ON THIS DATE (13TH MAY) 174 YEARS AGO : 'LADIES LAND LEAGUE' FOUNDER BORN.
Anna Catherine Parnell, pictured, was born 'Catherine Maria Anna Mercer Parnell' on the 13th May, 1852 - 174 years ago, on this date - at Avondale House in Rathdrum, County Wicklow. She was the tenth of eleven children of John Henry Parnell, a landlord, and Delia Tudor Stewart Parnell, an Irish-American woman (the daughter of Admiral Charles Stewart of the US Navy).
Anna and one of her sisters, Fanny, worked with their brother, Charles (Stewart Parnell) in agitating for better conditions for tenants and, on the 31st January in 1881, the two sisters officially launched a 'Ladies Land League' which, at its full strength, consisted of about five hundred branches and didn't always see eye-to-eye with its 'parent' organisation, the 'Irish National Land League'.
In its short existence, it provided assistance to about 3,000 people who had been evicted from their rented land holdings to assist and/or take over land agitation issues, as it seemed certain that the 'parent' body was going to be outlawed by the British.
And, sure enough, the British Prime Minister, Mr William Ewart Gladstone, introduced and enforced a 'Crimes Act' that same year, 1881 (better known as the 'Coercion/Protection of Person and Property Act') which made it illegal to assemble in relation to certain issues and an offence to conspire against the payment of rents 'owed' which, ironically, was a piece of legislation condemned by the same catholic church which condemned the 'Irish National Land League' because that Act introduced permanent legislation and did not have to be renewed on each political term.
And that same church also condemned the 'Ladies Land League' to the extent that Archbishop McCabe of Dublin instructed priests loyal to him "..not to tolerate in your societies (diocese) the woman who so far disavows her birthright of modesty as to parade herself before the public gaze in a character so unworthy of a Child of Mary...".
The best that can be said about that is that that church's 'consistency' hasn't changed much over the years, and that it wasn't only a religious institution which made an issue out of women being politicised - 'In the year in which the Ladies' Land League was formed, Ireland was first mentioned in the 15 January 1881 issue of the 'Englishwoman's Review'.
Tellingly, this was a report headed 'Women Landowners in Ireland' (and) there was also a small report of a 'Catholic Charitable Association' being formed 'by a number of Irish ladies for aiding the families of poor or evicted tenants'.
The addition of the phrase "It is distinctly understood that the society shall take no part whatever in political agitation.." reveals the disapproval felt by the journal for those engaged in that agitation *. The formation of the Ladies' Land League was then noted : 'In anticipation of Government action against local branches of the Irish National Land League, arrangements are being made for the establishment of a Ladies' Land League throughout Ireland. Such a movement has already been organised in America, where Mrs Parnell, the mother of the Member for Cork, is the President, and Miss Fanny Parnell and Mr John Stewart, the sister and brother of Mr Parnell, MP, are acting as organisers.
The Irish movement will be led by the wives of the local leaders of the existing league, and will devote themselves to the collection of funds...' ** (from here).
* / ** - That periodical was assembled and edited by, and for, middle-class women of the day (late 19th/early 20th century) and, while it did cover and promote economic independence for women, occupation outside of the home for women, the need for better educational facilities for women to enable and encourage women to seek employment in 'the male professions' ie politics and medicine, it was truly of its day in that it was felt to be a bridge-too-far to call for women to take to the streets for the right to be more than 'just' fund-raisers.
In short, the authors were, in effect, confining themselves to be further confined.
In October 1881, Westminster proscribed the 'Irish National Land League' and imprisoned its leadership, but the gap was ably filled by the 'Ladies Land League' until it was acrimoniously dissolved on the 10th August 1882, 19 months after it was formed.
Anna's brother, Charles, died in 1891 and, somewhat disillusioned with the political society that she lived in, she moved to the south of England and went by the name 'Cerisa Palmer'.
On the 20th September in 1911, when she was living in Ilfracombe in Devon, England, at 59 years of age, she went for her usual daily swim but got into difficulties ; her plight was noticed from the shore but she was dead by the time help arrived.
She was buried quietly in the churchyard of Holy Trinity Church in Ilfracombe, in the presence of just a handful of strangers.
RIP Catherine Maria Anna Mercer Parnell.
On the 13th May, 1919, nine armed IRA Volunteers (Seamus Robinson, Tom Breen, Sean Treacy [all 3rd Tipperary Brigade], Ned 'Eamon' O'Brien, James Scanlon, J J O'Brien, Sean Lynch, Edward Foley and James 'Goorty' McCarthy) met up as arranged in Knocklong Railway Station in County Limerick.
Their intention was to rescue one of their comrades, Volunteer Seán Hogan (pictured) a POW, who was being transported by four RIC members - Messrs. Wallace, Enright, Ring and Reilly. two of whom - Mr Wallace and Mr Enright - were killed in their attempt to prevent the rescue.
Four of the IRA Volunteers were injured during the successful operation.
Four months afterwards, six Volunteers were 'arrested' by the British and charged with the 'murder' of the two RIC members ; three of these men were charged with taking part in the rescue. They were Volunteer Edward Foley, who did take part in the rescue, and two Volunteers who did not take part in it - Patrick Maher and Michael Murphy.
After many postponements and change of venues, the three Volunteers were found guilty ; Volunteers Edward Foley and Patrick Maher were hung by a British hangman on the 7th June, 1921, in Mountjoy Prison in Dublin, and Volunteer Michael Murphy was released after the 'Treaty of Surrender' was signed.
We wrote on this blog in more detail about this rescue operation...
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On the same date that IRA Volunteers in Limerick were taking physical action against the British military and political presence in Ireland, 'The Times' newspaper in London was writing about that same problem.
Commenting of the visit of the American delegation to Ireland (specifically the 'American Commission on Irish Independence [ACII]'), 'The Times' wrote that "...the effect of the visit is the submergence of every policy of the moderation so that a full Republic is now the irreducible minimum of hundreds of thousands of nationalists.."
The high-powered delegation was investigating the political conditions in Ireland, and met with the newly elected leaders of the (32-County) Dáil Éireann, and voiced support for the Irish drive for self-determination and world-wide recognition of the Irish Republic.
'The Times' newspaper was a Westminster mouthpiece and its uneasiness re the delegation was a reflection of the fears felt by the British Cabinet.
Incidentally, 'The Times' was wrong ; Irish nationalists, then and now, were and are of the political opinion that 'the British can stay but they'll have to treat us better', whereas republicans, then and now, were and are of the political opinion that nothing less than a full British military and political withdrawal from Ireland will suffice.
But not to worry - there's Irish people, too, who still don't know the difference...
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THE GREAT OIL AND GAS ROBBERY...
From 'Magill' Magazine, October 2005.
"I spent an hour with Micheál Ó Seighin (pictured), one of the Rossport Five.
Micheál received us very graciously in the small visiting box. He is a small, quietly-spoken man in his late 60s.
"Tá sibhse ag dhéanamh obair go hiontach. Congratulations. Bhí an scéal Dé Luan go han, han mhaith. Ceim mhór", he said..."
Micheál Ó Seighin.
Michael McDowell.
Pat Rabbitte.
A Mr Martin Ferris, a Leinster House politician, had been at the Leinster House committee which had questioned the Minister Noel Dempsey the evening before, and he gave Micheál an account of that meeting and they discussed the Government's handling of the issue.
Micheál Ó Seighin stated -
"I told Shell a few years ago that this whole issue was going to end up in disaster. I said at the beginning that this cannot work. Go back to the drawing board, we told them. But Shell wouldn't listen.
They got a weak government with corrupt ministers and took everything they could ; if they had handled these matters differently we would have worked with them, but they didn't.
