This is a private website and NOT the official Irish Guards Website which is available here |
Stories of the Regiment.
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Why the Irish Guards Get Presented Royal
Shamrock on St Patrick's Day.
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On 1 March 1900 it had been decreed that because of the
Bravery of the Irish Regiments during the South African
war, they would be allowed to wear Shamrock each year on
the 17 March , St Patrick's Day. The Irish Guards were
no exception, so on the 17th March 1901, The Battalion
was formed up on the Square of Chelsea Barracks wearing
the Shamrock that had been presented by the Battalion having
just returned from the Regimental Church parade. Just then
an Orderly from the Palace marched up to the Commanding
Officer, Lt. Col. R.J. Cooper MVO, with his arms laden
with boxes of Shamrock sent as a present from Queen Alexander
to the New Regiment. Immediately the Regimental Shamrock
was removed to be replaced with the Royal gift and so a
new tradition was born.
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The Harry Robertshaw Bequest.
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7159 Private Harry Robertshaw was an Englishman in
the Regiment who was wounded during the First World
War and was shipped back to England to recover from
his injuries. When he had recovered he was sent back
out to join the 2nd Battalion. The day he departed
for the front line he said to his Sister 'Buy my friends
a drink.' Harry was unfortunately killed in action
with the 2nd Battalion near Ayette in the last stages
of the breakthrough on the 28th March 1918, however
his Sister had not forgotten what her Brother had said
the day he left to rejoin the war, and nearly 70 years
later left a handsome bequest to the Regiment.
Regimental dinners, St Patrick's Day drinks and other
special occasions are subsidised by this bequest. Each
time a brief explanation of the story is given and
a toast is drunk in the memory of Harry Robershaw.
When the Regiment last Trooped it's Colours in 1996
it was deemed that every Guardsman on Parade, irrelevant
of Regiment, was a 'Friend' and was presented with
a drink (shown above).
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The Day the Sherman met the King Tiger
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Whilst taking part in Operation Goodwood east of Cagny,
Lt John Gorman who was a Troop Commander in the 2nd Armoured
Battalion was probing forward in his Sherman tank 'Ballyragget'
when suddenly he found himself broadside to a German King
Tiger , the massive German tank that no-one had yet seen.
On seeing the tank he gave the order to fire his 75mm gun
at it but it just bounced off the armour of the great German
monster. On giving the order to fire again he was informed
by the gunner that the gun was jammed and could not fire
again. By now the German Tiger Tank was traversing his
88m gun onto the defenceless Sherman tank. On seeing
this Lt Gorman ordered his driver L/Cpl James Brown to
ram the Tiger Tank. Ballyragget struck the German tank
amidships disabling the tank and causing it's crew to bail
out. After seeing his own crew to saftey, Lt Gorman commandeered
a Firefly, 'Ballymena', whose commander had been killed
and continued to fire at the Tiger tank with his new-found
18 pounder gun until it's destruction was complete. For
this action Lt John Gorman was awarded the Military Cross
and his driver L/Cpl James Brown was awarded the Military
Medal.
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