A group of community members in Athlone are set to unveil a monument honouring a number of local soldiers who fought in the Battle of Jadotville.
Thirteen of the troops from the Irish UN peacekeeping Unit lived on the Assumption Road in the town for many years.
150 Irish soldiers fought off a force of thousands of French, Belguim and Rhodesian mercenaries for several days at the Congolese Village.
Not a single Irish soldier was killed during the battle, with the troops being captured only after they ran out of ammunition and food.
The unit was lead by Commandant Pat Quinlan, with many of the soldiers coming from the Shannonside region.
Locals from the area have come together to install the monument in honour of the soldiers, with the official unveiling taking place in September.
Pat's son Leo Quinlan remembers supporting the families on the Assumption Road during the battle and subsequent imprisonment:
"Not many people had phones in those days but we had one in the house during the battle my mother was getting information from the army about what was happening.
So I used to get on my bicycle and go down to Assumption Road whenever my mother would get information and that might happen once or twice a day.
Usually, I would do it in the evenings or if I came home from school.
My mother actually visited a lot of the homes herself while I was at school and I didn't know that at the time."
