Grangegorman Military Cemetery
Encyclopedia
Grangegorman Military Cemetery is a British military cemetery in Dublin, Ireland
.
It is located on Blackhorse Avenue, off the Navan Road and beside the Phoenix Park
.
Barracks) and their families. Since the British army did not repatriate soldiers killed overseas until recently it contains the remains of soldiers from across the British Empire who died naturally or were killed in action in Ireland. However, it also contains the remains of some killed in the Crimean War
. After 1923 only servicemen and their next of kin could be buried there.
World War One casualties, unsurprisingly, are throughout the graveyard, and two of them are "known only to God". The striking thing about these graves is often the age, predominantly young men in their early twenties and thirties. These victims of the horrific trench warfare generally ended up in Grangegorman after being injured and sent to convalesce in Ireland, where they died of their wounds. This is the reason why some Australians were buried at Grangegorman. Incidentally, the Australian folk memory of the First World War is entirely different from the Irish experience and this can be seen in the annual Anzac Day
commemoration at the cemetery.
The graves can reveal surprising details about those buried there. Perhaps the best example is the row of burials of soldiers all killed on the 10th of October 1918. On that day a mail boat, the RMS Leinster
, was torpedoed as it left Dublin and many soldiers on board were killed.
Battalion badges are marked on the headstones along with the name of the person buried, their rank and the date of their death, while a very few have personal inscriptions. The Dublin Fusiliers have, unsurprisingly, a large number of their members and their closest relatives buried in the graveyard.
Mature trees and well-maintained lawns create a reflective atmosphere.
and South Staffs who suffered serious casualties when they attempted to cross Mount Street Bridge on the Grand Canal. Also included are Algernon Lucas and Basil Henry Worsley Worswick, both (alongside two civilians) shot by their own side, who mistakenly thought they were aiding Rebels in the Guinness brewery. According to the Irish Times, 'Families came to Dublin Castle in May 1916 to reclaim the bodies and funerals were arranged. Bodies which were not claimed were given military funerals and reinterred in the British military cemetery at Blackhorse Avenue, Grangegorman.'
The last major conflict in the 26 counties involving the British Army was the Irish War of Independence
. There are numerous graves of soldiers killed between 1919 and 1921.
There are also the graves of 12 British Service Personnel (one of whom is unidentified) who died in World War II, despite Ireland been a neutral country.
, the cemetery's current comparative anonymity has more to do with those buried there than with its location. It was forgotten after independence in a country forged from a bitter conflict with the British Army, as many viewed the Irishmen who had fought in the British Army as traitors.
Some of the graves were re-located to this site at a later date (nine from King George V Hospital grounds, two from Trinity College grounds, three from Portobello (Barracks) Cemetery, two from Drogheda (Little Calvary) Cemetery and one from Oranmore Old Graveyard). The Irish Times remarked upon 'one of the 1916 Rising’s unresolved mysteries. Why did the bodies of five British officers lie, apparently unclaimed and forgotten, in waste ground in central Dublin for 46 years?' Their bodies were then discovered and interred in Grangegorman.
The Irish National War Memorial Gardens
dedicated to the memory of the 49,400 Irish soldiers who gave their lives in the Great War, 1914–1918 is approximately 1km away in Islandbridge at the other side of the Phoenix Park.
A Screen Wall Memorial of a simple design standing nearly two metres high and fifteen metres long has been built of Irish limestone to commemorate the names of those war casualties whose graves lie elsewhere in Ireland and can no longer be maintained. Arranged before this memorial are the headstones of the war dead buried in Cork Military Cemetery but now commemorated here.
A Turkish Hazel
was planted in the cemetery in 2005 by the ambassadors of Turkey, New Zealand and Australia to Ireland to mark the 90th Anniversary of the Gallipoli landings on 25 April 1915.
The cemetery is now managed by the Office of Public Works
to Commonwealth War Graves Commission
standards and is the largest military cemetery in Ireland.
Dublin Bus route number 37 passes the cemetery from the city centre. Alight the first stop after McKee Barracks, continue in the direction the bus is travelling and the cemetery is 200 metres ahead on the right hand side of the road. The cemetery is open all year round from 10.00am to 4.00pm and there is no admission charge.
Burial Records: (Acknowledged to be not 100% complete)
Surnames A-Fhttp://www.interment.net/data/ireland/dublin/grangegorman/greg_af.htm
Surnames G-Lhttp://www.interment.net/data/ireland/dublin/grangegorman/greg_gl.htm
Surnames M-Rhttp://www.interment.net/data/ireland/dublin/grangegorman/greg_mr.htm
Surnames S-Zhttp://www.interment.net/data/ireland/dublin/grangegorman/greg_sz.htm
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
.
It is located on Blackhorse Avenue, off the Navan Road and beside the Phoenix Park
Phoenix Park
Phoenix Park is an urban park in Dublin, Ireland, lying 2–4 km west of the city centre, north of the River Liffey. Its 16 km perimeter wall encloses , one of the largest walled city parks in Europe. It includes large areas of grassland and tree-lined avenues, and since the seventeenth...
