Letter from Father Willie Doyle S.J. to Hugh Doyle, 23 September 1916 Letters 1916-1923 Willie Doyle

This work was originally published by Maynooth University in Ireland in 2017. In 2026 this data, stored in a relational database was extracted and converted into this TEI/XML document.

 Austrian Centre for Digital Humanities Vienna, AT 2026

This is an open access work licensed under Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial 4.0 International license (CC BY-NC 4.0).

Letter from Fr Willie Doyle (1873-1917) to Hugh Doyle. Fr Doyle served as a military chaplain with the 8th Battalion of the Royal Irish Fusiliers, 16th Irish Division. In April 1916 he was recommended for the Military Cross (MC) for helping to dig wounded men out of a collapsed shelter under fire. He moved to the 8th Battalion, Royal Dublin Fusiliers around Christmas, 1916. He was killed during the third battle of Ypres while going to the aid of a wounded man near Frezenberg and his body was never recovered. His name is commemorated on the Tyne Cot memorial, Zonnebeke, Belgium.

 Irish Jesuit Archives IE-IJA-J2-83-89, IE-IJA-J2-83-89 https://letters1916.ie/item/1099 English Willie Doyle 1916-09-23 British Expeditionary Force, France Hugh Doyle Melrose, Dalkey, County Dublin, Ireland Male World War I (1914-1918) World War I (1914-1918)

The data in these XML files was generated based on a data dump from the Magellan database (https://github.com/Maynooth-Center-for-Digital-Humanities/Magellan). Each database record has been converted to a JSON file (https://github.com/letters1916static/letters-data/tree/main/json). The element section of the JSON file contains the TEI-encoded contents of the letters. The TEI XML has been cleaned and made well-formed using a Python script (https://github.com/letters1916static/letters-data/tree/main/src).