The pipeline breaches all of the safety codes, but I knew nothing about any of these things before this but now I know an awful lot - there are three codes and the pipe contravenes them all ; the British codes for safety, the Irish codes, and the US codes.
Normally production pipelines are not run past houses and there are very strict regulations, but all of these are breached.
When Frank Fahy was the minister he moved to sign a compulsory requisition order in the dying days of the last government, and this effectively gave Shell the right to proceed.
The government moved without a safety report but, subsequently, a safety report was done by a company associated with Shell. When that was revealed an independent safety review was ordered and we're waiting for that report..."
(The third [ie last] pic above shows a Mr Patrick Rabbitte, ex-State Labour Party leader and ex-'State Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources' ; Mr Rabbittee retired as State Labour Party leader in 2007, and from political life altogether in 2016, on a combined pension package worth over €2 million to him!)
(MORE LATER.)
In 1920, in Ireland, the pro-British 'police force', the RIC, continued to experience low morale, high resignation rates and a popular boycott, and were frustrated about their lot in life, God help them.
And, to add to their woes, their paymasters in Westminster were actively further militarising their role and let loose the Black and Tans, who were chaperoned into towns, villages and cities by the RIC, thus separating 'the cops' even more from the citizens they were supposedly 'serving'(!).
On the 13th May (1920), the people of the village of Thurles, in County Tipperary, were woken by the sound of gunshots and explosions as the RIC targeted houses which they suspected to be the homes of IRA Volunteers and Sinn Féin members and/or supporters.
The RIC and their pro-British sympathisers described (and dismissed) outrages like that as 'targeted retaliatory strikes' but, as should have been expected, the shootings and bombings on the civilian population had the opposite effect and actually strengthened the rebel 3rd Tipperary IRA Brigade!
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On the same day that anti-republican elements were causing trouble in Thurles, about 125 miles (200km) up the road and over on yer left (!) in the village of Ballinrobe, in the county of Mayo, the Dáil Éireann Minister of Agriculture, a Mr Arthur ('Art') James Kickham O'Connor (pictured, a republican-gamekeeper-turned-Free State poacher) in connection with the formation of a land arbitration court ; he was assisted in this endeavour by a Mr Kevin O'Shiel (another republican-gamekeeper-turned-Free State poacher) and they heard their first major case on the 17th of that month.
Most fitting, really, as both men were to go on to play a part in giving away six of their own counties...
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While the two lads were in Mayo discussing land, their then rebel comrades in Ulster were clearing some of it themselves.
The recently evacuated RIC Barracks in the town of Burnfoot, in County Donegal, was burnt down by Volunteers attached to the Derry City Battalion and, on that same date, the RIC Barracks in Carrigans, in East County Donegal, was also attacked.
As those two republican operations were taking place, other rebel Volunteers forced entry into the income tax office in Bishops Street in Derry City and burned as many tax records as they could lay their hands on.
Hitting the Brits in the pocket...!
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At the same time that income tax records were being liberated in Ulster, about 240 miles (380km) down the road, in Cork City, the body of a British Army Corporal, a Mr John Matthews (57, 'Service Number 243310'), from Saint Helen's, in Lancashire, in England, was discovered in a pond in the city centre.
Mr Matthews was attached to the '1st East Kent Regiment' ('the Buffs'), and was a 'Military Clerk' at the 6th Division Headquarters in Victoria Barracks in Cork.
His body was said to have some marks on it, but his clothes were not torn ; a post-mortem stated that he drowned accidently.
Mr Matthews is buried in Saint Helen's Cemetery, in Lancashire, in his own country, England.
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THE MONTH UNSPUN...
The stories that hit the headlines.
From Magill magazine, August 2002.
Expect some efforts to give convincing reassurance that standards will be reviewed but, if George Bush's efforts at same in the US recently are anything to go by, the average investor will remain hugely sceptical.
The general feeling among the public was that the FAI betrayed Irish soccer for seven-and-a-half million pieces of silver, according to 'The Sunday Independent' newspaper.
'The Irish Times' speculated that Bertie Ahern was afraid to offend Sky's owner Rupert Murdoch, who is never afraid to push a preferred political candidate through his media empire, and owns 'The Sunday Times' and 'The News Of The World', two newspapers which, 'The Times' claimed, supported Fianna Fáil in the last two elections.
'The Sunday Times', though, was quick to respond to that allegation and labelled it nonsense.
In addition, it took its courage in hand and quoted Irish legend Paul McGrath condemning the deal as "moneygrabbing".
'The Star' newspaper, meanwhile ran a 'Justice For Fans' campaign...
(MORE LATER.)
On the 13th May, 1921, nominations closed for election to "the parliaments of Northern and Southern Ireland.." (sic).
124 Sinn Féin and 4 Unionists candidates were nominated for as many seats in the 'Southern Parliament' and, as no opposing candidates were nominated, they were all effectively elected ie all 128 candidates for 'the House of Commons of Southern Ireland' were returned unopposed because no rival candidates were nominated by the (13th May) deadline.
The result was - Sinn Féin 124 seats, 'Independent Unionists' 4 seats (representing Dublin University/Trinity College).
The election in the Six Counties, however, was highly contested, with 77 candidates contesting for 52 seats, with polling to be held on the 24th May ; those elections were held under 'The Government of Ireland Act 1920', which aimed to establish two 'Home Rule parliaments' in Ireland, effectively partitioning the island.
The result was - The Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) won a landslide victory with 40 seats, while Sinn Féin and the Nationalist Party won 6 seats each.
In 1921, there were notable actual political differences between the established political parties in relation to partition and the British military and political presence in Ireland, but not so today, in 2026 - UUP, (P)SF, SDLP etc are all working with Westminster to maintain and enforce partition in Ireland, and some even claim it's the republican position to do so!
Anyway : re the 'nominations closed' date and its aftermath - more details here.
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On the same date that those election nominations closed, IRA Volunteer Seán 'John' Joseph Magee (23, a 'Section Commander' in the rebel ranks), who worked outside the Movement as a railway clerk, was in the family home at Millgrange, Greenore, County Louth, when armed Black and Tan mercenaries stormed the house.
The intruders pulled Volunteer Magee from the house and shot him in the head.
An RIC 'County Inspector' investigated (!) the shooting and wrote a report claiming that the IRA were responsible, a propaganda trick common in those days.
Volunteer Magee is buried in Kilwirra Graveyard in Carlingford, County Louth.
'PUBLIC MEMORIAL
Erected to the memory of SECt. COMd. JOHN JOSEH MAGEE IRA, Cooley, Who nobly gave his young life in the cause of Irish Independence.May 13th 1921.'
RIP Volunteer Seán 'John' Joseph Magee.
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At the same time as the Tans raided the Magee house in Millgrange, Greenore, County Louth, their colleagues in the British Army were 135 miles (215 km) down the road in the townland of Knocknagress, in the civil parish of Tullaroan, in County Kilkenny, approaching a house to search it.
Armed IRA Volunteers from the 7th Battalion, Kilkenny Brigade and the No. 2 ASU of Tipperary No. 2 Brigade were inside the house, and fought their way out of the trap ; most of the rebels escaped, but two wounded fighters were captured - Volunteers Seán Quinn and Patrick Walsh.
Both men were taken to the BA military barracks in County Kilkenny but it was too late for Volunteer Quinn, who died there ; his comrade, Volunteer Walsh, died five days later during an attempt to amputate his leg.
The IRA investigated the shootings and discovered that two local men, farm labourers - a Mr Michael O'Keefe and a Mr Martin Dermody - had informed the enemy about the presence of the rebels in the house.
The informers were executed.
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On the 12th May (1921), British Army soldiers were closing-in on the Ryan house in Ballybrack, Annacarty, in County Limerick.
