The Irish Army in the Congo, 1960-1964 The Far Battalions

by O'Donoghue, David

• ISBN13: 9780716528180
• ISBN10: 0716528185
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2005-11-01
• Publisher: Irish Academic Press

Summary

This revealing book is based on the personal reminiscences of Irish Army veterans who served with the UN peacekeeping forces in the Congo from 1960 to 1964. In addition to tracking down foot soldiers, retired battalion commanders and journalists who covered the Congo, the author has also spoken to Belgians who were part of the pre-independence administration in the huge African colony, Swedish soldiers who played key roles as interpreters for Irish Army units, a Congolese clergyman and a Congolese journalist from Kinshasa. The book also takes a refreshing and controversial look at the Congo in the immediate wake of independence in mid-1960, after almost a century of Belgian rule. Here, published for the first time, are secret dossiers and previously unpublished photographs of military and civilian life in the newly independent Congo, which challenges the received understanding of such events as the Niemba massacre and the fighting to end the secession of Katanga, including the battle of Jadotville. The Irish Army in the Congo provides fascinating background to the development of UN peacekeeping missions around the world. This was the first major overseas mission in which Irish troops had ever been involved and the personal accounts gathered for this book shed valuable light on this chapter of Irish military history.

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations	vii
Map	ix
Acknowledgements	xi
Editor's Foreword
Dr David O'Donoghue	xiii
Preface
Colonel Ned Doyle, retd	xv
1. The Journalist's Tale
Mr Cathal O'Shannon	1	(7)
2. The Dream of an Independent Congo Died with Lumumba
Rev. Dr Daniel dia-Mbwangi Diafwila	8	(7)
3. To the Congo on a Wing and a Prayer
Lt Col Mortimer Buckley, retd	15	(11)
4. Reminiscences of a Colonial Administrator
Mr Emmanuel de Beer de Laer	26	(9)
5. The UN Special Representative's View
Dr Conor Cruise O'Brien	35	(7)
6. A Better Future Beckons Beyond Shadows of the Past
Mr J.J. Arthur Malu-Malu	42	(4)
7. A Belgian Prosecutor Remembers
Mr Jacques de Jaer	46	(4)
8. Reporting the Congo Under Fire
Mr Alan Bestic	50	(4)
9. The Scars of Niemba
Brig.-Gen. P.D. Hogan, retd	54	(11)
10. Reliving the Nightmare
Mr Thomas Kenny	65	(5)
11. A Niemba Survivor Remembers
Mr Joseph Fitzpatrick	70	(6)
12. A Swedish Interpreter's Viewpoint
Mr Stig von Bayer	76	(6)
13. Plus Ça Change...
Lt Col Eoghan O'Neill, retd	82	(8)
14. Through Belgian Eyes: The Decades of Transition
Mme Henriette Cardon-Sips	90	(15)
15. Fighting For Our Lives With 'Jadotville Jack'
Mr Pat Dunleavy	105	(8)
16. Remembering Jadotville
Mr Lars Freiberg	113	(14)
17. A Retired Chief of Staff Reflects on the Congo
Lt-General Louis Hogan, retd	127	(4)
18. The Army Doctor's Story
Dr Joseph Laffan	131	(9)
19. An Army Chaplain Remembers
Fr Ronald Neville	140	(4)
20. To the Congo with Some Rosary Beads
Fr Colum Swan	144	(3)
21. The View From Leopoldville HQ
Major-General Vincent Savino, retd	147	(5)
22.Memories of an Irish UN Liaison Officer
Captain Pádraig Ó Siochrú, retd	152	(5)
23. The Foot Soldiers' Stories	157	(44)
Appendices:	201	(18)
I Key Dates	201	(8)
II Record of Irish Army's Unit Service with ONUC, 1960-1964	209	(1)
III Baluba Report on Niemba Battle, 8 November 1960	210	(2)
IV Original French Text	212	(2)
V Extract from 33rd Battalion's Unit History on the Discovery of the Remains of Tpr Browne in 1962	214	(1)
VI Report – Recovery of Remains of Tpr Browne in the Niemba Area (November 1962)	215	(4)
Notes	219	(2)
Index	221