James Murphy was born in Dungannon, County Tyrone, Ireland, on the island of Ireland, in what today is present-day Northern Ireland, then part of the British Empire. He was born Seamus Sean Mac Murchadha. His father, Ronan Mac Murchadha, was in the British Army and served in South Africa in the First Boer War, fighting the Boers, a group of Dutch settlers in South Africa. James joined the British cavalry in 1917. He was mustered out in 1918, when the war ended. He joined first as a dragoon. He fought in the battles and sieges of Passchendaele, Vimy Ridge, Arras, and many other conflicts from 1917-1918 in World War 1.
James was a dragoon, hussar, cavalry sniper, and lancer. He served in the following ranks:
Lieutenant (Hussar)
Captain (Dragoon)
Major (Cavalry Sniper)
Sergeant (Lancer)
He was wounded when a German storm trooper slashed him across the face with a captured American-made Bowie knife. It left him with scars for the rest of his life.
Name: James John Murphy (English) Seamus Sean Mac Murchadha (Irish Gaelic)
Nationality: Irish and British
Birthplace: Dungannon, County Tyrone (present-day Northern Ireland) to a noble Irish Gaelic family.
Deathplace: Glasgow, Barren, Scotland, Great Britain, United Kingdom.
War (s): World War 1
Written and edited by Keller Darragh Clark
