the King Edward VII’s Commemoration Medal, 1903 (Ireland) and King George V's Visit Police Commemoration Medal 1911 (Ireland). The attached photo shows the actual medals awarded to Constable Doran and they retain their original ribbons.

Michael O’Brien and Agnes O’Brien had four children. James, Michael, Eileen and Agnes; Agnes O’Brien married Patrick Kavanagh Jnr. Patrick Kavanagh's father, Patrick Kavanagh Snr., was a member of the Dublin Metropolitan Police.

Patrick Kavanagh was born in Ballvreagh, Ermiskerry , County Wicklow in the year 1878 . On the recommendation of Lord Powerscourt he joined the D.M.P. on the 3rd of February 1899, the exact same day as his brother James Kavanagh joined. Patrick Kavanagh was allocated warrant number 10214. On completion of his recruit training in the D.M.P. Training Depot in Kevin Street, Dublin, he was allocated to the “B” Division on a weekly salary of £l.3s.8d. He remained in the “B” until his transfer to the “E” Division on the 1st of November 1918. Constable Patrick Kavanagh remained in the “E” Division until his retirement from the D.M.P. on the 6th of July 1920 on a yearly pension of £134.13s.4d. As Constable Patrick Kavanagh was on duty during Queen Victoria’s visit to Ireland in 1900, King Edwards VII’s visit to Ireland in 1903 and King George V’s visit to Ireland in 1911 he was duly awarded Queen Victoria's Commemoration medal 1900 (Ireland), King Edward VII’s Commemoration medal, (Ireland) 1903 and King George V’s visit Police Commemoration Medal, (Ireland 1911).

In the accompanying photograph, which is a postcard dated 15th July 1907 Constable Patrick Kavanagh is on the left of the photo. His brother Constable James Kavanagh is on the right and an unknown member of the Royal Irish Fusiliers is in the centre. Both brothers can be seen sporting their respective ribbons. I am very grateful to the archivist in Dublin Castle. She was able to pinpoint the exact location within the courtyard of Dublin Castle where this photo was taken 101 years ago.

1907 Postcard of Kavanagh Brothers and oyal Irish Fusilier

Patrick Kavanagh passed away on the 1st November 1941. On reading his obituary printed in the Wicklow People newspaper in November 1941, it reported that Patrick Kavanagh was one of the picked men from the Dublin Metropolitan Police who formed the bodyguard at Queen Victoria's funeral in 1901. Having contacted the Garda Museum, The Irish Times newspaper archive, National Archives, Kew and the Royal Archives at Windsor Castle, I have been unable, so far, to locate any concrete evidence of this report. The hunt continues.

James Kavanagh was born in Ballyreagh, Enniskerry County Wicklow in the year 1872. At the age 27 and on the recommendation of Lord Powerscourt James Kavanagh joined the D.M.P on the 3rd of February 1899 and was allocated warrant number 10213. Having completed his recruit training at the D.M.P. Training Depot in Kevin’s Street, Dublin he was allocated to the “D” Division on a weekly salary of £1.3s.8d.

On the 19th of April Constable James Kavanagh was transferred to “B” Division where he joined his brother Patrick. He remained there until he returned to the “D” Division on the 1st of December 1905. From the 1st of October 1914 James Kavanagh’s weekly salary increased to £1.12s.8d. Constable James Kavanagh was on duty during the royal visits to Ireland in 1900, 1903 and 1911 and was duly awarded the Queen Victoria's Commemoration medal 1900 (Ireland), King Edward VII’s Commemoration medal 1903 (Ireland) and King George V’s visit Police Commemoration medal 1911 (Ireland).

James Kavanagh retired from the Dublin Metropolitan Police on the 3rd of December 1916 on a yearly pension of £52 p.a.

 

Bletchley Park Linguist Honoured

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Bletchley Park Linguist Honoured.


On 19 January 2016 one woman’s role in the extraordinary work carried out in Bletchley Park, Britain’s Second World War code-breaking and intelligence-analysing centre, was acknowledged in a Dublin nursing home.

The British ambassador to Ireland Dominick Chilcott, presented 98-year old Eileen Leslie Greer, a resident of St. Mary’s Nursing Home, Ballsbridge, Dublin, with a medal, the Bletchley Park commemorative badge, and certificate, headed “The Government Code and Cypher School” signed by British Prime Minister, David Cameron. The certificate expressed the British government’s “deepest gratitude for the vital service performed during World War II”.

Known as Leslie, spelling her name the male way, Greer was born to a spirited mother who, during the First World War, was a motorcycle dispatch rider for the Royal Flying Corps.

Her father, the son of a Trinity College Dublin professor, was a barrister and shortly after her birth, the family moved to Dublin.

She attended Alexandra College, in Earlsfort Terrace, Dublin, and afterwards Trinity College, Dublin, where she took a first in German. By her early 20s, she was lecturing at Queen’s University in Belfast when World War 2 broke out. With the encouragement of her professor at Queen’s, she offered her services to the British government, which was quick to realise her value as a fluent German speaker.

In 1940 Greer found herself working in Bletchley Park, where she and others were based in Hut 3, officially classed as a “temporary senior assistant officer” on secondment from the Foreign Office. Her job was to produce intelligence reports based on German army and air force signals decrypted by Hut 6 where the cryptanalysts worked.

After World War 2, Greer continued working for the Foreign Office and was awarded the MBE.
 

COLONEL THOMAS CADELL VC, CB

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COLONEL THOMAS CADELL VC, CB
2nd Bengal European Fusiliers,

A Hero of the Indian Mutiny and Chief Commissioner of the Andaman Islands – Part 1


Some years ago an interesting medal which had been awarded to Thomas Cadell VC came on the market which sparked off the research detailed below.

Scottish Naval and Military Academy Prize Medal to T CadellThe medal concerned is a Scottish Naval and Military Academy Prize Medal, in silver, with Scottish hallmarks. On its obverse it has a St. Andrew’s Cross and the words Scottish Naval and Military Academy. On the reverse is engraved: General Merit, 1st Session, 2nd Prize, Mr. Thos. Cadell, 22nd July 1853. In addition, the russet silk ribbon has an ornate bar with the obverse decorated with thistles and inscribed Jnr Mathematics, while the reverse of this is inscribed Mr Thos Cadell, 1st Prize, 22nd July 1853.

The Victoria Cross which was later awarded to Thomas Cadell was for the earliest “act of bravery” recorded for the Bengal European Fusiliers which merited the award of the newly created VC. The actions took place during the Siege of Delhi on June 12th 1857.


The Scottish Naval and Military Academy

The Scottish Naval and Military Academy, located in Edinburgh, was founded in 1825 and was formally opened on the 8th of November of that year. The academy was under the patronage of the Crown; in 1852 its Patron was Field Marshall His Royal Highness Prince Albert, and the President was Field Marshall His Grace the Duke of Wellington. The “Subscribers”, who were instrumental in the establishment of the Academy, included Thomas Cadell’s father, Hew Francis Cadell, and his uncle, Colonel George Cadell, of the Honourable East India Company. The aim of the Academy was the training of young men for service in the army, navy and the East India Company and it also ran courses for civilians. In the 1850’s its courses of instruction ranged from one to three years and ran from 1st October yearly to the last week in July. In 1852 the fee for each of the first two sessions was 25 Guineas and 12 Guineas for the third session. Courses included Military Drawing, Military and Broadsword Exercises, Fortification, Fencing, Mathematics, Persian and Hindoostanee, Chemistry, History and Geography, French and other continental languages.

The Scotsman of 20th July 1853 states: “Scottish Naval and Military Academy. The annual examination of the Scottish Naval and Military Academy commenced yesterday, when the pupils were examined in various branches of education. It will be continued today, but the proceedings of most interest take place on Friday, when the prizes will be delivered”. This was the day, Friday 22nd July 1853, when Thomas Cadell received his prizes for General Merit and Junior Mathematics and when he was awarded the Prize Medal described above.

A letter from the Directors of the Scottish Naval and Military Academy to its President, the Prince Consort, stated that of the “numerous pupils who have received their education at the Military Academy upwards of one thousand have obtained commissions in the service of Her Majesty and of the East India Company …….long list of those who acquired honourable distinction in the Crimean Campaign and the war now raging in India”.


Thomas Cadell: His Family Background and Early Years

Thomas Cadell was born on 5th September 1835 at Cockenzie House, in the small sea-side town of Cockenzie, East Lothian, Scotland. He was baptised at the nearby Church of Scotland parish church in Tranent, on 2nd October.

Cockenzie, on the southern side of the Firth of Forth, is about 10km east of Edinburgh. Cockenzie House, the former home of the Cadells, remains a fine house today. It was built in the late 17th century for the Seton family, who were important coal mine owners and salt makers. The house is large and impressive, with, in Thomas Cadell’s time, four public rooms, seven bedrooms, and numerous ancillary rooms and offices. It had six acres of grounds. However, Thomas Cadell was the last of the Cadells to live at Cockenzie House. In 1920, shortly after his death, it became the home of Sir Everard im Thurn, formerly Governor of the Fiji islands and High Commissioner of the Western Pacific. After Sir Everard’s death in 1932 and, following the move of his widow, Lady im Thurn, to England in 1938, the house was let. During the war years it was a residential nursery school and currently hosts artists and small businesses.

Thomas’ parents were Hew Francis Cadell and Janet (nee Buchan-Sydserf), Thomas being the tenth of twelve children. There were six boys and six girls. The other children included, among the boys: John (1819 – 1853) who was Belgian Vice-Consul at Leith, Captain Francis Cadell (1822 – 1879) the explorer and pioneer navigator of the Murray and Darling rivers in Australia, who was murdered by his crew, and General Sir Robert Cadell KCB (1825 – 1897) Royal Artillery. Thomas’s sisters, to whom he wrote home from India, included Martha (1818 – 1898), Mary (1828 – 1901), Janet (1831 – 1881), Anne (1834 – 1865) and Harriet (1843 – 1891).

