PRIVATE J. O’BRIEN, 5TH BATTALION ROYAL IRISH REGIMENT. British War Medal (officially impr

THE BRITISH WAR MEDAL AWARDED TO PRIVATE J. O’BRIEN, 5TH (SERVICE) BATTALION (PIONEERS) ROYAL IRISH REGIMENT, WHO WAS DISCHARGED AS A RESULT OF WOUNDS ON 26/6/1916. British War Medal (officially named, impressed in plain block capital numbers and letters: 1254 PTE. J. O’BRIEN. R. IR. REGT.). Attractively toned, Extremely Fine.

Medal accompanied by extract 1911 census, copied Medal Index card, WW1 medal roll, Silver War Badge roll and Pension Record Card.

John O’Brien is recorded in the 1911 census as a 28 year old married wood cutting machinist resident in Millerd Street, Cork with his 28 year old wife Eliza and 6 year old daughter Ellen (John and Eliza O’Brien married, 1904, their daughter Ellen being born in 1905).

John O’Brien enlisted into the Royal Irish Regiment on 9/9/1914, and saw service with the 5th Battalion Royal Irish Regiment in the Balkans from 8/7/1915, including the operations on the Gallipoli peninsula (the 5th Royal Irish Regiment embarked as a unit at Liverpool for Gallipoli on 7/7/1915, arriving at Mudros on 22/7/1915 and landing at Suvla Bay on 7/8/1915). O’Brien was discharged on 26/6/1916 as a result of “wounds”.

Pension Record Card, dated October 1932, gives O’Brien’s then address as 22 Millerd Street, Cork.

WW1 medal roll confirms O’Brien also entitled 1914-15 Star, Victory Medal.

The 5th Battalion Royal Irish Regiment was formed at Clonmel on 29/8/1914. The battalion became the Pioneer Battalion of the 10th (Irish) Division circa June 1915, embarked at Liverpool on 7/7/1915, arrived at Mudros, 22/7/1915 and landed at Suvla Bay on 7/8/1915, being withdrawn to Mudros on 30/9/1915. The battalion subsequently landed at Salonika on 6/10/1915, subsequently being withdrawn to Alexandria in September 1917. The battalion subsequently saw service in France with the 50th and 52nd Divisions.