Ireland's Unknown Soldiers: The 16th (Irish) Division in the Great War, 1914-1918

The Great War of 1914-18 saw the Irish soldier make his greatest sacrifice on Britain's behalf. Nearly 135,000 Irishmen volunteered (conscription was never applied in Ireland) in addition to the 50,000 Irish who were serving with the regular army and the reserves on 4 August 1914. Within a few weeks of the outbreak of the war, no less than three Irish divisions - the 10th (Irish), 16th (Irish), and 36th (Ulster) - were formed from Irishmen, Catholic, and Protestant, who responded to Lord Kitchener's call to arms. An estimated 35,000 Irish-born soldiers were killed before the armistice came in November 1918. Over 4,000 of those who died were with the 16th (Irish) Division. Yet, in spite of these facts, serious historical study of Ireland's major involvement in the War has been neglected. Indeed Easter 1916 dominates Irish historiography to such an extent that the period 1914-18 is rarely considered as a distinct era in Irish history.