John Redmond’s son joins the British Army

Fermoy, 20 February 1915 - William Archer Redmond, M.P. for East Tyrone, son of the Irish leader John Redmond, has joined the Cadet Corps of the Irish Brigade at Fermoy and will receive a commission in the 6th Royal Irish Regiment.

In a letter from his father’s home at Aughavanagh, William Redmond said: ‘I consider it to be the bounden duty of every available Irish nationalist to take his place in the firing line for the honour and freedom of Ireland and Belgium. In taking this step I am strengthened and encouraged by the knowledge that my action is but the expression of the feelings of the staunch nationalists of East Tyrone, and, in return, I can only promise to do my best to uphold the honour and tradition of the land of the O’Neills.’

[Editor's note: This is an article from Century Ireland, a fortnightly online newspaper, written from the perspective of a journalist 100 years ago, based on news reports of the time.]