4 days ago
WWI letters and medals found in house in Tipperary
A collection of letters and medals from a soldier serving on the Front Line during World War I have been discovered in a house in Tipperary.
They were found during a clear out of a house in Thurles.
Denis Kenny and his family were recently clearing out the house of his late mother when they discovered a small box containing letters, cards and medals.
The memorabilia are of his late grand uncle James Maher - or Jem - who served with the Royal Field Artillery Regiment of the British Army in WWI.
James joined the war effort in 1915 at age 28.
The box contains letters he wrote to his family at home in Thurles and details the living conditions of the soldiers on the front.
In one of the letters, he expresses his hope for an end to the war and flags their preparations for an upcoming battle.
This is understood to be a reference to the battle of Passchendaele or the third battle of Ypres, which resulted in over 900,000 casualties.
James was among the casualties. He died on 11 August 1917 and is buried in the War Cemetery in Ypres.
While James served in the British Army, his sister Josephine was a member of Cumann na mBan in Thurles, fighting against British rule in Ireland.
Denis said the letters give a fascinating picture of family life in Ireland at a difficult time.
"It's an unusual tale. Some people chose to fight with the British Army in Europe and my grand uncle Jem was one of those, while his sister Josephine at home fought against British rule in Ireland.
"Their relationship didn't seem to be affected by this - going by their correspondence in the letters. But I wonder how their relationship would have panned out if he had returned alive from the war."
The letters and war medals could have been thrown out accidentally during the house clear out, but Denis said that the family are very relieved to have found them and are now making plans to have them conserved.
