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First headstones of Irish soldiers

Irish soldiers that served in the first and second World Wars, buried in Glasnevin Cemetery, were commemorated for the first time by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. By Pat Holland - 12/11/09

The war graves commission unveiled the first of 90 headstones it plans to build on the graves of servicemen and women who were buried in “paupers’ graves” in the cemetery.

A further 120 servicemen and women have been identified by the Glasnevin Trust, which runs the cemetery, as having been buried in family plots or individual “purchased” graves. Their families will be offered suitable memorials.

Each of the 210 soldiers were killed in either the first or second World Wars, or died later from injuries. The war graves commission said its headstones will be erected before Christmas.

Yesterday, the first headstone unveiled was that of Martin Carr of the Connaught Rangers, who died on July 4th, 1916, in a Dublin workhouse from lung damage received in the trenches.

Another was Michael Leo Connolly of the Royal Dublin Fusiliers who died from injuries inflicted during the first World War.

Glasnevin Trust historian Shane MacThomais said all headstones would be individually placed over the appropriate grave and would contain details of the serviceman or woman and their regiments.

John Green, chairman of Glasnevin Trust, said the occasion was “a special day for the cemetery”. Until now, the grave selected for the ceremony had been denoted only by plot reference number UG481/2. The soldiers killed in the wars were part of a group in Ireland “whose situation has never been resolved here”. But, he said, the soldiers were “all volunteers who didn’t expect to die. We don’t judge and we don’t care. We just wish to remember,” he added.