Photograph of members of the Royal Irish Rifles before parading for the trenches. Taken near Bertincourt, 20 November 1917.

Great War Recruitment Rally Market Yard Sligo

The Irish 16th Division endured horrific gas attacks on the Western front in 1916, which killed more than 500 Irish-born soldiers.

St Josephs soccer team Sligo 1914 many of who fought in the Great War 1914 - 1918. Includes Paddy Mullen, Michael Conlon, Willie Durkan, Robert Clarke, Francie Currid, James Shannon, Phil Giblin, Georgie Scanlon

Tragic aftermath of a gas attack.

Lest Sligo Forgets & The County Sligo Great War Memorial Campaign.

Lest Sligo Forgets (LSF) is a Community Association established in January 2018. The association’s aim is to create a Memorial Garden for 614 volunteers and 7 civilians* from across Sligo County who lost their lives in the Great War 1914 - 1918.

The association committee met with extremely positive support. Sligo County Council has provided an ideal site for the memorial garden at Cleveragh Regional Park in Sligo. Upon it’s completion in May 2022, Sligo County Council accepted ownership of the memorial garden as a public amenity.

Beautiful memorial design & concept drawings were created by David Lawlor, with the support of Hamilton Young Architects.

A grant of €40,000 under Sligo County Council’s Local Authority Action Plan for the European Union’ Peace IV Programme, which is managed by the Special EU Programmes Body enabled LSF to commission the 8 granite slabs required for the memorial. This Peace IV allocation also allowed LSF support the parallel initiative undertaken by Blue Raincoat Theatre Company, to organise the Armistice Day 100th anniversary commemoration in Sligo on November 11th 2018.

The British Legion, whose remit is to ensure all volunteers serving in in the British Army during the Great War 1914 - 18 are appropriately commemorated, have also agreed to allocate €10,000 towards the finishing of the memorial names on the memorial stones.

Further substantial “Project Partnership Level” donations were received from Atlantic Technical University and from Sligo Tourist Development Association. Together with hundreds of individual Benefactor donations and the support of many local businesses The Couty Sligo Great War Memorial Garden has been completed.

Our beautiful Memorial Garden plans have now been realised thanks to the generosity of all our supporters

We are continuing to seek memorial benefactors and sponsors in order to offset the additional costs incurred due to COVID 19 Delays.

Become A Memorial Garden Benefactor

Become a Name, Town-land or Corporate / Business Benefactor of the memorial

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Lest Sligo Forgets Association / Steering Committee Members:

| Tommy Higgins - Chair | Simone Hickey - Secretary | Richard Lyons - Treasurer |

| Michael Kirby | David Lawlor | Malcolm Hamilton |

LEST SLIGO FORGETS / PEACE 4 PROGRAMME RESEARCH GROUP

| Paul Wilson |