Tommy and Peter.
There were many, many sets of brothers who fought in the First World war e.g. see the story about the 3 Mc Gowan brothers posted on 28.6.13. Tommy and Peter Rooney joined up in Belfast in 1915 with the 14th Battalion of the Rifles otherwise known as the Young Citizens Volunteers. They were from Kilkeel. The YCV was set aside from the UVF at their start but they later became a battalion in their own right in the 36th Ulster Division. . As the name suggests they were young but still eager to fight for their country against the Germans. The story has been told many times. Joining up to get away from poverty. Pride for the family and themselves. A belief in a just cause. Get the uniform, get out drilling. Down to the ferry. Training in England. Strange and foreign fields. Crossing to France. More drilling. Getting the first taste of battle. The sound of exploding shells, the dirt, the cold, lice. Pining for home. Thinking of loved ones . The two brothers entered the war proper in October 1915. They endured the cold winter while plans where drew for the ‘big push’ on the 1st July 1916. The Somme. On that morning they stood in Thiepval wood with thousands of Ulstermen. The mix of fear and excitement. Not so far away a young man called Billy was throwing himself on a box of grenades and dying so that he could save his friends. Then up and out into a hell of fire and shell. Screams and blood. Vicious wounds, men lying dying.
We know the story of the advance and capture, the slaughter and then the retreat. Tommy was lucky. Seriously wounded with a bullet shot to the leg he was carried out to safety and eventually made it home. Peter was not so lucky. A shell hit his position and he was killed immediately. His remains, like tens of thousands, were never recovered. So what makes this story any different from the men of the Shankill, Newtownards Road, Tigers Bay, Sandy Row? Both brothers were Roman Catholics who no matter what, believed they had a duty to serve and fight for their country. As much as Mc Fadzean and all the rest, these men were, and are, heroes.
James.