The Ryans were a republican family - two of the Ryan brothers, Michael (27) and Thomas, were attached to the 3rd Battalion, Tipperary Brigade IRA, and one of their sisters, Nance, was an active member of Cumann na mBan.
The British were aware of their republican connections and were looking to 'interview' Michael, who was 'on the run' ; acting on information from an informer, the foreign soldiers (on pushbikes) were in the process of surrounding the Ryan house when Michael and Thomas made a run for it.
The two Volunteers entered a field and ran downhill towards the cover of the bushes along a small stream.
The BA soldiers opened fire, Michael fell, was captured by the enemy and brought to the Military Hospital in Tipperary, where he died in the early hours of the 13th.
On the 1st June that year, the shooting was briefly mentioned in Westminster -
'Mr. Mosley asked the Chief Secretary whether he will make inquiries into the circumstances under which Michael Ryan of Ballybrack, was shot, while crossing one of his father’s fields, by armed forces of the Crown on 12th May last?
Sir H. Greenwood : The Court of Inquiry in this case found that deceased was shot by members of the Crown forces in the execution of their duty, he having failed to halt when called upon to do so, and that no blame attached to any member of the Crown forces. According to the evidence, Ryan was on the road when challenged by the patrol, but he jumped a hedge and endeavoured to get away. He was called upon to halt three times before he was fired upon.
Major M. Wood : How far was this man away when he was called upon to halt?
Mr. Mosley : How many men, can the right hon. Gentleman say, have been shot in Ireland for this kind of thing?
Mr. Speaker : I think notice should be given of that question...'
IRA Acting Company Captain Michael Ryan is buried in Kilpatrick Cemetery, Annacarty, County Tipperary.
RIP Volunteer Michael Ryan.
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In early April, 1921, a London, England man, a Mr Albert Edward Skeats (24), decided to seek adventure in Ireland and went and joined the RIC.
He was given a few weeks 'training' and sent to the RIC Barracks in Cabinteely, Dublin, 'to keep British law and order' (!) in that part of Ireland which, unfortunately for Mr Skeats, 'F Company', 6th Battalion, Dublin Brigade IRA were maintaining Irish law and order in already.
That particular barracks had been attacked twice in April by the rebels and also on the 10th and the 12th May ; on the 13th May, as Mr Skeats was standing outside the rear of the barracks, a single shot was fired at him and he fell to the ground, seriously wounded.
Mr Albert Edward Skeats died from his wound on the 28th May 1921.
A short-lived 'adventure'.
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DEATH IN THE MEDITERRANEAN...
Desmond Boomer, a Belfast engineer working in the Libyan oil-fields, disappeared seven years ago.
Officially, the plane on which he was a passenger crashed as a result of mechanical failure and pilot error.
But is that the real story?
Or were the Irishman and his fellow passengers unwitting victims of the shady war between Islamic fundamentalism and Mossad, Israel's intelligence network?
A special 'Magill' investigation by Don Mullan, author of 'Eyewitness Bloody Sunday'.
From 'Magill' magazine, January 2003.
Despite this, the question on many people's mind was the identity of the Maltese pilot.
Cecila Aquilina, mother of Matthew Aquilina, says that suspicion centered on Captain Bartolo, principally because of the photographs of the aircraft which appeared in 'KullHadd' on the 5th November.
Two vital questions still hang unanswered - who was the source of the articles that appeared to finger Carmelo Bartolo as a possible accomplice in the assassination of the Jihad leader, and what was the motivation behind them?
In February 1996, Desmond Boomer's wife Mandy visited Malta in search of the truth and met a journalist named Joe Mifsud during her visit ; she told 'Magill' she would never forget his opening remarks to her.
They had barely shaken hands when he declared - "This was an unfortunate accident and nothing but that..."
This comment was made by Joe Mifsud eight months before Tunisian fishermen allegedly found the wreckage of Flight 9H-ABU and less than two months after the mysterious disappearance...
(MORE LATER.)
The Athy area of County Kildare had a history in the 1920's of being "a garrison town" ie overall, more inclined to support the State forces rather than the rebels - the 'Irregulars' and, indeed, it was said to have gained and/or reinforced that reputation during the 1798 Rising.
On the 13th May, 1922, the home and outhouses of a "substantial farmer" in Russellstown, Athy - a Mr Edward Condell - were attacked and damaged by fire by an IRA ASU.
That wouldn't be the last such operation either...
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In early April, 1922, the Free State Army Commandant in County Leitrim, a Mr Harold McKeon, issued a public proclamation prohibiting land seizures in the district 'under his control' (Oh the irony - the Staters were at that time and, indeed, still are today, assisting the British to seize Irish land!).
On the 9th of that month, William Blennerhassett, a (Protestant) farmer, was evicted, along with his wife and seven children, from their farm at Culleneghy, Beaufort, near Killarney, in County Kerry, by a group of armed and masked men.
A local man, a Mr John Murphy, had had his family members evicted from that farm, by the British, in the 1880's, and tensions were understandably high in the area because of that and other Westminster-encouraged intrusions into Irish matters.
The following day, however, the local IRA Battalion Officer Commanding, Volunteer Patrick Allman, reinstated the Blennerhassett family on the farm, which was not an acceptable outcome to many of the locals, so some of them decided to take a legal case regarding the proper ownership of the farm.
On the 13th May the farm was attacked, and a three-day siege ensued, during which both Mr Blennerhasset and his son were wounded.
Eventually, the Blennerhassets surrendered but brought their case to the High Court in Dublin and, on the 16th June, the High Court ruled in favour of the Blennerhassett family in their land dispute with Mr John Murphy and his supporters.
On the 20th December, 1922, the farmhouse was burnt down.
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In a somewhat related matter and similar issue to the above-mentioned Blennerhassett/Murphy case, on the 13th May, 1922, 'The Roscommom Herald' newspaper reported on a court case taken against a Mr Patrick Gilhooley and a Mr Bernard Gilhooley, who were charged with seizing the land of a neighbour.
A republican court was convened in the town of Drumsna, County Leitrim, and the Gilhooley brothers explained their reason for taking the land - their father who, they said, "was fond of a drop and he was not as cute as Mr Fox was..." had, in 1897, sold the land to Mr Fox, and his sons wanted it back.
After the court threatened to imprison the brothers, they gave a legal undertaking to vacate the land.
The old saying 'as stupid as a fox' could be worked in here...!
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On the same day that that newspaper report was published, an 'Orange Order' member, a Mr Robert Beattie who, when not marching through nationalist areas, worked as a postman, was delivering letters in Butler Street in Belfast when he was shot dead.
On the 17th (May 1922), as he was being buried, shots were fired at the funeral cortege.
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On the 13th May, 1922, British Army Gunner James Henry John Rolfe (20), from the town of Slough, in England, and one of his pals, Gunner Alfred Porter, both attached to Marlborough Military Barracks (now known as McKee Barracks, on Blackhorse Avenue, in Dublin), were walking along Batchelors Walk in Dublin City Centre when they noticed two 'drunk men' walking towards them.
When the two 'drunks' got close to them, they pulled out handguns and told the two British Army Gunners to hand over their weaponry, which the Gunners did, reluctantly.
Being from what he no doubt considered to be 'a better Class', Mr James Henry 'Gunner' Rolfe actually demanded a receipt (!) for the equipment from the two men, one of whom looked at him, asked him what did he say and, before he could repeat his demand, shot him in the neck, killing him.
Mr Rolfe had enlisted in the 'Royal Garrison Artillery' of the British Army on the 2nd February in 1920, at 18 years of age.
Gunner Alfred Porter ('Service Number 1421448'), who wasn't arrogant enough to ask for a receipt, walked away from that encounter in the same good health that he entered into it ; he died in October 1968, in Bristol, in his own country, England, at 74 years of age.
