Battle Honours by kind permission www.regimentalreplicas.com

The Connaught Rangers Officers Mess Club was created to serve as an abiding memorial to the long, varied and brilliant career&services of the Connaught Rangers 88th/94th Regiment of Foot in every quarter of the globe from 1793-1922.

The British Army officer's life centered around his regimental mess when he was not on duty. Although the mess often provided the officer a meal and a bed, it was more often a club and notable social establishment, where he could socialize on a regular basis with his peers and unwind from the stress of the campaign. It is where the officers and gentlemen get to know and trust one another beyond the strict professional interaction of their primary duties and can establish the same cohesion throughout the command structure, as we perceive is built within any section or fire team.

Combining spirit, camaraderie and nostalgia of the old Connaught Rangers Officers Mess disbanded in 1922, the Regimental Dinner Club and the Regimental Association, we preserve the memory of the Connaught Rangers and provide a respectable, stimulating, convivial and inspiring meeting point for Lady's and Gentlemen who want to elevate their thinking on the history and nostalgia of "the old Regiment".

Ist Battalion colours and trophies, Jullundur 1919 

The Officers Mess Club is happy to provide help in tracing the military history of your ancestors trough professional genealogical services of researcher Mr. Richard Moles.

You may contact him mentioning the Connaught Rangers Officers Mess Club at:

Dr. John Morrisey from the National University of Ireland, Galway has kindly permitted the inclusion of two of his works on the cromc webpage (if links should be blocked, copy titles to search engine):

A Lost Heritage: The Connaught Rangers and Multivocal Irishness http://www.nuigalway.ie/geography/documents/Heritage-Chapter.pdf

(Reference is: J. Morrissey (2005) ', in: McCarthy, M. (ed.), Ireland's Heritages: Critical Perspectives on Memory and Identity, Ashgate, Aldershot, pp. 71-87.)

Ireland's Great War: Representation, Public Space and the Place of Dissonant Heritages http://www.nuigalway.ie/geography/documents/JGAHS-Paper.pdf

(Reference is: J. Morrissey (2006) 'Ireland's Great War: Representation, Public Space and the Place of Dissonant Heritages', Journal of Galway Archaeological and Historical Society, Vol. 58, pp. 98-113.)

Founder of the Connaught Rangers in 1793:  Captain and Lieutenant Colonel John Thomas de Burgh, 13 Earl of Clanricard

Contact us for Connaught Ranger memorabilia.

-Book Marks with Crest and Battle Honours

Engraved Card Cases, Lighters and Key Rings

-Regimental Badges

-Battle Honour Emblazons

-The three volume Regimental History and other CR relevant books

-Regimental Prints

 -Regimental Crest China Tableware

-Regimental Blazer Crest

-original Regimental Tie

-Replicas of British Officers Swords 1790-1897

-1851 London Navy Colt Black Powder Revolver and Enfield Black Powder Rifle Muskets

The Connaught Rangers Officers Mess Club is an independent institution that builds on the confidentiality of it's selected members and is far removed from any religious or political affiliations

Please send your correspondence to:

The Connaught Rangers Officers Mess Club

Secretary of the Mess Commitee

cromc@gmx.net

Disbandment Ceremony, June 12th 1922, St. George's Hall ,Windsor Castle

The Connaught Rangers Officers Mess Plate

 Upon the return of The Connaught Rangers from South Africa in February 1903, it was decided to compile a short history of the silver plate in possession of the 1st Battalion. With this object in view circulars were sent out to all past and present officers of the Regiment, whose addresses were known, asking for any Information relating to the plate, or to the donors. This Information, with the traditions which were known to the present generation, where put together in the short

 History of the Regimental Plate of the 1st Battalion The Connaught Rangers 

by Captain H.F.N Jourdain 

and privately printed in 1904 from which following short excerpt is from:

The 88th Regiment, or  " Connaught  Rangers," were raised in Ireland , under a commission bearing date 25th September 1793 , by

