Rememberance Day,

[alcatel]

Wasn't the Duke of Wellington Irish?
Join the army, kick Napoleon's arse and win the opportunity to prove yourself to be the most successful soldier of the century...

One may be born in a stable (Ireland) yet not be a horse.... attributed, perhaps falsely to the Duke of Wellington. His ethos was English and England was where he spent most of his life.
Waterloo was not a foregone conclusion, luck and the arrival of Blucher and his Prussians at the right time played a big part in the outcome of the battle.
The ordinary footsloggers would have had a different life in the army than the elite commanders of the time, who could parlay military success into other advancement later in life.
And there is always a little whiff of English jingoism in the way Britain remembers Watwrloo and Wellington.

[EIFII]

One may be born in a stable (Ireland) yet not be a horse.... attributed, perhaps falsely to the Duke of Wellington. His ethos was English and England was where he spent most of his life.
Waterloo was not a foregone conclusion, luck and the arrival of Blucher and his Prussians at the right time played a big part in the outcome of the battle.
The ordinary footsloggers would have had a different life in the army than the elite commanders of the time, who could parlay military success into other advancement later in life.
And there is always a little whiff of English jingoism in the way Britain remembers Watwrloo and Wellington.

Yes, agreed. But because Wellington said so, doesn't make it right. For me anyway, there is no shame in being Irish.
Napoleon was a spent force by 1815, with his Russian humiliation meaning he no longer held the confidence of the French.
As for the Prussians there is nothing wrong with acknowledging the role of an ally in helping to secure victory.

The difference between English and French history is that England managed to have a bloodless (Glorious) Revolution in 1689, compared to the bloodshed and chaos of the French Revolution and its aftermath.

But back on topic - I for one welcome the chance to remember and honour those who fought and died to secure the freedoms we enjoy today

[alcatel]

Yes, agreed. But because Wellington said so, doesn't make it right. For me anyway, there is no shame in being Irish.
Napoleon was a spent force by 1815, with his Russian humiliation meaning he no longer held the confidence of the French.
As for the Prussians there is nothing wrong with acknowledging the role of an ally in helping to secure victory.

The difference between English and French history is that England managed to have a bloodless (Glorious) Revolution in 1689, compared to the bloodshed and chaos of the French Revolution and its aftermath.

But back on topic - I for one welcome the chance to remember and honour those who fought and died to secure the freedoms we enjoy today

However England did have a rather bloody civil earlier in the 1600s....also a revolution of sorts to curb the power of a monarch.
The battles of the "bloodless" Glorious Revolution were fought in Ireland.

[dob]

However England did have a rather bloody civil earlier in the 1600s....also a revolution of sorts to curb the power of a monarch.
The battles of the "bloodless" Glorious Revolution were fought in Ireland.

The glorious revolution, the replacement of one inbred chinless wonder with another.

[robbie9]

fair play to the but to cross the the English channel , you would nearly need to be a professional swimmer. Myself i would of made it 400 yards.

[Joaodani85]

respect to all