Incidentally, at the inquest into the shooting of Mr Rolfe, the coroner asked the jury to bring in a verdict of wilful murder but the jury refused - they returned a verdict of "..death from shock and haemorrhage as a result of wounds inflicted by a person or persons unknown..."
And that was the 'receipt' they handed over to the coroner...
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Following the death of IRA Chief of Staff Volunteer Liam Lynch on the 10th April, 1923, the Deputy Chief of Staff, Volunteer Frank Aiken (who assumed the position of Chief of Staff on the 20th April) called for a joint meeting of the Republican Government and the IRA, which was held in a venue in Santry, Dublin, on the 13th to the 14th May.
After lengthy discussions, the assembly instructed Volunteer Aiken to order an IRA ceasefire and the dumping of arms, and to announce those orders on May 24th.
An internal memo to all IRA Officers stated -
"The dumping of arms does not mean that the usefulness of the IRA is past, or release any member of it from his duty to his country.
On the contrary a disciplined Volunteer force, ready for any emergency, will be a great strength to the Nation in its march to Independence.
It is clearly our duty to keep the Army Organisation intact."
The 'Dump Arms' order stated -
"The Government and Army Council have decided to order that armed resistance to the Free State 'Government' will cease. To avoid armed conflicts it is necessary that the arms of all ranks be dumped.
Comrades ; the arms with which we fought the enemies of our country are to be dumped.
The foreign and domestic enemies of the Republic have for the moment prevailed.
We took up arms to free our country, and we'll keep them until we see an honourable way of reaching our objective without arms."
A Mr Éamon de Valera issued an accompanying statement -
"The Republic can no longer be defended successfully by your arms.
Further sacrifice of life would now be in vain and continuance of the struggle in arms unwise in the national interest and prejudicial to the future of our cause."
Volunteers were instructed to take adequate measures to protect themselves and their munitions ; arms dumps were built in the corners of fields (where three fields met) or near safe houses, and were frequently constructed using corrugated steel roofs and concrete sides, buried in ditches or mountainsides.
Internal IRA documents from 1924 showed that the IRA held over 5,000 weapons in these secret locations, not all of which have been discovered by the Staters, in our opinion.
The 1924 'Dump Arms' order was a tactical withdrawal : instead of handing over weapons, IRA units were instructed to put them aside for future use, but the leadership that came into play in 1983 traded those and other weapons for seats at Westminster, Stormont and Leinster House.
Eternal shame, everlasting reproach and perpetual humiliation on them for that.
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On the 13th May, 1924, the 'Secretary of the Free State Department of Local Government', a Mr Edward Patrick (EP) McCarron, issued a directive instructing that no appointment (or salary increase) would be given to any local government officer unless they made a declaration swearing allegiance to the Irish Free State and its constitution.
Even before he issued that diktat, Mr McCarron, a long-time career 'civil servant' under the British administration in Ireland, was seen as a controversial figure within Free State political circles as he had shown great allegiance and a strong dedication to Westminster, while assisting them to implement their writ in Ireland as an official of their 'Local Government Board'.
The response from local councils was characterised by deep division, significant resistance and, ultimately, a major loss of local autonomy as the 'FS Department of Local Government' used the oath requirement to purge political opposition, as a State Minister could then dissolve the entire elected body and replace it with a Leinster House-imposed/appointed commissioner.
Indeed, in 1924, both Cork Corporation and Dublin Corporation were dissolved and replaced by imposed/appointed/selected commissioners who strictly enforced Leinster House policies.
The 'McCarron Directive' was in fact a purge which removed republicans from the local civil service of the new Free State, to be replaced by lackeys, ensuring that the administrative machinery of the new corrupt entity was operated by those who had sworn allegiance to a paypacket and a pension, regardless of who was paying it, as opposed to having sworn allegiance to their conscience.
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Thanks for the visit, and for reading - much appreciated!
Sharon and the team.
(We'll be back here on the blog on Wednesday, 27th May 2026, and 'lil auld me will be on 'X' and Facebook between now and then, if yer missin' me all that much..!)
Three different dates listed by our six sources for this shooting in 1919 - 15th April, 25th April and 29th April, and an unlikely scenario.
A British Navy vessel had docked near the village of An Rinn (Ring Village) in the county of Waterford (possibly docked in Helvick Harbour/Helvick Head) and some of the crew members left the ship to have a look around the village.
They ended up in a local pub ('Draper's') in which a few Irish republicans from the area were having a pint and a chat.
The situation in the pub got a bit tense, and voices were raised - and this is the unlikely scenario bit : one of the republicans, a man named Michael Walsh (22,an IRA Volunteer, by some accounts) is said to have left the pub to go for assistance - from the RIC!
As he was walking up to the door of the nearby Ballinagoul RIC barracks a single gunshot was fired at him, through the door of the building.
The bullet struck him in his throat, he fell, the noise of the gunshot drew people to where he was and he was rushed to hospital (probably Dungarvan Workhouse Hospital, later renamed 'St Joseph's', now known as 'Dungarvan Community Hospital') where the medics opened him up from his back and extracted the bullet.
He appeared to be recovering from the wound, but didn't : he died on either the 11th May or the 15th May - both dates stated by different sources.
His funeral took place at Ring, County Waterford, where a large crowd from all parts of the county turned out in attendance, including some members of the Volunteer movement dressed in uniform. The roadsides en route to the village of Ballinagoul were lined with Sinn Féin flags, and music was provided by the Waterford Sinn Féin Brass Band who had travelled from Dungarvan for the occasion.
As the funeral procession made its way from Mr Walsh's home to the church, a distance of about a mile, the band alternatively struck up 'Wrap the Green Flag Round Me', 'A Nation Once Again' and 'The Soldiers Song'.
The unlikely scenario we mentioned is that any IRA Volunteer would purposely and actively seek out the RIC (a pro-British grouping) for its assistance in defusing a tense situation where other (pro-)British forces (Navy, in this instance) are 'getting loud' with Irish republicans...?!
Anyway - the RIC man who fired the shot that struck and killed Michael Walsh was a Mr Michael McCarthy ('Service Number 66105') who, after the shooting, was put in for a transfer out of Waterford by his RIC bosses, citing reasons of personal safety ; they wanted to place him in an RIC Barracks in County Antrim (Templepatrick/Dunmurry), about 350km (220 miles) away, where he supposedly wouldn't be known : he objected to the proposed transfer, probably having fooled himself that, in Waterford, he knew who to be wary of and who to look out for, but his objection was rejected.
He resigned from the RIC on the 2nd June, 1920, with "no bad mark on his service record" - the magistrate involved in the Waterford shooting case had decided that "there was no case to answer...", referencing the RIC man's claim that Michael Walsh "had rushed towards the barracks shouting, 'Give up your arms, you will have to fight now...' "
RIP Michael Walsh.
==========================
On the same date that a pro-British militia gunman fired that shot in Waterford, another of that ilk fired a shot about 290 km (185 miles) away, up the road in Hollywood, in County Down.
That bullet, 'accidently' fired by a 'Somerset Light Infantry' comrade of British Army Private Charles Bernard Kirk ('Service Number 44458'), hit Mr Kirk who died from the wound.
The man was buried in his own country, in New Basford Cemetery, Nottingham, England.
==========================
In December, 1918, the 'Irish Parliamentary Party' ('IPP') was practically wiped-out at the polls by the then Sinn Féin organisation, which led to some verbal and physical jostling between members and supporters of both.
They emerged from that election campaign as a diminished, non-governing 'opposition' half-party, even more ineffectual than they had been before it.
On the 29th April (1919), 'The Waterford Standard' newspaper carried a report that a recent street brawl in Waterford City had resulted in the death of an 'IPP' member, a Mr William Grant.
We couldn't find any more information about that incident or about Mr Grant.
