An Cosantóir

www.military.ie THE DEFENCE FORCES MAGAZINE | 21 lethal force on their behalf. The Army is empowered to use lethal force within the ethical boundaries of national and international law and in line with our national values. It is this trust that binds the people of Ireland with the Army of Ireland. Our values-based system and the people of Ireland hold our ethos dearly. The Army has a unique culture, reinforced by the shared values of respect, loyalty, selflessness, physical courage, moral courage and integrity. These organisational values are the canons from which the Army develops a united, professionally trained, competent and capable Army serving the interests of Ireland. The Army Badge we wear today with the letters FF representing Fianna Fáil and enshrined in regulation. First displayed as part of the National Army uniform on the takeover of Beggars Bush Barracks on 31 January 1922, when Capt Daly led a body of uniformed men through the barrack gates, thus marked a significant moment in the transfer of power from the British Army to the National Army is key to our organisational identity. The word" Fianna" to the Irish mind is symbolic of the valour, prowess and chivalry of our race,⁴ while "Fail" is bound up with the very earliest political and religious systems of the Ancient Gael. Historians acknowledge the name Fianna was first applied to the great military organisation founded in the 3rd century by the celebrated Fionn Mac Cumhaill, and has been used for more than seventeen hundred years as a synonym for the Gael Militant. At various periods, it has been used to designate the advocates and defenders of Ireland's rights and liberties.⁵ The Army badge has now come to be recognised as the official stamp of Óglaigh na hEireann. We are in fact, so familiarised with the Army Badge on the cap badges of our soldiers, on our Army vehicles, etc., that its historic significance is often over looked, if not altogether forgotten, by us.⁶ This badge pays homage to the Profession of Arms, which is much older than our country. The profession emerged over the centuries, arising from the need to defend territory, culture, ideals, and people. This profession is further harmonised in the Defence Policy review and Governments vision to "defend our sovereignty and territorial integrity, to protect the safety and wellbeing of our people, and to uphold the democratic institutions of the state and the human rights and fundamental freedoms that underpin our society." The profession of arms is enduring and before examining the changing nature of conflict, we should ground ourselves, in what has not changed. Conflict is a human endeavour, and people are at the centre of all conflict. People live on land and an Army must be able to hold terrain. When they do hold terrain close combat is unavoidable, this means the ability to close with and destroy the enemy on and from the land is decisive. With the advancements in technology, the difference between the skilled professional soldier and the unskilled will become more evident. Why is this important? Because leaders and what they believe, and what they instil in those around them set cultures and help mould the organisation. Cultures are about belief. In our all-volunteer army and within our democracy, our people will become estranged to us if our culture and our beliefs are misaligned, misguided or misinterpreted. If we are not clear about who we are, what our purpose is, how can the people we serve understand who and what we are? Every Soldier has the opportunity to simultaneously be a leader, follower, and steward of the Army Profession. END NOTES 1 Hackett, J. (1983) The profession of arms. New York: McMillan. 2 Ryan, M (2017) Mastering the profession of arms, part 1: The enduring nature, War on the Rocks. Available at: https://warontherocks.com/2017/02mastering-the-proffesion-of-arms-part-1-the-enduring-nature/ (accessed:20 February 2025). 3 Huntington, S.P. (1985) The Soldier and the State: The theory and the politics of civil=military relations. Cambridge, Mass:Belknapp press. 4 An T- òglàch March 10, 1923 5 ilib 6 ilib Members of the EUBG fire the Carl Gustav 84mm anti-tank weapon The statue of Fionn Mac Cumhaill with his hounds by the Curragh Plains Irish troops of 35th Battalion A Company in action during their 1961 tour in Katanga. By September they found themselves under siege at Jadotville

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