There is an increasing recognition of the significance of Irish participation in World War I. Over 200,000 Irish men served in the British armed forces during the war and of them the Committee of the Irish National War Memorial has recorded 49,000 deaths. This publication contains an index to the wills of 9,000 Irishmen in the British armed forces who died during the conflict 1914-1918, it is a tribute to their sacrifice but also sheds light on the realities and details of that sacrifice.
During the war soldiers sent to the front line were encouraged to write their last will and testament, if they did not survive these wills were registered, 9,000 of these wills are deposited with the National Archives of Ireland. This CD is a first time publication of an index to these wills, it contains the soldier's name, rank, serial number, regiment, date of death, date will was written, war office number, war office date, record number, names of witnesses, and names and details of beneficiaries and their family relationship. The index contains an estimated 18,000+ names and is fully searchable. It is a valuable aid to any one researching the broader context of the Irish in World War I as well as to genealogists and family historians tracing Irish family members in the early 20th Century.