==========================
ON THIS DATE (29TH APRIL) 110 YEARS AGO : REPUBLICAN 'SURRENDER ORDER' AND FR. ALOYSIUS.
On Saturday, 29th April, 1916 - 110 years ago on this date - Pádraig Pearse issued the 'Surrender Order' on behalf of the Irish republican forces who were taken part in the (Easter) Rising in Ireland against the forces of the Crown -
"In order to prevent the further slaughter of Dublin citizens, and in the hope of saving the lives of our followers now surrounded and hopelessly outnumbered, the members of the Provisional Government present at Headquarters have agreed to an unconditional surrender, and the Commandants of the various districts in the City and Country will order their commands to lay down arms.
P. H. PEARSE.
29th April, 3.45 p.m., 1916."
Approximately 64 rebels, 132 crown force members and 230 civilians had been killed. About 2,500 people had been wounded, and the centre of Dublin was devastated by the British shelling.
Sometimes overlooked and/or deliberately played-down is the role that the Capuchin Friars took on during the 1916 Rising, including that of their input regarding the 'Surrender Order' -
'..the Capuchin Friars were heavily involved with the surrender - after the initial surrender had taken place between General Lowe, Patrick Pearse with Nurse Elizabeth O'Farrell as the 'runner' (and) in all the discussion between the British Forces and the Irish Military Army. They ably assisted Nurse Elizabeth O’Farrell [Cumann na mBan] with the task of delivering the surrender order to the other leaders all around the outskirts of Dublin in their strategic positions i.e Eamonn Ceant, Thomas MacDonagh , Dev Valera et.al.
Of course General Lowe, not wanting to take any chances that these surrender orders would not be safely delivered...ordered two of his officers to accompany them. They then went to Dublin Castle to deliver the surrender message..' (from here.)
'While many clerics have supported the armed struggle of the IRA since 1916, the Capuchin Friars have been particularly noted for their republicanism. One such Capuchin was Fr Aloysius Roche, the son of an Irish father and English mother, born in Scotland in 1886. He studied for the priesthood and, following his ordination, he was transferred to Dublin where he was attached to the Capuchin Order in Church Street.
During Easter Week 1916, Fr Aloysius along with Frs Albert, Augustine and Dominic brought spiritual aid to the Volunteers in the numerous garrisons and outposts throughout Dublin. Following Pádraig Pearse’s surrender on Saturday, 29 April 1916, Fr Aloysius spent the next day carrying the surrender order to the main garrisons on the south side of the city. In the early hours of the morning of 3rd May, Fr Aloysius administered the last sacraments to Pearse, MacDonagh and Thomas Clarke, the first three leaders of the Rising to be executed.
On 7th May, he met John Dillon, a leading member of the Irish Parliamentary Party, who agreed to do all in his power to persuade the British government to stop the executions. And it was largely due to his efforts that Dillon, five days later, during a debate on the rising in the House of Commons, launched a blistering attack on the British government’s handling of the situation in Ireland.
Earlier that day, Fr Aloysius accompanied James Connolly by ambulance from Dublin Castle to Kilmainham Gaol for execution and stood behind the firing squad as they fired the final volley. During the Tan and Civil Wars he was an enthusiastic and practical supporter of the national struggle and continued his republican allegiance throughout the following decades...' (from here).
Incidentally, the 'Fr Dominic' mentioned, above, was Fr Dominic O'Connor (Order of Friars Minor Capuchin, pictured, being led away by Free Staters from 'the battle of the Four Courts', in 1922) - it is recorded that the then 'President of the Executive Council of the Irish Free State' [aka 'Taoiseach'], Mr WT Cosgrave, did not agree with the political outlook voiced by the Capuchins and he wrote to the Archbishop, Edward J Byrne, to voice his objections and, in one such letter, actually accused Fr Dominic of "treasonous acts"!
Fr Dominic was, at the time, the chaplain to the local IRA Cork Brigade, and is on record for a reply he gave to the church hierarchy in relation to their anti-republican/pro-British sermons :
"Kidnapping, ambushing, and killing obviously would be grave sins or violation of Canon Law.
And if these acts were being performed by the Irish Volunteers as private persons, they would fall under excommunication.
But they are doing them with the authority of the Republic of Ireland.
Hence the acts performed by the Volunteers are not only not sinful, but are good and meritorious...therefore the excommunication does not affect us. There is no need to worry about it.
There is no necessity for telling a priest in confession that you went to Mass on Sunday, so there is no necessity to tell him one is in the IRA, or that one took part in an ambush or killing etc".
In another letter of complaint that he sent, Mr Cosgrave referred to a different priest, a Fr John Costello, and complained to the Archbishop that that priest had made it his business to approach Free State troops, in 1922, and called on them to lay down their arms ; when they declined to do so, he would call them "murdering green Black and Tans"!
As 'Lord Cosgrave' probably said, in private -
"It rings in my ears as kind of what miserable drones and traitors have I nourished and brought up in my household, who let their lord and president be treated with such shameful contempt by a low-born cleric?
Will no one rid me of this meddlesome priest?" (!)
Sometimes one has to be 'meddlesome' in order to be honourable...
THE GREAT OIL AND GAS ROBBERY...
From 'Magill' Magazine, October 2005.
"I spent an hour with Micheál Ó Seighin (pictured), one of the Rossport Five.
Micheál received us very graciously in the small visiting box. He is a small, quietly-spoken man in his late 60s.
"Tá sibhse ag dhéanamh obair go hiontach. Congratulations. Bhí an scéal Dé Luan go han, han mhaith. Ceim mhór", he said..."
Micheál Ó Seighin.
Michael McDowell.
Pat Rabbitte.
"Is this where you get your visits?"
"We get closed visits", he said. "There is a screen between us and our families. We have no physical contact on visits."
"Even the Brits don't do that", I said.
Micheál grinned at us.
"I knew nothing about prisons before coming here but the people who are in and out of jail hate Cloverhill. They say that it is worse than the Joy and the Midlands. I suppose it's to deal with the drugs problem. Drugs are creating havoc everywhere it seems. I never knew it was so bad until I came here.
I've met some young men here who are not going to last on the outside. They told me that. One of them, he's from Ballymun, was telling me about the turf wars. 'Two things I'm sure of', he told me, 'I'll be back on drugs when I get out. And I'll be killed.'"
It was obvious that Micheál cared deeply about all this.
He had a book with him - 'Nature's Way', by Ian Stewart, and I told him that we had left some books in for him and the other men.
"This book is about chaos", he said ; "A butterfly can flap its wings in Tokyo and cause a storm halfway across the world..."
(The third [ie last] pic above shows a Mr Patrick Rabbitte, ex-State Labour Party leader and ex-'State Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources' ; Mr Rabbittee retired as State Labour Party leader in 2007, and from political life altogether in 2016, on a combined pension package worth over €2 million to him!)
(MORE LATER.)
ON THIS DATE (29TH APRIL) 427 YEARS AGO : DEVIL CHRISTENED ON EARTH.
"The term 'slavery' is rarely associated with the white race, although during the 1600's this was the most significant portion of the market.
More specifically, the Irish were targeted the most and the fact that the population of Ireland fell by 850,000 in the space of one decade highlights just how brutal things were...he (Oliver Cromwell, pictured) is one of the main reasons why the situation got to this point.
His fanatical anti-Catholic views meant that any action he took over the Irish was brutal to say the least and as well as utilising the conquest of Ireland for religious and political means, he was bidding to cleanse the country of Catholics.
In achieving this, selling the Irish off as slaves was one of his biggest weapons, but he also made sure life was as difficult as possible for those that did stay by burning off their crops, removing them from their land.." (from here.)
Pictured - some of Oliver Cromwell's Irish victims, sold as slaves and 'sex workers' to the highest bidder.
