The history of the Irish in the armed forces - a private walking tour

Belfast has a surprising variety of history in its streets including the history of the Irish and latterly the Northern Irish folk who went to fight in the armed forces during conflicts around the world. We will talk about the men who went to fight during the Victorian and Edwardian period in the Boer War and later in the First and Second World Wars. We will also talk about the Americans who arrived in Belfast during WW11 and General Eisenhower who was eventually awarded the freedom of the city of Belfast. You will hear about the night the Luftwaffe bombed Belfast in 1941 and the effect on the city. Our tour will finish at the Royal Ulster Rifles Museum to see the highlights of their collection to include the keys to Colditz and If you are seeking information on an irish ancestor who was in the armed services then please give me the information well in advance of your visit and I can ask the museum research team to locate the service record and any information they can find about your relative.

Stop one - Meeting point the front gates at Belfast City Hall and USA Expeditionary Force memorial. Stop two - Edward Harland statue - hear about the role of Harland & Wolf in the building of ships for the navy Stop three - Titanic Memorial Garden - we will talk about the men of Belfast who built Titanic but then went to fight in WW1 Stop four - Royal Irish Rifles Memorial - going back in time we will look at this magnificent statue of a soldier in uniform of the time wearing a khaki uniform and topee and puttee standing on a boulder, a memorial to those who died in the South African war 1899 - 1902. Stop Five - Cenotaph - Korean War memorial relating to the Korean war in 1951 and the Lord Dufferin memorial. Stop Six - Ulster Hall - the location of many political and artistic events since victorian times. Stop seven-Royal Ulster Rifles Museum - your chance to view the collection in this fascinating museum to include the keys to Colditz and subject to good prior notice a Victoria Cross.