March 1916
The search continues for Mary's son Charlie who is
missing in action. She sends a message to a new contact, Pt. Jamie Donnachie at Tatar Bazarik. Mary
hears from Lord Selborne who suggests she gets in
touch with the American Consul General in London or Comité International de la Croix Rouge in Geneva. She also meets up with Pte Purtell
of 6th Royal Dublin Fusiliers who gives her an
account of the time in Serbia.
Mary and her daughter Ethel make a trip to Kilkenny to visit Mary’s younger sister, Aunt Eileen, based at St. Patrick’s Convent and
Industrial School.
Mary receives a number of letters from her eldest son Tommy this month, learning that he has transferred ship and is now in Egypt. After initially camping outside Mustapha, she learns that he stayed at Shepheard's Hotel in Cairo from where he was
able to visit the pyramids. He then moved on to a camp near Alexandria.
On St. Patrick’s Day, Mary reports a peaceful Sinn
Fein Volunteer demonstration. However, on 21 March she reads of an incident in
Tullamore; Nationalists were throwing stones at the
Sinn Fein club, and members of Sinn Fein retaliated with shots; when the police
entered the Sinn Fein club to seize the arms,
some of them were shot at.
A letter from Mary's daughter Marie, a nurse in
Malta, arrives on 30 March. She has met with Pte. C.
Martin, who reported that he picked up Charlie’s disc on 7th December, and had seen Charlie in command of D company, surrounded by Bulgarians. He told Marie that all who could walk were marched off as
prisoners, though he wasn’t sure what had happened to Charlie. The following day a letter arrives from The Red Cross, informing Mary that Charlie is not at Pagardjeto (where his
fellow officers are) and that there is no news from any of the hospitals.
(No Reference Available)
Charles Andrew Martin
Born 3 June 1895, Charles Andrew was Mary Martin's son. This diary is dedicated to him. He was reported wounded and missing in December 1915 and died of his wounds on December 8 while in Bulgarian captivity, aged 20. However it wasn't until July 1 1916 that official confirmation of his death was received. Jamie Donnachie
Private Jamie Donnachie of the Royal Dublin Fusiliers. Tatar Bazardjik
Prisoner-of-war camp located in southern Bulgaria. William Waldegrave Palmer Selborne
(1859-1942) William Waldegrave Palmer, 2nd Earl of Selborne, a British politician and colonial administrator. Comite international de la Croix Rouge (International Committee of the Red Cross)
International Committee of the Red Cross based in Geneva in Switzerland which provided succour and supplies to prisoners of war in World War One. Geneva
City in Switzerland and headquarters of the Red Cross, responsible for ensuring proper treatment of prisoners of war during World War I. Private Purtell
Unidentified as yet. 6th Royal Dublin Fusilliers
6th battalion of the Royal Dublin Fusiliers, an Irish regiment of the British Army and the battalion where Charles Martin, son of Mary Martin served and died. Serbia
Serbia fell to Bulgaria and Gemany on the Macedonian Front, a campaign during which Charles Martin was wounded and reported missing in action. Ethel Mary Martin
Born in 1893, Ethel Mary was Mary Martin's daughter and served as a VAD during the First World War. Kilkenny
City in Southeast Ireland. Mary Martin's sister Eileen was a nun in a convent there. Eileen Moore
Born on 28 June 1881, Eileen Levins Moore was Mary Martin's sister. In 1916 she was at St. Patrick's Convent in Kilkenny, a school for small boys aged up to 10 years. Thomas Patrick Martin
Born on St. Patrick’s Day, 17 March 1891 and died in 1954, Thomas Shannon Patrick was Mary Martin's son and was known in the family as Tommy. He served in the 5th Battalion of the Connaught Rangers, a famous Irish regiment of the British Army but survived the war. Egypt
Populous country in North Africa and a British Protectorate at this time. Mustapha
Unidentified. Shepheards Hotel
Famous hotel in Cairo frequented by British officers during the First World War. Cairo
Capital of Egypt and part of a British Mandate during this period. It was a popular rest and recuperation centre for British and Allied officers and soldiers. Alexandria
An Egyptian port city on the Mediterranean coast and part of a British Mandate during this period. The port was a troop disembarkation centre for the Salonika front and a rest area for wounded soldiers. Sinn Fein
Originally the part of the Irish Volunteers Association that opposed Ireland's participation in the First World War, it became the collective term used for Irish rebels in the Easter Rising in 1916. Tullamore
Medium-sized town in County Offaly in Ireland. Marie Helena Martin
Born 25 April 1892 and died 27 January 1975. Marie Helena was Mary Martin's daughter and worked in Malta and France as a VAD nurse during the First World War. In 1937 she founded the religious order Medical Missionaries of Mary. C. Martin
This is not Charles Martin, the son of Mary Martin. Otherwise unidentified. Comité International de la Croix Rouge (International Committee of the Red Cross)
The Red Cross based in Geneva in Switzerland which provided succour and supplies to prisoners of war in World War One. Pagardjeto
Unidentified as yet. | 