On the 29th April, 1599 - 427 years ago on this date - a baby boy, Oliver Cromwell, who had been born on the 25th April, was christened in Saint John the Baptist church in Huntingdon, England.
Decades later, when someone was trawling through the birth records for that period, they came across an unofficial addendum to that particular entry : it read -
"England's plague for five years..."
Cromwell should need no introduction to readers of this blog, but some readers may not be aware of the significance of a particular date - the 3rd September - in relation to the time he wreaked havoc on this Earth.
That creature died on that date in 1658, and it was also on that same date, in 1649, that he began his nine-day siege of Drogheda after which thousands of its inhabitants were butchered (..but they deserved it, according to the man himself - "This is a righteous judgement of God upon these barbarous wretches, who have imbrued their hands in so much innocent blood..").
The infamous 'Death March', which he forced on his enemy after the battle of Dunbar, took place on the 3rd September (in 1650) and, one year later on that same date - the 3rd September, in 1651 - he wallowed in more blood and guts, this time in his own country, at the battle of Worcester.
And, somewhere in between wrecking havoc and stealing and selling Irish children, he found the time (on the 27th September in 1649) to write to his political bosses in London :
'FOR THE HONOURABLE WILLIAM LENTHALL, ESQUIRE, SPEAKER OF THE PARLIAMENT OF ENGLAND :
Dublin, 27th September 1649.
Mr. Speaker - I had not received any account from Colonel Venables - whom I sent from Tredah to endeavour the reducing of Carlingford, and so to march Northward towards a conjunction with Sir Charles Coote - until the last night. After he came to Carlingford, having summoned the place, both the three Castles and the Fort commanding the Harbour were rendered to him. Wherein were about Forty Barrels of Powder, Seven Pieces of Cannon ; about a Thousand Muskets, and Five-hundred Pikes wanting twenty. In the entrance into the Harbour, Captain Fern, aboard your man-of-war, had some danger ; being much shot at from the Sea Fort, a bullet shooting through his main-mast. The Captain's entrance into that Harbour was a considerable adventure, and a good service ; as also was that of Captain Brandly, who, with Forty seamen, stormed a very strong Tenalia at Tredah, and helped to take it ; for which he deserves an owning by you.
Venables marched from Carlingford, with a party of Horse and Dragoons, to the Newry ; leaving the place, and it was yielded before his Foot came up to him. Some other informations I have received form him, which promise well towards your Northern Interest ; which, if well prosecuted, will, I trust God, render you a good account of those parts. I have sent those things to be presented to the Council of State for their consideration. I pray God, as these mercies flow in upon you, He will give you an heart to improve them to His glory alone ; because He alone is the author of them, and of all the goodness, patience and long-suffering extending towards you. Your army has marched ; and, I believe, this night lieth at Arklow, in the County of Wicklow, by the Sea-side, between thirty and forty miles from this place. I am this day, by God's blessing, going towards it.
I crave your pardon for this trouble; and rest, your most humble servant, OLIVER CROMWELL.
P.S. I desire the Supplies moved for may be hastened. I am verily persuaded, though the burden be great, yet it is for your service.
If the Garrisons we take swallow-up your men, how shall we be able to keep the field? Who knows but the Lord may pity England's sufferings, and make a short work of this?
It is in His hand to do it, and therein only your servants rejoice. I humbly present the condition of Captain George Jenkin's Widow. He died presently after Tredah Storm. His Widow is in great want.
The following Officers and Soldiers were slain at the storming of Tredah: Sir Arthur Ashton, Governor; Sir Edmund Varney, Lieutenant-Colonel to Ormond’s Regiment; Colonel Fleming, Lieutenant-Colonel Finglass, Major Fitzgerald, with eight Captains, eight Lieutenants, and eight Cornets, all of Horse; Colonels Warren, Wall, and Byrn, of Foot, with their Lieutenants, Majors, etc; the Lord Taaff’s Brother, an Augustine Friar; forty-four Captains, and all their Lieutenants, Ensigns, etc; 220 Reformadoes and Troopers; 2,500 Foot-soldiers, besides the Staff-Officers, Surgeons, etc.'
A butcher of even his own forces.
But he was appreciated in some circles...
On the 29th April, 1920, an estimated 3,000 people over-filled the Market Square in the village of Athy, in the county of Kildare.
They were there to say a loud and genuine 'Fáilte Abhaile!' ('Welcome Home!') to IRA Volunteer Eamon ('Edward/Ned') Malone, from the locality of Barrowhouse, Dunbrin, in that same county.
IRA Commandant Eamon Malone had been 'arrested' by the British in 1919 and held in Mountjoy Jail, in Dublin, where he went on hunger-strike before being released.
His uncle was Reverend James J. Malone, an author and a Catholic Priest based in Australia, and his cousin, Christiana, was a member of Cumann na mBan in the area.
Incidentally, Volunteer Eamon Malone formed a branch of 'The Irish Volunteers' in Athy in 1917, and had assisted in the formation, locally, in July 1914, of a branch of Cumann na mBan and, in August 1914, he had assisted in establishing the republican youth group Na Fianna Éireann in the area.
Volunteer Eamon 'Edward/Ned' Malone died from asthma-related illnesses at 45 years of age in 1939, in Sutton, County Dublin, and is buried in Barrowhouse Cemetery, in Kildare.
(The one 'downer' from the 'Welcome Home!' rally on the 29th was that a Mr Arthur James Kickham ['Art'] O'Connor delivered the 'Welcome Home' speech ; Mr O'Connor was a 'republican-gamekeeper-turned-Free State-poacher'.)
RIP Volunteer Eamon 'Edward/Ned' Malone.
==========================
On the 29th, as British soldiers and their spies were watching Market Square, Athy, for the homecoming ceremony, other British soldiers, hoping that there were no spies around, were undertaking a 'ceremony' of their own!
Some of the British troops from the 'Royal Horse Artillery' (pictured), who were billeted in Kildare town, met with some of the local IRA Volunteers, as arranged, and the deal was struck ; the rebels purchased 17 revolvers and 723 rounds of ammunition from the enemy troops, and both sides went back to their bases, all in good form!
It sounds unlikely, but it actually happened more than some readers might know about - arms sales from British soldiers to the IRA were a frequent and significant source of weaponry, particularly in Dublin and other garrison towns.
Disgruntled or sympathetic British soldiers, often looking to make extra money or to escape military life, sold their equipment regularly ; the Dublin Brigade IRA, for example, managed to purchase hundreds of rifles from a British Army Quartermaster at Wellington Barracks (Dublin) - in one known instance, two Irish-born British Army soldiers smuggled 4,000 rounds of .303 ammunition from the Athlone barracks and sold the packages to the IRA, with a few revolvers and rifles thrown-in to sweeten the deal, and BA troops stationed at Richmond Barracks (Dublin) were known to sell quantities of rifles to the rebels for £4 each!
In areas outside of Dublin, some British soldiers heading home on leave would sell their service rifles to local Volunteers because they "hated soldiering" and wanted extra money for their journey home and, in one instance that is known about (in 1922), a heavy-duty 'Hotchkiss Machine Gun' was sold to the IRA by British Army engineers who were converting a British naval vessel for civilian use.
Arms were not only sold but also frequently taken, traded, or seized by the IRA from RIC and British Army installations throughout the country and abroad - IRA agents/middlemen (like Owen Moore and Thomas Treacy) operated in London, securing revolvers and ammunition through local gunsmiths and underworld contacts and, in Scotland, the IRA cultivated links with German arms dealers and even broke into university chemistry departments to manufacture explosives.
Also, a steady supply was available from demobilised soldiers who, after 'WWI', kept their service weapons as souvenirs and were often willing to sell them on the black market for cash, and those weapons would be smuggled into Ireland hidden in legitimate cargo ; crates of rifles were smuggled through Liverpool and Southampton by sympathetic Irish dockers and crew members.