.
History and Background
The cemetery was opened in 1876 to serve as a graveyard for the soldiers of what was then Marlborough Barracks (now McKeeDick McKee
Richard “Dick” McKee was a prominent member of the Irish Republican Army . He was also friend to some senior members in the republican movement, including Éamon de Valera, Austin Stack and Michael Collins...
Barracks) and their families. Since the British army did not repatriate soldiers killed overseas until recently it contains the remains of soldiers from across the British Empire who died naturally or were killed in action in Ireland. However, it also contains the remains of some killed in the Crimean War
Crimean War
The Crimean War was a conflict fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the French Empire, the British Empire, the Ottoman Empire, and the Kingdom of Sardinia. The war was part of a long-running contest between the major European powers for influence over territories of the declining...
. After 1923 only servicemen and their next of kin could be buried there.
World War One casualties, unsurprisingly, are throughout the graveyard, and two of them are "known only to God". The striking thing about these graves is often the age, predominantly young men in their early twenties and thirties. These victims of the horrific trench warfare generally ended up in Grangegorman after being injured and sent to convalesce in Ireland, where they died of their wounds. This is the reason why some Australians were buried at Grangegorman. Incidentally, the Australian folk memory of the First World War is entirely different from the Irish experience and this can be seen in the annual Anzac Day
ANZAC Day
Anzac Day is a national day of remembrance in Australia and New Zealand, commemorated by both countries on 25 April every year to honour the members of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps who fought at Gallipoli in the Ottoman Empire during World War I. It now more broadly commemorates all...
commemoration at the cemetery.
The graves can reveal surprising details about those buried there. Perhaps the best example is the row of burials of soldiers all killed on the 10th of October 1918. On that day a mail boat, the RMS Leinster
RMS Leinster
RMS Leinster was a vessel operated by the City of Dublin Steam Packet Company, served as the Kingstown -Holyhead mailboat until she was torpedoed and sunk by German submarine UB-123 on 10 October 1918, while bound for Holyhead. She went down just outside Dublin Bay at a point four miles east of...
, was torpedoed as it left Dublin and many soldiers on board were killed.
Battalion badges are marked on the headstones along with the name of the person buried, their rank and the date of their death, while a very few have personal inscriptions. The Dublin Fusiliers have, unsurprisingly, a large number of their members and their closest relatives buried in the graveyard.
Mature trees and well-maintained lawns create a reflective atmosphere.
Controversy
While there is almost universally felt empathy with the millions of working class men slaughtered during world war one, those killed in late April/Early May 1916 have found little sympathy in Ireland. The graves of those who were killed between April 24th and the first week of May include those of some of the 118 soldiers who were killed in the course of suppressing the 1916 rising. These graves tell the story of the Rising day by day. From the dates and regiments it is possible to identify where these soldiers were killed. There are numerous graves of Sherwood ForestersSherwood Foresters
The Sherwood Foresters was formed during the Childers Reforms in 1881 from the amalgamation of the 45th Regiment of Foot and the 95th Regiment of Foot...
and South Staffs who suffered serious casualties when they attempted to cross Mount Street Bridge on the Grand Canal. Also included are Algernon Lucas and Basil Henry Worsley Worswick, both (alongside two civilians) shot by their own side, who mistakenly thought they were aiding Rebels in the Guinness brewery. According to the Irish Times, 'Families came to Dublin Castle in May 1916 to reclaim the bodies and funerals were arranged. Bodies which were not claimed were given military funerals and reinterred in the British military cemetery at Blackhorse Avenue, Grangegorman.'
The last major conflict in the 26 counties involving the British Army was the Irish War of Independence
Irish War of Independence
The Irish War of Independence , Anglo-Irish War, Black and Tan War, or Tan War was a guerrilla war mounted by the Irish Republican Army against the British government and its forces in Ireland. It began in January 1919, following the Irish Republic's declaration of independence. Both sides agreed...
. There are numerous graves of soldiers killed between 1919 and 1921.
There are also the graves of 12 British Service Personnel (one of whom is unidentified) who died in World War II, despite Ireland been a neutral country.
Further Information
Situated beside the Phoenix ParkPhoenix Park
Phoenix Park is an urban park in Dublin, Ireland, lying 2–4 km west of the city centre, north of the River Liffey. Its 16 km perimeter wall encloses , one of the largest walled city parks in Europe. It includes large areas of grassland and tree-lined avenues, and since the seventeenth...
, the cemetery's current comparative anonymity has more to do with those buried there than with its location. It was forgotten after independence in a country forged from a bitter conflict with the British Army, as many viewed the Irishmen who had fought in the British Army as traitors.
Some of the graves were re-located to this site at a later date (nine from King George V Hospital grounds, two from Trinity College grounds, three from Portobello (Barracks) Cemetery, two from Drogheda (Little Calvary) Cemetery and one from Oranmore Old Graveyard). The Irish Times remarked upon 'one of the 1916 Rising’s unresolved mysteries. Why did the bodies of five British officers lie, apparently unclaimed and forgotten, in waste ground in central Dublin for 46 years?' Their bodies were then discovered and interred in Grangegorman.