Thomas was related, through the marriage of a cousin, Charles Cadell, to Samuel Hill Lawrence VC (1831 – 1868) of the 32nd Regiment. Lawrence also won his VC for the Indian Mutiny, for the Defence of Lucknow. He was born in Cork on 22nd July 1831; in 1837 his family is recorded as living at Belmont Cottage, Douglas, Cork. Lawrence died in Montevideo in 1868 and is buried there. His VC is housed at the Duke of Cornwall’s Light Infantry Museum, Bodmin, Cornwall.

Thomas received his early education at Edinburgh Academy where he was a pupil from 1845 to 1848 and he was the first of nine Academicals to be awarded the Victoria Cross, three of which were won for actions during the Indian Mutiny. From 1848 to 1850 Thomas attended the Grange School, Sunderland, and from July 1850 to July 1852 he was a pupil at Zeist Academy, on the outskirts of Utrecht. He then proceeded to the Scottish Naval and Military Academy, attending this from 1st October 1852 to August 1853. In July 1853 he was awarded the 1st Prize in Junior Mathematics and the 2nd prize in General Merit and received the Scottish Naval and Military Academy Prize Medal described here. From August 1853 until December 1853 he underwent private tuition in Edinburgh in Classics, Mathematics and Drawing.

In January 1854 Thomas made an application to the Honourable East India Company for a Cadetship in the Bengal Infantry. He was nominated by Sir Charles Wood, President of the Commissioners for the Affairs of India, and his application was supported by the Duke of Argyll. His application was witnessed by his elder brother Robert Cadell (1825 – 1897), Madras Artillery (later General Sir Robert Cadell). He also received a number of supporting testimonials. The first of these, dated 30th January 1854, supplied by the Director of the Zeist Academy, states that “Master Thomas Cadell ……has been a very industrious student… learning with zeal and whose behaviour was satisfactory in every respect which gained him the affection of his teachers. We attest this with pleasure, wishing the dear youth the best success in his career”. Another Testimonial, dated 1st February 1854, from Major Seton, Vice-Chairman of the Scottish Naval and Military Academy, confirms that Thomas Cadell attended the Academy from 1st October 1852 to August 1853 and goes on to state that “during that time, his attendance and progress in his studies were satisfactory and that his general conduct was always correct and exemplary”. In a testimonial, dated 11th February 1854, Rev. Lorimer, Minister at Cockenzie, states “I confirm Mr Thomas Cadell to be a member of my congregation and I know him to be well instructed in the principles of the Presbyterian Church in which he has been brought up”. A final testimonial, dated 8th March 1854, from his father Hew. F. Cadell, written from Cockenzie House, confirms that from August 1853 until December 1853 Thomas attended private tuition in Edinburgh in Classics, Mathematics and Drawing and states that “…during this period he was most attentive in his studies, and conducted himself with propriety”.

His application to the HEIC was successful, and he was commissioned as an Ensign on April 17th 1854; he arrived in India on the 22nd of July 1854. In August he was posted to the 25th Bengal Native Infantry. In October 1854 he was transferred to the 11th Bengal Native Infantry; in January 1855 he was gazetted to the 2nd Bengal European Fusiliers joining them in Rangoon. Between November 1855 and February 1856 the regiment proceeded to Allahabad. Thomas Cadell was promoted to Lieutenant in the regiment on November 23rd 1856 which was then under the command of Brigadier St. G. D. Showers.


Award of the Victoria Cross

From July 1855 some minor revolts took place in northwest India; but, following the British annexing the province of Oudh in 1856 the mutinies became more intense and widespread. On May 3rd 1857 the 7th Oudh Irregulars went on revolt; on the same day Thomas Cadell wrote home to his sister, Janet: “The sepoys are kicking up rows over the whole of Bengal. The other day they burned down several Government godowns full of beer at Umballa and set fire to two or three other public buildings”. These events were followed on May 10th by a much greater mutiny of the native troops in Meerut who killed all the Europeans within their reach and then marched on Delhi. There, other mutineers were active, who, on May 11th massacred all the Europeans who fell into their hands. On May 13th the Second Bengal European Fusiliers, who had been stationed at Subathu in the hills near Simla, proceeded by two forced marches to Umballa, reaching there on May 17th. From there they joined the First Bengal European Fusiliers, other East India Company and British Army regiments, and on June 7th marched on Delhi.

Between 8th and 16th June there were several severe skirmishes before Delhi. The flag staff on the historic “Ridge” at Delhi was often a point of attack by the mutineers when they attempted a sortie, as well as by their friends outside, in their efforts to raise the siege. On June 12th a large body of the mutineer infantry launched a vigorous attack and the pickets of the Bengal European Fusiliers and of the 75th Regiment were forced to retire before overwhelming numbers.


VC Action

Lieutenant Cadell, seeing a bugler of his own regiment fall severely wounded, went to his assistance, and, carrying him from among the enemy under heavy fire, saved him from certain death. Again, on the same evening, when his regiment was ordered to retire to Sir Theophilus Metcalfe’s house, on hearing that a wounded man of the 75th was left behind, he immediately went back towards the advancing mutineers, taking with him three men, and brought him in to safety. This act of devotion to duty by Cadell and his men was accomplished under a ferrocious fire of cannon and musketry.

It was for these two acts of bravery that he was awarded the Victoria Cross. The London Gazette, April 29th 1862 states the following: “Thomas Cadell, Lieutenant, late 2nd Bengal European Fusiliers, Date of act of bravery, June 12th, 1857. For having, on June 12th 1857, at the flagstaff picquet at Delhi, when the whole of the picquet of Her Majesty’s 75th Regiment, and 2nd Bengal European Fusiliers were driven in by a large body of the enemy, brought in from amongst the enemy a wounded bugler of his own regiment, under a most severe fire who would otherwise have been cut up by the rebels. Also, on the same day, when the Fusiliers were retiring, by order, on Metcalfe’s house, on its being reported that there was a wounded man being left behind, Lieutenant Cadell went back of his own accord towards the enemy, accompanied by three men, and brought in a man of the 75th Regiment, who was severely wounded, under a most heavy fire from the advancing enemy”.

Thomas Cadell gives an account of June 12th in a letter home to his father dated June 29th, and makes no big deal of his own bravery: “The most severe fire I have been under was on the 12th. I went up with a party of my Regiment to relieve a picquet of the 75th. We had broken off our men when I went to the front of the Flag Staff Tower to see what was going on. I went to the brow of the hill with Knox of the 75th (he was knocked over five minutes afterwards) and no sooner had we got there than about thirty bullets whizzed by our heads. I asked the senior officer present to take out my company. He allowed me to take out only a sub-division. I had just got there in skirmishing order in line with the tower when about a thousand Pandies (rebel sepoys) jumped over the brow of the steep hill like so many spectres. We kept them back for about ten minutes when we were forced to retire. Eleven out of the twenty men who were with me were killed or wounded, so you see it was rather sharp work. We soon rallied again and of course drove them back”.

It is not fully clear who made the recommendation for the award of the Victoria Cross. In his book “China Jim” (see Bibliography), Colonel J. T. Harris (later Major-General) reminisces: “During the cold weather of 1875 I received a letter from an old friend, Tommy Cadell, who had been a subaltern a little junior to me in the old 2nd Bengal European Fusiliers; he was with me in the attack the enemy made on us at the Flagstaff picket on June 12th 1857, for his share of which I recommended the VC, which he got”.

There exists a lengthy, eighty-one page file in the National Archives, London, Ref: WO32/7349 (see Bibliography) which shows that the recommendation is one of six which were only made in late 1861. This lateness engendered in London considerable discussion; recommendations made after December 1860 being initially declined “on account of the delay in bringing them forward”. After lengthy consideration of Thomas Cadell’s case and those of the five others in this file the award of the Victoria Cross was approved. Mitigating factors were called upon; in the case of Thomas Cadell the delay was due to “the officer having been of a retiring disposition so that his case was overlooked”. A letter from Brigadier F. Wheler dated 14th May 1861 starts by giving the full text of what later became Thomas Cadell’s official citation (in italics above) and then continues: “The gallant conduct of Lieut Cadell was laid before the Commander in Chief by Major Hall, commanding 4th Irregular Cavalry, of which Regiment Lieut Cadell is now Adjutant, in December 1859. The Commander in Chief rejected the recommendation as it was not made until two years after the service was performed. Major Hall submitted that it was through no fault of him or Lieut Cadell that the recommendation had not been made long ago. Lieut Cadell was of a retiring disposition and never boasted of his deeds. Major Hall only heard of them accidentally in September 1859, and thinking it his duty to interest himself in the matter, he wrote to the officer commanding the 2nd Bengal Fusiliers requesting him to make enquiries in his Regiment for further proofs. Brigadier Wheler, Commanding Sangor District, expressed his hope that the decision in the case of Lieut Cadell might be reconsidered. “This officer’s gallantry is undoubted and I apprehend that it is attributed to his own modest and retiring disposition that his name was not brought forward sooner for the decoration”. “Because the Officer Commanding the 2nd European regiment to which Lieut Cadell belongs did not bring forward the case at Delhi, when the force there was cut off from direct communication with Headquarters, and probably overlooked it subsequently, that the young officer should lose that which is the ambition of every British Soldier, and an opportunity of earning which occurs but once in a life time, would be unfortunate indeed.”.

