It's so interesting hearing stuff about the Easter rising! Especially from a soldiers perspective.. Thanks for uploading this! 🇮🇪

Great interview. This man carries a lot of pain I think.

Fantastic video. Rare piece of history. Thank you.

I'm an Englishman who loves Ireland. This man is from the East Midlands, and talks like my Grandad used to. Thank Christ there's peace between us now; long may it last. We need to do better at acknowledging what was done to Ireland. The moral seriousness with which so many Germans, in particular, deal with their past is something we'd do well to emulate.

I think this man’s humanity shines through. There was a strange similarity between the young men and boys on both sides. I worked in Northumberland Rd for some years and never understood how a few rebels could pin down and hold back so many soldiers. Good to hear the perspective of someone who was there at the time.

I've seen this guy talking about the black and tans, he said that his regiment had to rescue Kevin Barry from them because they were torturing him I think it was the same man.

Extremely interesting. Thanks for the upload.

Thanks Davy, another great video, really appreciate all your fine work

May love and peace and rightfulness Prevail🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏

Very interesting…thanks for this

"Governments in a Capitalist society are just committees of the Rich designed to manage the affairs of the Monied classes!" (James Connoly.Scottish born Irish republican leader tied to a chair and shot by British forces in 1916). 👁😎👍🏻

A fascinating interview, including the Mount St. Bridge attack. From officers named, probably 2/7th Sherwood Foresters, 59th Division (sent to France early 1917).

Absolutely fascinating Davey, you've pulled out an absolute gem here! 'There were boys on both sides.' Always a harrowing thing to hear however it's phrased.

I've no idea why your channel, amd similar ones, have appeared on my YT recommendations. I guess the Irish would call me a Brit, I'd call myself a Yorkshireman with Irish routes i know little about. Obv the picture painted this side of the sea only paints one side of what happened so its great to find an irish historian like yourself to show the other side. I'm looking forward to learning more and love the song Grace which popped up on a YT short. Not all of us Brits are bad, its the government, not the people. I look forward to continuing my journey with you.cPeace ✝️

My grandparents reserved their loathing for the Tans, not so much the Tommies, as I remember from my talks with them both.

History aside, I could've listened to old chap for hours

This was heartbreaking to listen to.. we kept thinking about all those young men sentenced to life in prison.. we wondered if any ever were set free.. thinking we were of their families as well.. The man who was speaking., we could feel his pain all these years later.. recalling this.. He tried to keep the stiff upper lip of a seasoned soldier.. he smiled and joked a bit.. in his eyes though sadness could be seen.. he felt badly for all the young men.. at which.. at that time .. he was one.. Brilliantly edited, Davy.. we were crying from the get go for all those lives..😭💜💙☘️

Very interesting thanks

Thanks Davy

Fascinating, an eye witness to the birth of a nation. The ordinary British soldiers are/were mostly decent lads, no different to our own.

Just happened on your channel and I’d like to congratulate you on some excellent videos🙏🇨🇮

Thank you for posting this incredible interview. It is really interesting to hear the viewpoint of a regular British squaddie. Do you have a source for the interview. I guess it dates from the 1980s.

Fascinating and so very though provoking from the perspective of both sides of the divide. Thank you and Huzzah!! 😢😮😊

The whole thing should never have happened, and would not have if the British Government had played it fair over Home Rule. We could have ended up where we are now, or maybe in a much better place, with no need for all those lives lost. A real tragedy.

Great to see people on the other side

The Brits suffered over 200 killed and injured at Mount Street bridge. There were only two volunteers in the house on the corner of Northumberland road, six men in Clanwilliam house, and four in the school.

An incredible interview...in colour...of a man who fought in 1916...a verbal testament of an event commonly viewed as a stuttering black and yellow sepia pictorial relic ...in vivid colour.....astonishing!!!

Thanks!

He is a pretty good example of the average British Tommy. He clearly felt sorry for the men he had to round up, and he didn’t want to take part in any executions. The vast majority of British soldiers, had they been asked, would have said “if the Irish want us out, we should leave.” But like this man says, it isn’t up to the soldier. His job is to fight the enemy. It’s hard to imagine men like him taking part in mass rape or murder, I’ll say that. The kinds of atrocities the Japanese committed in Nanking would be beyond his understanding.

