I was scanning an aviation magazine, reading an article on the somewhat illegal transfer of some Fouga Magister jets to the Belgian Congo in 1961. The article was about the Boeing 377 Stratocruiser used to transport them, a wild story in itself.
The above quote was in the article, attributed to the commander of an Irish Company, so I had to find out more.
Siege of Jadotville
More details there, but the bottom line is that is was a typical SNAFU operation carried out by the United Nations. The UN sent in troops to stop a province of the Congo from seceding, and an Irish company of about 160 men was sent in to protect the citizens of Jadotville.
Instead, the citizens and settlers of the area turned on the UN troops, and the Irish ended up under siege for five days against a force of 3,000 to 5,000. The Irish commander sent a request for help including the line above:
"We will hold out until our last bullet is spent. Could do with some whiskey."
He did exactly that, held out with only five wounded and none killed, finally asking for a cease fire when his men were out of food, water and ammunition. Though taken prisoner, they were exchanged after only a month.
The weird thing is that the Irish military condemned the commander and soldiers, and it was only within the last decade that their record was cleared.
Read the full article, I think you'll enjoy it. An Irish commander requesting whiskey was just too funny for me to ignore.
The above quote was in the article, attributed to the commander of an Irish Company, so I had to find out more.
Siege of Jadotville
More details there, but the bottom line is that is was a typical SNAFU operation carried out by the United Nations. The UN sent in troops to stop a province of the Congo from seceding, and an Irish company of about 160 men was sent in to protect the citizens of Jadotville.
Instead, the citizens and settlers of the area turned on the UN troops, and the Irish ended up under siege for five days against a force of 3,000 to 5,000. The Irish commander sent a request for help including the line above:
"We will hold out until our last bullet is spent. Could do with some whiskey."
He did exactly that, held out with only five wounded and none killed, finally asking for a cease fire when his men were out of food, water and ammunition. Though taken prisoner, they were exchanged after only a month.
The weird thing is that the Irish military condemned the commander and soldiers, and it was only within the last decade that their record was cleared.
Read the full article, I think you'll enjoy it. An Irish commander requesting whiskey was just too funny for me to ignore.