Dad’s medals an ‘important part’ of family story
THE death has taken place of Corporal Tadhg Quinn, from Port in Abbeyfeale, one of five men recommended for the two highest military honours: the MMG (Medal for Military Gallantry) and DSM (Distinguished Service Medal) for services at Jadotville in September 1961.
Tadhg was only 18 when he left Abbeyfeale for Africa where he witnessed unimaginable trauma in the cauldron created by the siege at Jadotville. Placed in charge of commanding a mortar crew, Tadgh and his comrades were dug into position, where he was tasked with firing mortars at targets a mile away.
His job was to intercept a convoy of enemy trucks supplying their attackers with ammunition and reinforcements. The normal procedure would have been to send a smoke shell first to check the range before sending a live shell. There was no time, and having quickly estimated the range, Corporal Quinn fired, resulting in a direct hit. Speaking about her father’s service, Helena Quinn describes her immense pride in his bravery.
“We can only imagine what the effect of that one action [mortar strike] was. It was a decision taken in the heat of the moment, with no time for doubt or hesitation. What would have happened if those reinforcements and ammunitions had made it to the attackers? How many young Irish lives might have been lost? It gives you a sense of what my father did, but he was amongst 155 heroes, so he was in good company,” she said.
She explains that her father never spoke about Jadotville until after the death of his mother in 2002.
“It was locked up in the family secrets box and left there until, at the age of 60, he was able to peek inside the box again. He let us have a look inside too, and we have all embarked on his journey together,” she said.
“Our dad was one of the lucky ones; he didn’t look for comfort at the bottom of a bottle of whiskey, the demons didn’t win and drive him to suicide as happened with too many other men of ‘A’ Company... It has not been easy for him or any of us,” she added.
Corporal Quinn and his comrades were taken prisoner shortly after the siege ended and faced an uncertain future while diplomats stalled in finding a resolution.
“He said the first night of his captivity was worse than the days before because he had no weapon, no way of protecting himself, no understanding of what was going to come next, knowing he and his comrades were pawns in a game that was being played out in Dublin, New York, and Leopoldville [now
Kinshasa],” Helena said.
When terms were finally agreed, her father and the men were released in late October. They were immediately re-armed and sent back into action. The Company returned to Ireland in stages from the end of November until late December 1961.
“Dad’s ’A’ Company was in continuous combat in the famous ‘Tunnel’ in Elizabethville [now Lubumbashi] right up to the date of repatriation home. Dad was in the thick of this all the time before he took the last flight home arriving on Christmas Eve,” she said.
Corporal Quinn arrived home to his parents on a winter’s morning and drank a whiskey with his grandfather. Re-adjusting to life in Abbeyfeale proved difficult. The community had been worried for the young man captured in the Congo. Despite the relief of having him home, the attention was hard for Tadhg to take in.
“A local man told me years later about how, as a boy much younger than dad, he remembered that Christmas morning Mass. He was awestruck by dad and thought he was a hero. Dad recalls that morning Mass very differently, wrought with anxiety and feeling completely dislocated. He had experienced something that he didn’t have the tools to come to terms with, and the local boys just wanted to know how many people he had killed,” Helena said.
She fully insists it was the right decision to finally recognise the men of ‘A’ Company for their bravery and valour in 2017. Even though it took until 55 years after the event to gain this recognition, it meant a lot to him and his family. At the time, Tadhg said it was ‘absolutely scandalous’ the way they were treated. Helena talks about how Jadotville will always be ‘dad’s story’ but, by extension, is also theirs.
“The medals for which my dad was recommended are an important part of our family story and our family history. Even now, I feel there is still so much to learn from the 18-year-old who left Abbeyfeale,” she said.
“The importance of raising our heads high and acknowledging the good work of our armed forces, the understanding of mental health and post-traumatic stress disorder in our acting military and veterans, the impact of that on veterans’ families. So many families have had to take the thorny path. We just happen to be one of the lucky families,” Helena said.