Thus, it was not until five years after the Siege of Delhi, that the Victoria Cross was officially conferred on him at a brigade parade in Saugor, India, on 19th November 1862. The award was made by Colonel James Travers (later General James Travers, VC, CB, 1820 – 1884), who was born in Cork, and who also was awarded his VC for the Mutiny. His VC was also gazetted late, on 1st March 1861, due to General Sir Hugh Rose “requiring ocular proof of Travers’ act of gallantry” before he would sanction the award, and was one of the six late recommendations discussed above.


The Siege of Delhi

On June 11th 1857, the army commanders recommended that Delhi be stormed at once; however, due to a lack of communication between the commanders the scheme was deferred until June 17th. In fact, during the Mutiny, it was generally considered that the senior officers displayed mediocre powers of decision. Thomas Cadell, in the June 29th letter to his father mentioned previously, thinks poorly of the field force commanders stating “I wish to goodness that we were inside, but don’t see how we are ever going to get inside under the choice collection of muffs we have at our head. The mismanagement licks the Crimea almost….. They attack us in great numbers and the General sends two companies from one regiment and two from another to back them up and so on till men from all the regiments either get jumbled up together or else go at it perfectly independently. On such occasions we seldom see a field officer and everything is left to the captains and subalterns”. In the same letter he describes the bloody nature of the battles: “No quarter is given on either side. We bayonet all their wounded and they cut up ours with their tulwars (native swords) which they all carry in addition to their muskets or rifles”.

On 12th July, Thomas wrote to his sister, Martha: “You see we have not yet entered ……… and I do not see much possibility of our getting in before another month or six weeks are over”. Later, on August 27th he wrote further: “I hope my next letter will be dated from the Imperial City instead of before it, as a siege train will be here in a few days”, and on 13th September he wrote again: “The end of Delhi is very near at last. We expect to go in tonight……our Regiment, I believe, has some very nasty work cut our for it, viz:- scaling the walls close to the Cashmere gate, their strongest position”.

By the evening of 13th September siege guns had breached the walls and gates of Delhi and the last rebel strongholds in the city were captured by September 20th. The fighting was extremely violent, hundreds of natives being shot or hanged by the conquering army. “Lots of blackguards are hanged every morning” Thomas Cadell wrote to his sister, Janet, on 24th January 1858 …”The more the merrier”. In an earlier letter to his father of 29th November 1857 he lists several fellow officers who were killed or wounded; “I myself was hit once with a spent bullet out of a shrapnel shell: another time a musket ball hit the barrel of my pistol in my belt leaving a great blue mark on my thigh: another bullet hit the hilt of my sword and another went right intro the little pouch in which I carried cartridges, and which was fastened to my belt”. On 2nd January, 1858 Thomas wrote to his sister, Mary: “A merry Xmas and a happy New Year to you all. At what a terrific pace ‘57 has flown by! The fifty two weeks appear to have lessened into fifty two hours”.

Throughout this there was competition among the junior officers in the infantry to be noticed by their commanders, i.e. to be mentioned in dispatches. This meant that these officers tended to take many risks and, in the case of Thomas Cadell, he was “muckle ower venturesome” in the opinion of a Scottish soldier of his regiment, Private James M’Ewan, who was his constant follower, and who was killed at Cadell’s side in the breach at Delhi.

On 24th January 1858 he wrote to his sister, Janet: “The Delhi army has been most unlucky in not having any good men, like Brigr. Inglis, to write dispatches and many a deed has been done which in the Crimea would have rewarded with the greatest of all honour to a soldier, the Victoria Cross”. He goes on: “Do you remember a lot of Hills who were both at the Edinburgh and Military Academy with me? One of them, Jimmy Hills of the Artillery, (see Williams, D.A. in Bibliography) deserves the Cross as much as any of the Crimean heroes. Single-handed he charged about a hundred cavalry and went cutting and slashing about him like a brick in order to give his gunners time to turn round their guns. Of course he got knocked over, and would have been cut to pieces, had not another fellow equally deserving of the Cross (Tombs), single handed also, come to his rescue”.

On 31st October 1858 Cadell wrote to his father: “I have always been well to the front, and still have never been mentioned”. In fact, Cadell had been “mentioned” and later, as we have seen, received the coveted Victoria Cross.

Half a life-time later”, quoting Louisa Kathleen Haldane (see Bibliography) “when Colonel Cadell of Cockenzie was my very dear friend, he told me how one day when he was riding back to his camp, he saw ‘old Keatinge (Lieutenant-General Richard Harte Keatinge, VC, CSI, uncle of Louisa Haldane) sitting at the door of my tent, and he called out “you’ve got it at last old fellow” and I wondered which of my sins had found me out. But it was Keatinge who had come to tell me that I had been awarded the Victoria Cross’. My uncle always said that it was Cadell who really deserved the Cross for extreme gallantry at the siege of Delhi, and I heard that he refused to wear his Cross until Cadell’s had been awarded”.

In July 1858 he was made Interpreter and Quartermaster with the Regiment. Following the fall of Delhi, the 2nd Bengal European Fusiliers were stationed in the Red Fort at Delhi. In November 1858 he left the Regiment and was appointed Duty Officer with the 4th Bengal Irregular Cavalry, and Adjudant in March 1859. On leaving the Regiment he received the following letter from the Qr. Mr. Sergeant: “It has been my good fortune to be placed under most excellent officers, but to none of these officers have I reason to owe so much gratitude as to you, Sir. I will speak confidently of those who fought before Delhi, where your daring gallantry was on many occasions such as to make every man of the Regiment esteem and admire you as leader”.

This article will be continued in the next Journal and the bibliography will be provided there.

 

Colonel Thomas Cadell, VC CB Part 2

COLONEL THOMAS CADELL VC,CB

2nd Bengal European Fusiliers,

A Hero of the Indian Mutiny and Chief Commissioner of the Andaman Islands – Part 2

Later Service In India

Cadell served throughout the Oudh Campaign (1858 – 1859) under Brigadier Colin Troup. He was present at the action of Mehudi under Colonel Brind in which thirteen enemy guns were captured. He was mentioned in Colonel Brind’s dispatch of 19th November 1858 for this action. He commanded No 1 Bundelcund Flying Column against the Bheels (1859 – 1860), being mentioned in dispatches and receiving the thanks of the Government for his services. In May 1860 he was appointed Commandant of the Aden Troop Irregular Horse.

According to the Regimental History of the Royal Munster Fusiliers, there was a prophecy, dated immediately after the Battle of Plassey – June 23rd 1757 – to the effect that the Company’s rule would only last one hundred years. In the event, the sovereignty of India became invested in the Crown on 2nd August 1858. When the Regiment was transferred from the East India Company’s Service to the Queen’s Service Thomas Cadell was posted to the newly formed Bengal Staff Corps as Lieutenant, being, in September 1860, appointed Deputy Bheel Agent and Asssistant Political Agent, Nimaur and second in command of the Malwa Bheel Corps.

Marriage

In October 1865, after ten years soldiering in India, Thomas obtained his first leave home in Scotland. While there, on 18th April 1867, he married the daughter of an old East Lothian family, Anna Catherine Dalmahoy, daughter of Patrick Dalmahoy, of Bourhouse, East Lothian. The marriage took place under the auspices of a Minister of the United Free Church of Scotland at her home, 69 Queen Street, Edinburgh. Anna Catherine was the sister of an HEIC contemporary of Thomas; this was Ensign Patrick Carfrae Dalmahoy (1840 – 1920; later Major-General) of the 60th Native Infantry. He was also a pupil at Edinburgh Academy (1850 – 1854) and was only sixteen when he sailed for India in November 1856 and also saw extensive action during the Mutiny.

While on leave, Thomas Cadell was promoted Captain with the Bengal Staff Corps (London Gazette, September 11th 1866) and in June 1867 he and his young wife returned to India. Thomas was given the task of pacifying a large area of Rajputana. Louisa Haldane, remarks in her memoirs (see Bibliography): “I do not remember precisely how it came about that in 1867 my uncle (this was Major Richard Harte Keatinge, later Lieutenant-General Richard Harte Keatinge VC, CSI, who was born in Dublin in 1825; died in Sussex in 1904, and who also won his VC during the Indian Mutiny) and his friend Captain Thomas Cadell of the Munsters found themselves appointed to pacify a large district in Rajputana but I feel sure that either Sir Bartle Frere or Sir Henry Durand had to do with it. Someone was heard to express an opinion that it was a tough job for two comparatively junior and inexperienced men, and to hope that they could not fail. One of the old chiefs, and again I do not know to which of them the story refers, answered ‘Those are not the kind of young men who fail’”.

In 1868 saw the birth of the first of Thomas and Anna Cadell’s seven children, six of whom were born in India. This first was Hew Francis Cadell. He was a Major with the Lothians and Border Horse during World War I and a Writer to the Signet; he died in Edinburgh in 1947.

In March 1869 Thomas was appointed Officer Commanding of the Malwa Bheel Corps, during which time it is recorded (in his obituary in The Scotsman, 7th April 1919, entitled “The Bravest Man in India”) that while in the Bheel Country he shot no less than 68 tigers! The same year saw the birth of the first of two daughters, Anna Catherine.  She never married and died in Edinburgh in 1951.

In 1870 Thomas Cadell was appointed Political Agent, Alwar (Ulwar), holding this appointment until 1877. As in the Bheel Country, tiger hunting was a favourite pastime. Major-General Kinchant reminisces, in the 11th Hussar Journal of 1911 (see Bibliography) that during the period that the 11th Hussars were stationed in the area “an invitation was received from Captain Thomas Cadell, V.C., the Resident of Ulwar, Rajputana, asking four officers of the regiment to come over and try for tiger” of whom Kinchant was one: “Next day (2nd August, 1872) we were presented to H.H. the Maharajah by Captain Cadell … the Maharajah showed us his battery of rifles and guns. Everything conducive to a successful hunt had been arranged. Comforts for the inner man had not been forgotten……but no news of tiger! Captain Cadell consoled us with a brew of his own - hot spiced beer - glorious tipple after a wet day in the jungle”. Writing to Major-General Kinchant on May 16th 1911, Cadell reminisced: “I remember you ….quite well. You were a blooming youngster then, now, I suppose you are a grave old patriach. I am still quite young!!”

