The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1897-04-24
cREmoNA AND FoNTENoY.
British Defeats Due to the. Yal0f
of the Irish Soldiers.
st9 IN.
AN INTERESTING LECTURE.
The Uniform Was a Red Coat and
White Knee Brooches.


an Doyle on "The Irish Brigade, the
celebrated novelist said he was acc
ouainted with few more interesting In
cidents in history than those which led
to the formation and the existence for
hundred years of the Irish Brigade In
the service of France. That so large
body Of men should engage under the
colors of a foreign nation; that they
should fight mainly against the govern"
ment which claimed their allegiance.
and that they should be able for q per"
Tod which exceeded three generations to
keep themselves we'll Offered by Irish
gentlemen of the best Catholic families
and their ranks filed with the best
fighting material Of Ireland, was Ger.
tainly a most extraordinary phenome.
non.
The existence of a military organiza.
ton of this Unnatural sort for so long |
a period was unique, he thought, In the
worlds history, and told more than !
words could do Of the abominable mise
government of Ireland by Great Britain
in the eighteenth century. During
century the history of Irish Brigades
was entwined with the military history
of France. Their lives were spent In
fighting against Great Britain or the
allies Of Great Britain. He found In
his notes eighty-nine engagements in
which they had burned powder. They
hoped the French to victory. They
covered the French retreat in three con-
tinents. They fought against their per-
secutors. Again and again their pres.
ence turned defeat into victory for thefN
adopted country.
At last milder laws prevailed in ire
land. Some limited measure of justice
was due e. the native population, and
instantly the brigades in France began
to dwind1e and disappear. After tho
raising of the siege Of Limerick in 1851,
which terminated the Jacobite war In
Ireland, $4,000 men, all good trained
soldiers of great endurance and hardiS
hood, with an experience Of several
campaigns, passed out of Ireland-out
of ireland. but not out of history-for
they went only from small stage to q
larger one, and exchanged their obscure
warfare Of their lovely island for SER
vice which filled the eyes Of Europe and
which had made their names famous IN
the history Of the last century. Thy
war minister Of Louis XIV, the Ffenchl
monarch. seized upon the body Of men
with avfdity, and proceeded to break !
them up into twelve regiments to Al
them into the French military establish-t
ment. This. was very hard upon .tlei
officers of the old Irish regiments, who
found themselves deprived Of their comst
mands. or very often, at any rate, re-
duced to lower rank.
It was interesting to look over the
names Of the original officers Of the Irish
Brigade. There were, for example. thA
Prendergasts, Buffers and Lacys; but
the vast majority were O'Carr0ll,
O'Haras, Murphys, Burkes, McCarthys,]
Powers, O'Nefls, McMahons and M9-l
honys. The waste Of the men Of theI
brigade during the great campaigns I'll
the end Of the seventeenth and thai
opening Of the eighteenth centuries waSi
made up by having special recruiting
agents In Ireland, who were liable tgi
be hanged IL detected by the governsf
ment, but who were we'll paid for their
work. Us .l
There had always been a great smue..i
Cling industry carried on between th6Si
indented coasts Of the west Of Ireland i
and the ports Of France. The arbitraryal
by England with the Irish. 4
wooden trade had increased this indu1!l
try, and numbers Of boats were enga1e6ss
in carrying wool to France. Few 0ei,Ss
these ever sailed without having onsl
board four or i've strong lads who 49, u
ready to fight under the lilies Of Frames
These boats. brought back claret ard
brandy, lace and silks. It was on thesess
occasions when the stout young peasant
was missing and the. big sail Of 'tlllas
smuggler was seen in the morning updls55
the southern horizon that word Nal
passed round that the Wild Goose haa
down.
3 Al to- the language Of the bt3Ge
vas usually Gaelic. 60 comm Is
IN the ranks that those ~
knew nothing of IL were connpell
learn It. Tie older IN
been the ono bond of
irish septs, and they ~ =