The Wicklow Militia 1884

Wicklow Militia c1884

This glorious picture of the band is from the early days of my grandfather Alexander Henry Eustace's long and eventful military career. 








Given the choice between officer training in the rarefied atmosphere of Sandhurst or entering the army via the militia, Alec gratefully chose the latter. Accordingly, in 1883 he was posted adjutant to the 7th Brigade Northern Irish Division Royal Artillery - aka the Wicklow Militia.

Later in life, he described how, marching through Wicklow Town on the way to the annual camp held on the Murragh (an open area on the coast where they fired a cannon out to sea), the wives and sweethearts would run along side them crying and sobbing "as if they were really going to war...smuggling liquor into the ranks as they marched"!

Wicklow Militia c1884