| 5689 Sergeant Thomas F. Connelly (Connolly) DCM of the Royal Irish Regiment. Connelly was serving with the 1st Battalion of the Mounted Infantry at the time of his actions for which he was awarded the DCM but I have been unable to uncover much else about this soldier. An extensive search of the records at the National Archives at Kew have turned up nothing. No service records from either the Boer War or World War One time period where found under the spelling of Connelly or Connolly (it appears both ways in the Gazette). Also the very common nature of his name has precluded finding him or his family though normal genealogical methods. At this point I have also been unable to find a citation mentioning the action that resulted in him being presented the DCM. Unlike awards of the Victoria Cross, the London Gazette does not cite the actions relating to the award of the Distinguished Conduct Medal. I am currently looking for Boer War-era regimental histories of the Royal Irish Regiment with the hope that some information regarding Connelly may be uncovered there. Mounted Photograph 6 5/8 Inches by 4 7/8 Inches (17 cm x 12.5 cm) c. 1904 |
