An Cosantóir

www.military.ie THE DEFENCE FORCES MAGAZINE | 17 Retired Officer Celebrates 100th Birthday BY SGT WAYNE FITZGERALD PHOTOS BY ARMN SAM GIBNEY O n 1st March 2019, Lt Col Ned Cusack (retd) celebrated his 100th birthday in Dún Uí Mhaoilíosa, Galway, where he served nearly 80 years ago. Lt Col Frank Flannery (OC 1 Cn Cois) marked the occasion by hosting lunch for Lt Col Cusack and his family in the Officers' Mess. This was followed by an honour guard in the barracks gym- nasium (due to inclement weather), where Sáir Cahill Felle brought the guard to attention for inspection by the guest of honour. Members of Cu- mann an Céad Chath (1 Inf Bn Officers Association), were also present for this prestigious occasion. From there Lt Col Cusack was es- corted to visit the museum, which is an excellent example of what can be achieved within a barracks, and full credit to curators Sgt PJ Maloney and Coy Sgt John Moylan and others. Coy Sgt Moylan who had the honour of asking Lt Col Cusack to sign the visitor's book and brought him around some of the museum's exhibits. Lt Col Frank Flannery thanked Brig Gen O'Callaghan (retd) for getting the museum setup many years ago. He also pointed to a photograph on the wall of a young Lt Ned Cusack in 1943, saying: "It's an honour to have a man here with us who served here during the Emergency." Ned Cusack was born on 1st March 1919, in Mitchelstown, Co Cork. He started his Defence Forces career with the 12th Cadet Class in the Military Col- lege, Curragh Camp, in September 1938. Ned and his classmates were just a year in training when he remembers being on leave and getting the message: "All troops to report back to their units." It was 1 September 1939 and Germany had just invaded Poland. This was the start of World War Two and Ned recalls Major Gen Hugo O'Neill telling the troops, "We are now on a war footing." Like most military units at that time, they were confined to bar- racks. Their remaining training was condensed into six weeks, and they were soldiering seven- days-a-week, and on commis- sioning they were not granted leave but sent straight to their new units. Ned recalls that on being posted to 1 Cn Cois he thought to himself: "Where is Galway?" "I'd never been to Galway," he says; "it was the Wild West!" In Galway Ned became a Coastal De- fence officer, and in November 1939 he was dispatched to Malin Head, on the Inishowen Peninsula in Donegal. As a platoon officer, Ned commanded an OP and radio station, and remembers their biggest fear at the time being the IRA. From Donegal he was sent to Drum- sna, Co Leitrim, where his orders were to secure a bridge over the Shannon that was the commercially important to North/South trade. Ned and his men were on complete lockdown for Christmas 1939 because the IRA had just raided the Magazine Fort (the Free State's main arsenal) in the Phoenix Park, and had secured weapons and ammunition for their campaign. (This raid also led to the opening of the internment camp in the Curragh.) Today, Ned resides in Moycullen, Co Galway, with his wife Eileen. They have seven children, and a large number of grandchildren and greatgrandchildren. We are indebted to former An Co- santóir journalist, Wesley Bourke, for helping with this article, and you can read an extensive three-part interview with Ned, covering his career and the Emergency, in Wesley's publication, Ireland's Military Story, (Spring 2016, Spring 2017 and Summer 2017). Lt Col Ned Cusack inspects his GoH. Lt Col Flannery with Lt Col Cusack signing the museum's guest book. Ned and Eileen getting married in 1944. Ned with 1 Cn Cois marching in Eyre Sq, Galway with President Éamon de Valera on the viewing stand, circa 1940s. Lt Col Cusack and guest pictured with the GoH and Lt Col Frank Flannery, OC 1 Cn Cois.

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