website news page

Hello and welcome to my ' New ' website news page. As the site is increasing in size by the day i thought it would be a good idea to add this page so that those visiting the website will have some clear idea of what is currently being worked on and also what we are doing as a Living History Group.

Living History: The shows for this year are already coming in, and this year should be quite exciting with some new members coming on board. David from Sligo ( Below ) Karen and Lucy who will be putting on a 1940s Home Front Display, and Luke who has joined us representing the Rifles. Lucy has come up with the idea of collecting for a local charity, which is great and i will be updating this page with details when i receive them. If you would like to book us for an event then please drop us a line on the ' Contact Us ' Page.

Fellow Irishman David ( left ) from Sligo, contacted me through the Irish Veterans Project, and has decided to join us representing the Irish Guards during the North West Europe Campaign, , which is great news!! He has a great interest in military history, and his own relatives have a truly fascinating military background. Two of them i shall be writing about on the tributes page, Johnny and Bernie. David is coming over for the Ramsey 1940s weekend. It will be great to have him on board, representing a fine Irish Regiment
" The Micks "

The Website: Since its creation, i have added many subjects, and still continue to do so. I have neglected the Irish History chapter for some time now, so have decided to crack on with it. It is probably the most important section, as it will explain why so many Irishmen left the shores of Ireland to fight for other armies. It will also go some way to understanding why the Irish were so feared and why they possessed such brilliant fighting qualities. The answer to this question lies within the text of the History chapters. At the moment i have reached The War of the Forties. This will be followed by Cromwell and the Williamite Wars. I would like to take the Irish history section up to the ' Flight of the Wild Geese ' and look at the reason why so many Irishmen joined the ranks of the British Army and the influences they had on it. My next new suject is the ' Irish in the Battle of Messines 1917 ' There are still many more subjects that i would love to cover. My sincere thanks to all who have visted my site and have given me the encouragement to continue. I would also like to thank all those people for their kind remarks. I recently heard from a friend in Northern Ireland that a young boy was using the website for his school project on Irish Regiments. If that is the case then i have achieved everything and can ask for no more. This website is totally a hobby. I taught myself and there is no financial gain made. I have built it out of the love of my country and my Irish heritage and hope that others may learn from the information i have included. Sincere best wishes to you all, Steve ( The Mad Paddy )

Researching Your Military Ancestors: I often receive e-mails about the service records of individuals who either served during the Great War, or World War 2. I sincerely wish that i had this information to hand, as gathering such information can be very time consuming and can also be a bit of a " mine field. " Richard Moles is a very professional researcher who will do the hard work for you, and will investigate the military record of any relative who served in the British armed forces prior to, or during the Great War. His website can be found on my links page, where he gives a full account of how his investigations are conducted and what is required. It is well worth looking at. For those who are searching for the records of relatives who served in the British Forces during the Second World War, these are dealt with at the following address:

You need to request a form. There is charge for the search being carried out, and the wait ,so i believe is between 3 and 6 months. I sincerely hope this helps. Good luck and all the very best. . . .

Steve ( The Mad Paddy )

" There was a singer of songs-o, a wonderful singer,
Son of the skalds who made valorous songs for our sires
And he speeded his song on the wings of the wave and the tempest,
Calling a soul to the day of our slothful desires.

Bravely he sang - but they asked of him more than his singing,
Asked of him more than his wonderful children of song,
And he gave with a heart that with joy healed the breaking of the sorrow,
And tendered his all that the arm of the King might be strong.

Bravely he sang-o, his song brings a solace to mourning,
Halving the tears, that are sorrow's with tears that are pride's.
And the song in his heart shall o'ershadow the pain and the weeping
As the glory of death gives proud men to the anguish it hides. "

* Please note that if you do not wish to listen to the music on the website, or wish to watch one of the films included on the various chapters, there is a music box at the bottom of the ' welcome ' page. The music can be either stopped, paused or forwarded by clicking on the music box control buttons.