Global General

British Queen honors fallen Irish soldiers in WWI

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2011-05-18 22:26

Britain's Queen Elizabeth lays a wreath at the Irish War Memorial Gardens at Islandbridge in Dublin May 18, 2011. [Photo/Agencies]

DUBLIN - Visiting British Queen Elizabeth II on Wednesday laid a wreath at the Irish National Memorial Gardens in Dublin to remember the Irish soldiers who died fighting in the First World War.

Almost 50,000 Irish fought and died as part of the British Armed forces in the Great War and for many years their role in the conflict was largely ignored.

The British Queen laid a poppy wreath at the memorial's cenotaph and Irish President Mary McAleese also laid a wreath to the fallen soldiers.

In a symbolic echo of the events on Tuesday, where the Queen honored those who died for Irish freedom, the national anthems of both Ireland the UK were played during the ceremony.

On Tuesday, the Queen visited Dublin's Garden of Remembrance and laid a wreath there. The garden is a memorial to the Irish men and women who fought and died for freedom against British rule.

Following the wreath-laying, the Queen and her husband Prince Philip were shown illuminated manuscripts containing the names of all the soldiers commemorated at the memorial. The royal couple were also shown the Ginchy Cross, carved out of oak by Irish soldiers who took part in the Battle of the Somme, a large-scale battle of the First World War.

Also present at the Irish National Memorial Gardens were members of the Irish Army, cabinet ministers and Britain's Northern Ireland First Minister Peter Robinson who said Wednesday's ceremony "broke another taboo" in Anglo-Irish relations.

This particular event on the Queen's four-day itinerary was specifically requested by Buckingham Palace and it is believed was of particular importance to the Queen.

The Queen is on a four-day tour to the Irish Republic, the first ever such a visit by a British monarch to the country.