DUP JUNIOR Minister Jeffrey Donaldson has accused President Mary McAleese of seeking to "rewrite history" by emphasising the role of poverty in motivating Irish people to join the British army during the first World War.
Many joined at the time out of "patriotic" loyalty to the British crown, he said.
Mr Donaldson took issue yesterday with remarks that President McAleese made in Dublin on Sunday when marking the centenary celebrations of Siptu.
The President referred to Jim Larkin and the formation of the Irish Transport and General Workers Union, the forerunner of Siptu and of the "starvation, disease and exploitation" of 1909 "where the lack of education of the masses was matched only by the ignorance of the economic and political elites".
She then cited the poet Thomas Kettle who died at the Battle of the Somme: "Here was what Thomas Kettle would memorably describe, less than a decade later, as 'the secret scripture of the poor' that would drive tens of thousands of young Irish men into the British army to sacrifice their lives so that their families could eat."
Mr Donaldson said he accepted that President McAleese had acknowledged the role of Irish soldiers in the British army, and had officiated with Queen Elizabeth at the opening of the memorial tower at Messines in Belgium in 1998.
"However, it is wrong to make sweeping generalisations about the reasons for Irishmen joining the British army prior to the first World War. While poverty undoubtedly was a factor for some, in many cases it was a matter of tradition," he said.
Mr Donaldson said there was a proud tradition of the British army recruiting soldiers from the South, many of whom had distinguished themselves in battle.
"There is a whole host of reasons why young Irishmen joined the army at the early part of the 20th century and it is wrong to try and rewrite history by suggesting it was poverty alone, or substantially, that was the main factor," he said.
"People willingly joined the British army to fight for what was their country at that time and to serve the crown."
He added that many Irish people joined the British army at the period out of a "commitment" to the British crown that embraced a "deep sense of patriotism".
Mr Donaldson said that while there were advances in recent years in the Republic commemorating the sacrifice and commitment of these soldiers, there was "still some way to go before there is full recognition given to the brave men and women who gave their lives in defence of freedom and democracy not just in the first World War but in subsequent conflicts while serving with the British army".
He said: "I think President McAleese could be someone who could give a lead in this.
"Rather than trying to rewrite history what we should be doing is setting history in its proper context and encouraging development of the strong links between the United Kingdom and the Irish Republic and its shared heritage."
Ulster Unionist councillor Michael Copeland, who has a particular interest in military history, said he agreed with Mr Donaldson that there were a wide variety of reasons why Irish people joined the British army, and that it could not be solely ascribed to poverty.
He said there was one case of soldiers from a nationalist part of Belfast marching through the city before heading off to fight in the first World War by a band playing The Wearing of the Green, A Nation Once Again and Rule Britannia.
"Make sense of that," said Mr Copeland.
The President's office had no comment to make on the issue yesterday.