BRAY
BRAY
– Henry Cairns
Bray RIC, August 1921. Photo: Courtesy of Henry Cairns
Bray at war 1920-21 In January 1920, in response to ongoing attacks on the RIC, advertisements appeared in the British newspapers for recruits for police service in Ireland. The pay was 10 shillings a day. New recruits began to arrive in Ireland in late March and because of a shortage of police uniforms were dressed in a mixture of army trousers and RIC tunics, hence their nickname ‘Black and Tans’. By October, there were over 2,000 of these men in the country. In addition, a second force was recruited from ex-British officers and were paid £1 a day. They were divided into companies of 100 and were sent to the most troubled areas. This force became known as the Auxiliaries and they were not subject to trial by civil courts. Both these forces were recruited from battle-hardened
49
