 two. Now the 60th anniversary of the assassination of John F. Kennedy, President John F. Kennedy, was last week and in fact there was a film show and a talk here in letter Kenny about his visit to Ireland and about his laying to rest at Arlington Cemetery later that year and Irish interest in that. That was at the, especially letter Kenny remembers night, letter Kenny memories night and it was in the station house hotel and the man who was speaking at that actually giving the talk was Colonel Brian O'Reilly and Brian has special memories actually from that time because he was in involved with the Guard of Honor for the the laying of a wreath when John F. Kennedy actually visited Ireland earlier in 1963 and there's a bit more to the story than that because the the Honor Guard actually played another part but I'm delighted anyhow that Brian has joined me in the studio he can you can tell the story himself Brian good afternoon to you. Good afternoon John. Okay let's go back to John JFK's visit here to Ireland it was a new vivid memories of it you were a cadet at the time the visit was huge. It was it was the first state visit to Ireland by head of state the Republic was 14 years old at the stage so he was the first formal state visit and all stops were pulled out to make sure that it went right and one of the the main ceremonial events of the visit was the laying of a wreath by President Kennedy at the grave of the executed 1916 leaders in Arbor Hill and my senior class the 36th grade class did the Honor Guard that day were you involved no I wasn't involved that day but it was my senior class who did it and they spent weeks preparing for it and they were superb and President Kennedy thought they were superb as well. He did yes because in the film of the event you can see him watching the intricate drill this very intricate drill that was involved and after as he was leaving he went to the officer in charge and said to him that's the finest Honor Guard I've ever seen in my life great so going on further from there anyway when the film of his visit went to the States there was very scant coverage of the Honor Guard now RT was a year and a half old at the stage and it was a major challenge to cover this first state visit over multiple locations so the president was disappointed and asked for the further footage of the Honor Guard because he was so impressed which didn't exist which didn't exist so at this stage my senior class were commissioned and they were gone to the all over the country so it wasn't possible for them to spend weeks again rehearsing and and doing it correct and there were something might have been even overseas at that stage so we were tasked with doing it and we were up at 7 in the morning and then drilling late at night we spent several weeks getting up to scratch so as that we were sent up to Arbor Hill the we were filmed and sent out to America to the president and he received it just before he was assassinated right so he did get to see it he got to see it yes now was there any of the original card involved in the sort of the re-enactment no they were all commissioned all new and did you get any feedback as to what but then again he might have he might have presumed that it was the original footage that he was looking at I would suspect so and and it didn't end there because then his visit Ireland wasn't out in what June was it June 63 yes and then he was assassinated in November yeah and a special call came to Ireland for some involvement in the funeral yeah well the president was assassinated on 22nd Friday night I remember it well about seven o'clock in the evening I was on my knees polishing the lino in my room for the inspection of the next morning planning officer's inspection most important day of the week he had even polished the lino correct oh and and Brasso the pipes in the bathroom and all this they must nothing nothing so and we suddenly over my transistor radio I heard the news and we gathered as a small group in silence listening to this chocked by what had happened in Dallas one of those events where you remember where you remember where you got the news yeah and and then after that what happened then after that after that the next day was Saturday and suddenly I was at the pictures in the cura Taurus Bulba Tony Curtis and you'll Brenner playing in it and midway through the film the lights came on and the manager of the cinema came and got on stage and said with the senior class cadet class report back to the college immediately so your class classmates with you some of them others were in Dublin and so there was a gathering we had to gather the group together and summonsed we're all summoned and maybe it was close to 11 at night and on the Saturday night and the next problem was their type of rifle we use had changed it was a new rifle introduced and the old rifle is that we had used at the ceremony we're now in long-term storage and we're all greased up so we had to draw them getting close to midnight and clean off the grease of them and then start rehearsing until the wee hours of the morning and next morning after mass on to a bus to Dublin Dublin Airport where we were met we met president de Valera we were each introduced to him then on to a plane to heading for Washington special Air Lingus plane just the president and his son and major Vivian de Valera and Frank Aik and Minister for Foreign Affairs chief of staff and 26 of us on route to America we had we'd never flown before we had no money we had no visa with no passport and a very decent shopkeeper in the cura loan some was a fiver to go to America and we went got on the plane and put our rifle under the seat and we had 20 rounds of blank ammunition in our pockets and we had a fur Washington stopping in Shannon and in New York for refuelling amazing amazing that it came together so quickly I suppose when you get the call like that you have no choice but just the issue with the guns for instance you know it's the small things that sometimes trip you up but it's the army you can't allow things to trip you up correct correct so when you got there then when we got there the day before the funeral yes we got there Sunday evening less less than 24 hours and the president was welcome formally