The Irish National War Memorial Gardens
Irish National War Memorial Gardens
The Irish National War Memorial Gardens is an Irish war memorial in Islandbridge, Dublin dedicated "to the memory of the 49,400 Irish soldiers who gave their lives in the Great War, 1914–1918", out of over 300,000 Irishmen who served in all armies....
dedicated to the memory of the 49,400 Irish soldiers who gave their lives in the Great War, 1914–1918 is approximately 1km away in Islandbridge at the other side of the Phoenix Park.
A Screen Wall Memorial of a simple design standing nearly two metres high and fifteen metres long has been built of Irish limestone to commemorate the names of those war casualties whose graves lie elsewhere in Ireland and can no longer be maintained. Arranged before this memorial are the headstones of the war dead buried in Cork Military Cemetery but now commemorated here.
A Turkish Hazel
Turkish Hazel
Corylus colurna is a tree native to southeast Europe and southwest Asia, from the Balkans through northern Turkey to northern Iran. It is the largest species of hazel, reaching 35 m tall, with a stout trunk up to 1.5 m diameter; the crown is slender conic in young trees, becoming broader with age....
was planted in the cemetery in 2005 by the ambassadors of Turkey, New Zealand and Australia to Ireland to mark the 90th Anniversary of the Gallipoli landings on 25 April 1915.
The cemetery is now managed by the Office of Public Works
Office of Public Works
The Office of Public Works is a State Agency of the Department of Finance in the Republic of Ireland...
to Commonwealth War Graves Commission
Commonwealth War Graves Commission
The Commonwealth War Graves Commission is an intergovernmental organisation of six independent member states whose principal function is to mark, record and maintain the graves, and places of commemoration, of Commonwealth of Nations military service members who died in the two World Wars...
standards and is the largest military cemetery in Ireland.
Dublin Bus route number 37 passes the cemetery from the city centre. Alight the first stop after McKee Barracks, continue in the direction the bus is travelling and the cemetery is 200 metres ahead on the right hand side of the road. The cemetery is open all year round from 10.00am to 4.00pm and there is no admission charge.
Burial Records: (Acknowledged to be not 100% complete)
Surnames A-Fhttp://www.interment.net/data/ireland/dublin/grangegorman/greg_af.htm
Surnames G-Lhttp://www.interment.net/data/ireland/dublin/grangegorman/greg_gl.htm
Surnames M-Rhttp://www.interment.net/data/ireland/dublin/grangegorman/greg_mr.htm
Surnames S-Zhttp://www.interment.net/data/ireland/dublin/grangegorman/greg_sz.htm
Sources
- Thomas P. Dooley: Irishmen or English Soldiers? : the Times of a Southern Catholic Irish Man (1876-1916), Liverpool Press (1995), ISBN 0-85323-600-3.
- Myles Dungan: They Shall not Grow Old: Irish Soldiers in the Great War, Four Courts Press (1997), ISBN 1-85182-347-6.
- Keith Jeffery: Ireland and the Great War, Press Syndicate of the University of Cambridge (2000), ISBN 0-521-77323-7.
- Bryan Cooper (1918): The 10th (Irish) Division in Gallipoli, Irish Academic Press (1993), (2003). ISBN 0-7165-2517-8.
- Terence Denman: Ireland's unknown Soldiers: the 16th (Irish) Division in the Great War, Irish Academic Press (1992), (2003) ISBN 0-7165-2495-3.
- Desmond & Jean Bowen: Heroic Option: The Irish in the British Army, Pen & Sword Books (2005), ISBN 1-84415-152-2.
- Steven Moore: The Irish on the Somme (2005), ISBN 0-9549715-1-5.
- Thomas Bartlett & Keith Jeffery: A Military History of Ireland, Cambridge University Press (1996) (2006), ISBN 0-521-62989-6
- David Murphy: Irish Regiments in the World Wars, OSprey Publishing (2007), ISBN 978-1-84603-015-4
- David Murphy: The Irish Brigades, 1685-2006, A gazatteer of Irish Military Service past and present, Four Courts Press (2007)
The Military Heritage of Ireland Trust. ISBN 978-1-84682-080-9 - Stephen Walker: Forgotten Soldiers; The Irishmen shot at dawn Gill & Nacmillan (2007), ISBN 978-07171-4182-1
External links
- Bandon War Memorial Committee
- Combined Irish Regiments Association
- Connaught Ranger's Association
- Department of the Taoiseach: Irish Soldiers in the First World War
- Dublin Memorials of the Great War 1914-1918
- Waterford Museum: WWI and Ireland
- Interment.net Cemetery details
- Irish War Memorials Project - listing of monuments in Ireland
- Military Heritage of Ireland Trust
- Royal Dublin Fusiliers Association
- Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers Association
- Royal Munster Fusilier's Association