With the outbreak of the First World War some 70 Irish Guards Reservists were recalled from the Royal Irish Constabulary on 4 August 1914. The Inspector General of the RIC, Sir Neville Chamberlain sanctioned a further 200 men who were selected from a very large group of volunteers, following a further call for recruits to the Irish Guards, who were despatched at fortnightly intervals. The first batch of 41 departed on 15 December 1914, the second of 38 on 30 December 1914, the third of 38 on 13 January 1915, the fourth on 27 January 1915 and the fifth of 39 on 12 February 1915.

Additional volunteers fro the RIC were sanctioned by the inspector general, bringing the total to 757 (one county inspector, 31 district inspectors, eight sergeants, three acting sergeants and 712 constables) who served in fifty British Army regiments.

ARMY SERVICE CORPS; ARMY VETERINARY CORPS; CADET CORPS, ROYAL IRISH RIFLES; CHESHIRE REGIMENT; CONNAUGHT RANGERS; 4th HUSSARS; 8th HUSSARS; GRENADIER GUARDS; INDIAN ARMY RESERVE; INNISKILLING DRAGOONS; INTELLIGENCE CORPS; IRISH GUARDS: INNS OF COURT, OFFICER TRAINING CORPS; KING’S LIVERPOOL REGIMENT: KING’S ROYAL RIFLE CORPS; LABOUR CORPS; 5th LANCERS; 12th LANCERS; LEINSTER REGIMENT: LIFE GUARDS: MACHINE GUN GUARDS; MANCHESTER REGIMENT; MILITARY FOOT POLICE; MILITARY MOUNTED POLICE; NORTH IRISH HORSE; NORTHUMBERLAND FUSILIERS; OFFICER TRAINING CORPS; RIFLE BRIGADE; ROYAL ARMY MEDICAL CORPS; ROYAL DUBLIN FUSILIERS; ROYAL ENGINEERS; ROYAL FIELD ARTILLERY; ROYAL FLEET RESERVE; ROYAL FLYING CORPS; ROYAL GARRISON ARTILLERY: ROYAL HORSE GUARDS; ROYAL INNISKILLING FUSILIERS; ROYAL IRISH FUSILIERS: ROYAL IRISH REGIMENT; ROYAL IRISH RIFLES; ROYAL MUNSTER FUSILIERS; ROYAL NAVY; ROYAL RIFLE CORPS; SCOTS GUARDS; SHROPSHIRE LIGHT INFANTRY; SOUTH IRISH HORSE; WEST YORKSHIRE REGIMENT; WORCESTER REGIMENT: YORK & LANCASHIRE REGIMENT.

By the end of the war nearly 700 former RIC men had served with the Irish Guards alone, of these some ten per cent, having passed through the ranks, gained commissions in other regiments. They were splendid material (the first detachment were all over six feet tall). The original quota in 1914 was 200, but nine times that amount had volunteered for active service. Of the 757 RIC men who served with the colours during the Great War, 34 were officers – 1 county inspector and 33 district inspectors, five of whom were killed and nine wounded. Of the remaining 723 men, 176 were killed or declared missing. 192 wounded, and 20 were made prisoners of war. The Distinguished Conduct Medal was awarded to no less than twenty recipients, forty two Military Medals, two Military Cross, one Medaille Militaire and five Croix de Guerres, while 40 gained commissions.

 

All 176 RIC Volunteer Casualties are listed in the order in which they died.

ROYAL IRISH CONSTABULARY VOLUNTEERS, 1914-1919

ROLL OF HONOUR

1914 (7); 1915 (29); 1916 (56); 1917 (57); 1918 (26); 1919 (1)

Total = 176

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1914

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ROBERT MOLLOY – 1 September 1914

THOMAS KEATING – 4 September 1914

JOHN JAMES ORMSBY – 1 November 1914

JEREMIAH RIORDAN – 1 November 1914

DENIS HARNEY – 6 NOVEMBER 1914

WILLIAM PATRICK MULHOLLAND – 6 NOVEMBER 1914

THOMAS STEPHEN NORRIS – 6 NOVEMBER 1914

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1915

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MICHAEL CAREY – 14 FEBRUARY 1915

