Tuesday 14 August 2018

Irish 1916, 1917-1921 etc medals

Following the Easter Rising and War of Independence, the Irish Government eventually got around to issuing medals and pensions to participants.

The Irish Defence Forces website has a nice write up re the different medals, the dates they covers, some of the political background and some of the issues re who was/was not entitled to a medal etc

http://www.military.ie/fileadmin/user_upload/images/Info_Centre/documents/MSPC_MEDALSBOOKLET_APRIL2016.pdf


The document gives a figure of 2594 as the number of veterans who applied and who qualified for the 1916 medal for example and notes some who were eligible but for whom no application was received.

More information about the medals can be found on Brendan Lee's site :

1916 Medal (and 1966 Jubilee Medal)

1917-1921 Service Medal (and 1971 Truce Commemoration Medal)


For information about medals issued in Ireland before 1916 and others awarded to Irish Defence Forces, Gardai, Fire Brigade etc personnel the following site if a useful resource

http://www.theeasterrising.eu/025_AllMedals/All_Medals.htm



Thursday 2 August 2018

Major Acheson, Fermoy 29th April 1916

While searching for information re Judge Law Smith, I came across the following information re Major Acheson of the Army Service Corps (ASC) who was shot and killed on the 29th April 1916

https://wartimememoriesproject.com/greatwar/view.php?uid=238175

It appears that he failed to stop when challenged by a sentry who subsequently opened fire.

Not a lot recorded on his gravestone/CWGC entry

https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2743504/acheson,-percival-havelock/

He is shown as aged 52 on the 1911 census and born in "Hanpohine" - I think this should be Hampshire.

http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/pages/1911/Cork/Fermoy_Rural/Grange_West/412612/

Just records England in the 1901 census

http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/pages/1901/Cork/Fermoy_Rural/Grange_West/1144275/

Buried not far away from Major Acheson is Head Constable Rowe of the Royal Irish Constabulary who was killed in the firefight at the home of the Kent brothers.


https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/162007387/percival-havelock-acheson



https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/162602447/william-neile-rowe