A look at the Ulstermans battles for King and Empire!

Balaclava, Salamanca, India, Korea, Waterloo, South Africa and Iraq are to name but a few. It seems that there is always a place never heard of in our native Ulster causing a crisis that threatens either the safety of the ancient British Empire or the safety of the free world. Many an Ulsterman has found himself in a sun soaked dessert, a swamp, mountain range, or a winter wilderness, surely wondering what this had to do with the defense of dear old Ulster! However it has always been the same cry wether on the banks of boyne or the west bank in palestine.....No Surrender!

Think of any of the great battles or victories in Englands history and you will an Ulster regiment at the hub with that usual old defiance that saved the day during the seige of Londonderry 1689. At Waterloo the Enniskillen regiment, was pointed out by Lord Wellington who proclaimed, "That regiment saved my army".

The famous "Charge of the Light Brigade", by the British light cavalry at Balaclava involved the Irish hussars. In the aftermath of this famous battle, a peasant woman ransacking the bodies of the fallen was seen to remove a certificate from the body of a fallen cavalryman and when this was re-claimed on behalf of the soldier it turned out to be the warrant for an Ulster orange lodge.

The equally famous and perhaps more successful "Charge of the Heavy Brigade", during the same campaign in Crimea, Blalclava, involved none other than the Enniskillen Dragoons.

The Royal irish Rifles have and post 1921 Royal Ulster Rifles who won their greatest glory on the fields of the Somme have a military legcy second to none, they fought during the Boer war at the Seige of ladysmith, they won glory on D-day during WW2 capturing Caen and fought bravely on during the "Bug Out", in Korea. Although the laurels of honour from this campaign were to go to the "Glorious Glochester's", the Ulstermen can feel more than agrieved by this neglect of their efforts. For although the Glochester's fought a valiant rearguard while the U.S soldiers routed south, they did indeed succumb to force of numbers and either surrender or withdraw themselves, The Ulstermen however fought on until they had to resort to throwing bottles and even fist fights in the face of waves of Chinese troops. They did eventually get relieved, but unfortunately this is just another example of forgotten bravery. 

More recently we had the brave and noble U.D.R sacrificing themselves on the streets of Ulster. Surrendering their lives to a faceless enemy, a sniper, a bomb or murdered  while the slept in their bed at night. All the while ensuring Northern Ireland was a place for all people, Catholic, protestant, Hindu or Muslim.

Even today we have troops serving in basra with the british army, and wether one supports the war or not, no-one can deny the brave efforts of these dedicated Ulstermen in serving their country and the people of Iraq. Wated or not in Iraq today, no-one can deny that the Ulster soldier has truely shown himself as professional as he is versitile in serving Queen and Country.

WERE ENGLAND LEADS, LET US FOLLOW!