'I was so lucky, I could have been shot on the spot,' recalls Jadotville veteran
Jadotville veteran, Michael Tighe, nicknamed The Tiger of Jadotville. He did three tours of the Congo - the siege of Jadotville occurred during his second tour. Photo: Bob Morrison
Michael Tighe was nicknamed the Tiger of Jadotville by his colleagues. He was as tough as they come, but there were several times during and immediately after that encounter that he thought he was going to die.
A native of Elphin, Co Roscommon, who now lives in Longford Town, Michael joined the army in April 1959. then aged 19. At Jadotville the private vividly remembers mortars exploding over his head and a jet coming in to bomb the Irish troops.
“There were ear-shattering explosions and the dust was blinding,” he said.
Michael spent most of his time in a trench, which the soldiers had dug to give themselves some protection. “If I could have dug down any further I'd have been in Australia.” Tracer rounds were flying over his head.
He was a Bren-gunner (machine gun) and he'd spot where the rounds were coming from and aim to take out the enemy troops responsible.
“Not being able to wash was horrendous. We were under constant attack from mosquitos at night and from flies during the day (apart from the weaponry launched at them). We give out here (in Ireland) if a few flies get in the door. I can tell you you've seen nothing like the flies we had to contend with,” Tom said.
When the mercenaries sought an end to the battle it might have been seen as a godsend for the Irish troops who were vastly outnumbered and left with little or no ammunition and food.
“I collapsed in one of the trenches (when the ceasefire was announced.) I then looked up and I could see a large number of enemy troops taking up position. I had one magazine left with 30 rounds in it. I collapsed again in a heap on top of the trench. I then took the breech out of the Bren gun and threw it into the jungle so it was useless (to the enemy.)” The men of A Company were then taken prisoners by the mercenaries.
“We were taken away on buses,” Michael said.
They were taken by the mercenaries to a former hotel which had been turned into a prison.
Michael pointed out there were fears amongst the Irish troops about what their jailers might do to them, especially on Friday nights “when the guards got tanked up (on alcohol). They would then hit (fire at) the building with heavy weapons.” In case they broke in and started attacking the Irish soldiers, Michael went on guard duty “armed with a hurley stick.”
“Some of the (Irish) lads had stashed away defensive weapons just in case,” he added. “We were allowed to take our mattresses with us. I had hidden two bayonets and a knife in my mattress. It was nearly my downfall.”
As they were being moved onto another prison an (Irish) civilian who happened to hitch a ride on the bus with them turned out to be able to speak fluent French as well as the native dialect.
“He told us that they (the mercenaries) were going to kill us. A local mayor then intervened and we were spared that fate, thank God,” Michael said.
“However, the mercenaries started searching the bus and discovered one of the lads (Irish soldier) with a 9mm round. They booted him around the place. Commandant Quinlan then asked us if anyone had aggressive weapons. I told him about the bayonets (in my mattress).
He added that he's never said so many 'Hail Mary's' since.
The now 82-year-old wrote a book called “The Tiger of Jadotville.” In total he did three tours of the Congo. He was on the first Irish tour there with the 32nd Battalion in 1960 which he described as “relatively quiet".
The second tour was when the Siege of Jadotville occurred and the third in 1962/63 when he served with the 2nd Armoured Car Squadron, based in the capital Kinshasa. He left the army in 1980.
He's nothing but admiration for the late Commandant Quinlan.
“Nothing on the face of this earth could come near him. I would have followed him to the brink of hell and his two officers, Lieutenant Tom Quinlan (no relation) and Lieutenant Noel Carey,” Michael said.
He pointed out that Carey is the only officer still alive.
“Of the 34 nominated for medals by Quinlan only eight are alive. Of the 158 troops at Jadotville less than 40 are alive,” he said.
After Jadotville Michael was involved in another ambush mounted by the Katanganese forces and mercenaries.
He managed to steal one of their helmets and when they were leaving the area in a plane he sat on it.
This was because the plane came under fire. “So I sat on it to protect the crown jewels,” Michael added.
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