WILLIAM T. STEDMAN – 12 APRIL 1915

MICHAEL CAREY – 9 MAY 1915

MICHAEL O’BRIEN – 12 MAY 1915

JAMES REID LUNNEY – 13 MAY 1915

EDWIN JOHN BENBOW – 18 MAY 1915

JOHN WILLIAM GRAY – 18 MAY 1915

ROBERT SHEPPARD – 18 MAY 1915

PATRICK DALY – 24 MAY 1915

SIMON DEMPSEY – 9 JUNE 1915

EDWARD GRAHAM MYLNE – 12 JUNE 1915

WILLIAM R McDERMOTT PURDY – 21 AUGUST 1915

JAMES McMAHON – 27 SEPTEMBER 1915

SHERWOOD, WILLIAM HENRY SHERWOOD – 27 SEPTEMBER 1915

WILLIAM HUTCHINSON – 28 SEPTEMBER 1915

ARTHUR KEATING – 28 SEPTEMBER 1915

GEORGE MOORE – 29 SEPTEMBER 1915

BOYCE MATTHEW GILMOUR – 30 SEPTEMBER 1915

WILLIAM HAROLD – 30 SEPTEMBER 1915

STEPHEN ANTHONY – 30 SEPTEMBER 1915

WILLIAM BOYD – 6 OCTOBER 1915

THOMAS AUGUSTIN LOVE – 8 OCTOBER 1915

THOMAS DOYLE – 9 SEPTEMBER 1915

CHRISTOPHER JOHN COLDWELL – 12 OCTOBER 1915

CHARLES JOHN MAGUIRE – 17 OCTOBER 1915

MICHAEL FITZGERALD – 20 OCTOBER 1915

MICHAEL CONNELL – 25 OCTOBER 1915

JOHN JAMES HARTE – 19 NOVEMBER 1915

THOMAS HENRY GLENNON – 20 NOVEMBER 1915

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1916

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OSBORNE GEORGE De COURCY BALDWIN – 26 JANUARY 1916

VALENTINE CHARLES JOSEPH BLAKE – 28 JANUARY 1916

MICHAEL MARTIN – 28 JANUARY 1916

WILLIAM JACKSON – 25 APRIL 1916

JAMES DOHERTY – 29 APRIL 1916

HENRY PETER BRENNAN – 30 APRIL 1916

JOHN MORRIS – 4 MAY 1916

PHILIP NOLAN – 20 JUNE 1916

JOHN BRADLEY – 9 JULY 1916

GEORGE MOORE – 9 JULY 1916

DANIEL O’LEARY – 29 JULY 1916

MATHEW HALTON – 6 AUGUST 1916

THOMAS NICHOLAS BURKE – 9 SEPTEMBER 1916

WILLIAM CUNNINGHAM – 12 SEPTEMBER 1916

THOMAS McCONVILLE – 13 SEPTEMBER 1916

MARTIN MOLLOY – 13 SEPTEMBER 1916

THOMAS CASEY – 14 SEPTEMBER 1916

MICHAEL BOYLAN – 15 SEPTEMBER 1916

DANIEL CAREY – 15 SEPTEMBER 1916

MICHAEL CURRAN  – 15 SEPTEMBER 1916

OWEN CLERKIN – 15 SEPTEMBER 1916

JOHN DYRA – 15 SEPTEMBER 1916

JOHN M. GROGAN, JOHN M. – 15 SEPTEMBER 1916

MICHAEL KILBANE – 15 – SEPTEMBER 1916

ROBERT McCARTHY – 15 SEPTEMBER 1916

MICHAEL MITCHELL – 15 SEPTEMBER 1916

DANIEL KELLEHER – 16 SEPTEMBER 1916

DANIEL NEALON – 15 SEPTEMBER 1916

SAMUEL ANDREW QUIGLEY – 15 SEPTEMBER 1916

ALBERT MUIR – 16 SEPTEMBER 1916

STEPHEN CALDWELL – 17 SEPTEMBER 1916

EUGENE McMANUS – 17 SEPTEMBER 1916

FRANCIS REILLY – 17 SEPTEMBER 1916

NORMAN LEOPOLD MICHAEL TAYLOR – 18 SEPTEMBER 1916

SAMUEL McADOO – 21 SEPTEMBER 1916

JOHN E. DALY – 25 SEPTEMBER 1916

MICHAEL MURPHY – 25 SEPTEMBER 1916

DANIEL S. O’LEARY – 25 SEPTEMBER 1916

JAMES BRIEN – 26 SEPTEMBER 1916

EDWARD LOOBEY – 26 SEPTEMBER 1916

JOSEPH SNOW – 26 SEPTEMBER 1916

BURKE, MICHAEL BURKE – 5 OCTOBER 1916

NICHOLAS MURPHY – 11 OCTOBER 1916

WILLIAM GLENNON – 12 OCTOBER 1916

WILSON LONGMORE – 28 OCTOBER 1916

ROBERT ANDREW KENNA – 3 NOVEMBER 1916

LAWRENCE CRAWLEY – 13 NOVEMBER 1916

RICHARD JAMES HOWLEY – 13/11/1916

LAWRENCE MEGAN  – 13 NOVEMBER 1916

JOHN MURDON – 13 NOVEMBER 1916

ANTHONY OVINGTON – 13 NOVEMBER 1916

SPAIN, PATRICK P. SPAIN – 13 NOVEMBER 1916

DAVID JOHN WHITE – 13 NOVEMBER 1916

PATRICK JAMES OATES – 20 NOVEMBER – 1916

BUCKLEY, JEREMIAH BUCKLEY – 30 DECEMBER 1916

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1917

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