Stronge of Tynan Abbey, lost his only son, James Matthew.
Stronge of Tynan Abbey, lost his only son, James Matthew. Lieutenant James Matthew Stronge was serving with the 9th Battalion of the Royal Irish Fusiliers when he was killed in action at the Battle of Ypres on 16th August 1917. He was 26 years old and had been married just weeks before his death to Winifred Alexander of Carrickmore. In fact, it is for the loss of his son that Sir Norman, a cousin, inherited the title and property. Sir Norman, a veteran of the Great War, served as a second lieutenant into the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers. He fought on the Western Front with the 10th (Service) Battalion, as a lieutenant and later as captain. He was decorated with the Military Cross and the Belgian croix de guerre. He survived the first day of the Battle of the Somme in July 1916 and was the first soldier after the start of the battle to be mentioned in dispatches by General Sir Douglas Haig, commander of the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) on the Western Front. In Apri...