"G" COMPANY, AUXILIARY DIVISION, ROYAL IRISH CONSTABULARY, A RARE LEWIS-GUNNER'S CAUBEEN BADGE, comprising a blackened white metal King's crown Royal Irish Constabulary cap badge superimposed on a cloth Union Jack, with black and red felt Lewis gunner's patch below, a Lewis gun and diamond in red felt, stitched on to black felt backing, the badge contained within a contemporary, probably 1920's period, good quality glazed frame, the frame covered in light khaki cloth (probably from a Temporary Cadet's uniform), and mounted with two rare Temporary Cadet "TC" bronze shoulder titles.
Some minor scuffing and fading to the khaki cloth, otherwise generally good condition and extremely rare (probably unique) as a framed assembly.
When I purchased this lot (Noonan's 16/9/2018, lot 693) the "TC" shoulder titles on the frame were destribed as being Tank Corps shoulder titles, implying that this was some type of Tank Corps cap badge, one of the "TC" badges was missing and the glass in the frame was broken. The missing "TC" badge and broken glass have now been replaced.
In addition, the "TC" badges on the frame containing the badge and the badge itself are most definitely not Tank Corps. They are, as described, a "G" Company, Auxiliary Division cap badge and a pair of Auxiliary Division, RIC, Temporary Cadet shoulder titles. There are numerous photographs of members of "G" Company ADRIC in Ernest McCall's "The Auxies" and in McCall's "The First Anti-Terrorist Unit, The Auxiliary Division RIC", including a group photo on page 104 of "The Auxies" of "G" Company ADRIC, with four Lewis guns.
The Tank Corps and Temporary Cadet ADRIC bronze shoulder titles are similar, which would explain why the shoulder titles on the frame containing this badge were mis-described by the Noonan's cataloguer as being Tank Corps. There is, however, one obvious difference: the Tank Corps "TC" bronze shoulder title (Westlake 195) has a straight top edge, whereas the Temporary Cadet shoulder title has a distinct serif on the top edge of the letter "C".
The Auxiliary Division of the Royal Irish Constabulary (ADRIC) was founded in July 1920 by General Henry Hugh Tudor, its ranks being recruited exclusively from former British army officers. When the unit was raised, large numbers of former army officers found themselves unemployed in the recession that followed the end of the First World War (a contemporary London advertisement for ex-officers to manage coffee stalls at a rate of £2 10 shillings a week received 5,000 applicants). Recruits to the Auxiliary Division RIC were paid £7 per week. As a result of the dire unemployment situation and generous pay offered, General Tudor had little difficulty obtaining recruits, many of them highly decorated former officers, including at least three who had been awarded the Victoria Cross.
"G" Company of the Auxiliary Division Royal Irish Constabulary was formed on 27th July 1920 and was stationed at the Lakeside Hotel, Killaloe, county Kildare, from 27 July 1920 and another unknown location at Corofin county Clare.
BY 1920 county Clare was the scene of some of the most vicious fighting to take place in Ireland during the IRA campaign of 1916-21. The East Clare Flying Column, commanded by Michael Brennan (later Lieutenant-General, Irish Defence Forces) was particularly active, regularly mounting "no prisoners taken" surprise attacks on RIC and Auxiliary Division patrols, and the RIC, the ADRIC in particular, responded in kind by launching retaliatory raids and revenge attacks.
Among the men who saw service as Temporary Cadets with "G" Company ADRIC was Temporary Cadet Samuel George Montague Nathan (1895-1937), who saw service during WW1 initially as a Private in the Army Cyclist's Corps, and was commissioned from the ranks into the Royal Warwickshire Regiment. Whilst serving with the ADRIC Nathan was suspected of being involved with a series of assassinations in Limerick which took place on 7/3/1921, when the sitting Mayor of Limerick, Sinn Fein politician George Clancy, Councilor and former mayor Michael O'Callaghan and City Clerk Joseph O'Donoghue, were all shot and killed in their homes. After seeing service with the ADRIC Nathan relinquished his commission and rejoined the British Army as a Private, but was discharged with ignominy after being court martialed in May 1926. He subsequently saw service on the Republican side during the Spanish civil war, initially as a Captain in the mostly French Marseillaise Battalion of the XIV International Brigade, commanded by Gaston Delasalle. After Delasalle was executed for incompetence, cowardice and for being a "fascist spy", nathan was promoted to command the Marsellaise Battalion and went on to become Chief of Staff of the XV International Brigade and was killed in action on 16/7/1937 at the battle of Brunete. Nathan is described in William Rust's "Britons in Spain, the History of the British Battalion of the XVth Brigade" as being a "debonair ex-army officer, who led his men into action swinging a hunting-crop and with a pipe between his teeth. A soldier to his finger-tips he aroused admiration for his coolness and even defiant arrogance under fire."
Whilst fighting in Spain with the International Brigades Nathan, ironically, once again saw action against many former IRA volunteers that he had fought against during the Irish War of Independence, who came to Spain to fight alongside Franco's fascist forces in General Eoin O'Duffy's Irish Brigade.
Eoin O'Duffy was the commander of the Monaghan brigade of the IRA during the Irish War of Independence, became Chief of Staff of the IRA in 1922, was subsequently Chief of Staff of the Irish pro-treaty forces during the Irish Civil War and later the second Commissioner of the Garda Siocana. Following the Curragh Mutiny of 1924 O'Duffy was once again appointed commanding officer the Irish Defence Forces, at the same time retaining the post of Garda Commissioner. During the Second World War O'Duffy is believed to have been involved in attempts to raise a "Green" Division of Irish volunteers to fight on the Eastern front alongside Nazi forces.
Whilst serving with the XVth International Brigade Nathan served alongside Frank Ryan (1902-1944), who saw service with the IRA during the Irish War of Independence and Civil War and who was taken prisoner of war at Calaceite in March 1938 by Italian troops fighting for Franco's fascists. He was subsequently held in Burgos prison, but released following a campaign organised by Nazi Germany on his behalf. Traveling to Germany, he was intimately involved in the planning of German covert operations in Ireland and Britain, 1940-1943.
Badge accompanied by copied research, including a copy of the Irish Bureau of Military History witness statement of Lieutenant-General Michael Brennan, the former column commander of the East Clare Flying Column, regarding his activities in East Clare, including an incident on 16/11/1922 when a surprise attack by members of "G" Company ADRIC who had commandeered a boat resulted in the capture of Alfie Rogers, Brud McMahon, Martin Kildea and another volunteer. The four captives were subsequently lined up on Killaloe bridge with their hands behind their backs and executed.