In 1871 Thomas and Anna’s second son, Patrick Robert, was born. Knighted in 1938, Sir Patrick Robert, CSI, CIE, VD held several senior posts in the Indian Civil Service, was Chief Secretary of the Government of Bombay, and one time A.D.C. to the Viceroy. Two further children were born in 1872 and 1873: firstly John Richard Keating Cadell who died, aged one and a half years, in 1873, and secondly, James Dalmahoy Cadell who became a Lieutenant with the Central India Horse and died in Jodhpur, India, in 1897, aged 24.

On 17th April 1874 Thomas Cadell was promoted to Major in the Bengal Staff Corps and from that month until November 1875, together with his wife and young family, he was on extended leave at home in Scotland. While there, on October 6th 1874, their second daughter, Marion Sydserff Cadell, was born in Cockenzie House. She never married and died in 1959.

In 1876, on 31st August, less than a year after Thomas and Anna’s return to India, Anna died at Alwar, following the birth of their youngest child, also called Thomas. Anna is commemorated on a tablet at the Church of Scotland parish church in Tranent as follows: “Sacred to the memory of Anna Catherine, died at Alwar, India, 1876, wife of Colonel Cadell, V.C., C.B.” Their youngest son, also called Thomas fought in the Boer War and was Secretary of the Anglo-French Exploration Company; he died, unmarried, at the age of 33 in Johannesburg, on 18th October 1909.

In November 1877 Thomas Cadell was appointed Political Agent for Marwar, and subsequently for Mewar in April 1878. In October 1879 he was assigned as the Commandant of the Erinpura Force and Political Agent to for Western Rajputana.

 He was promoted Lt. Colonel on April 17th 1880 (London Gazette, June 22nd 1880) and Colonel on 17th April 1884 (London Gazette, 20th June 1884).

Chief Commissioner Of The Andaman Islands

In December 1879 a major change took place in his life: he was appointed Chief Commissioner and Superintendent of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, serving there from 1879 until 1892, being the third Chief Commissioner appointed to the post.

The Andaman and Nicobar Islands comprise a group of large and small islands in the southern reaches of the Bay of Bengal. They were a British Colony from 1858 until 1947, since when they have been a union territory of India. As from March 1858, when 200 rebels from the Indian Army were imprisoned there, it was an important British penal colony for convicts from the Indian mainland. Jungles were cleared, swamps drained, and the indigenous Andamese natives intimidated into keeping their distance. After the Mutiny, ordinary criminals were held there. As Chief Commissioner Cadell was the supreme head of the settlement having a residence in the capital, Port Blair. He had both European and Indian assistants and a garrison of British and Indian troops. In 1901 there were 11,947 convicts distributed among four jails and nineteen stations.

Cadell was a humane and considerate Chief Commissioner with regard to both the convicts under his care and the native Andamanese. Several examples of his caring attitude are documented in the Government of India papers (see Bibliography). For example, during the later years of his tenure the Indian government proposed building a major “Cellular Jail” in Port Blair, along the lines of those which had been constructed in England. Cadell expressed his concerns: “it might prove injurious to the case of the men already suffering from mental depression on first arrival in the Settlement”. Again, in December 1879 when one of the officers was attacked and rendered unconscious by a chaingang prisoner, Cadell defended the prisoner’s actions: He was probably seized by a sudden homicidal impulse, and could not resist the temptation of having an officer within reach of his hoe, just as many boys cannot resist shying a stone at a cat when an opportunity offers”.

Cadell was also responsible for obtaining a considerable reduction in the mortality rates among the convicts by appointing well qualified medical staff; thus the mortality rates dropped from 7.5 percent to 2.7 percent after his arrival. In connection with this, he instructed district officers to employ new convicts “on works where they are unlikely to contract malaria”. He also dealt sympathetically with the case of lepers who were among the convicts, there being 42 in 1889, and arranged that they be looked after in special barracks.

Thus Cadell’s Chief Commissionership was a period of reforming and humane government, so much so, that between 1888 and 1890 the Government of India Jail Committee proposed, in a lengthy submission to the Indian Government that changes be made to tighten up discipline in the penal colony as it was perceived that “transportation is no longer a deterrent form of punishment. The returned convicts from Port Blair …give glowing accounts of life there……this results in a belief throughout India that transportation to the Andamans is rather to be desired than dreaded as a form of punishment……” (Letter, 15th January 1890 from Secretary to the Government of India to the Secretary of State for India).

On 11th February 1890 Colonel Cadell wrote to the Secretary to the Government of India, Home Department, requesting postponement of his retirement date from September 1890, when he would be aged 55, and under ordinary circumstances would have to vacate his appointment, to 1892 when he would be entitled to a Colonel’s allowances. His application was very strongly supported in a letter from Lord Landsdowne and others to the Secretary of State for India, which pointed out that “it would be difficult to obtain in India any officer as well suited for the supervision of any change of system as Colonel Cadell, whose long experience of the Settlement ……..renders him peculiarly fitted for the task……………”

Retirement

In 1892 Thomas Cadell was transferred to “the Unemployed List” (London Gazette, September 20th 1892) and on his return home from the Andaman Islands he settled in Cockenzie and devoted himself to public affairs in East Lothian. He took a particular interest in all matters pertaining to the fishing community and was appointed Chairman and President of the East Coast Fishery Association in 1910.

He was a County Councillor for Tranent of the Western District of the then “Haddingtonshire” and a Justice of the Peace for Haddingtonshire. Although baptised into the Church of Scotland, he became an active member of the United Free Church. He was closely involved in the planning of a new church Free Church building - ‘The Chalmers Memorial Church - in Port Seton between 1903 and 1905.

He spent some time remodelling his home, Cockenzie House, and extending its garden. He had acquired a large, sacred, marble Nandi Bull which had been captured by the Somerset Regiment during the Mutiny, and to house it he decided to build a temple for it in his garden. Today there is no sign of the marble bull, but the temple still stands.

In 1898 he finalised, edited and published his late brother General Sir Robert’s book on the Battle of Prestonpans concerning the 1745 rebellion during which Bonnie Prince Charlie defeated the English under General Sir John Cope; the book was entitled “Sir John Cope and the Rebellion of 1745”.

Colonel Cadell became a Freemason in India shortly before the Mutiny, joining the Lodge Triune Brotherhood No. 684 which was based in the Punjab and which was founded in 1856. When he returned home he joined the Holyrood House Lodge of the Grand Lodge of Scottish Freemasons. He was Master from 1902-1902, and Grand Sword Bearer for Scotland from 1905-1907. He was a Director of Edinburgh Academy from 1907. Also, in 1907, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the “Military Operations in India”, he was made a Companion of the Order of the Bath for his services during the Indian Mutiny (Edinburgh Gazette, 2nd July 1907).

Thomas Cadell died at in Edinburgh at 25 Walker Street on 5th April, 1919. At the time of his death he was the oldest holder of the Victoria Cross. His death notice in The Scotsman of April 7th 1919 records his regiments as “Bengal Staff Corps and Royal Munster Fusiliers”. His funeral took place on 9th April with full military honours from the Cockenzie United Free Church to the family burial vaults at the Church of Scotland, Tranent. The funeral service was conducted by Brigadier-General the Rev. Dr Mackay and the Rev. J. Hastie. The coffin was carried into the church by fishermen from the village. Simultaneously a memorial service was held in St. Andrew’s Church, Drumsheugh Gardens, Edinburgh. At the conclusion of the service at Cockenzie the coffin was placed on a gun carriage driven by officers of the Royal Field Artillery. Three hundred men of the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders were in attendance with pipers and drummers. The coffin having been borne to the graveside by the fishermen, Brigadier-General the Rev. Dr Mackay conducted the committal ceremony, which was followed by the firing of three volleys, the sounding of the Last Post, and the playing of a dirge. In addition to a memorial in the churchyard at Tranent, there is a memorial plaque in the Chalmers Memorial Church, Port Seton, while his name is also on the V.C. roll of honour at the Union Jack Club, London.

In 1921 a Memorial Beacon was erected to his memory at Port Seton Harbour. It was unveiled on 12th February 1921 by the Earl of Wemyss. A tablet on the front of the memorial bears the inscription: “Erected 1921 by the Cockenzie and Port Seton fishermen and other friends in memory of Colonel Thomas Cadell, V.C., C.B. of Cockenzie; born 5th September 1835; died 5th April 1919”. To quote the Haddingtonshire Courier of 18th February 1921: “Much interest was manifested ………on Saturday afternoon in the unveiling of a memorial to the late Colonel Thomas Cadell, V.C., C.B. of Cockenzie whose kindly helpful influence and work are affectionately remembered by all inhabitants. The memorial takes the appropriate form of a beacon light and is erected at the harbour entrance in proximity of the existing beacon ….which will now be dismantled. …..” ; the memorial still stands.

The whereabouts of Thomas Cadell’s VC is not known. His other decorations and medal entitlement comprise his CB, an Indian Mutiny Medal with clasp Delhi and, of course, the Scottish Naval and Military Prize Medal described here.

Bibliography

Ashcroft, Michael. Victoria Cross Heroes. 2006. Headline Books.

Best, Brian. Show me a hero and I will write you a tragedy. Journal of the Victoria Cross Society, vol 12, March 2008.

Breen, James Oliver. Fermanagh and the Victoria Cross. Journal of the Medal Society of Ireland, June 2006, Number 73, pp18-29.