Colonel the Hon. Thomas de Burgh (afterwards Earl of Clanricarde). Scarcly had a year elapsed before this Regiment saw active Service, and it is highly improbable that, within so short a space of time, any plate was bought by or given to the Regiment. Only a few small articles of plate dating from that epoch remained to the Regi­ment. Among these may be mentioned a silver wine-funnel bearing the date-letter of 1783 and the assay-hall mark of the city of Edinburgh , which was evidently purchased by the mess in the year 1817, when the Regiment was quartered at Edinburgh . Then there is the the bottle Stands or coasters, bearing date-letters of 1798 and 1810. Both these seem to have been purchased in or after the year 1817. Finally there are three narrow scoops of 1804, 1813, and 1817 which had no mark, but evidently dated from about 1804-1805, and two meat skewers, ornamented with the regimental crest, bearing the date-letters of 1805. In the latter year The Connaught Rangers were quartered at Eastbourne under Lieut.-Colonel the Hon. Alexander Duff, a nephew of the then Earl of Fife. It is probable that these may have been bought about 1805, but as all the regimental baggage was lost at Buenos Ayres in July 1807, even these articles may only have come into the possession of the mess about 1817 to 1819. The service of plate is nearly all of King's pattern, and even up to modern days articles have been made to match those of 1819.

The first large consignment of plate was purchased in 1819 at Edinburgh , from a London firm, when the Regiment, lately returned from a long campaign, founded its first standing mess.

From 1793 to 1817, a period of twenty-four years, The Connaught Rangers served their country in different lands. India , Egypt , South America , North America , Holland , Spain , Portugal , France , and the West Indies were among the countries in which the Regiment served during the first twenty-four years of its existence.

In those times of campaign following campaign no regular mess was established, except at Campo Mayor in Portugal in 1809. Here the 88th set the example, which was speedily followed by other regiments, of forming a regimental mess and as the early historian describes it: "A marked friendliness and cordiality reigned throughout the corps in consequence thereof." Even this attempt to form a Battalion mess was somewhat rudely disturbed by the advance of Marshal Massena in the summer of 1810. From this period until the end of the war it was one continual move, and the mess formed at Campo Mayor was kept up with indifferent success.

When the Peninsular War ended in 1814 the Regiment embarked in the Gironde on the 15th June, and sailed direct for Quebec , which it reached in the August following.

After serving in the operations in North America the 88th em­barked at Quebec on the 8th June 1815 for passage to Europe .

The battle of Waterloo had decided the contest in Europe before the arrival of the 88th, nevertheless the Regiment was ordered to proceed, without disembarking,  to France .    Landing at Ostend , it marched to Paris and took over quarters at St. Denis, and later at Valenciennes .

No article of plate marks this epoch in the Regimental History, except two snuff-boxes given about 1809 and 1815.

A t the end of the spring of 1817 The Connaught  Rangers returned to Great Britain from Valenciennes and took over quarters in Edinburgh . Here the first consignment of silver plate was ordered for the mess.  Colonel the Hon. Alexander Duff presented a large soup tureen, which still remains in the mess.  Certain officers also presented another silver soup tureen to match that presented Colonel Duff.

The King's pattern Service of plate was made in London and delivered to the  Regiment  when  quartered at Hull , Mancester, and Stockport , where the Regiment was quartered in the summer of 1819 after leaving Edinburgh .

The next large consignment of plate was made in London in the year 1826, having been ordered in the previous year, and forwarded out to the Regiment at Corfu in the Ionian Islands .

For nearly two years (1826-1828) the Regiment was concentrated at Corfu , but in 1828 three detachments were sent out to the neighbouring Islands of Ithaca , Cerigo, and Santa Maura, and in September of that year the headquarters of the Regiment were moved to Cephalonia .

Small purchases were made in the years 1823, 1825, 1827, and in 1830 evidently to make good losses. 

In 1839-1842 the late GeneralE. R.  Jeffreys, C.B., was Mess-President when  a Captain in the Regiment , and a large amount of silver plate, all of King's pattern was made in those years.

This  was mostly the work of George Adams, spoonmaker, of London .

