History of Irish people serving in the British Armed Forces
Irish Guards Pipers at Trooping the Colour. The bagpipers are wearing saffron kilts and brogues, as well as a caubeen headdress.
Irish in the British Armed Forces refers to the history of Irish people serving in the British Armed Forces (including the British Army, the Royal Navy, the Royal Air Force and other elements). All of Ireland was part of the United Kingdom from January 1801 to December 1922, and during this time in particular many Irishmen fought in the British Army. Northern Ireland remains within the United Kingdom. Different social classes joined the military for various reasons, including the Anglo-Irish officers who thoroughly wished to support the "mother country", while others, typically poorer Irish Catholics, did so to support their families or seeking adventure.
Many Irishmen and members of the Irish diaspora in Britain and also Ulster-Scots served in both the First World War and the Second World War as part of the British forces. However, since most of Ireland gained independence in 1922 and, in particular, since the outbreak of The Troubles in 1969, the topic of enlistment in the British Armed Forces has been controversial for many Irish people, especially for those from an Irish Catholic background. Since partition in the early 1920s, Irish citizens from what is now the Republic of Ireland have continued to have the right to serve in the British Army, reaching its highest levels since the Second World War in the 1940s.[1] On the other hand, serving in the British Armed Forces remains a major tradition in the Ulster Protestant community.
^Number of Irish recruits joining British Army stable again following dissident republican death threats at www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk. Retrieved 13 Nov 2016.
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