Other Forces

Armour in a Free State.

Government of Ireland/National Library of Ireland.

May appear a bit off-topic - but not entirely so. In this photo we see two of the thirteen Rolls-Royce armoured cars supplied by the British to the Irish Free State National Army during the Irish Civil War. The relevance of this to WW2 ? Well, believe it or not, these vehicles - all of them - remained in service through most of the "Emergency" (neutral Ireland's word for WW2). They left service only in 1944 and then only because the Irish Army finally ran out of the solid rubber tyres (clearly seen on the right-hand vehicle) and no replacements could be secured for these redundant components. There are a number of interesting details in this photo. The right-hand vehicle carries the name "The Fighting Second" - presumably a reference to the Second (Southern) Division of the Free State Army. The left-hand vehicle is named "The Big Fella", a reference to General Michael Collins, C-in-C of the National Army and Minister for Finance in the Free State Government. Collins was killed shortly after this photo was taken in an ambush by anti-Treaty troops in West Cork. The officer standing at the right in the front row has been identified as Commandant (Major) Frank Thornton. Thornton was a major figure in the Irish War of Independence, acting as the Assistant Deputy Head of Intelligence under Collins, and a member of Collins' hit "Squad". Thornton was regarded at that time as a particularly effective intelligence controller (not to mention hitman). Shortly after this photo was taken (probably July, 1922. at the height of the Irish Civil War), Thornton was seriously wounded in an ambush at Redmondstown, County Kilkenny, involving a landmine explosion. Two National Army soldiers were killed, and three wounded, in the incident. Why it was felt necessary to apply the Irish Army emblem - the Sunburst centred on the letters "FF" (Soldiers of Destiny) is not clear. Not to distinguish these vehicles from Republican equivalents - the diehard IRA had no armoured cars. Best regards, JR.