Centuries of military presence over

At precisely 2.30pm yesterday, the national flag was lowered for the last time at Kickham Barracks in Clonmel, bringing a symbolic end to a military presence in the area which stretched back to the heyday of Oliver Cromwell.

The hundreds gathered inside the grounds of the barracks were joined by thousands more on the streets who broke into spontaneous applause as the flag was handed over to Commandant Robert Kiely, the last Officer Commanding to lead the troops in the town, before Amhrán na bhFiann sounded across the barracks square.

Earlier, huge crowds came out in the sun to line the town centre and witness the final parade in Clonmel by the 12th Infantry Battalion. The occasion was described as “a sad day” but one which was in the offing once the Government decided in November to close Kickham Barracks, along with its counterparts in Cavan, Mullingar and Athlone.