IRISH
ROOTS : IRISH
WAR DEAD: Battlefield Tours
Battlefield Tours to honour the Irish Dead
A battlefield tour is a way of re-connecting with the recent past. There are 49,400 names on the Irish National War Memorial listed as killed in the World I. In these days of computerised genealological records, it is becoming easier to discover the details of your forebears experiences in the Great War of 1914-1918. Taking a battlefield tour to the exact spot where your relatives fought & sometimes died is a profound experience.
The Mayo World War Memorial was opened by the President of Ireland Mary McAleese in October 2008 . The memorial commemorates 1,114 of the Mayo men who died in World War I, World War II & subsequent conflicts. Additional names are added when discovered.
Some 63,000 Irishmen and women were killed in combat during two world wars. Military Heritage Tours runs battlefield tours for Irish people to visit the battlefields where their Irish fell fighting for freedom & democracy.
Battlefield tour companies visit the major battlefields of the Western Front at the Somme, Ypres, Cambrai, Verdun ,Passchendaele, Vimy Ridge, et al. The tour companies organise travelling & accomodation as well as providing expert knowledge & history of the battlefields.
Don't miss the Last Post at the Menin Gate at Ypres. It is a very emotional . The Last Post has been played continuously since 11 November, 1929 as a tribute from the Belgian Government to all the soldiers who died to preserve freedom. Every soldier that died in the battle of Ypres had marched under the Menin Gate on the way to the battlefields.
There are also many tours to the Major Battlefields of Normandy, Caen etc in World War II.
Those with relatives who fought in Gallipoli should join up for battlefield tour. This was fierce , brutal battle aimed at taking Constantinople (Istanbul) and securing a sea route to Russia. The attempt failed, with heavy casualties on both sides. Landing forces, overlooked by high cliffs, were pinned down to a narrow stretch of beach. High temperatures, snipers, disease, bad planning and a courageous enemy were a disastrous combination. This is a battlefield tour not to be missed.
For those interested in Russian battlefields take a tour of the Stalingrad Siege or the Kursk tank battles. For sun lovers tour the battlefields of North Africa & revisit the battles of Torbruk & El Alamein.
Research Napoleon's Irish Legion (Legion Irlandaise )by taking a battlefield tour to Waterloo & check out how they fared against the Duke of Wellington
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