The next mascot was Samando Silver, otherwise known as Fionn. He was bred by Dr. & Mrs. May, by Outhwaite Boroughbury Brosha out of Celestine Quendon, born November 21st, 1966. He was only 10 months old when he took up his duties.
The magazine Dogs' Life of November 11, 1967 carried an article
entitled Forces mascots - a dying breed? which read: 'Throughout
the history of the armed forces, animal mascots have been associated with
certain regiments, ships and camps. Strangely enough, many of these have been
unofficial, and today there are few known mascots and fewer still officially
accorded rank and status. Of these only two are dogs.
Some regiments favour goats and others rams, but for over 50 years the mascot
of the 1st Battalion Irish Guards has been, appropriately enough, an Irish
Wolfhound.
'The latest in the line of Wolfhound mascots is ten-month-old Fionn who
recently replaced Sean, the dog who was with the regiment for seven years and
was the first of its mascots to be pensioned off, at the age of eight. The
others have all died during their tour of duty.
'Sean at the Palace
'Sean mounted guard with the regiment at Buckingham Palace and accompanied
his Irish colleagues on recruiting tours of Britain. Now he will spend the rest
of his days at a new home in Scotland.
'His replacement, Fionn, was presented to the Guards by Mr. and Mrs. D.F. Leet
of Banbury, and he wears the traditional full dress for special occasions. This
includes a silver collar with the cap star of the Irish Guards, and a scarlet
Irish linen coat. In bad weather he sports a blue-grey cape. On St. Patrick's
day he will be bearing a sprig of shamrock as proudly as the rest of the
regiment.
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| Wolfhounds on parade! Left, Fionn; right, Sean. |
'Fionn appears on T.V.
'Already Fionn has established himself as a public relations expert and
appeared on television. That is how he earns his keep, since the money to look
after him comes out of regimental funds. "He's at least recovered what it
costs to keep him," said a spokesman for the Guards.
'His home comforts are not forgotten for Fionn has a vast bed to accommodate
his shaggy six foot frame, and his daily diet includes three pounds of steak
not to mention the odd titbits between meals.
'Apart from the Irish wolfhound, one other dog is recorded as being a
regimental mascot, and that was the Staffordshire Bull terrier of the 5/6
Battalion North Staffordshires. They were a Territorial Army regiment and
disbanded earlier this year.
'Some other units keep unofficial dog mascots, but the only one actually
recorded is that of the Royal Marine Commandos, who adopted a Labrador called
Oscar while they were in Aden, and brought him home with them when they
left.
'With so few known mascots, are these canine heroes a dying breed?'
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| HM Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother giving
shamrock to Fionn with the help of the Quartermaster during the 1968 St. Patrick's Day celebrations |
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| The 1968 St. Patrick's Day celebrations |
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| 1st Battalion Irish Guards - St. Patrick's Day, 1968 (Fionn in the right hand corner) |
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| Fionn being presented to the Queen Mother |
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| Fionn in his ceremonial coat, presented by the Irish Linen Guild |
| In September, 1968 the Regiment undertook a recruitment tour in Ulster, on which Fionn accompanied them. The first engagement was for the Band to play in the "Miss Portrush" Beauty Contest: |
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| L/Cpl. O'Toole and Fionn with "Miss Portrush" |
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| The Regimental Recruiting Team. led by Fionn,
leaving the arena at Londonderry. |
Soldier magazine of February, 1970 carried an article headed Military mascots - Shaggy dog story: "Fionn is a brawny six-footer in the Irish Guards. He has posed with beauty queens and air hostesses for publicity stunts and appears in films and television." (for full article, click here)
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| Two views of Fionn between 1970 and 1975 | |
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| Postcard - Windsor Castle,
Berkshire The band of the Irish Guards and their Mascot marching down Castle Hill with the Round Tower in the background |
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| Fionn on the right with his handler at the LKA in 1972 | |
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| Pop-out card depicting Irish Guards & mascot on the march | |
Fionn retired in 1976, when his place was taken by Sanctuary Cormac of Tara, presented by the Misses Harrison & Atfield. Cormac was born on December 8th, 1976, by Sanctuary Mighty Monarch out of Cleveragh Clare.
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| Official portrait of Cormac, by Tod Ramon |
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| HM Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother presenting
Cormac with his sprig of Shamrock on a St. Patrick's Day in the 1980s |
Cormac was the first of the Irish Guards mascots to be entered on a Company Conduct Sheet for "Conduct to the prejudice of good order and military discipline contrary to section 69 of the Dog Act 1955". In fact, he was entered twice; the first time for "failure to eat the sweets offered to him by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother" (for which the witnesses were the World Press and a Parade of hundreds), and the second time for trying "to take a nip out of the Japanese High Commissioner" (for which the witness was Mrs. M. Thatcher).
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| St. Patrick's Day, 1984 at Pirbright |
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| During March, 1984 the Band of the Irish Guards visited Northern Ireland: |
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| LCpl. Rutherford and Cormac with Miss Northern Ireland, March 1984 |
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| The Regimental Band, led by Cormac, parade down Royal Avenue, Belfast |
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| The picture on the cover of The Band of The Irish
Guards Marches From the Classics LP, 1984 with Cormac leading the Band |
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| The photo of Cormac with L/Cpl Rutherford on the back of the LP cover |
At Crufts, 1985 Cormac was introduced to Prince Michael of Kent and Mrs. Florence Nagle of the Sulhamstead Irish wolfhounds.
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| Mrs. Florence Nagle, the grand old lady of dogdom,
celebrated her ninetieth birthday this year, as full of drive and energy as ever. At Crufts she met Prince Michael of Kent who was visiting the show; here they admire one of her favourite breed being used as a regimental mascot. (Dog World Annual, 1985) |
Cormac served with the Irish Guards until 1985.
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Updated 10/4/2008