John O’Reilly (29 March 1908 – 31 December 1986) was an Irish soldier who fought in the Spanish Civil War on the Republican side and in World War II as part the British Army. During the Spanish Civil War, he met and married Salaria Kea, an African-American nurse, who was also volunteering her services. Early life John O'Reilly was born in Thurles, County Tipperary, Ireland in 1908, the third of four sons. His father fought as part of the Royal Irish Regiment of the British Army during World War I. O'Reilly describes his childhood as one of poverty and boredom in rural Ireland. At the age of 14, O'Reilly moved in with his recently widowed aunt on the Tipperary/Waterford to work her farm, with the expectation he would eventually inherit the property, but O'Reilly came to find that lifestyle "stultifying". O'Reilly claimed later in life he was a member of the Anti-Treaty IRA from 1922 onwards, however, he would have only been 14 years old at this point. At the age of 20, O'Reilly emigrated to England to search for work. He soon joined the Irish Guards regiment of the British Army. O'Reilly served 3 years of a 7-year term before deserting. By now it was 1931 and the onset on the Great Depression. O'Reilly spent the next years travelling between England and Ireland working as a bricklayer and as a tannery worker. In 1934 he joined the Irish Transport and General Workers Union following a push for members in his hometown of Thurles. In 1936, O'Reilly left Ireland, never to return. Spanish Civil War By 1936, O'Reilly was working and living in Oxford, England at a brickyard. While there, O'Reilly began attending meetings at Oxford University, particularly ones relating to Spain. Soon, O'Reilly saw a newspaper advertisement requesting volunteers to go and fight on behalf of the government/republicans in the now-begun Spanish Civil War. O'Reilly, armed with his previous military experience, seems to have departed England for Spain in December 1936. Explaining his motive for fighting later in life, O'Reilly stated "I thought there was going to be a war and if I was going to be killed anyway, it would be better to be fighting for the poor than for the rich". Battle of Lopera Upon his arrival, O'Reilly was attached to an English-speaking battalion of the Sixth of February Battalion of the XIV International Brigade. Of the