English First World War memorial to commemorate two Irish soldiers

Brookwood Military Cemetery which will see the commemoration of two Irish soldiers who fought in the First World War.

A new First World War memorial in England will see the commemoration of two Irish soldiers, who until now had no known graves despite their wartime service and sacrifice.

Some 400 people who were killed during the First World War will see their names erected on 31 stone stelae in Brookwood Military Cemetery in Surrey.

It is the first time their names will be commemorated for their service to Britain and Ireland — and historians from the Commonwealth War Graves Commission have said there will be space to add 1,200 more should they come to light in the future.

The memorial, which will open to the public on June 9, will see the stones mapped out across the site in the same arrangement as the most visible stars in the sky when the Armistice was signed.

John Fitzgerald

Company Sergeant Major John Fitzgerald, from Co Kerry was 25 years old when he died. Mr Fitzgerald was born in 1893 in Tralee and first enlisted for service in Tidworth in June 1911 when he was 18 years old and three months. 

He was previously with the special reserves of the Royal Munster Fusiliers. He was then appointed as an unpaid Lance Corporal on October 12, 1914, before being promoted to Corporal in April 26, 1915.

Mr Fitzgerald continued to rise through the ranks before seeing his final promotion to Company Sergeant Major in March 1918. 

He was mentioned in Despatches on April 9, 1917, awarded the Medaille Militarie in July 1915, and received the Distinguished Conduct Medal, which, according to the supplement to the Edinburgh Gazette of August 27, 1917, was “for conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty”.

His records showed that whilst serving overseas he suffered a gunshot wound to his jaw, from which he recovered.

After seven years and 89 days of service, he was finally discharged due to tuberculosis which was attributed to “damp, exposure and infection on active service” following the influenza in June 1918 whilst in France.

A disability pension was then issued before he was admitted to the workhouse hospital for treatment. However, Mr Fitzgerald’s condition never improved and he died on January 25, 1919.

Patrick Madine

The second Irish soldier, rifleman Patrick Madine was 38 years old when he died on March 4, 1917. He enlisted for service with the Royal Irish Rifles on November 5, 1915, before serving with the British Expeditionary Force in France between February and June 1916.

However, he was discharged back to Ireland due to heart problems and was deemed "no longer physically fit for war service" on November 23, 1916. 

On discharge, his commanding officer stated: “A very good man; served his country well in France, and suffered in health in consequence.” 

Mr Madine received a disability pension from the army and his service record noted that “his employers are insisting to show their appreciation of his service by offering him work".

However, he was clearly very unwell. By the start of 1917 he had been admitted to the military hospital in Belfast. Unfortunately, he never regained his health and died in hospital on March 4, 1917.

Although newspaper reports from the time state that Mr Madine would have been eligible to receive a funeral with full military honours, it noted that his parents chose to keep the ceremony private.