I have had something on my mind for a long time and I might be a million miles away from the truth. My battalion of Para were the first Special Forces to be posted to Northern Ireland, and I have often wondered why? Para’s like Marines are shock troops and go in fast paving the way for the main forces and then withdraw. There was a relative calm in the Province when we arrived and we could drive about in open top vehicles.

We went into the Protestant areas and they were hostile or should I say they gave us a lot more attention than they gave other units. They were unfriendly but not openly aggressive towards the Para’s. As we walked their streets passing groups of women or men there could be heard whispers in our wake. Our platoon had the outskirts of the town to patrol and also the countryside about.

It was about a month into the tour that things started getting hairy and I often wonder if the powers to be knew this would happen. The IRA started getting bolder and the riots started getting bigger. It was as if because the Para’s had arrived the whole of Northern Ireland upped their game to coincide. They must have known that we would not take the same type of crap the other units were taking.

The other units were in a strange sort of way a little complacent of the peace they had. I think that looking back the Irish, both Catholic and Protestant had placed them in a false state of security. It was peace, but the type of peace the factions wanted so that they could carry out their clandestine activities. I think even to this day that the Special Forces were sent there to shake them about a little and see what falls out. I think the high command knew what was going on and wanted life in the Province without punishing the other units commanders.

Well we did shake them about and made many arrests locking up members of both factions. It was this that started to bring the Provisional IRA, out into the open and they openly walked next to their dead comrades coffins. Para’s took advantage and even more arrests were made the day of the funeral, the peace had been broken and the factions were fighting back. In the six months I was there during that tour, all hell was let loose. 1 Para took over from us and were there for two years, and during the two years there was some of the bloodiest fighting between the factions. Bloody Sunday was just icing on the cake that had been cooking since our first day in the Province.

It’s only a thought.

Be well IAN 2411