Sheila O’Kelly traces the history of the famous bugle call traditionally used to honour those who died in combat

 

I heard the Last Post for the first time in the mid-sixties at the graveside of my father’s uncle who had fought in the Irish War of Independence (1919-1921). Uncle Mick, a veteran of the old Irish Republican Army (Óglaigh na hÉireann (1919-1922) had a military funeral. His coffin was draped with the Tricolour flag. A piper played a lament and a bugler played the Last Post.

The poignant sound of the Last Post drew tears from mourners present on that wet cold November day.

The last Post, a short musical tune, is a British and Commonwealth bugle call or trumpet call. Dating back to the 17th century, it was used as a signal in British army camps to indicate the end of a duty officer’s inspection rounds and soldiers could cease their daily activities and rest.

It was part of the British army’s evening routine known as ‘tattoo’.

The last Post was published in the 1790s as an array of bugle calls to instruct British soldiers in their daily duties and routine. At that point in history, soldiers had no way to check the time, as wristwatches had not being invented. Instead, they relied on Reveille, a bugle or trumpet call, that was used to waken them up at sunrise.

Bugle calls were used to instruct military personnel when to have meals, when to fetch the post, when to go on parade and when the duty officer had completed his inspection and the camp was secure for the night. During conflicts, the Last Post bugle call would mark the ending of fighting.

A new custom arose in the mid-1800s when military bands devised a new tradition: playing the Last Post at the graveside of soldier’s who died in battle, signalling the completion of their military duties and they could rest in peace.

The playing of the Last Post became commonplace on battlefields and conflicts such as the Boer War between the British Army and the Boers in South Africa (1899 -1902) and the First World War (1914-1918).

The tradition of honouring soldiers who had died in battle increased in popularity in the 20th century. Over the years, when the Last Post resounded, it was followed by a few moments of silent prayer and the sound of Reveille, the first bugle call of the day, to signify the soldier’s rebirth into eternal life.

The words spoken after the Last Post is played and directly before the silent moments, comes from the fourth stanza of the poem, For the Fallen, composed by British poet, Laurence Binyon and published in 1914.

Continue reading in this week’s Ireland’s Own