quick links

A History of the Royal Irish Rifles: From Inception to the Boer War

Edited and Compiled by Michael D. Holmes & Kevin Ian Beegle

The Introduction by Michael D. Holmes

For centuries the Irish, both north and south, have been known as warriors, soldiers, poets, and statesmen. Virtually every European war or battle has counted Irishmen among its ranks. The history of the Irish at war is so extensive that it would take an entire book by itself to list all the battles. A proud and honourable people, they have been praised by every nation who has had the honour of counting them as friend and ally, and by many nations who have had the misfortune of facing them in battle. From the ancient times of Cuchulain until the arrival of the English, the Irish fought primarily amongst themselves, stopping only occasionally to join forces to send an invading foe packing. It was actually an Irish tribe or clan which first brought the English to Ireland; an Irish Chieftain asking the English to help him against a rival tribe. Once the English had a foothold in Ireland it was not long before they had the Irish fighting for them in the form of the Galloglass and Irish Cavalry. As time progressed many Chieftains became landed gentry and even held high positions in the Royal Courts of England. One of the most famous was Hugh O’Neill of Tyr-own, now Tyrone. O’Neill had the ear of the Queen and as such was privy to the goings on in court. The Queen had her own agenda; she would use O’Neill against his own people. O’Neill being a very intelligent and eloquent man played the Queen at her own game for years. O’Neill’s hand was finally forced and he gathered many of the remaining clans against the forces of the crown at Kinsale. Outnumbered by Crown forces, the clans where defeated. Many Irish chieftains were forced to leave Ireland for the Continent. This exile has since become known as “The Flight of the Wild Geese” or “The Flight of the Earls.” Many thousands of Irishmen followed and Irish Regiments sprung up in the service of France and Spain. Again, it would and has taken entire books to list the battles fought even between the Irish and the English. We have chosen, in this book, to focus on two Regiments which formed within the British Army much later in History; those of the 83rd and 86th Regiments, later the Royal Irish Rifles. With all of Ireland now under the Crown, these men whether they called themselves Irish or British, found their calling in the British Army. It is very important to point out that the men of the Irish Regiments within the British army have always been volunteers. The following book is actually a compellation of several books written from first hand accounts and records of the regiments. Due to the style of English spoken and written at the time, we have edited some of the following to make it friendlier for the modern reader. Getting around many of the terms, some of which I must confess I had to use an old English dictionary to sort out, became more of a challenge than some readers may be willing to spend time on. We have left some chapters as they were written to give the reader an idea as to the style of speech and writing of the period. Our main purpose with this book is to help insure that the first hand experiences and the exploits of these regiments continue to be history and are not lost with the passing of time.