Britton, Fergus W. The Royal Munster Fusiliers Old Comrades Association Annual Dinner Menu, 26th June 1920.  Journal of the Medal Society of Ireland, September 1999, No. 49, pp23-25.

Byrne, Liam. An Irishman Remembered – Martin Doylc V.C. M.M. Journal of the Medal Society of Ireland, August 1991. No 17, pp7-11.

Crook, M J. The Evolution of the Victoria Cross. Midas Books. 1975.

Doherty Richard and Truesdale, David. Irish Winners of the Victoria Cross. Four Courts Press. 2000.

Dick, David. A Millennium of Fame in East Lothian: 200 Lives of Achievement. Clerkington Publishing. 2000.

Dix, Noonan, Webb. Auction Catalogue for 22nd September 2006.

Edinburgh Academy Army List 1824-1894. Complied by A. J. Pressland. Edinburgh. 1894.

Edinburgh Academy Chronicle. Vol I, 1893, pp 117 – 118.

Edinburgh Academy Chronicle. Vol XXVI, 1918-19, pp 106-07.

Edinburgh Academy Register. Edinburgh. 1914.

Edinburgh Gazette, 1907.

Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition. 1911.

Entiknapp, John. William Cosgrove V.C. Royal Munster Fusiliers. Journal of the Medal Society of Ireland, May 1991, No 16, pp38-38.

Friends and Kindred: The Memoirs of Louisa Kathleen Haldane. Faber and Faber. 1961

Gittings, Ron. From Hero to Terrorist.  Journal of the Medal Society of Ireland, June 2007, No 77, pp5-10.

Gray, William Forbes and Jamieson, James H. East Lothian Biographies. East Lothian Antiquarian and Field Naturalists’ Society. 1941.

Haddingtonshire Courier. 18 February 1821.

Harris, J.T. “China Jim” being incidents and adventures in the life of an Indian Mutiny Veteran. Heinemann. 1912.

Harvey, David. Monuments to Courage: Victoria Cross Monuments and Headstones. K & K Patience, 1999.

Hibbert, Christopher. The Great Mutiny: India 1857. Viking Press, 1978.

Herbert, C.M. From Aghada, Co. Cork to Grim Gallipoli. Journal of the Medal Society of Ireland, December 1996, No 38, pp25-27.

Hewett, Charles E. and others. Notes and Queries. Oxford Journal, Volume s10-IV, Number 92, pp 212, 213, 274. 1905.

General Register Office, Scotland. Various.

Government of India Home papers (Port Blair). Various.

India Office Papers. Service papers: L/MIL/10/92/351-52; L/MIL/10/98/194; L/MIL/10/86/41-42; Cadet Papers: L/MIL/9/231/462-70; Civil Correspondence: L/P3/6/275 File 660.

Innes, Lieut.-Colonel P.R.  The History of the Bengal European Regiment, now the Royal Munster Fusiliers, and how it helped to win India. Simpkin Marshall. 1885.

Kempton, Chris. Valour & Gallantry: HEIC & Indian Army Victoria Crosses & George Crosses 1856-1946. Military Press. 2001.

Kinchant, J.K. A Tiger Hunt. In: XI Hussar Journal, Vol II, 1911, pp 150 – 152.

London Gazette, various dates.

Lummis, Rev. Canon William. Victoria Cross Biography, No. C1. Colonel Thomas Cadell, V.C., C.B., Lieutenant, 2nd Bengal Europesan Fusiliers (afterwards 104th Regiment). Compilation.

Magnusson, Magnus. The Clacken and the Slate, the story of Edinburgh academy 1824 – 1974. Edinburgh. 1974.

McCance, Captain S. History of the Royal Munster Fusiliers, volume 1, from 1652 to 1860. Gale and Polden, 1922.

McCance, Captain S. History of the Royal Munster Fusiliers, volume II, from 1861 to 1922. Gale and Polden, 1922.

Moloney, T. William Cosgrove VC. Royal Munster Fusiliers Association Newsletter No. 6, Spring 1995, pp28-29.

Moloney, T. An Irish Giant who hated fuss: William Cosgrove VC. Journal of the Victoria Cross Society, vol 8, March 2006, pp 37- 39.

Macintyre, Alasdair. Nine Valiant Academicals. Edinburgh Academy. 2007.

National Archives, London. Decorations and Medals: Victoria Cross (Code 50(M)): Indian Mutiny: Recommendations concerning Col. J. Travers, Lt. Col. S. Browne, Lieuts. C. Maclean, E. Thackery and T. Cadell and Conductor J. Miller. WO32/7349

National Army Museum. Letters from Thomas Cadell to his father. NAM 1967-02-90-1; NAM 1967-10-42-1.

Nicholson, John. The Incomparable Captain Cadell. Allen & Unwin. 2004.

Old and New Edinburgh, Volume III, page 138. No date (but late 19th century).

O’ Moore-Creagh, Sir G. and Humphris, E.M. The Victoria Cross, 1856 – 1920, A Complete Record of the Recipients with many bibliographical and other details. Standard Art Book. Co. 1920.

O’Toole, Eamonn. Martin Doyle VC MM. Royal Munster Fusiliers Association Newsletter No 6, Spring 1994, pp25-29.

Rules and Regulations of the Scottish Naval and Military Academy. Edinburgh, 1834.

Sen, Satardu. Disciplining Punishment: Colonialism and Convict Society in the Andaman Islands. Oxford University Press. 2000.

Stanley, Peter. White Mutiny: British Military Culture in India 1825-1875. Hurst & Co. 1998.

Stewart, Ian. Victoria Cross website – www.victoriacross.org.uk 2007.

The Register of the Victoria Cross, third edition. This England Books, 1997.

The Scotsman. Digital Archive. Various dates.

The Times. Colonel Thomas Cadell, V.C., C.B. (Obituary), 8th April 1919.

The Times. Major-General Dalmahoy (Obituary), 3rd January 1927.

Turner, D.R. One hundred years new: Cockenzie and Port Seton. Sound and Visual Products, Edinburgh. 1980.

Walker, Thomas Nicholls. Through the Mutiny: Reminscences of Thirty Years Active Service and Sport in India, 1854-1883. Gibbings & Co., 1907.

Who Was Who, 1928.

Wilkins, Philip A. the History of the Victoria Cross, Constable 1904

Williams, D.A. 2007. James Hills Johnes VC, Hero of Delhi Ridge. Journal of the Victoria Cross Society, 10th Edition, 10-13. 

 

Army Doctors and Irish Medicine

Army Doctors and Irish Medicine

 

.

The year 1895 was a memorable one, for in that year Wilhelm Röntgen discovered X-Rays. Almost immediately, their significance for use in medicine became obvious. The first radiograph in Ireland was taken in early 1896. Pierre and Marie Curie discovered the element Radium shortly afterwards and its potential use in medical treatments was soon realised. XRays soon went to war, Madam Curie organised a portable x-ray machine which was used in the battlefields of France in the First World War as part of the care of wounded soldiers.

 

Following on from this, it is interesting to look at the history of Army Doctors who later made significant contributions to the practice of medicine in Ireland.

 

Dr. Walter Clegg Stevenson.

 

Dr.Stevenson with Geology Professor John Joly of Trinity College Dublin developed a new important method of treating cancer using Radium and its daughter product Radon. This became known as “The Dublin Method” and achieved international recognition. However, there was one major problem, pure Radium was very expensive. 

 

When World War One ended, a significant quantity of Radium, which had been intended for use in luminous paints for gun sights, was no longer required for that purpose. 

 

This is where Stevenson’s service, as a temporary Captain, in the Royal Army Medical Corps becomes relevant, as he had used radium therapy to alleviate war wounds. Stevenson in a letter published in the British Medical Journal on 15th November 1919 wrote, “I may add that the radium treatment of stiff hand due to war injuries has been authorised by the War Office on account of my work at Dr.Steevens’s Hospital and at Blackrock. I have treated, with eminently satisfactory results, 453 patients of war injuries (stiff joints, adherent and painful scars, etc.), 349 of them in Ireland”. As a consequence of these treatments, Stevenson in 1920 was able to have a sizeable quantity (200 milligrams) of this important material made available for cancer treatment in Dublin.

 

It is interesting to note that Stevenson and Joly were earlier supported by the Royal Dublin Society (RDS) in developing an effective organisation to make Radium available for medical use. In 1914 the RDS established its Radium Institute and due to the high cost of Radium at about £20,000 per gram, a public appeal was made for funding, to which the Guinness brewing family made a significant contribution. When the RDS Radium Institute closed, some of its Radium was transferred to the newly established St.Luke’s Hospital in Dublin, where it was used in clinical treatments. The “The Dublin Method” is still of importance but alternative radioactive materials are now used in place of the hazardous Radium which has now an honoured place in medical history.

 

Douglas Montgomery. F.R.C.S.I.

 

He served in World War 2 and took part in the D-day landings in France. Later in Dublin he was appointed surgeon in the Meath Hospital and became President of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI). He was a District Surgeon in the St.John Ambulance Brigade of Ireland and later became its third Commissioner following the retirement of Acting Commissioner W.G. Smith. During the “Cold War” he wrote a supplement to the standard First Aid Manual dealing with radiation injuries caused by nuclear weapons. In recognition of his voluntary work he was made a Knight of the Order of Saint John.

 

Dr. Malachi Powell.

 

He served in the Irish Army Medical Corps. During the “emergency” (WW2) German sailors and airmen who landed on Irish soil were interred in a camp in the Military Curragh Command area. These German officers, at times, were troublesome and made attempts to escape. As the situation worsened, Commandant Powell was later to recall that during one dark night a burst of machine gun fire was heard. In the morning the carcass of a sheep was seen impaled in the boundary fence riddled to bits by bullets. The Germans after that, calmed down a bit.

