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“When our friendless standards were first unfurled, who were the strangers who first mustered around our staff, and when it reeled in the light, who more brilliantly sustained it than Erin’s generous sons. Ireland, thou friend of my country in my country’s most friendless days, much injured, much enduring land, accept this poor tribute from one who esteems thy worth, and mourns thy desolation. May the God of Heaven, in His justice and mercy, grant thee more prosperous fortunes, and in His own time, cause the sun of Freedom to shed its benign radiance on the Emerald Isle.”

It is estimated that one-third to one-half of George Washington’s army were Irish born or first-generation, including 1,492 officers and 26 generals, 15 of whom were Irish natives, chief among them Commodore John Barry (pictured left), from County Wexford, who became the “Father of the U.S. Navy.”

#OnThisDay 1923 Noel Lemass,  a veteran of the Easter Rising (where he and his younger brother Seán fought in the GPO), a member of Dublin’s 3rd Battalion IRA during the War of Independence and during the Civil War he took the Anti-Treaty side, once again fighting alongside his brother at the Four Courts.

Taken prisoner at the fall of the Four Courts,  Noel was imprisoned but managed to escape and made his way to England. He returned to Ireland once the Civil War end but was abducted by an officer of the Free State Army in broad daylight & executed. His mutilated body was discovered three months later in the Wicklow mountains showing signs of torture, his left arm fractured, his right foot missing and that the 26 year old was shot in the head at least three times. Rumours spread that it was one of the Dalton brothers but it was most likely Captain James Murray of the Free State Army who was responsible. Murray also killed military policeman James Bergin in 1925. He was sentenced to death but then commuted to life imprisonment.

Noel’s brother Seán was Taoiseach from 1959-1966. The Lemass years as they were known were times of economic boom for Ireland.

#OnThisDay 1918 “Sinn Féin, the Irish Volunteers, Cumann na mBan and the Gaelic League have all been proclaimed as illegal organisations by the Lord Lieutenant, Viscount French.

The proclamation states that the proscribed organisations are dangerous and a ‘grave menace’ designed to ‘terrorise the peaceful and law-abiding subjects of His Majesty in Ireland’.

It goes on to say that these associations ‘encourage and aid persons to commit crimes and promote and incite to acts of violence and intimidation and interfere with the administration of the law and disturb the maintenance of law and order’.”

#OnThisDay 1863 At the Battle of Gettysburg, the Pennsylvanian 69th Irish Regiment bore the brunt of Pickett’s Charge engaging in hand to hand combat. 15,000 Confederated in a massed attack over a mile long marched to the Union lines, meeting at the ‘Angle’ where the Pennsylvanians were.

Despite their neighbouring regiments breaking under the withering Confederate fire, and fleeing from the front line, the 69th (who renamed themselves from the 68th in honour of the New York 69th ‘Fightin 69th’ another famous Irish regiment) had to refuse their flank meaning that the 69th were almost completely surrounded. Despite this and bloody hand to hand fighting with bayonets, clubs, fists the Pennsylvania 69th held the line & pushed the Rebs back.

The 69th lost 143 men from 268, including Colonel Dennis O’Kane from Coleraine, Derry who died the next day. The monument for the 69th Pennsylvania Infantry in Gettysburg Military Park stands on the spot where Colonel O’Kane was mortally wounded.

#OnThisDay 1920 Charlie Hurley, Bandon IRA V/C, led a raiding party of 18 men (with an extra 24 men providing security, manning road blocks etc.) in attacking Howes Strand Coastguard Station, Cork. There were 11 defenders inside but surrendered after a brief fire fight. The IRA captured 15 Canadian Ross rifles and 1,000 rounds of ammunition.

There has been some theories about this attack that suggest that the defenders allowed the Ross Rifles to fall into the IRA’s hands because they were a notoriously bad weapon in combat. 15,000 of them were dumped by Canadian soldiers in WW1 and swapped for the more reliable Lee-Enfields. The Ross MKIII would jam after a few rounds fired in quick succession and there are numerous accounts of Canadians jumping on the handle or hitting it with shovels to try and unstick the jam to no avail.

A report of the Station a few years previous stated that it could be easily held with one or two men, such were the strength of its defences. So how did so many defenders let it fall so easily without much of a fight at all and holding all the advantages? One eye witness account says that the defenders asked the IRA to make it look like they put up more of a fight and so they shot at the windows and walls to look like it wasn’t a quick capitulation.