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Remembered Today:

'Merry Mick' Pte Edward Costello Leinster Regiment


Guest Brian Costello

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Guest Brian Costello

I am beginning a search to find out as much about my Grandad as I possibly can and any help I can receive here would be so greatly appreciated.

I have already located his war medal index card and have interpreted as much as I can using the guidelines on this site.

1. He was in the Leinster regiment 3595

2. 10-3-15 is his Qualifying date

3. Theatre of war is France

4. Mentioned in dispatches 25.10.20

This is as much as I can glean from it, although there are codes beside Theatre of War and Action Taken but I have little idea as to what they signify or if they can open up a new path of enquiry.

There is a number beneath his regiment no that is 35215 - does anybody know what this is?

Beside Action Taken there is what looks like '# ______ " ________ cpl 7178026'. Does anybody know what this might mean?

Beside Theatre of War is the following ''9G/S/M/Lein R/1-7 Co/A/1068'. Obviously some reference to his regiment but does anybody know what the other codes signify?

Beside Qualifying Date is what looks like 'EM/ 2/1215' - can anybody shed any light on this.

There are documents in the family that I have not seen but have been given brief details of over the phone.

He was mentioned in the dispatches of Sir John French on the 31/5/1915, but I could not find a corresponding mention in the London Gazette.

I know he went from France to Salonika then to Egypt and finally India.

There is a letter of commendation for gallant and distinguished service signed Winston Churchill and a signed photograph of the King.

There are medical references detailing that he contracted malaria in Alexandria and India.

There is a reference to the !st Leinsters in Madras, 1922 and to the bangalore asault of 1921.

There is a picture of him on a hockey team in India with a banner reading 'Merry Micks on tour' above the group.

He seems to have dischared from the army in 1923 in Bombay and returned to Dublin - seems!

I will be getting my hands on this stuff soon and don't want to mentiona any more obout it lest I have misinterpreted details over the phone.

In the meantime if there is anybody who could help with the medal index card I would be deeply appreciative.

regards,

Brian.

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35215 and 7178026 look like later numbers that he would have had.

The 7-digit number would be a "transitional" number near the end of the War before the switch to ARmy Numbers in the early 1920s.

The 35215 number seems to be some sort of earlier renumbering, but I don't know enough about the Leinster Regiment to confirm that.

The theatre of war reference may well be to correspondence. These references cannot be linked back these days.

EM/ reference means he was mentioned in despatches (the EM is short for Emblem, the oak leaf on his Victory Medal)

Judging by his ports of call he looks like he was with the 1st Battalion, probably for the entire war.

http://www.1914-1918.net/leinster.htm

27th Division in France and Salonika, then 10th (Irish Division) in late 1916 for the Palestine Campaign, first via Egypt and then later returning to Egypt.

Steve.

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