• IT’S sad that, despite reminders, the contribution of the Irish to victory in two world wars is forgotten.

At the recent unveiling of the Poppy Appeal other communities were mentioned but not the Irish. Yet, more than 200,000 Irishmen fought in World War I, with more than 50,000 killed. More than 3,000 Irish troops died at Gallipoli, with the Irish landing on the first day.

No country per head of population contributed more to Britain during World War II than the supposedly neutral Irish. More than 183,000 volunteers joined the British Army in 1940, leading to the formation of the Irish Brigade, later known as the 38th division. Many of these volunteers had already held back the Nazi advance in Spain, giving Britain time to prepare.

There were more than 10,000 Irish volunteers in the RAF. In the Battle of Britain, 1,000 Irish pilots and crew lost their lives. Irish women, such as 21-year-old Dubliner Annette Hill, played a vital support role to the RAF and Fleet Air Arm by undertaking the dangerous job of flying new Spitfires to military airfields and between maintenance units.

Overall, some 400,000 Irish men and women joined the British forces, receiving 780 awards for gallantry and 11 Victoria Crosses. Many Irish civilians won gallantry awards, including two young Irish nurses, both awarded George Medals after they entered a burning building and rescued people from the top floor.

Irish nurses braved U-boat attacks and mines to cross the Irish Sea to serve in British hospitals. Without the help of an Irish family on the west coast of Ireland, the successful D-Day landings would not have happened. They provided the weather information that allowed the vital decision to be made.

In November 1939, Roosevelt signed the Neutrality Act forbidding American ships from entering the “war zone”. Thus Ireland became vital on the Lisbon run which carried cargo needed in Britain. Also, American ships offloaded cargo for Britain on Ireland’s west coast, with Ireland transporting it onwards to Britain.

RÓISÍN NÍ ĊORRÁIN
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