 B.R.Force 23/9/1916 My dearest Father, Life in the army I find is a life of delightful and unexpected surprises. You are told that you are going to some large town, and at once visions of comfortable quarters with, perhaps the luxury of a real bed, loom up before you; you reach the town only to find you do not stay there but have to tramp out into the open country and fight for a corner in some ancient barn You hear that the journey is to be done by rail, but nothing is said of the ten mile march before and after reaching the station, while the crowning joy of all is to count on a month's rest and then find yourself back in the trenches within a week. All these pleasant surprises have been mine recently. We had a few very pleasant, restful days in the place I last wrote from, a delightful spot on the bank of a wooded river, but since then we have been on the move by rail and motor lorries and 'Shank's Mare' till we found ourselves in Normandy, where 'the boys' had the time of their lives among the apple orchards. As once more, over the frontier with a country not unknown to both of us and here we have settled down to work again but in almost the quietest part of the line, a striking contrast to our stirring times at Loos. Though all this moving about is trying more especially as much of it was done at night with long stretches without one chance of a meal , in other respects it was very pleasant and an agreeable change. I was not too well for some days with a slight attack of dysentery from which a great number were suffering but that trouble is quite past now and I am in my usual good form. the enjoyment of the little holiday was somewhat spoiled by an experience which I trust may never be repeated — the execution of one f my own men. It was the one thing I dreaded most when coming out here, and it is strange this holy duty should have fallen to me for the man did not belong to my regiment but was transferred to more us a short while ago from another. I did all I could to save the poor fellows life as I believe there was a strain of humanity in the family, but it was his third offence warranting the death penalty so my efforts were unavailing. Somehow he had been left under the impression that the sentence would not be carried out, so I had to bear the news to him that he would be shot at six next morning. The poor chap took it well, though he felt for his young wife who lives in Dublin. I chatted with him for a while and cheered him up, getting him to accept his punishment, terrible as it was, from the hands of God as a certain pledge of his salvation. As he wanted to sleep a while I left him but returned early next morning, heard his confession, gave him Holy Communion and remained praying with him till the fatal moment came. It was a strange experience to sit beside a man in the full vigour of life knowing that in half an hour he would be in eternity. Honestly I believe it would have been easier for me to have been shot myself than to go through that awful scene. My one consolation was that he could not be better prepared for death and that he faced the inevitable so calmly. 'Alright I have a bit of a smoke, Father?' were almost his last words, for a moment or two after the door of the stable where he was confined was thrown open from soldiers blindfolded him and led him out to a tree to which they bound him securely. Drawn up in front were a file of ten men with loaded rifles. At a signal from the officer they took aim, 'fire' came the order and as the volley cracked out I raised my hand and gave him a last absolution. the body quivered slightly & then the head dropped, the legs gave way and another victim of the war had gone to God. Sep 24 th I got this far last evening while waiting for the final stage from journey, little thinking of the pleasant surprise which was awaiting me. You dear letter of the 15 thwas waiting to relieve me on my arrival and hence I am glad to be able to send you in return the best of good news. I a writing in a magnificent chateau, the late residence of H Hennessy of brandy fame, quite a small palace, though somewhat the worse for two years military occupation including a visit from the German Crown Prince and his Staff. I have just been for a stroll round the park and gardens and lakes, doubly enjoyable for the glorious weather which has come back to us again. This is to be our Head Quarters for some time to come, I believe. We are not very far from the Front Line but there seems to be a kind of mutual like the understanding up here to lie low like the famous Brer Rabbit and ' do nuffin', for I have not heard even a rifle shot for hours, in fact I am wondering has peace been signed ! I need not say what a relief & what a rest this quiet change is to us all, in fact I am hoping the was may last ten years yet this is such a charming place, but how it has escaped destruction is a mystery to me. To complete our good fortune ' leave of absence' has been opened again for us. I do not expect to get away for some time as there are many who have not had a holiday since we landed in France seven months ago and naturally they are first for the list, but it cheers me up to look forward to seeing you all again in the near future. I hop you will lay in a good stock of 'Bully Beef and Biscuits' in anticipation of my visit for I warn you beforehand that I want at least seven meals a day to keep me in fighting form. Before leaving the scene of our last fierce fierce fighting I paid a visit to the town of Albert to see one of the many wonders of the war. In the town stand the ruins of a once magnificent church, a famous shrine of our Blessed Lady, a huge statue of whom crowned the town. This statue was struck by a German shell and knocked from its position many months ago. As it fell, the head caught somewhere and the statue remains hanging in the street at right angles to the town apparently. missing an arm. Our Lady is holding the Divine Infant at arms length over her head as if calling to someone to catch him before he falls. The whole thing is very curious if I can I shall send you a photo later. You can be quite at your ease about me now. Danger is reduced to a minimum, even if I had not a single reason to find that our Blessed Lord intended to bring me safely through this time of trial as He has done in the past. I am a bit tired after so much moving about for the past month but I mean to rest now that I have the chance & the place combined; otherwise I am in the best of health and spirits too, The little trouble I spoke o has quite gone. Thousands of thanks again for your welcome letter you are indeed good to write so often. Much love to everybody and heaps to your own dear self, As ever, dearest Father Your loving Willie British Expeditionary Force, France Letter from Father Willie Doyle S.J. to Hugh Doyle, 23 September 1916Letter from Fr Willie Doyle SJ to Provincial Thomas Nolan, 13 May 1916Letter from Father Willie Doyle S.J. to Hugh Doyle, 26 October 1916 Melrose, Dalkey, County Dublin, Ireland Letter from Father Willie Doyle S.J. to Hugh Doyle, 20 July 1916Letter from Father Willie Doyle S.J. to Hugh Doyle, 23 September 1916Letter from Father Willie Doyle S.J. to Hugh Doyle, 1 December 1915Letter from Father Willie Doyle S.J. to Hugh Doyle, 10 December 1915Letter from Father Willie Doyle S.J. to Hugh Doyle, 17 March 1916Letter from Father Willie Doyle S.J. to Hugh Doyle, 24 March 1916Letter from Father Willie Doyle S.J. to Hugh Doyle, 29 April 1916Letter from Father Willie Doyle S.J. to Hugh Doyle, 19 June 1916Letter from Father Willie Doyle S.J. to Hugh Doyle, 26 October 1916 Willie Doyle Letter from Father Willie Doyle to Hugh Doyle, 10 March 1916Letter from Father Willie Doyle S.J. to Hugh Doyle, 20 July 1916Letter from Father Willie Doyle S.J. to Hugh Doyle, 23 September 1916Letter from Fr Willie Doyle SJ to Provincial Thomas Nolan, 13 May 1916Letter from Father Willie Doyle S.J. to Fr Provincial Thomas V. Nolan, 25 January 1916Letter from Father Willie Doyle S.J. to Fr Provincial Thomas V. Nolan, 25 February 1916Letter from Father Willie Doyle S.J. to Hugh Doyle, 1 December 1915Letter from Father Willie Doyle S.J. to Hugh Doyle, 10 December 1915Letter from Father Willie Doyle S.J. to Fr Provincial Thomas V. Nolan, 31 December 1915Letter from Father Willie Doyle S.J. to Hugh Doyle, 30 December 1915Letter from Father Willie Doyle S.J. to Hugh Doyle, 15 January 1916Letter from Father Willie Doyle S.J. to Mai, 22 January 1916Letter from Father Willie Doyle S.J. to Hugh Doyle, 25 January 1916Letter from Father Willie Doyle S.J. to Hugh Doyle, 4 February 1916Letter from Father Willie Doyle S.J. to Hugh Doyle, 10 February 1916Letter from Father Willie Doyle S.J. to Mai, 11 February 1916Letter from Father Willie Doyle S.J. to Hugh Doyle, 17 March 1916Letter from Father Willie Doyle S.J. to Hugh Doyle, 24 March 1916Letter from Father Willie Doyle S.J. to Hugh Doyle, 29 April 1916Letter from Father Willie Doyle S.J. to Hugh Doyle, 19 June 1916Letter from Father Willie Doyle S.J. to Hugh Doyle, 26 October 1916Letter from Father Willie Doyle S.J., 16 April 1916Letter from Father Willie Doyle S.J. to Fr Provincial Thomas V. Nolan, 12 December 1915Postcard from Fr Willie Doyle SJ to Sister M. Anthony, 7 April 1916