The 6th Battalion, Ulster Defence Regiment

Ulster Defence Regiment

The Ulster Defence Regiment was an infantry regiment of the British Army which became operational in 1970, formed on similar lines to other British reserve forces but with the operational role of defence of life or property in Northern Ireland against armed attack or sabotage...

was formed in 1970 as part of the 7 original battalions. It was, along with the rest of the regiment, subsumed into the Royal Irish Rangers

Royal Irish Rangers

The Royal Irish Rangers was a regular infantry regiment of the British Army.-Creation:...

 in 1992 to form the Royal Irish Regiment.

On 13 July 1983, Ronald Alexander (19), John Roxborough (19), Oswald Neely (20) and Thomas Harron (25), all Protestant

Protestantism

Protestantism is one of the three major groupings within Christianity. It is a movement that began in Germany in the early 16th century as a reaction against medieval Roman Catholic doctrines and practices, especially in regards to salvation, justification, and ecclesiology.The doctrines of the...

 members of the 6th Battalion Ulster Defence Regiment, were killed in a Provisional Irish Republican Army

Provisional Irish Republican Army

The Provisional Irish Republican Army is an Irish republican paramilitary organisation whose aim was to remove Northern Ireland from the United Kingdom and bring about a socialist republic within a united Ireland by force of arms and political persuasion...

land mine attack on their mobile patrol on Ballymackilroy Hill, near Ballygawley.