 

After military service he joined the Department of Health and became its Deputy Chief Medical Officer. He was active in the establishment of the National Ambulance School which was sorely needed to provide a uniform and satisfactory level of training for ambulance personnel throughout the country. 

 

In the 1960s the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI) founded the Faculty of Radiology. Malachi was instrumental in the establishment of a formal training programme for doctors who wished to specialise in radiology. He was a a member of the Board of St. Luke’s Hospital, (the National Cancer Hospital) and an arrangement was put in place for the physics staff to lecture in the physics, and radiation safety subjects. A full programme for doctors wishing to specialise in the treatment of cancer by radiation was organised and taught by the Consultant Radiotherapists of the hospital. 

 

For his dedicated development work Malachi was awarded an Honorary Fellowship of the Faculty of Radiologists of the RCSI. The National Radiation Monitoring Service (NRMS) was established to measure the ongoing radiation exposure of medical staff, including doctors, radiographers, and laboratory personnel and advise on radiation safety. The NRMS also undertook the measurement of radioactivity in the Irish Sea, the main source of potential contamination of the Irish Sea being the Sellafield/Windscale nuclear sites. Malachi was a member of the NRMS management committee. Like Douglas Montgomery he also gave voluntary service and worked with the Order of Malta Ambulance Corps of which he later became its Director.

 

References.

 

A Century of Medical Radiation in Ireland-An Anthology, Editor Dr.James C.Carr, The Anniversary Press, 1995.

 

Tony Farmar, A Haven in Rathgar: St Luke’s and the Irish experience of cancer 1952 –2007, A & A Farmar Ltd., 2007. 
 

The Last Irish Veteran of the Crimean War

The Last Irish Veteran of the Crimean War

D McKinley

 

Edward Langford Dillon was born on 2nd July 1836 and was the son of Lieutenant William Dillon of the 18th Royal Irish Regiment. His father took part in the 1842 campaign in China and was awarded the China war medal with his Regiment. Edward was educated at the school of Reverend Jones, Hollymount, Rathmines, Dublin. He was commissioned into the 18th Royal Irish Regiment and as an Ensign set sail to the Crimea under Colonel Reignolds CB on 8th December 1854. The Colonel had pressed Her Majesty Queen Victoria to allow his regiment to take part in the campaign having initially been assigned to duties around Windsor making up the shortfall of men already despatched to the conflict. Her Majesty was “most impressed by the bronzed and soldiery appearance of the detachment…” and approved the request to join the campaign. Having supplemented the Battalion with other ranks of the 94th Foot and 51st amongst others, 848 all ranks sailed from Portsmouth on the S.S. Magdalene.

Conditions in the Crimea are well documented in many sources. The scene that met the Battalion upon disembarkation at Balaclava was pitiful. A lack of supplies, medicines, clothing, stores and such were to plague the British Army in the Crimean campaign. Sickness was rife and life was very difficult for both veteran soldier and raw recruit alike. The Royal Irish were fortunate to be deployed on fatigues in the dock for a couple of weeks which allowed their stores to reach them prior to marching inland to join Major General Sir William Eyre’s brigade. Having reached camp and dug in, the troops set about making the best of conditions. Officers dug out the soil inside their tents to form an earth barrier against the biting wind. By March, Reignolds could not continue and command passed to Lieutenant Colonel Edwards. Edwards was a professional soldier and saw to it that his officers regularly inspected outlying sentries to prevent any incursion by the Russians into his camp.

Dillon was to prove himself a courageous officer in the attack at Dockyard Creek, Sebastopol on 18th June 1855. The Brigade consisted of the 9th, 18th, 28th, 38th and 44th Regiments. It was said by those present that the waiting Royal Irish soldiers had heard they might be deployed in the attack and “were wild with joy” resulting in their officers not being able to avail of sleep in the few hours before the advance. Initially the Russians were taken by surprise and resistance was light. The cemetery was taken quickly and the men pressed on into the town. Russian artillery was putting down effective fire on the advancing troops and the attack faltered. Try as he might, Edwards knew the situation was serious and when darkness fell, retired his force. Approximately 250 Royal Irish were casualties. Nevertheless the bravery of the Royal Irish soldiers was reflected in the honours recorded in the Regimental History.

Capt. Thomas Esmonde was awarded the Victoria Cross. His citation reads:

“For having, after being engaged in the attack on the Redan, repeatedly assisted at great personal risk under heavy fire of shell and grape, in rescuing wounded men from exposed positions; and also, while in command of a covering party two days after, for having rushed with the most prompt and daring gallantry to a spot where a fireball from the enemy had just been lodged, which he effectually extinguished before it had betrayed the position of the working party under his protection, thus saving it from a murderous fire of shell and grape, which was immediately opened on the spot where the fireball had fallen.”

 

Dillon’s actions were markedly similar to Esmonde’s, and are recorded as “volunteering to rescue from under heavy fire of grape and musketry seven wounded men, who were lying in houses nearest the Russian works, and succeeded in doing so.” Clearly Dillon had chosen to risk his life to save his men, and obviously well within the range of Russian muskets! Although Foreign decorations, Orders, and the Distinguished Conduct Medal were awarded for the campaign, Dillon’s deeds, though recorded, did not merit an award of a decoration.

He went on to serve in the Indian Mutiny and eventually retired in 1883 having risen to the rank of Major General. His career brought him just two awards, the Crimea medal clasp Sebastopol, and the Turkish Crimea medal.

Dillon married Sarah Phillips, the daughter of the Reverend J.R.Cotter of Donoughmore Rectory, Cork. Their son, Captain E.C.W. Dillon served in the 9th King’s Royal Rifle Corps in the second Boer war and died of sun stroke.

Whilst researching Dillon’s career, I came across an article published by Richard Collins on behalf of the Roscommon Archaeological and Historical Society as follows:

 

“Major General Edward Langford Dillon JP died aged 88 years at Hudson Bay House in 1925 and was the last Irish Survivor of the Crimean war. Born in 1836 in Limerick he joined the British Army and served in the Royal Irish Regiment and fought in the Crimea from 1854 to 1856. At the battle of Sebastopol he earned a medal and clasp for his bravery in rescuing seven wounded Irish soldiers under heavy fire. Over 7,000 Irish soldiers died in the Crimean War. He also served in the Indian Mutiny.

His coffin, draped in the Union Jack, was placed on a gun carriage and accompanied by a Guard of Honour of Irish Army Officers, was brought up to this graveyard where volleys were fired over his grave.

His only son, serving in the British Army, died in the Boer War. He is buried beside his daughters in St Peter’s (sic) Church of Ireland Graveyard, Kiltoom, Athlone, Co. Roscommon.”

 

I recently visited Major General Dillon’s grave, sadly fallen into disrepair along with the Church of St Paul. However, it is most fitting that his service is recorded by the Roscommon group. His medals rest in my collection alongside a fellow Royal Irish officer of that campaign, who, no doubt, shared many an experience in this most testing of campaigns.

 

Sources:

The Campaigns and History of the Royal Irish Regiment by Lieutenant Colonel G. Le M. Gretton

Article by Richard Collins, County Roscommon Archaeological and Historical Society

Hodges Contemporary Biographies

  

 

In Commemoration of the late Michael Denieffe

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In Commemoration of the late Michael Denieffe

In memory of the late Michael Denieffe, founder member of MSOI and his role in, and contribution to the society, it is proposed that the author of one article published in the journal each year will receive a society medal and financial award. The final decision regarding the choice of article will rest with the MSOI executive committee but discerning nominations and recommendations are welcome.

 

The article 'Death of a Trumpeter' submitted by Michael and published in this journal 25 years ago was reprinted in the hard copy journal. It can be found in Journal 31 of February 1995. This piece showcases the interest, knowledge and research that Michael brought to the MSOI and is the yardstick that the society will use in selecting an article to commemorate him. May his memory live on.

 

Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dílish.

Last Updated on Saturday, 06 February 2021 17:58
 

Captain John Dillon MacCormack M.C. (1891-1973) - Royal Army Medical Corps

Captain John Dillon MacCormack M.C. (1891-1973)

Royal Army Medical Corps 

By Liam Dodd 

John Dillon MacCormack was born on 8 May 1891 at Fry Place, Athlone Co. Westmeath, the son of Charles Joseph MacCormack, a physician and surgeon, and his wife Mary Duff. In his early years John was educated in Athlone and later studied medicine with his older brother Charles at the Royal College of Surgeons in Dublin. At a very young age John developed a strong love for the game of golf influenced by his father who had played a significant role in the 1904 redevelopment and reconstitution of Athlone Golf Club. Early signs of John's golfing talent were reported in July of 1912 with his course record 69 at Hermitage Golf Club seven shots better than the record of Lionel Munn, a star amateur golfer. As well as setting a course record at Kilkenny John played for the Dublin County team that won the second All-Ireland Barton Shield at Royal County Down. He also won the Barton Cup with the Hermitage team and in 1913, the year he graduated as a medical doctor, was capped for Ireland against Wales in Dollymount.