They were soldiers fighting for the pound.. fighting boys and men fighting for their country who took up arms as a necessity. Not soldiers!! Heroes!!

Davy, it's important to hear these voices, even if they are an emetic. I live beside Northumberland Road, and I thank God for the sacrifices of my forebears. We have lived our lives in freedom because of those great men.

The trouble is that no one has an argument with England, or Wales or Scotland (well, apart from the English, Welsh and Scots). It's when Britain enters the scene that things get argumentative. The first set are national identities, the second is an imperial identity. And empires must expand. Hence we have this weird scenario where a genuinely nice Englishman found himself having to advance on Dublin...he is as confused as anyone. We need to start asking "What is in it for me?" because the guys who set policy certainly do.

What a memory he had. Would loved to have meet this guy.

My grandfather and his brother were boy soldiers in Ireland at this time. He had a run in with his sergeant and deserted. A French couple looked after him and he got back to England and changed his name. I wonder if he ever met this bloke.

Very interesting. A decent man who played his part in a great historical event

What year was this ?

Hello Davy H Is this the full interview?.

Is it true some of them thought they were landing in France?

My father was in the 1916 uprising and was wounded in the arm . I was born in England, but I still see the utter horror of it all when both sides were only young boys . Neither knew fully what was going on. !!! I am glad that we have peace once again, and I hope that one day, England will see the light and give ALL of Ireland back to the rightful owners.

Whats that terrible prison he's referring to at the end?

Really interesting to hear the British soldier perspective

What is his name ?

What a story

Wow. I never knew this existed.

You can tell this old bhoy felt and knew that what british were doing was totally wrong and had no business being in ireland 1st place .. can tell old guy is nice old man and had sympathy for the cause of irish people

It would be great if both sides of the divide could get together and sought this evil out that we have 100 years later

There wasn’t a great deal of support from locals after the uprising, but the executions in Kilmainham Gaol galvanised support for the uprising.

Maxwell the murderer was the person most responsible for the Irish independence movement.

Jaysus. My great-grandfather was sentenced in the wake of his involvement in 1916. Just thinking about what this man is saying towards the end there and what my sinseanathair would have understood about the situation.

The one time that man showed emotion was talking about the executions He knew that was wrong

What year was this

Thermopylae

Fair play Davy, you stick to the facts and it's important to get both sides, sure the squaddies were ignorant to the Irish independence movement, lambs to slaughter We can forgive, but never forget

Right in the middle of World War 1 and the Republicans were being encouraged by The Kaiser's Germany. Lots of aspects to this tragedy but never enough said about that. Germany loved it.

The way he spoke about clearing (Them) from the houses with grenades speaks volumes. They had no concern or love for the Irish rebels or civilians. They could only bring in the canon's and war ship to force the badly equipped rebels to surrender which Padraigh Pearse did to save the lives of Dublins civilians. But its good to have a perspective of one of the enemy on that fateful Easter week . Great video as always Davy. Go raibh maith agat 💚🇮🇪☘✊

Ww1 and ww2 shot own side for desertion despite serios injury .today ptsd

Women were let down in those early years in Ireland ,promised much, but changes of policy by the new government were shameful .

War is a terrible thing, its a wonder so many manage to keep there humanity, and even come to befriend their former enemies. At the end of the day we are all human, whatever our differences.

The women of ballsbridge bringing the British army tea.good aul west brits .😂😂

It was also very stupid . Public support for the rising was lukewarm until the executions which changed everything .

Who’s the turncoats bringing them cups of tea

When did this chap die? The colour film suggests this was filmed in the 1970s

Hows ireland wirking out now ??

I can't press ' like ' or ' dislike '

I have a mate who`s a Dub i`ll send it to her

At the same time our betters executed over three hundred western front British soldiers. Refusing to go over the top, suffering from shell shock, sometimes after years in the trenches. The ordinary bloke is nothing to them.

