81 survivors of ‘D’ (Guernsey) Company, 6th Battalion the Royal Irish Regiment, under the leadership of Lt-Col Thomas Hutchesson, MC, originally Capt. O.C. the 6th Bttn Machine Gun detachment, later 2 i/c and temporarily C.O. 6th Bttn.
13th January 1920, as a development from “The Royal Irish Regiment Association”, founded by the same men on 31st March, 1919.
Volunteers from the Guernsey Militia, initially selected by ballot on 5th February 1915 for active service at the front, and known locally as “The First Guernsey Service Contingent”..
The Lieutenant Governor, Sir Reginald Clare Hart VC GCB KCVO (himself Irish-born) specifically asked the War Office for their enlistment with the Royal Irish, since they had enjoyed warm relations with the 2nd Bttn the Royal Irish Regiment who were stationed as the garrison at Fort George, 1910-1913.
The Somme from August 1916, with prominent roles (and high casualties) in the battles to take Guillemont and Ginchy (September 1916); Messines Ridge and Wytschaete, spring 1917; the Passchendaele offensive, July/August 1917; Cambrai, November 1917 (in support).
A memorial service for the 74 fallen of ‘D’ Company was held in St. James on 13th September 1920. The Bailiff, Mr (later Sir) Edward Chepmell Ozanne then opened Warwick House, the Club HQ, purchased with a grant from the United Services Fund. The Bishop of the Falkland Islands (a Guernseyman, the Rt Rev Norman Stewart de Jersey) consecrated the premises. The Weekly Press reported the ceremony under the heading “Pro Patria” as the official opening of the Club, “founded as a permanent memorial to the men of D Company, 6th RIR, the first Guernsey Service Contingent, who had sacrificed their lives”.
The Founding President, Lt-Col Thomas Hutchesson, took the same name as an earler club, founded in 1881 in the Vale, a centre for paper chases and drag hunts on horseback, as well as formal dinners. His father Francis had been a founder member and it enjoyed considerable status and success in Guernsey society before closing in 1894. It seems clear that Lt-Col Hutchesson wanted to provide a positive focus in sporting activities for his men after their return from the trauma of the trenches. This is reflected in the objectives listed in the Club’s founding articles:-
To be an association of all amateur sportsmen
To support the advancement of sport in the Island
To be a lasting memorial to the officers, NCOs and men of the1st Guernsey Service Contingent who sacrificed their lives in the War
To provide an Aid Fund out of any profits or surplus accruing
Alan Cross (Club Archivist) March 2016