J. D. MacCormack participated in four Irish Championships from 1911 up to the start of the Great War when his enlistment in the Royal Army Medical Corps would put his golf career on hold. He enlisted in the Royal Army Medical Corps in 1915 with the rank of Lieutenant. Following training he arrived in France at the start of August of the same year and was sent for service with the 141st Field Ambulance. Not long after his arrival in 1916 he was awarded the Military Cross in June for what was described as an ‘...act of exemplary gallantry in attending the wounded under heavy fire’ and was also promoted to Captain. His unit did not witness the beginning of the Somme campaign being based further north in France, near Nœux-les-Mines. However, they soon moved south to the Somme and on arrival at Hénencourt Wood they took over the divisional rest station from the 38th Field Ambulance. The station was located just to the west of the village Hénencourt and its imposing 17th century Chateau. Awaiting them were 215 wounded and 143 sick soldiers, while adjancent to them Hénencourt Wood Cemetery held the graves of those casualties who had not survived the earlier fighting. Aside from contending with treating the casualties the field hospital they had inherited was a quagmire, lacking drainage. They went to work in rectifying this as well as caring for the patients. On 17 July 1916 MacCormack was sent with another officer, a section of bearers and five ambulance cars to join 2nd Field Ambulance for temporary duty at an advanced dressing station. The 2nd had been under severe pressure dealing with casualties of the advance and had taken up positions in new advanced dressing stations around the area of the recently captured Mametz Wood. Here J. D. MacCormack witnessed the battlefield of the Somme up close for the first time and its front lines. Between 11 and 26 July the men of the 2nd Field Ambulance, their strecher bearers and doctors dealt with about 2,900 casualties, many of them seriously wounded and carried under fire, with great difficulty, to safety. The danger to which MacCormack was exposed was demonstrated by a number of his strecherbearers being wounded, some severely. One, William Greatbanks, was shot through both legs and the face, while another was shot in the face, hand and knee. On 25 July MacCormack and his men returned to the more orderly Hénencourt Wood but undertook periods of service closer to the front line before the end of the Battle of the Somme in November 1916.

On 21 September 1916, whilst on leave, he married a woman named Eugénie Marie Guillou in Paris. How they met is unclear, Eugénie was thirty years his senior and had a remarkable life story with a chequered past. Originally a nun with the Congregation of Our Lady of Sion she later turned madam becoming quite infamous. After his marriage MacCormack returned to the front and following the formal end of the Battle of the Somme he and his Field Ambulance remained in the area. They moved to Bazentin-le-Petit and from there to Bottom Wood, southwest of Mametz Wood, where they took over the operation of a Main Dressing Station at the beginning of December 1916. Here, on 8 December, J. D. MacCormack was wounded by a German artillery shell. He suffered a severe concussion and shrapnel had entered his left arm, and was sent to a Camp Reception Station. Although his wounds did not seem of immediate concern and were initially described as ‘slight’ his condition deteriorated significantly and he was evacuated to Queen Alexandra's Military Hospital at Millbank in London. Paralysed from the waist down he was transferred to Bathurst House Hospital for officers in January 1917. After many months of treatment in England he returned to Dublin where he remained paralysed for five years, spending most those years in a wheelchair. One person describing his medical condition at this time stated that MacCormack was a 'pitiful sight dragging himself along on crutches with his legs dangling helplessly'. Following appointments with a specialist surgeon who had found success in treating similar injury cases he regained some mobility in his legs. With the aid of a rubber lined steel corset to support his withered muscles J. D. embarked on a constant and exhausting regime, very slowly regaining his ability to stand. By the end of 1922 his progress was so significant that he could stand, walk, and even swing a golf club. Over the following months he focused on his capacity to play golf and followed his desire to play competitively once again. He did that the following year, in 1923, with a entry in the Irish Close Championship played over the parkland course at Milltown Golf Club in County Dublin. It was a remarkable return for J. D. who won the competition, beating Louis Werner of Trinity College Dublin golf club.

Buoyed by his first championship win the following year of 1924 would be a remarkable one for J. D., despite his dependency on his rubber lined steel corset. He retained his Irish Close title at Royal County Down, was runner up in the Amateur Championship in Saint Andrew's in Scotland and was selected as playing Captain of the Irish Team to play Wales at Dollymount. He took part in and won the Tailteann Games golf competition and in August he won the National Championship and International Championship. As a result he was selected to play for the Great Britain and Ireland Walker Cup team against the U.S.A. in Garden City, New York in September 1924. Unfortunately for MacCormack he was employed at this time by the Department of Health in Dublin and was refused time off by his employers. As a result he could not travel to America for the match. It proved to be his only Walker Cup opportunity. Four years later he was included on the short list to play in the Walker Cup in Chicago but ultimately was not selected.

John Dillon MacCormack was one of Ireland’s greatest and most accomplished amateur golfers, whose career was made all the more remarkable by his wartime experiences and wounds. He died in Dublin on 21 July 1973. An appreciation of his life described him as ‘...a loyal and agreeable companion with a cornucopia of stories, always tinged with humour. He was courteous and generous to a fault. The term miracle is not an overstatement about JD’s golfing career.’

Awarded: Military Cross, 1914-15 Star, British War Medal, Victory Medal and Silver War Badge.

 

Record of golfing achievements:

Irish Close Championship Winner 1923, 1924, 1925

Tailteann Games Winner 1924

National Championship Winner 1924

International Championship Winner 1924

Irish Amateur Open Championship runner-up 1924

Amateur Championship Quarter-Final 1924

Amateur Championship Semi-Final 1931

Leading Amateur Open Championship of Ireland 1932

Amateur International Caps 1924, 1927, 1928, 1932, 1933, 1934, 1935, 1936, 1937

Captain of Irish Amateur International Team 1934, 1935, 1936, 1937

 

Sources:

MacCormack Family
Brenden Cashell
Medal Index Card
141st Field Ambulance Royal Army Medical Corps War Diary

 

Dogtags

Dogtags

Paul Field

 A little side line I have is dog tags. In and amongst collectors they are not at the top of the collecting tree. Anyone who has a mixed collection will invariably have a dog tag in the collection. They often come up for sale in auctions. I would say 8 out of 10 times they are listed wrongly by the auctioneers. It can make for a good deal for the buyer who knows a little bit more than the auctioneer. But don’t expect to make a killing on them.

Some time ago a guy found many thousands (36,500) of them from WWII. That’s not all of them, that’s only what has been recovered so far. He was digging and they kept coming out of the ground. We don’t know how many more there are to recover but it could still be a substantial number. After a lot of research they were from an army which was going to be assembled and sent to invade Japan towards the end of WWII. However the Americans spoiled the party and dropped the bomb which saved this army. The long and short of it was the army was not needed, and as the tags were not needed, they were ditched. The guys who have found them have written a book about it. A Google search for “Dan Mackay Forgotten Army” will give you loads of information.

 I started by collecting a tag from every country I could get my hands on. One from the USA and from Russia and so on. Before long I had a few, then comes the burning question of why, and now that I have them - what do I do with them. Then I found a type of tag from an allied solider who had spent some time in the care of the Germans in a POW camp. For some reason it really sparked my interest, and before long I was sort of hooked.

The only reference books I could find were in German and most of the books are about service personnel tags and not POW tags. However I continued to pick them up, one here and one there, until one day you realise you have a small collection. Back to that old question “what to do now?” Well I decided to stop collecting and try to learn about them. First problem, I could not find anyone who collects POW tags. So that puts me in the sad anorak bracket with no collecting friends! But I stuck at it and slowly I started noticing that the tags were not all the same. For a country that prides itself on engineering I was surprised at the different types and standards of the tags.

The Germans divided Germany and conquered countries and lands into areas. These were called WEHRKREIS (military districts) and numbered 1 to 21. These administration/military areas did not use all the numbers e.g. no 14, 15, 16, 19 weren’t used.

I              KOENIGBERG region (East Prussia)

II             STETTIN Region (Pomerania)

III            BERLIN region (Brandenburg)

IV            DRESDE region (Saxony)

V             STUTTGART region (Württemberg)

VI            Region of MUNSTER (Westphalia)

VII          MUNICH region (Bavaria)

VIII         BRESLAU region (Silesia)

IX            KASSEL region (Hesse - Nassau)

X             HAMBURG region

XI            Region of HANOVER (Lower Saxony)

XII           Region of WIESBADEN (Hesse)

XIII          Region of NUREMBERG (Bavaria)

XVII         Region of VIENNA (Austria)

XVIII        Region of SALZBURG (Austria)

XX           DANTZIG region (West Prussia in 1940, currently Polish)

XXI          POSEN region (German in 1940, currently Polish)

 

There are a number of different types of camps. The first camp especially at the beginning of the war to which the POWs would have gone, was the Durchgangslager (passage or transit camp). Here they would have been documented and processed into the POW system. We can see by the tag below that the word Durchgangslager is followed by the letter C. This denotes the camp was in Halbau Kunav, Poland. This camp was opened in October 1939 and closed in April 1940.

An interesting thing about this tag is it was cancelled and reused in Stalag VIIIA. (VIII = Wehrkreis 8, A = which camp within the Wehrkreis). This camp saw many thousands come through its gates. A very short history is that pre-war the camp was originally a Hitler Youth Camp.

·         September 1939 Belgium and French POWs

·         October 1939 it was modified to take Polish POWs

·         1941 new compound to hold Russians

·         1943 2,500 British and Commonwealth troops from Italy

·         1943 Italian POWs from Albania

·         1944 1,800 US troops from the battle of the Bulge

·         14th Feb 1945 British and US troops moved out of the camp before the camp was liberated by the Russian Red Army.

Like all good German things there was a plan and everything was set out in a standard format. Well that was the rule but Old Soldiers know ‘rules are made to be bent and not broken’! The basic layout of a POW tag is shown in the photo below. Note the Stalag number, this is written in roman numerals, and then there is a prisoner ID number. This number is individual to the POW and stays with him even if he changes camps. This tag is from Stalag VI H, so Wehrkreis 6 and the "H" denotes that it was the main camp. Within each Wehrkreis there were a number of camps who were subservient to the main camp, and they came under the administration of the main camp, even though some of the satellite camps had tens of thousands of inmates. This camp Stalag VI H was a Slave Labour Camp in Arnoldsweiler Germany.

