Killorglin WW1 dead remembered

On Monday 4th of August t2014 exactly 100 years on from the start of WW1 the people of Killorglin Co, Kerry came out in force to remember those men from the area who had fought in the conflict. Many of those who went never came home and those who returned lived with their scars for the rest of their lives. Mr Stephen Thompson of The Killorglin Archive Society was instrumental in the gathering of the names of all of these men and great credit must go to him and his colleagues for the unveiling of the plaque.

Etreux - 100

The 27th of August 2014 will mark the 100th Anniversary of The Rearguard Action at Etreux in which the 2nd Battalion of The RMF were surrounded by a much larger German Army. Many men of the battalion lost their lives that day and many more were captured and were to spend the next 4 years as Prisoners of War. Mike McLoughlin who is one of our members will lead a Battlefield Tour and will be present in Etreux and many more from The RMFA will attend in a private capacity. There will be some of our members travelling from as far away as Canada to be there. Throughout the day, Professor Hedley Malloch, Ph.D. who lives and teaches in the area and is also a member of both The RMFA and The WFA has organised a number of events. The time table is listed here for those of you who may be interested in attending the various ceremonies.

Etreux time table 2014

PDF Version

The History of Ballymullen Barracks by Robert Tangney.

Over the last few months Tralee historian Robert Tangney has been preparing to publish his book on the history of Ballymullen Barracks. Our previous Secretary Jean Prendergast was one of those who has given Robert some invaluable help with information and photographs. Robert will be launching his book on Tuesday June 24th at Tralee County Library at 7pm. All are welcome to attend and the book will be on sale priced €15 with an optional extra of €3 for a map of Ballymullen dated 1912.

 

Book Launch Poster

My Kingdom by Mike Donoghue.

Many months ago one of our members in Canada contacted me about a book which he was in the process of writing. The book was based on the life of his Grandfather who served with the Munsters in both India and The Great War. Mike’s book is now complete and has been published. I have read the book and i can assure you that it is well worth buying. The book is listed on Amazon and can be found under Michael F. Donoghue or by clicking on the link below.

 

My Kingdom by Mike Donoghue

New Association Secretary

Due to the recent resignation of Ms. Jean Prendergast as The Association Secretary, the Committee met recently to elect a replacement. A unanimous decision was taken to elect Ms. Colette Collins as a replacement. Colette has been a member of The RMFA for a number of years and has travelled on a number of occasion to both The Western Front and Gallipoli. All enquiries for membership should be sent to Colette. She can be contacted at

Main Street, Liscarroll, Co, Cork.

The Association wishes to convey our best wishes to our former Secretary Ms. Prendergast and hopes that she continues in her wonderful work as both an Archivist and Historian.

 

Royal Munster Fusiliers Association Exhibition - Tralee.

After much preparation and with help from our friends in The Cork branch of The Western Front Association and The Great War Society we eventually got our show on the road and headed off to Tralee on the week end of the 23rd & 24th of May. Nothing could have prepared us for the reception we received from the people who came not just from Tralee but from the four corners of The Kingdom. On Saturday alone over 900 people came to show us medals, pictures, and lots and lots of other family heirlooms. Stories were shared and everyone seemed to have got something before we closed up on Saturday evening. We would like to thank the staff of Tralee County Library who gave us everything we needed and so much more, Mr. Stephen Thompson of The Killorglin Historical Society who provided items from his own collection, and Mr. Noel Grimes of Killarney who helped to set up the show and all of those who donated pictures to The RMFA.  A mention is also due to Ms Eunice Bailey whose uncle Lt. Denis Bailey was KIA who kindly lent us items from her collection. All in all a great 2 days was had by all.