ST VALENTINE’s Day heralded the end of an era for Mullingar’s military and the start of a new life for one young soldier and his bride.
Gunner Andy Creevy (23) and Nicola Maguire (26) ended over 150 years of tradition when they became the last couple to tie the knot at St Barbara’s Church in Columb Barracks in Mullingar, Co Westmeath last Wednesday.
An old Church of England building, St Barbara’s was built in 1855 before being handed over by the British along with Columb Barracks.
The wedding was the last ceremony to take place in the church before the troops march out of the barracks on March 28th.
Fr Robert McCabe described the church as “a silent witness to the hopes, the worries, the joys of soldiers between baptisms, weddings and when they get word of a bereavement. It’s the place of prayer, the place of just a little spiritual focus.”
The newlyweds brought their wedding forward from July when news broke of the imminent closure of Columb Barracks late last year.
“With everything that’s going on at the moment it’s nice to get one last day in the barracks for everybody,” Mr Creevy said.
Incidentally, one legend has it that St Valentine was a Roman priest who defied a ban on marriage imposed by Emperor Claudius II.
In the third century, Claudius II is said to have banned soldiers from marriage.
St Valentine’s defiance led to his execution on February 14th in AD 270.