Order of Malta ‘not disappointed’ by 1916 commemoration exclusion

The Order of Malta has insisted it is “not disappointed” despite not being invited to take part in the 1916 centenary commemorations on Easter Sunday.

A spokesperson for the Order of Malta confirmed to The Irish Catholic that its ambulance corps was not invited to take part in the State’s ceremonial parade at the weekend alongside other voluntary emergency services organisations such as St John Ambulance.

The spokesperson insisted that Order of Malta was “not disappointed, as the commemorations included all organisations that were present at the time of the Easter Rising and the Order of Malta Ambulance Corps was established in Galway in 1938, so did not have a direct role in the Rising”.

Direct involvement in the 1916 Rising was not a prerequisite for taking part in the States’ ceremonial parade, however, which involved over 3,000 participants, largely from the Irish Defence Forces with 793 people from the emergency services.

Participants in the parade, the biggest in the history of the State, included the RNLI, An Garda Siochána, Dublin Fire Brigade, the National Ambulance Service, St John Ambulance, Irish Coast Guard and the Civil Defence.