Sarsfield Homecoming Project “greatly honoured” with Defence Forces help

Sarsfield Homecoming Project “greatly honoured” with Defence Forces help. General Seán Clancy (center) with Mayor of Huy Christophe Colignon (to his right), Project Director Dr Loïc Guyon (to his left), the two soldiers from the 12th Infantry Battalion (kneeling at the front, Sergeant Dave O’Brien and Private James Fleming). Kneeling to the right of Sgt O’Brien is the project’s Forensic Anthropologist Dr Caroline Laforest. Behind the general is Archaeologist Dr Ger Riordan. On the second row, from the left are Assistant Archaeologist Neil O’Carroll, Huy  Heritage Officer Stéphanie Ratz, Lt Col Conor Gorey and Huy Councillor Olivier Hublet. On the second row from the right are Warrant Officer Cian McParland, Col. Fiacra Keyes and Lt Col Tom Craven.

Sarsfield Homecoming Project “greatly honoured” by a symbolically very significant move by Defence Forces members joining the project

The Sarsfield Homecoming Project, a project launched in 2020 by Dr Loïc Guyon (Honorary Consul of France, Associate Professor and Head of the Department of French Studies at Mary Immaculate College, Limerick) to try to locate and repatriate to Ireland the remains of Irish national hero Patrick Sarsfield, is entering into its final phase.

For the first time, last January, the team had hoped that they had perhaps found Sarsfield’s remains but DNA results showed that the grave they had discovered on the site where they believe he was buried (in Huy, Belgium) were those of a local man.

The search has since resumed on the remaining part of the site still to be explored. During a recent trip, in September, the team found human bones which characteristics and location are very much in line with what they are looking for (click here for the report on the find published on social media earlier this month). DNA is currently being extracted from those remains and the results are expected in a few months.

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Meanwhile, in a symbolically very significant move, the Defence Forces have stepped in to assist the team. Sergeant Dave O’Brien and Private James Fleming, two soldiers from the 12th Infantry Battalion based in Sarsfield Barracks in Limerick, have travelled to Huy to help the team with the excavation of the remaining part of the site.

While they were there, the team also received a very high-profile visit from General Seán Clancy. A former Chief of Staff of the Irish Defence Forces, General Clancy currently chairs the European Union Military Committee (EUMC), the EU’s highest military entity. General Clancy and his entourage were welcomed to the site by Mayor of Huy Christophe Collignon and Project Director Dr Loïc Guyon.

Commenting on this exceptional show of support from the army, Dr Guyon said, “My team and I were greatly honoured by General Clancy’s visit and his interest in the project. We are also extremely grateful to Lieutenant Colonel Damian Carroll, Commanding Officer of the 12th Infantry Battalion of the Defence Forces, for his willingness to send two soldiers from Limerick to Huy to assist us with the excavations”.

Following his visit, General Clancy said, “I wish to commend Dr Loïc Guyon and his team for their exceptional work as part of the Sarsfield Homecoming Project, which brings together history, scholarship, and European cooperation in a truly meaningful way. Their dedication has not only advanced our understanding of Patrick Sarsfield’s life and legacy, but also reminded us that Ireland’s story has always been intertwined with Europe’s.

“This project exemplifies the spirit of unity and shared heritage that underpins the EU, showing that the bonds between nations are strengthened not only through defence and diplomacy, but also through respect for our common past.”

Ambassador of France in Ireland, H.E. Céline Place added, “The Sarsfield Homecoming Project embodies the enduring ties between France and Ireland, which are so deeply rooted in history. Dr Loïc Guyon, Honorary Consul of France in Limerick, and his team have been doing fantastic work.

“Their efforts not only shed light on Patrick Sarsfield’s remarkable legacy but also stand as an example of France and Ireland’s shared heritage as European neighbours. I would also like to warmly thank the Irish Defence Forces for their assistance in this project through the Limerick-based 12th Infantry Battalion.”

The project’s team expects the archaeological works, led by archaeologist Frank Coyne (Aegis Archaeology Ltd), to be completed by the Spring of 2026.