eamondelaney

Salvator Gavillet – Home Ruler who fought at the Somme but felt forgotten by Ireland

Name of soldier : Salvator Gavillet Name of descendent : Maria Smith Like many, Salvator Gavillet enlisted for the Great War in the belief that he was boosting the case for Irish independence and Home Rule. However, when he came home, the atmosphere had changed and a much more separatist movement led by Irish RepublicansContinue reading “Salvator Gavillet – Home Ruler who fought at the Somme but felt forgotten by Ireland”

Thomas Morgan – A wartime horse handler from Mountjoy Square

Pictured above : Mary Morgan wearing the World War One medals of her son, Thomas. Elsewhere in this section, Breda Gaynor describes tracking down the grave of her relative, Thomas Masterson, an Irish born US soldier buried in Belgium. Such is the close connection of north Dublin and the Great War, that Breda also hadContinue reading “Thomas Morgan – A wartime horse handler from Mountjoy Square”

John Walker – With the Tyneside Irish at the Somme

Name of relative : John Walker Your own name : Helen Dje John Walker’s story is a good illustration of the struggles and opportunities of working class life in Ireland and England in the late 19th century. From Kilkenny, John moved to Durham in England where he enlisted with the Tyneside Irish Battalion and foughtContinue reading “John Walker – With the Tyneside Irish at the Somme”

John Masterson – Longford born US soldier and how his Flanders grave was found

This is the story of a Dublin woman in search of the grave of her granduncle who died in Belgium in 1918, and who was unaware that an author in Belgium was trying to find relatives of the same man. The author Patrick Lernout was compiling a book about the Flanders Field American Cemetery inContinue reading “John Masterson – Longford born US soldier and how his Flanders grave was found”

Colin Horner – Rotherham seaman torpedoed by U-boat in 1944, but swam and lived

Name of soldier/sailor : Colin Horner Name of descendent : Tommy Horner Colin Horner was a sailor on the HMS Hardy when it was torpedoed in the Artic Ocean by a U boat during the Second World War. Blown overboard, he managed to survive in the icy waters until rescued, and went on to liveContinue reading “Colin Horner – Rotherham seaman torpedoed by U-boat in 1944, but swam and lived”

Charles O’Donoghue – Clareman who fought in Great War and then joined new Irish Army

Name of soldier : Charles O’Donoghue Your own name : Jim O’Donoghue The case of Charles O’Donoghue is yet another story from the Great Western Square area of north Dublin, which, with its adjoining streets, has provided so many World War One stories for this site. In this case, it is from the small adjoiningContinue reading “Charles O’Donoghue – Clareman who fought in Great War and then joined new Irish Army”

Willie Brazil – From Great Western Square to the Western Front

Above : A young William Brazil in his Royal Artillery uniform Name of soldier : Willie Brazil Name of descendent : Enda Carr Teacher Enda Carr lives on Monck Place, Phibsborough, north Dublin. This is just beside Great Western Square where his grand uncle William Brazil, a veteran of the Somme, lived until well intoContinue reading “Willie Brazil – From Great Western Square to the Western Front”

Patrick Flynn – The East Wall Sapper who tunneled under the Germans

Pictured above : Royal Engineers, posing for a photograph, 1915. Name of soldier : Patrick Flynn Name of descendent : Philip Flynn Philip Flynn lives in Cabra and runs a barbers at Hart’s Corner in Glasnevin, with his father. Hart’s Corner is at the end of the Finglas Road, just before Glasnevin cemetery. Philip isContinue reading “Patrick Flynn – The East Wall Sapper who tunneled under the Germans”

John Hussey – From Sneem, County Kerry to Guillemont at the Somme

Above : Vincent Casey with Eamon Delaney, holding the medals of Private John Hussey. Name of soldier : John Hussey Name of descendent : Vincent Casey Vincent Casey lives in a beautiful and dramatic landscape : near Sneem on the scenic Ring of Kerry. On one side, are the green mountains and, on the other,Continue reading “John Hussey – From Sneem, County Kerry to Guillemont at the Somme”

George Morris – Leading the troops at the Mons Retreat

Redmond Morris is an acclaimed and successful Irish film maker with a long career of producing well known titles. These include The Wind that Shook the Barley, The Reader and most recently The Dig. Redmond also comes from a distinquished aristocratic family in the West of Ireland and holds the title Lord Killanin. The familyContinue reading “George Morris – Leading the troops at the Mons Retreat”