Current and former Defence Forces members gather at Monaghan Education Campus Photo: © Michael Fisher

Monaghan’s military past was commemorated at the weekend with the unveiling of a stone at the site of the former army barracks. The site has been redeveloped and is now the Monaghan Education Campus on the Armagh Road, which was formally opened by An Taoiseach last month.

27th Infantry Battalion Shoulder Flash

The barracks was opened in 1976 as a base for members of the 29th Infantry Battalion who were assigned to border duties and assisting the civil power (Gardaí). The 29th also had a base in Cavan. The Monaghan element was later combined with Castleblayney to become the 27th Infantry Battalion, which has a headquarters at Aiken Barracks in Dundalk. This is where most of the seving personnel transferred to when the tricolour was lowered for the last time at Monaghan barracks in January 2009.