This order was sent out to the Regiment, then stationed at Malta . Again in 1844 certain articles of silver plate were ordered from Malta ; these included tea-spoons, gravy-spoons, and salt-spoons.

On the 2ist February 1847 the Regiment arrived at Barbadoes, sending out a detachment to British Guiana on 18th March 1847 . The Rangers moved from Barbadoes and British Guiana on 28th February 1848 to Trinidad , and afterwards to St. Vincent and Grenada in the same year. During this sojourn in the West Indian Islands a fire took place and some silver was unavoidably lost, but there is no clue to the extent of damage on this occasion.

In 1850 the Regiment left the West Indies for Halifax , Nova Scotia . Here, in 1851, a large fire occurred and a great amount of plate was burnt. A large silver salver, which had been in the mess for some considerable time, was lost in this conflagration and Lieut.-Colonel H. Shirley (afterwards General Sir H. Shirley, K.C.B.) presented a similar salver to match that lost in the fire. Several small articles, such as Major Vandeleur's snuff-box, Mr. Hicks' snuff-box, and a large proportion of the Service of plate, were saved. The Mess-house was on this occasion completely destroyed. The Regiment sent in a claim for damages to the amount of £1500. The War Office refused to allow more than £233, os. 6d. The reason for this absurd reduction was that the articles then in use in the mess were "much too expensive." It still remains to be told exactly what silver was lost in this fire, as there are now no traces of the amount of the mess property at that date.

On the 3rd April 1854 The Connaught Rangers proceeded on active Service to join the Eastern Army, and for over two years were absent from England . During this period no mess silver was bought. The silver plate belonging to the Regiment was stored at home until the arrival home of the Regiment from the Crimea on 19th July 1856 , when it went into quarters at Aldershot . Here another large order was put in hand, also with a London firm. This consignment was hardly finished when the 88th got Orders to sail for India on the breaking out of the Indian Mutiny in the following year (1857).

The plate was left behind in England and stored when the Regiment left for India on the I5th July in that year. For nearly two years the mess was broken up and company-messing was instituted.

In 1859, when the 88th marched into quarters at Delhi , only certain articles were brought into use. From 1859 to 1870 practically no plate was acquired by the mess, the consignment purchased in 1856 proving sufficient.

On the 18th November 1870 The Connaught Rangers embarked at Bombay for conveyance to England , which they reached on 2ist December 1870.

In this year another large consignment of plate was bought. From 1870 to 1877 the Regiment served in England and Ireland , and in 1877 proceeded on Service to South Africa . During this period there were many presentations to the mess, but no new service of plate was acquired during this period. In 1876 the first of the silver goblets were presented, while the last, was presented in 1879.

To India the Regiment proceeded in 1879, and after serving in India nearly twelve years sailed for Aden in 1890, and returned to England in 1891. No additions to the Service of plate mark this period (between 1879 and 1891).

In 1892 the mess was unfortunate in losing some valuable silver plate by theft at Pembroke Dock, amongst which was the large silver salver given by Sir Horatio Shirley, K.C.B., in 1851 to replace one burnt in the fire at Halifax, Nova Scotia, in that year.

Since 1892 there have been few additions to the Service of plate, with the exception of the purchase of the dessert knives and forks which  were  bought at Sheffield in 1896. The donations of plate since then include many splendid articles of silver plate, which are described in chronological Order.

This short History has been divided into two parts.

Part I. contains the History, as far as can be ascertained, of all

the larger pieces of plate, including all cups, snuff-boxes, menu-stands, :car-lighters and cutters, mostly gifts to the officers.

The second part contains a history of the Service of plate, including knives, forks, spoons, mustard-pots, pepper-pots, salt-cellars, sugar-bowls, milk-jugs, and ladles, nearly all of which were purchased out of the mess funds from time to time. Included also in the second part are all silver-plated articles now in possession of the mess.

In conclusion the author begs to thank those past officers of the Regiment who have taken so much trouble in acquiring and sending him Information which would certainly before long have been lost for ever.

H. F. N. JOURDAIN.

Mullingar, May 1904.