According to Their Lights: Stories of Irishmen in the British Army, Easter 1916

by Neil Richardson

'I will say a prayer for all brave men who do their duty according to their lights.' James Connolly, May 12 1916. In April 1916, the Easter Rising broke out in Dublin. History remembers it as Irish rebel against English soldier, but the truth is more complicated. Thousands of British army soldiers in the Rising were Irishmen, including Second-Lieutenant Robert Barton from Glendalough, who later became a Sinn Féin TD and a signatory of the Anglo-Irish Truce, the infamous Captain John Bowen-Colthurst on whose orders Francis Sheehy-Skeffington was executed, and the eclectic scientist and inventor Prof. John Joly from Co. Offaly who, at fifty-eight, helped to defend Trinity College Dublin throughout the Rising. Many enlisted to fight for Irish Home Rule or Ulster Unionism, to find adventure or escape from poverty. None imagined they would find themselves on the streets of Dublin, killing and being killed by fellow Irishmen. Forty-one Irishmen in the British army died in action during the Rising, 106 were wounded. These men became a forgotten part of their country's history.

265 pages, Paperback

First published September 21, 2015

About the author

Neil Richardson studied Philosophy in University College Dublin and works as a creative writing teacher and editor. He is also a playwright and two of his plays, Through the Dark Clouds Shining and From the Shannon to the Somme, are inspired by stories from his book on the First World War. Neil is also a member of the Reserve Defence Forces and his family have a long military tradition stretching back over 150 years. His great-grandfather’s experiences in the trenches inspired this collection of Irish veterans’ stories.