The three armed services looked after their own POWs. The Kriegsmarine (War-Navy) German Naval force kept all their POWs in one camp mixing the Royal Navy with Merchant Navy. Under pressure from the Red Cross they then split the two services, the Royal Navy was a military organisation and the Merchant was a civil organization so the detainees had different rights. Then two types of camps were set up Marlag (Military i.e. Royal Navy) and Milag (Merchant Marine). It is thought that the naval services had the best form of captivity with the best conditions by far.

The Luftwaffe also looked after their own POWs. This tag is from the famous camp Stalag Luff III made famous by the film Great Escape (starring Steve McQueen, with the tunnels Tom, Dick, and Harry). Towards the end of the war the inmates who were still in the camp were marched to the Marlag to avoid the approaching Red Army. The thing to note with this tag is that it is a very early tag as its made from aluminium which is a vital war commodity, and later on in the war was a resource in greater demand not only for the aircraft industry but the general armaments industry.

The other camp to mention is the Oflag (Officer Camp). There were a number of them and the living conditions were a little better than was afforded to the average soldiers. As you can see this camp is in Wehrkreis VI which is in Munster area. The camp was located at Soest, which after the war became a Canadian Barracks, and my parents used to go shopping in their PX (Army supermarket) a bit like a Naaffi. As a kid it was the first time I had anything like peanut butter and jelly!

If we look at Wehrkreis I and Stalag IA more closely we seem to come across a style and layout which does not stick to the rules 100%. On tags from this Wehrkreis you can glean some extra information from the tag. There are a series of letters on the tags which indicates the nationality of the prisoner. This extra information is handy to people who research the tags, as it eliminates many thousands of possibilities by knowing whose force the tag belonged to. Below are a few tags that show the different nationalities that had their servicemen interred in Salag IA.

To stop any confusion in old German the letter I is replaced with the letter J. This is to stop the letter I being mistaken for the number 1 e.g. 1st Infantry division would be written as 1Inf, if roman numerals are used it could be Iinf, so to stop that misconception J is used so it becomes 1.Jnf. If you note the Italian tag owner has a number lower than the French Tag. It seems that each nationality had their own bank of numbers. As the Italian POWs came later than the French that is the only conclusion I can come up with. I have not been able to confirm this theory. The camp 1A was in the area of a town called Stallupönen. Because of the Lithuanian minority living there, the Lithuanian Government tried to get the town and the surrounding land at the end of WWI but was unsuccessful. However the Nazi party renamed the town Ebenrode, because it did not sound German enough. So the letters EB were added to the tags to reinforce that it was a German town. As it happens Camp 1A is the most northern POW camp the Germans had.

In this camp a lot of tags were reused. Above we have a tag from a French prisoner whose details have been crossed off and on the reverse of the tag re-issued to an Italian POW who came to the camp years after the French. One can only wonder what happened to the French soldier.

Most tags were made of a zinc alloy but when times are hard anything will do. There were tags made from wood and even cardboard but I don’t have any in my collection. When they were manufactured they were made so that the tags were blank but had the guide lines and the word Stalag and Nr were pre-stamped on the tag. There are lots of examples of tags which have been homemade or made on site. Below is an onsite made tag but not issued. As it’s an aluminium tag which we already know is a scarce metal needed for the war effort, and was to be assigned to a French person then we can conclude that it has to be an early war tag.

Oflag 68 was a camp which was built by the Polish and French POWs in April 1941 just before the invasion of Russia and the German operation of Barbarossa. Originally built for officers, it was expanded when the numbers swelled. The camp was renamed in June 1942 as Stalag 1/F. Over 100,000 Russians walked through the entrance to the camp and about 50,000 died of typhus exposure and malnutrition. Of all the POWs the Germans were holding, the Russian were the worst treated.

As you can see above this is a half tag. The half with two holes would have a string treaded through and the tag was worn around the neck. If someone died the tag would be broken and the part with two holes in would stay with the body and the single hole section would be returned to records. There are a lot of half tags turning up on the market and it’s not known if they were full tags which have been broken (so the seller can get double money) or they are casualty tags from fallen soldiers.

On a lighter note, the tag opposite is from Stalag XVIIB. This POW camp was used as the backdrop to the Billy Wilder film “Stalag 17”.

 

Credits.

Dog tag Paul Field's collection.

Dan Mackay for three photos.

All Photos PDI (Public Domain Internet).

Newspaper cutting 485 Sqn NZAF

Birth & Death dates ...Ancestry.com

Other information internet searches.

 

I suppose this is the part where I ask: “if you have any unwanted tags that need a new home I am always up for negotiation”!

 

Paul Field 
 

Update on the Stalag Luft III tag

Update on the Stalag Luft III tag

 Paul Field

I must start by saying that without the help from Darrell McKinley I would probably never have started this journey and also the help of Tony Hoskins, and with both of their assistance I seem to have progressed quite quickly. Last to thank is the person at 485 Sqn RNZAF, who has been most helpful but not given a name.

Since writing the first article on the POW tags, where I showed the tag from Stalag Luft III, the time had come to do some real research on the tags in my collection. My starting point was a copy of British & Empire Prisoners of War 1939-1945. From the data base I found that the tag number was assigned to a pilot with the Royal New Zealand Air Force. A pilot, every boy’s dream! From the first records I found out his service number N.Z.41509 and rank Flight Lieutenant. After some more digging I found he was a Spitfire pilot, I could hardly control myself so just had to call Darrell. Like on the TV show “phone a friend” it felt like I had just won the million! I was starting to see why you medal boys get excited, it’s like a drug, the more you get the more you want.

So below is a running story of what has been offered.

In the UK during WWII people were encouraged to donate to a cause or to buy war bonds (which some people collect). This story will start with a “Buy a Spitfire” fund. In May 1940 this was a campaign to raise money from the civilian population for the war effort. It was thought that if the fund-raising was named then more money would come into the coffers and people would take pride in following their plane/boat etc. This is an early version of crowd funding. Lancashire Constabulary Wardens Service stepped up to the mark and raised the £5,000 to buy a Spitfire. The real cost was £12,600 and the government stumped up the balance. In today’s money that about £800,000. So Spitfire BM116 was born at the Castle Bromwich Aircraft Factory, and delivered to 485 Sqn Royal New Zealand Air Force on the 09.03.42 and painted accordingly. The plane was named Red Rose. There were two more Red Roses II & III. Unfortunately there does not seem to be any photos surviving of the original Red Rose. But here are photos of the two subsequent planes. 

485 Sqn RNZAF was the first New Zealand Squadron to be based in the UK and on the 01.03.41 they were based at Driffield in Yorkshire, flying the Spitfire MK1s. Then in October 1941 they moved to RAF Kenley, just south of London, one of the three main airfields for the Battle of Britain, the other two being RAF Croydon and RAF Biggin Hill.

Into our story steps Pilot Officer Falls J.R (John Ross), born 30.05.16 In New Zealand. Service number N.Z. 41509. Ross was a true New Zealander as he was a Maori from Napier, North Island. On 09.08.41 our pilot is a Sergeant. One year later he makes Pilot Officer, and is flying a Spitfire MkVb. It’s been hard to fill some of the gaps but we will bounce forward to 01.05.42. Our pilot was tasked with a flight to France from his base at RAF Kenley. The sort of flight he was on was known as the “Circus”. This was the code name given by the RAF for a flight of old bombers escorted by lots of fighters. The idea was to draw up and engage the German fighters. This was a bit like "a red rag to a bull" and the Germans rose to the challenge.

Today of all days our pilot will cross paths with one of Germany's top aces, Joachim Müncheberg who by the end of his war would have 135 kills to his name. He was given command of JG26’s II. That was a German fighter wing (second group). Joachim is credited with shooting down our pilot (but this is not confirmed, if it was confirmed it would have been his kill number 76).

Now here the records are a little murky. The German Records record that the plane was shot down 5km north of Calais, which would put it in the Channel. British Records say “Failed to return abandoned A/C near Cap Griz Nez” which is west of Calais. There is also a British report that he bailed out near the Village of St Omar which is about 45km to the south east of Calais. From the French records of crashed planes in that area there is no recording of his crash site. So maybe he bailed out and the plane did crash into the sea!

What is certain is that he bailed out and on landing was taken as a POW and spent the rest of the war in Stalag Luft III as the proud owner of this tag. I bought this tag from a guy in Austria who might have found it himself or just decided to move it on.

Pilot Officer Falls was promoted again on the 09.05.43 to Flight Lieutenant while in the custody of the Germans.

I received this copy of a newspaper cutting from my contact at the 485 Sqn saying he met the future Queen.

Sadly it appears that F/Lt Falls is no longer with us and died in New Zealand in 1991 aged 75. Who would have thought all this would have come from a broken scrap of aluminium that could have been overlooked and discarded.

 

WWII Hand Grenade Destroyed by Irish Army

WWII Hand Grenade Destroyed by Irish Army

James Scannell 

 

On Saturday, July 10th 2010 Irish Army bomb disposal experts were called to an old garden shed in a Newbridge, Co. Kildare, housing estate following the discovery of a World War 2 hand grenade in the shed’s debris.

 

Following a 40-minute examination, the hand grenade was made safe and then removed for subsequent destruction under controlled conditions by the military after which the area around the shed was declared safe. An Garda Siochāna, called in the military after its discovery was reported to them earlier that day. 

 

Its believed that the hand grenade may have been brought home as a wartime souvenir. It’s not known for long it was stored in the shed.

 


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Newsflash

Medals, Militaria and Collectables Fair

A warm welcome awaits at the Medal Society of Ireland hosted "Medals, Militaria and Collectables Fair"

in Knox Memorial Hall, Monkstown, Dublin on Saturday 3rd February from 10 am to 2 pm

FREE ENTRANCE for members while admission charge for all other adults is €4 each (accompanied children free)