You carry memories of past of History he British Army in Ireland he discuss Black and Tans. Awesome thanks for showing it. It Michael Collins he finished Britain involved in Ireland. Michael Collins Prime minister for Ireland for 100 Days yes Thomas. Better off with George from Ireland Eton college running Irish government in Cork Ireland. He built Irish parliament George from Ireland Eton college. He Anglo Irish catholic he super rich Thomas. He said built 1781 Dublin Ireland parliament.

What year was this filmed. He looks too young to have been present

Here's the truth. Politicians and those who want to be leaders are not like ordinary people. They think they evolved from a better class of monkeys than we ordinary folk did. They do things that kill people, they order things that result in death and misery. Things I just couldn't do, and no ordinary person could. I could no more enact a law or give an order that would harm someone if I tried. But I was in the British army. Why? Cos my home life was bad, cos I thought one day my dad would kill me and being working class, what choice did I have to get out? And in the army I met a lot who joined for the same reason. And those who thought they were better than us used us. I knew the catholics in the North were treated differently. I knew that while we had the race relations board forbidding us to treat an immigrant differently, it was seemingly OK to treat Irish catholics like second class citizens. And I know it, because as a working class londoner, I was treated second class and still damn well am. I've always liked the Irish. I had a step grandmother who came from Dublin and we made each other laugh until we cried at times. I loved her. Im a republican and I really really hate the British government, I hate the class system. I'd leave if there was somewhere i could go where I wouldn't be blamed for what they do and have done, a country with a government who don't find whipping up anti English sentiment to cover for their own mistakes or inefficiencies. Those bastards are just as bad when they make a scape goat out of me. I feel this man's pain. I really do.

We will remember them.

Yeah seemed like a decent man

The worst part was the brits coming to IRELAND in the first place i dont blame this man personaly🇮🇪

Why did Britain give up dublin? Surely they have held on to Ireland if they wanted?

It was war.

I would have died for Ireland 🇮🇪 at that time .

Don't get this stuff in England really Wrong narrative BBC #BigBrothersCensorship

I also prefer the English to the imagrants we are getting into our beautiful country

And now Ireland is rising up again against the colonisers of diversity !

They were a foreign army of occupation. Interesting to hear their viewpoint. But id take it all with a pinch of salt. Saying what suits. They knew what they were doing distancing himself from plunkett cause he knew what b*****ds they were when he had ten minutes with his new wife.

Have any of the commentators here ever been to Dublin? Or know what the pre First World War Dublin looked like from old maps? How many MPs the Irish National Party sent to Westminster in the early twentieth century? I am often appalled at the lack of knowledge of Irish history, starting with the "British" never invaded Ireland in the first place. The Normans "invaded" Ireland (by invitation of an Irish Chief). The Normans invaded from the English and Welsh lands they had already conquered.

Being born in England but having Irish Grandparents I learnt the rebel songs from my Irish cousins in the early 60s. I think we should be ashamed of what we did to the Irish people. Shame on the English. Ireland 🇮🇪 should be one country.

The English were defeated.

The British were fighting for the freedom of Europe in 1916. There was no time for insurrection when we were fighting the might of the Huns.

The pain and suffering the British have brought to the world and many indigenous peoples over the last century is staggering.

Apologies from an Englishman. Unacceptable and shameful.

With all that we know now , I wonder if all of this was staged from the beginning. Just my opinion from my own research.

I often wonder if the men who were executed had life insurance.

They were real men back then they fought forireland and fought there British empire it was horrific I'm sure some off them soldiers on both sides knew eachother fro past wars in the boar war and Afghanistan and India I'm sure they fought in them other wars

The irish executed 4 times as many of their own citizens within a couple of years of gaining "independence". I think we are now all tired of them blaming the british for their own failures.My advice to them (and I am of Irish origin) is to grow up, something that sadly,I think they will never do.

I prefer the British to the new immigrants

It is easy to judge matters within the context of today. But at the time, the 'uprisers' were murderous tr - -t - - s during a time of war. And the time when the death penalty for such crimes was standard and uncontroversial.

This is the most boring part of Irish history, there's so much more than couple rags running about Dublin in 1916.👍

Soldier and Gtentleman.