on the tarmac and then Dean Rusk very famous Secretary of State came on to the plane to us and welcomed us to Washington and said President Kennedy has spoken many times about his most complimentary that was nice to hear so then we we were billeted that night in Fort Meyer which is right next door to Arlington Cemetery and it's the home of the old guard who do the ceremonial at the tomb of the unknown soldier and also who provide all the honor guards for the president so we were stay there in a big big room full of bunk beds now some of us we've never seen bunk beds before in our lives and some guys were a bit wary about going in the top view and in case they might fall out during the night but are you you're only used to just bunks just correct ground floor yeah was there was there any kickback from the regular honor guard there was there did you get any did you feel any no none none and we're made feel most welcome and next morning apparently we went up to the we rehearsed first of all in Fort Meyer and then up for the dress rehearsal at the graveside and what amazed us was we were right beside the grave for the rehearsal and also it was autumn and Arlington was full of trees and all the leaves are on the ground those these big machines sit on machines blowing the leaves away and also artificial grass was been laid around the graveside and this was all my opener for for young fellas I went behind the years coming over 19-year-old is coming over Arlington to beautiful setting as beautiful beautiful cemetery and and then the the the actual the actual burial itself and everything would off as as planned yes we were there about two hours in advance of the arrival of the remains and right across was a very large platform full of the world press so consequently additional pressure on us to perform that day but we could hear the cortege coming across behind us we couldn't see it because we were facing in and we could hear coming across the Potomac and up the winding route to Arlington and you could hear it all the way in the distance and yet you couldn't turn around sneak it up right sorry go ahead and then arrived and we went through our our drill and went very well those the American Army were around behind us and the lot of orders being given our orders were being given in Irish so all we had to do was listen for the Irish in order to perform and we gave it our best shot and it was a lot of a lot of American military obviously there on the day so you you you had a part to play but there was those other other soldiers and other we had the main part to play yeah very it's never happened before or since that a foreign honor guard would be at a funeral of a head of state absolutely it is a bit strange and was given President Kennedy's connection to Ireland and given that he'd been over here earlier in that year and do you know who who it was that requested you was there was Mrs. Kennedy Jackie Kennedy requested it's amazing that in the short period in her grief that you could remember the president spoke continuously about this honor guard and he wanted to the reason he wanted the film was he wanted to have something similar at the grave of the unknown soldier it is amazing that you know at the height of her grief that she would have had the presence of mind actually true to request that you come over and then afterwards actually she wrote a thank-you letter she did indeed she hand wrote a thank-you letter to President de Valera six weeks after the assassination and I'll read you synopsis of it dear mr. president I wish to thank you with all my heart for coming to my husband's funeral and for bringing with you the Irish cadets who had moved him so a few months before in Ireland and who moved the world at his grave I'm only grateful for one thing in these sad days that he did have the chance to return to Ireland as president of the United States last summer that trip meant more to him than any other in his life he called me every night of it and would tell me all that passed in the day he would never have been president had he not been Irish he was so conscious of his heart heritage and Ireland can be proud it gave United States his greatest president I will bring up my children to be as proud of being Irish as he was whenever they see anything beautiful they say that must be Irish when they're old enough I will bring them there and she did I know we were blessed to have him as long as we did but I will never understand why God had to take him now I send you my deepest gratitude sincerely Jacqueline Kennedy that was nice and after all the all the I suppose all the for young men all the excitement because that's what it was it was it was pure excitement but after it all settled down I'm sure it was a nice when it was read to you or relate to you was very you know we didn't realize the impact at the time just matter of getting the job done and it all happened so quickly and we were conscious of doing it right and then you know it's our 43 years in the army and in fact you were aid to the president for two and a half years that's right as I was honored to serve President McElise for two and a half years and also a military advisor in New York what does a military advisor do in New York I was military advisor to the Irish ambassador to the United Nations and mainly advising on managing conflict situations and particularly East Africa or West Africa at that time was particularly bad Sierra Leone Liberia Cote d'Ivoire so and we would got involved in peacekeeping in Liberia back in in 0304 and you you also were in charge of barracks locally I was yes I'm in charge of the three barracks at different times Rock Hill first then liver profile and then finish in charge of the whole operation in the Northwest so a long and varied career and a happy career in Donegal yeah well listen that's that is in itself I mean I could we could we could have a full interview a full chat about your time in the army and in various places and on you know and with different duties but just fascinating to hear about what happened during our president Kennedy's trip and in particular then the events that followed after his assassination Colonel Ryan Riley thank you very much you're very welcome John we're turning this black