First World War Gallery

Preparations for the Easter (Dublin) Rising of 1916 Mary Spring Rice and Molly

Preparations for the Easter (Dublin) Rising of 1916
Mary Spring Rice and Molly Childers on the yacht Asgard bring guns from Germany to the Irish Volunteers, July 1914.
The box of ammunition is clearly marked Hamburg - the guns were sourced from Germany, Britain's oppoment in WW1
Asgard was Erskine Childers s last, and most famous, yacht: in June 1914 he used it to smuggle a cargo of 900 elderly but serviceable Mauser Model 1871 rifles and 29, 000 black powder cartridges to the Irish Volunteers movement at the fishing village of Howth, County Dublin (later known as the "Howth gun-running"). It was acquired by the Irish government as a sail training vessel in 1961, stored on dry land in the yard of Kilmainham Gaol in 1979, and finally became a static exhibit at The National Museum of Ireland in 2012. Topfoto stills library picture library stock archive vintage Ireland Irish Rebellion 1916

© TopFoto.co.uk

Lady and soldier on Flag Day, Lemon Street, Truro, Cornwall. 18th October 1916

Collecting day for "Our Lady". The soldier is a sergeant in the 14th (County of London) Battalion, London Scottish Regiment. He has a "Wound Stripe" on the cuff of his uniform jacket. The soldier has been identified by family members as Reginald Grant Jordan, eldest son of the printer and photographer Arthur William Jordan. The photograph was taken outside the family home, Banff House, 42 Lemon Street. Houses at 53 and 54 Lemon Street can be seen in the background. Photographer: Arthur William Jordan

© From the collection of the RIC

Soldiers and Sailors Buffet at Paddington Station, 1919

A shot capturing the last servicemen to be offered refreshments at the Soldiers and Sailors Free Buffet at Paddington Station on 28th June 1919. The forces canteen opened in April 1915 to offer sustenance to the servicemen who passed through Paddington during the war years. It was staffed day and night by a dedicated group of more than 80 female volunteers who, during the four years that the Buffet was open, served refreshments to more than 3 million men. The soldier sitting in the corner seat was himself a Great Western man, possibly on his journey home from active duty

© STEAM Museum of the GWR