Robin Roe (11 October 1928 – 15 July 2010) was an Irish clergyman known for his work as an army chaplain, and a
rugby union
Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...
player.
Early life and education
Roe was born in Skeirke,
Borris-in-Ossory
Borris-in-Ossory (, or the 'Burgage of Osraige') is a village in west County Laois, Ireland. Bypassed by the M7 motorway on 28 May 2010, the village is situated on the R445 road close to the County Tipperary border between the towns of Mountrath ...
,
County Laois
County Laois ( ; gle, Contae Laoise) is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and in the province of Leinster. It was known as Queen's County from 1556 to 1922. The modern county takes its name from Loígis, a medie ...
. He started playing rugby at
The King's Hospital
The Hospital and Free School of King Charles II, Oxmantown, also called The King's Hospital (KH; ) is a Church of Ireland co-educational independent day and boarding school situated in Palmerstown, Dublin, Ireland. It is on an 80-acre campus b ...
school,
Dublin
Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...
when he was ten years old. After studying at
Trinity College Trinity College may refer to:
Australia
* Trinity Anglican College, an Anglican coeducational primary and secondary school in , New South Wales
* Trinity Catholic College, Auburn, a coeducational school in the inner-western suburbs of Sydney, New ...
, he was ordained a
deacon
A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Churc ...
in the
Church of Ireland
The Church of Ireland ( ga, Eaglais na hÉireann, ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Kirk o Airlann, ) is a Christian church in Ireland and an autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. It is organised on an all-Ireland basis and is the second ...
in 1953, and priest in 1954.
He joined
Lansdowne rugby football club for the 1953-54 season. he served a curacy at
Sandford, Dublin in the
Diocese of Dublin and Glendalough
The United Dioceses of Dublin and Glendalough is a diocese of the Church of Ireland in the east of Ireland. It is headed by the Archbishop of Dublin, who is also styled the Primate of Ireland. The diocesan cathedral is Christ Church Cathedral ...
from 1953 to 1955.
Rugby career
Roe was first selected to play for the
Barbarians
A barbarian (or savage) is someone who is perceived to be either uncivilized or primitive. The designation is usually applied as a generalization based on a popular stereotype; barbarians can be members of any nation judged by some to be less c ...
while studying at Trinity College in 1951. He played in a total of eleven matches for the Barbarians and scored two
tries. From 1952 to 1957 Roe played in twenty-one matches for 's national rugby team as
hooker.
In 1955 Roe toured with the
British and Irish Lions
The British & Irish Lions is a rugby union team selected from players eligible for the national teams of England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. The Lions are a test side and most often select players who have already played for their national ...
in South Africa, where he played approximately a dozen games (two as
prop
A prop, formally known as (theatrical) property, is an object used on stage or screen by actors during a performance or screen production. In practical terms, a prop is considered to be anything movable or portable on a stage or a set, distinc ...
) and scored a try against
Griqualand West
Griqualand West is an area of central South Africa with an area of 40,000 km2 that now forms part of the Northern Cape Province. It was inhabited by the Griqua people – a semi-nomadic, Afrikaans-speaking nation of mixed-race origin, wh ...
. After injuring his ribs early in the tour, his appearances were limited but he still played when required. The tour lasted four months, and Roe's roommates were the 19-year-old
Tony O'Reilly
Sir Anthony Joseph Francis O'Reilly (born 7 May 1936) is an Irish former businessman and international rugby union player. He is known for his involvement in the Independent News & Media Group, which he led from 1973 to 2009,Dublin, Ireland, ...
, Bill Williams and
Bryn Meredith
Brinley "Bryn" Victor Meredith
Scrum.com (born 21 October 1930 in . Roe found the rugby in South Africa more demanding than he was accustomed to in Ireland, and he admired the consistent play of O'Reilly. He disliked South Africa's
apartheid
Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...
system as opposed to his beliefs as a priest. Roe's twenty-inch neck brought some ribbing from his teammates. The
Catholics
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
on the team joked that he had a great neck for a
Roman collar
A clerical collar, clergy collar, or, informally, dog collar, is an item of Christian clerical clothing. The clerical collar is almost always white and was originally made of cotton or linen but is now frequently made of plastic. There are variou ...
.
In 1955 as an army chaplain based near London, he played about fifteen games for
London Irish
London Irish RFC is a professional rugby union club which competes in the Premiership, the top division of English rugby union. The club has also competed in the Anglo-Welsh Cup, the European Champions Cup and European Challenge Cup. While ...
. Roe thought that
Sunbury, the home base of the London Irish, was enjoyable; while the training at London Irish was rigorous, Roe believed that the team at Lansdowne was more settled. Roe regarded fellow hooker
Karl Mullen
Dr Karl Daniel Mullen (26 November 1926 – 27 April 2009) was an Irish rugby union player and consultant gynaecologist who captained the Irish rugby team and captained the British Lions on their 1950 tour to Australia and New Zealand.
Mulle ...
, the man he replaced in the Ireland number 2 jersey and the captain of Ireland and the 1950 British and Irish Lions, as his toughest opponent.
In the summer of 1957 Roe was a member of the first Barbarians side to tour outside Britain or Ireland. The team's tour of Canada was a success, with a 6–0 won-lost record and a 227–23 points for-against ratio.
Army chaplaincy
Roe joined the British Army in 1955, when he was commissioned (on a
Short Service Commission
The Officers Training Academy (OTA) is a training establishment of the Indian Army that trains officers for the Short Service Commission (SSC). The 49-week course at the OTA prepares graduates for all branches of the Army, except for the Army Me ...
