Private Alexander Robert Gilliland
Alexander Robert Gilliland was born at Gartbrattan, Kilmore, County Cavan, on 13 May 1892, the seventh of twelve children of National School teacher James Gilliland and his wife Mary Charlotte (née Murphy). By the time of the 1911 Census he was living in Gaol Street, Kilkenny, with his grandmother, an aunt and a niece, and working as a watchmaker.
Gilliland enlisted in the North Irish Horse on 24 or 25 May 1915 (No.1600). He trained at the regiment's Antrim reserve camp before embarking for France on 17 November 1915 with F Squadron, which at the time was serving as divisional cavalry to the 33rd Division.
In June 1916 F Squadron combined with C Squadron and the 6th (Inniskilling) Dragoons Service Squadron to form the 2nd North Irish Horse Regiment, serving as corps cavalry to X Corps until September 1917, when the regiment was disbanded and its men were transferred to the Royal Irish Fusiliers, an infantry regiment. Most, including Gilliland, were transferred on 20 September and posted to the 9th (Service) Battalion – renamed the 9th (North Irish Horse) Battalion – joining it in the field at Ruyaulcourt five days later. Gilliland was issued regimental number 41249.
He probably saw action with the battalion at the Battle of Cambrai in November and December 1917, and perhaps also during the retreat from St Quentin from 21 to 28 March 1918.
In April 1918 the remnants of the 9th (NIH) Battalion were moved to the Ypres front, where their numbers were bolstered by fresh drafts from the UK and men returning from leave. It was there on 9 April that the Germans began the next phase of their offensive. The battalion saw severe fighting between Wulverghem and Kemmel for more than a week, and Gilliland was one of the casualties, wounded in the face.
Whether Gilliland saw any further front-line service during the war is not known at present, but it seems unlikely. On 26 March 1919 he was demobilised and transferred to Class Z, Army Reserve.
Image, from the Belfast Weekly Telegraph of 1 June 1918, kindly provided by Nigel Henderson, Researcher at History Hub Ulster.
This page last updated 12 June 2023.