Once landed, small arms and ammunition would be carried by Cumann na mBan women, who used their status as civilians to transport such 'contraband' in personal luggage or, before being landed in Ireland, the weaponry would be loaded at sea onto fishing trawlers and yachts.
Indeed - many times throughout this on-going struggle, we have felt like we were all at sea, but we've always managed to reach the shore...
==========================
As that deal was being processed in Athy, County Kildare, about 75km (45 miles) up the road and over to the right (!), in the village of Rush, County Dublin, it was announced locally that an RIC member who had been shot by the IRA on the night of the 20th April was "still dangerously ill" in the Mater Hospital, in Dublin.
Mr John Brady (50, with about 25 years 'service in the force'), an RIC sergeant, was wounded in an attack on Rush RIC Barracks and died from his wounds on the 9th May.
He was born in Bray, County Wicklow, into a farming household, and is buried in Saint Brigid's Cemetery in Killoughter, County Cavan.
==========================
THE MONTH UNSPUN...
The stories that hit the headlines.
From Magill magazine, August 2002.
Expect some efforts to give convincing reassurance that standards will be reviewed but, if George Bush's efforts at same in the US recently are anything to go by, the average investor will remain hugely sceptical.
FAI TAKES SKY-DIVE :
Fresh from the controversial events surrounding Roy Keane's departure from Ireland's World Cup campaign, the FAI sold the rights to our home qualifying matches for the European Championships to SKY for €7.5m, believing the deal was too good to turn down.
RTE claimed that the FAI finished negotiations with the broadcaster unexpectedly and had no way of knowing what RTE's highest bid would be and, meanwhile, TV3 had obtained the rights to screen the matches one hour after they had finished.
The government initially claimed that there was nothing they could do about the sale, until it emerged that the EU's 'Television Without Frontiers' directive could still apply, and Ireland soccer matches, along with other notable sporting events such as the All-Ireland final, could be protected in the same way as Wimbledon and the FA Cup are in England ; in a final twist, Sky bid for Ireland's away matches also, but as yet have not obtained them...
(MORE LATER.)
On the 29th April, 1921, eleven RIC members (including a 'police sergeant' and a 'district inspector') were travelling in two Crossley Tender trucks and, near Castlelack National School (about five miles from the town of Bandon, County Cork) they came across a ten-foot-wide trench in the road, dug by IRA Volunteers to impede the movement of enemy forces.
The two top RIC members ordered the other nine men to get out of the trucks and fill the trench in - they disembarked, placed their rifles against a
fence and set to work.
One of them, a Mr John Edward Bunce (31, 'Service Number 79386'), a married man from the county of Kerry, was told to place himself on guard duty, and he headed towards a nearby piece of high ground.
Just as he did so a gunshot was fired, and Mr Bunce collapsed and slipped down from his vantage point.
One of his RIC buddies went over to him and found that he was bleeding from both legs, was in shock and in pain.
It transpired that one of the rifles which had been propped-up against the fence had fallen over and, on hitting the ground, had discharged one shot, which passed through Mr Bunce's legs.
As his pals tried to stop the bleeding, Mr Bunce shouted at them "What are my wife and kiddies going to do now..?" - he was still in shock, was hemorrhaging, and died from the wound.
The RIC record of the shooting stated that it was "..another case of ignorance in handling arms..the safety catch was off and no reason for it..."
('1169' comment - the 'Police Remembrance Trust' organisation gives a wrong date and incorrect location for the shooting ; as they might say themselves - "no reason for having done that, except carelessness...")
==========================
At the same time as Mr Bunce lay dying in a muddy field, one of his military bosses, 'Field Marshal' (!) Mr John French (pictured), was feeling hard done by about 250 km (155 miles) away up the road and over a bit on yer right (!), in Dublin.
In 1918, Mr French had been appointed by his friends in Westminster as the 'Lord Lieutenant of Ireland' (the 'Viceroy') but a new face and attitude was needed for the position in 1921 as a 'peace initiative' with Mr Michael Collins and his people was being discussed - Mr French, a reminder of the bad old days (!) had to go.
The man wasn't too happy about his enforced 'career move' but found himself between a rock and a hard place - he was being replaced as 'Lord Lieutenant' by a Mr Edmund Talbot ('1st Viscount FitzAlan of Derwent' - !), a friend of his, so he 'left office' a bit quieter than he otherwise might have!
And we're sure that his appointment a few months afterwards as the '1st Earl of Ypres', and the £50,000 'retirement grant' that was thrown in with the title, and his later appointment as 'Captain of Deal Castle' in Kent, in his own country had nothing a'tall to do with him accepting the move...!
==========================
On the 15th September, 1920, a Mr Sean O'Callaghan (28), an ex-British Army soldier ('Royal' Munster Fusiliers and the Worcestershire Regiment) was shot dead by the IRA in Cork City.
Mr O'Callaghan was employed by the British Army as a clerk in Victoria Barracks in Cork City and was arrested by two IRA men (Volunteer Patrick Collins and Volunteer Jeremiah Keating) from 'G Company', 2nd Battalion, Cork No. 1 Brigade IRA, and taken to the Farmer's Cross area of the city.
He was shot dead and his remains were never recovered ; he had discussed IRA business over a phone which had an IRA tap on it with a British Army Captain, a Mr Kelly, who was the 'Intelligence Officer' for the BA 6th Division and, during their discussion, a Mr Stephen O'Callaghan (no relation) was mentioned.
Mr Stephen O'Callaghan (29), also an ex-British Army soldier who had also 'served' with the 'Royal' Munster Fusiliers and the Worcestershire Regiment, was an out-of-work dock labourer who was trying to get by on a BA disability pension.
On the 29th April, 1921, he was shot dead in Cork by the IRA, who pinned a 'SPY'S BEWARE!' notice to his coat.
==========================
DEATH IN THE MEDITERRANEAN...
Desmond Boomer, a Belfast engineer working in the Libyan oil-fields, disappeared seven years ago.
Officially, the plane on which he was a passenger crashed as a result of mechanical failure and pilot error.
But is that the real story?
Or were the Irishman and his fellow passengers unwitting victims of the shady war between Islamic fundamentalism and Mossad, Israel's intelligence network?
A special 'Magill' investigation by Don Mullan, author of 'Eyewitness Bloody Sunday'.
From 'Magill' magazine, January 2003.
The front-page article, written by journalists Joe Mifsud and Felix Agius, claimed that the Shqaqi assassins may have left Malta on a Maltese private plane, flown by a Maltese pilot.
Alarmingly, the paper printed alongside this story a photograph of an aircraft which the bereaved families say was similar to one owned by Captain Bartolo.
'The Times Of Malta' newspaper, four days later, led with the headline - 'Shqaqi's Assassins May Have Left Malta On Private Plane' ; the article, penned by journalist Sharon Spiteri, stated that the Maltese police had received information from Interpol detailing how the assassins left the island.
That newspaper stated that no further details could be given, citing security reasons for this, but the article went on to state that "...other sources said the police were working on the theory that the men left the island on board a private plane hired from a local company and flown by a Maltese pilot.."
But, the following day, that newspaper carried a small front-page article saying that the Maltese police commissioner had refuted those assertions...
(MORE LATER.)
On the 29th April, 1922, 'The Roscommon Herald' newspaper reported on the burning of the Parke Masonic Hall in Carrick-on-Shannon, County Leitrim : the structure had been deconstructed (!) by the IRA ('the Irregulars') as per their intention to deny resources to British and pro-British forces.
Ballinamore, County Leitrim : The Masonic Hall in that town was noted as one of the first to be destroyed ; the IRA attacked it in the early hours of the 17th April 1920.