) into the
Royal Army Chaplains' Department
The Royal Army Chaplains' Department (RAChD) is an all-officer department that provides ordained clergy to minister to the British Army.
History
The Army Chaplains' Department (AChD) was formed by Royal Warrant of 23 September 1796; until the ...
as a Chaplain to the Forces 4th Class (equivalent to a
captain
Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...
in all other units, chaplains are traditionally addressed as
padre
__NOTOC__
Padre means father in many Romance languages, and it may also refer to:
Music
* "Padre" (song)
People
* A military chaplain
* A Latin Catholic priest
* A member of the San Diego Padres baseball team
Places
* Padre Island, a barrier i ...
regardless of rank). He switched to a full commission in 1958, and was promoted to Chaplain to the Forces 3rd Class (equivalent to a
major
Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...
) in 1961.
Roe distinguished himself for bravery while serving as a
British Army
The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...
chaplain attached to the 1st battalion,
Lancashire Regiment
The Lancashire Regiment (Prince of Wales's Volunteers) was an infantry regiment of the British Army that had a very short existence.
History
The regiment was formed, as a consequence of defence cuts instigated by the 1957 Defence White Paper, by ...
in
Aden
Aden ( ar, عدن ' Yemeni: ) is a city, and since 2015, the temporary capital of Yemen, near the eastern approach to the Red Sea (the Gulf of Aden), some east of the strait Bab-el-Mandeb. Its population is approximately 800,000 people. ...
in 1967. During the Arab police mutiny (part of the
Aden Emergency
The Aden Emergency, also known as the Radfan Uprising (), was an armed rebellion by NLF and FLOSY during the Cold War against the Federation of South Arabia, a protectorate of the United Kingdom, which now forms part of Yemen.
Partly inspire ...
), Roe heard gunfire and left
Radfan
Radfan or the Radfan Hills is a region of the Republic of Yemen. In the 1960s, the area was part of a British protectorate of Dhala (a member of the Federation of South Arabia) and was the site of intense fighting during the Aden Emergency. In 1 ...
Camp to investigate. He found a British Army lorry on fire with a number of British soldiers lying dead and wounded. Under heavy fire Roe helped the wounded soldiers to safety in Radfan Camp. Roe was unarmed, as is the custom for military chaplains. He only left the scene after being forcibly turned back by another officer, after he had been shot at and his personal
Land Rover
Land Rover is a British brand of predominantly four-wheel drive, off-road capable vehicles, owned by multinational car manufacturer Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), since 2008 a subsidiary of India's Tata Motors. JLR currently builds Land Rovers ...
struck by machine gun fire. He was awarded the
Military Cross
The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level pre-1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries.
The MC i ...
for his courage under fire, the award was
gazetted
A gazette is an official journal, a newspaper of record, or simply a newspaper.
In English and French speaking countries, newspaper publishers have applied the name ''Gazette'' since the 17th century; today, numerous weekly and daily newspapers ...
on 19 January 1968.
He was promoted to Chaplain to the Forces 2nd Class (
lieutenant-colonel
Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...
) in 1969, and to 1st Class (
colonel
Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations.
In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...
) in 1973. In 1977 he was made an
Honorary Chaplain to the Queen
An Honorary Chaplain to the King (KHC) is a member of the clergy within the United Kingdom who, through long and distinguished service, is appointed to minister to the monarch of the United Kingdom. When the reigning monarch is female, Honorary Ch ...
. He retired from the Army in 1982, and was appointed
Commander of the Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations,
and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...
(CBE) for his work as a chaplain in that year's
Queen's Birthday Honours
The Birthday Honours, in some Commonwealth realms, mark the reigning British monarch's official birthday by granting various individuals appointment into national or dynastic orders or the award of decorations and medals. The honours are present ...
.
Later life
Roe became
Rector
Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to:
Style or title
*Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations
*Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...
of
Merrow, Surrey
The village of Merrow, in Surrey, England in the 21st century constitutes the north-east suburb of Guildford. It is however centred from the town centre, right on the edge of the ridge of hills that forms the North Downs. Although now a rela ...
(
Diocese of Guildford
__NOTOC__
The Diocese of Guildford is a Church of England diocese covering eight and half of the eleven districts in Surrey, much of north-east Hampshire and a parish in Greater London. The cathedral is Guildford Cathedral and the bishop is th ...
) in 1982 and served there until his retirement in 1989. He then moved to
Shalford, Surrey
Shalford is a village and civil parish in Surrey, England on the A281 Horsham road immediately south of Guildford. It has a railway station which is between Guildford and Dorking on the Reading to Gatwick Airport line.
It has one named locali ...
and continued to take services within the diocese.
He died on 15 July 2010.
Notes
External links
Clergyman who won 21 Irish rugby caps and was awarded the Military Cross Irish Times
''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is considered a newspaper ...
obituary
Biography and interview with Robin RoeLansdowne RFC hall of fame1955 Lions tour
{{DEFAULTSORT:Roe, Robin
1928 births
2010 deaths
Rugby union players from County Laois
Alumni of Trinity College Dublin
20th-century Irish Anglican priests
British & Irish Lions rugby union players from Ireland
Ireland international rugby union players
Lansdowne Football Club players
London Irish players
Barbarian F.C. players
Recipients of the Military Cross
Commanders of the Order of the British Empire
British military personnel of the Aden Emergency
Royal Army Chaplains' Department officers
People educated at The King's Hospital
Honorary Chaplains to the Queen