Description
The Montgomery Guard was one of several Irish-American militias named after an Irish-born Continental Army General; other Guards were formed in New York, Philadelphia, and New Orleans. The emblem of the Montgomery Guards of Boston was an American Eagle, alighting on an Irish Harp, their motto “Fostered under thy wings, we will die in thy defence”
We are the famed Montgom’ry guards you’ve heard so much about
We make the street resound with cheers whenever we turn out
Our uniforms are neat and gay, the finest in the land,
We muster upon Washington street, that’s where we make our stand
Our Captain’s name is Flynn, a finer man you never saw
Sure he is always gay and free and ready for the war
When on parade the people watch the motion of our feet,
And shout aloud, “Montgom’ry guards, the chaps that can’t be beat!”
In 1702 the Irish Brigade of the French Army, famously defeated the Austrian army at the battle of Cremona in Northern Italy. Later, an officer of Napoleon’s Légion Irlandaise renamed the entire townland and his house at Foxhall in the Swords area of County Dublin to ‘Cremona’. The original 18th century house and gate lodge at Cremona survive intact to this day, evolving as a living history and research venue dedicated to overseas Irish militia heritage.
The Cremona commemorative shirt collection pays homage to the many Irish legions and militias formed across the globe, from the Tercio Irlandés of Spain of 1587 to the Irish Transvaal Brigade of South Africa 1899. Editions currently available: 1. La Légion Irlandaise; 2. La Brigade Irlandaise; 3. Irish Militia Heritage; 4. Montgomery Guard of Boston; 5. La Légion Irlandesa de Simon Bolivar; 6. La Armada Invencible; 7. Flight of the Wild Geese; 8. The Sarsfield Grenadier Guard of California; 9. La Légion de Patricios de Buenos Aires; 10. El Batallón de San Patricio, Mexico.
