The day Cork policemen resigned to help fight for the Pope 

Pope Francesco has strongly appealed to politicians to make every effort to preserve peace in the world. But some of his predecessors regularly enlisted men to fight their wars

Pope Pius IX (Giovanni Maria Mastai Ferretti), the longest-serving pope, who lost the Papal States when Italy was unified in 1870 

Hundreds of Irishmen, including dozens of serving policemen — 20 from Cork — flocked to Italy in 1860 to protect Pope Pius IX against the insurgent nationalist forces of Cavour and Garibaldi.

The Munster News reported in May 1860 that some 6,000 of the Irish Constabulary in Cork, Clare, Kerry and Limerick were ready to quit their posts in order to “join the cause of His Holiness”. All who actually tendered their resignations and sailed for Italy were Catholics, passed over for promotion by the British government, and “not, generally speaking, the most contented individuals in the world”, commented The Cork Examiner (30 May 1860).