大象传媒

One of my earliest memories was seeing two big soldiers coming to stay in our house for a holiday. They had just come home from Egypt where they had been stationed for two years. They were brothers of my mother and both were serjeants in the first Battalion Irish Guards. Moneydarraghmore was their home townland.

William James and John Francis Nevin were their names. William James Nevin joined the Irish guards in 1928 at the age of sixteen - he lied about his age. Before that he was a nipper - tea boy- at the Silent Valley. John joined later. He had worked in Paddy Killen's blacksmith shop in Annalong.

Both were with their regiment in France at the beginning of the 2nd World War. The Irish Guards, along with many others were forced back to Dunkirk by the German advance. The Irish Guards and the Sunderland Highlanders fought a rearguard action on the perimiter of Dunkirk, to allow the other 200,000 troops to withdraw across the channel. Their action was successful but they were finally taken prisoner when their ammunition ran out. They spent the rest of the war as prisoners in Poland.

After they were liberated by the Russians, John Nevin was invalided out of the Army at this time, due to old wounds he had received at Dunkirk and hadn't been properly treated when he was a prisoner. He died shortly afterwards.

William James Nevin served on to the 1960's. After his retirement he still worked for the army arranging tickets for troops at various airline and train stations. He died in 1988. I have a lot of photos covering his arme life.

Charlie Cunningham, 34 Mill Rd, Mullarton, ANNALONG, Co.Down NI

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