at the LKA/Club Show, 1972
Venue and date unknown
The Royal Irish Rangers is a Territorial Army regiment and was formed on July 1st, 1968 from three former constituent regiments, Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers, Royal Irish Fusiliers and Royal Ulster Rifles.
The Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers was raised in 1689 to fight in the Williamite Wars, at which time they were known as Tiffin's Inniskillings (taking that title from their first Colonel). In the following three centuries, its battalions fought wherever the British Army was sent. Tiffins Regiment became the 27th Foot at the time when the British Army began numbering Regiments. During the Napoleonic wars, it won special fame at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815, when the 27th Regiment was cut to ribbons and all officers killed or wounded, and the Regimental Sergeants had to take over. The original badge, which is of the Castle of Inniskilling flying the flag of the Cross of St. George, is still worn by the Royal Irish Rangers as their Collar Badge.
The Royal Irish Fusiliers and Royal Ulster Rifles were formed at the beginning of the Napoleonic wars when the British Army was expanded. This was in 1793 and the Regiments were despatched to many different locations as part of the British Forces. After the peace of 1815 the Regiments were sent to various parts of the British Empire to take part in the many campaigns that were an integral part of this period. In 1827 the 87th Regiment were granted the title "The Prince of Wales Own Irish Fusiliers", which was changed soon after to the "87th or Royal Irish Fusiliers".
1881 saw the Cardwell reforms of the British Army and during this period two of the Regiments, the 83rd and 86th, underwent a more fundamental change, in which they were first reformed as a "Rifle" regiment which required them to exchange their scarlet tunics for those of Rifle Green and to cease carrying their colours. This difference can be seen in the photographs below - with the scarlet of the Royal Irish Guard's tunic showing light, while the dark green of the Royal Irish Rangers' tunic shows up black. The headgear of the Regiment is the Caubeen, which is a traditional beret type cap in dark green with a bright green feather plume and is unique to Irish Regiments.
In 1970 an Irish wolfhound, named Brian Boru I, was presented as mascot by Major Hayes, the Commanding Officer of The Royal Irish Rangers on his retirement, and this hound was shown on several occasions, as was the then Irish Guards' mascot, which was Fionn. This first Royal Irish Rangers mascot was registered as Sanctuary Connaire Mor and was bred by the Misses Harrison & Atfield, by Sanctuary Knight of Kerry ex Sanctuary Monica, whelped December 30th 1969. The name Brian Boru was to be used for all the following mascots, with just the addition of a different Roman numeral with each succeeding hound.
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| Irish Ranger and Irish Guard, each with
mascot, at the LKA/Club Show, 1972 |
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| Irish Guard and Royal Irish Ranger, each with
mascot. Venue and date unknown |
The "Britains" range of toy soldiers had a collection of the Irish Rangers which included a model of the Irish Wolfhound mascot. This set has now been discontinued.
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| On the March |
In 1992 The UDR (Ulster Defence Regiment) was amalgamated with the Royal Irish Rangers and renamed the Royal Irish Regiment. The Royal Irish Regiment was unique in the British Army. It consisted of one General Service battalion, liable for service world wide, three Home Service battalions for service within Northern Ireland, and one Territorial Army battalion.
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| Postcard in the Regimental Mascots of the
British Army series: Brian Boru V - Mascot of 1st Battalion The Royal Irish Regiment |
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| Brian Boru VII, now retired |
| [Thanks to Julie Hughes for these pictures of Brian Boru VII] |
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| Brian Boru VII and his companion, Lucky |
In 1998, the Government's Strategic Defense Review meant that the Territorial Army had to be restructured and a new organisation was named the Royal Irish Rangers. The Royal Irish Rangers home page can be found at http://www.army.mod.uk/ta/organise/infantry/rir/
This little model - it stands 2¼ inches high - is dated 2002, by Martin Tabony, and is of the Royal Irish Rangers' mascot with handler.
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| and this is the Langley Models' version: |
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| http://www.langley-models.co.uk/acatalog/Mascots_and_Musicians.html |
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| Northern Irish Toy Soldier Museum's Royal Irish
Ranger's mascot, Brian Boru, and handler Designed by Martin Tabony |
Started in 1860 as the 28th Middlesex (London Irish) Rifle Volunteer Corps, went through various changes over the years, becoming the London Irish Rifles, The Royal Ulster Rifles , in 1937 1978 D Company (London Irish Rifles), 4th (V) Battalion, The Royal Irish Rangers (North Irish Militia) 1993 D Company (London Irish Rifles), The London Regiment
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| Copy of the Charge Sheet issued by the London Irish Rifles in May, 1941 against the mascot, Tara, and the photograph of Tara included with the sheet |
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| Picture taken in Belfast February 6th, 1954
during the conferring of the Freedom of the City of Belfast on the Royal Ulster Rifles, when members of the London Irish Rifles were on parade with mascot Kevin with his handler, bugler Norman Evans. |
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| Dog-Major (Rifleman) Norman Evans with the
Regimental Mascot of the 1st Battalion of the London Irish Rifles, Kevin of Ballykelly |
The home page of the London Irish Rifles Regimental Association can be found at http://www.londonirishrifles.com/ and the London Regiment (London Irish Rifles) page can be found at http://www.army.mod.uk/londonregt/companies/d_london_irish_coy/company_history.htm
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Updated 2/24/2007