Dublin : On April 24–25th, 1922, the IRA seized the Freemason Hall on Molesworth Street, occupying it for 38 days.
Ballinasloe, County Galway : A Masonic Hall was attacked by "the Irregulars" in July 1922.
Wexford : The front of a building was partially burned by armed men on the 23rd November, 1922.
Mullingar, County Westmeath : Armed men raided a Masonic Hall, smashing windows and furniture, and poured petrol over the debris, but complete destruction was reportedly prevented by the intervention of a local priest.
Raphoe, County Donegal : the IRA commandeered and fortified the Masonic Hall on the 28th April, 1922, using it as a garrison.
Dundalk, County Louth : The Masonic Hall was raided, with books and property seized ; the members were given notice to leave the town and most of them fled to Belfast.
Freemasonry in Ireland during the 1920's was considered by the IRA to be a pro-British and imperialist-minded organisation ; they were not a formal military unit campaigning against the IRA, but they were associated with the British 'Establishment' and the Unionist movement, making them targets for republican attacks.
==========================
On the 29th April, 1922, 'The Clare Champion' newspaper reported that a 91-year-old man, a Mr James McGuane, Coolmeen, West Clare, had been taken from his bed and shot.
Mr McGuane died from his wound.
This was apparently the result of an agrarian dispute, and we could find no information regarding the who, what and why.
==========================
ON THIS DATE (29TH APRIL) 110 YEARS AGO - THOMAS PATRICK ASHE / BATTLE OF ASHBOURNE.
Thomas Patrick Ashe, pictured, was born in Lispole, in County Kerry, on the 12th of January, 1885, the seventh of ten siblings. He was active in Irish republicanism, trade unionism and cultural circles, and commanded the 5th Battalion of the Dublin Brigade which won the Battle of Ashbourne on the 29th of April 1916 (a battle which lasted for over five hours), 104 years ago on this date. He qualified as a teacher in 1905 at De La Salle College, Waterford and after teaching briefly in Kinnard, County Kerry, in 1906 he became principal of Corduff National School in Lusk, County Dublin.
He was a fluent Irish speaker and a member of the Keating branch of the Gaelic League and was an accomplished sportsman and musician setting up the Round Towers GAA Club as well as helping to establish the Lusk Pipe Band. He was also a talented singer and poet who was committed to Conradh na Gaeilge.
The funeral procession in Dublin, 30th September 1917 (pictured) for Thomas Ashe, an IRB leader who died on the 25th September that year, after being force fed by his British jailers - he was the first Irish republican to die as a result of a hunger-strike and, between that year and 1981, twenty-one other Irish republicans died on hunger-strike.
The jury at the inquest into his death found "..that the deceased, Thomas Ashe, according to the medical evidence of Professor McWeeney, Sir Arthur Chance, and Sir Thomas Myles, died from heart failure and congestion of the lungs on the 25th September, 1917 and that his death was caused by the punishment of taking away from the cell bed, bedding and boots and allowing him to be on the cold floor for 50 hours, and then subjecting him to forcible feeding in his weak condition after hunger-striking for five or six days.."
Michael Collins organised the funeral and transformed it into a national demonstration against British misrule in Ireland ; armed Irish Republican Brotherhood Volunteers in full uniform flanked the coffin, followed by 9,000 other IRB Volunteers and approximately 30,000 people lined the streets.
A volley of shots was fired over Ashe's grave, following which Michael Collins stated - "Nothing more remains to be said. That volley which we have just heard is the only speech which it is proper to make over the grave of a dead Fenian."
The London-based 'Daily Express' newspaper perhaps summed it up best when it stated, re the funeral of Thomas Ashe, that what had happened had made '100,000 Sinn Féiners out of 100,000 constitutional nationalists.'
The level of support shown gave a boost to Irish republicans, and this was noted by the 'establishment' in Westminster - 'The Daily Mail' newspaper claimed that, a month earlier, Sinn Féin, despite its electoral successes, had been a waning force.
That newspaper said -
'..It had no practical programme, for the programme of going further than anyone else cannot be so described. It was not making headway. But Sinn Féin today is pretty nearly another name for the vast bulk of youth in Ireland..'
Politically, he was a member of the Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB) and established IRB circles in Dublin and Kerry and eventually became President of the Supreme Council in 1917. While he was actively and intellectually nationalist he was also inspired by contemporary socialism.
Ashe rejected conservative Home Rule politicians and as part of that rejection he espoused the Labour policies of James Larkin. Writing in a letter to his brother Gregory he said "We are all here on Larkin's side. He'll beat hell out of the snobbish, mean, seoinín employers yet, and more power to him".
He supported the unionisation of north Dublin farm labourers and his activities brought him into conflict with landowners such as Thomas Kettle in 1912. During the infamous lockout in 1913 he was a frequent visitor to Liberty Hall and become a friend of James Connolly. Long prior to its publication in 1916, Thomas Ashe was a practitioner of Connolly’s dictum that "the cause of labour is the cause of Ireland, the cause of Ireland is the cause of labour".
In 1914, he travelled to the United States where he raised a substantial sum of money for both the Gaelic League and the newly formed Irish Volunteers of which he was an early member.
Volunteer Ashe founded the Volunteers in Lusk and established a firm foundation of practical and theoretical military training, and provided charismatic leadership first as Adjutant and then as O/C (Officer Commanding) the 5th Battalion of the Dublin Brigade.
He inspired fierce loyalty and encouraged personal initiative in his junior officers and was therefore able to confidently delegate command to Charlie Weston, Joseph Lawless, Edward Rooney and others during the Rising and, most significantly, he took advantage of the arrival of Richard Mulcahy at Finglas Glen on the Tuesday of the Rising and appointed him second in command.
The two men knew one another through the IRB and Gaelic League and he recognised Mulcahy’s tactical abilities. As a result he allowed himself to be persuaded by Mulcahy not to withdraw following the unexpected arrival of the motorised force at the Rath crossroads.
At Ashbourne on the 28th of April, Volunteer Ashe also demonstrated great personal courage, during a battle which lasted over five hours, first exposing himself to fire while calling on the RIC in the fortified barracks to surrender and then actively leading his Volunteers against the RIC during the fight.
After the 1916 Rising he was court-martialled (on the 8th of May 1916) and was sentenced to death, but the sentence was commuted to penal servitude for life.
He was incarcerated in a variety of English prisons before being released in the June 1917 general amnesty and immediately returned to Ireland and toured the country reorganising the IRB and inciting civil opposition to British rule.
In August 1917, after a speech in Ballinalee, County Longford, he was arrested by the RIC and charged with "speeches calculated to cause disaffection" ; he was detained in the Curragh camp and later sentenced to a year's hard labour in Mountjoy Jail - he became O/C of the Volunteer prisoners, and demanded prisoner-of-war status and, as a result, he was punished by the Governor.
He went on hunger strike on the 20th September 1917 and five days later died as a result of force-feeding by the prison authorities. He was just 32 years old.
The death of Thomas Ashe resulted in POW status being conceded to the Volunteer prisoners two days later.
Thomas Ashe's funeral was the first public funeral after the Rising and provided a focal point for public disaffection with British rule. His body lay in state in Dublin City Hall before being escorted by armed Volunteers to Glasnevin Cemetery.
30,000 people attended the burial where three volleys were fired over the grave and the Last Post was sounded. While imprisoned in Lewes Jail in 1916, Thomas Ashe had written his poem 'Let Me Carry Your Cross for Ireland, Lord' which later provided the inspiration for the Battle of Ashbourne memorial unveiled by Sean T. O'Kelly on Easter Sunday, 26th April 1959 at the Rath Cross in Ashbourne :
Let me carry your Cross for Ireland, Lord, the hour of her trial draws near, and the pangs and the pains of the sacrifice, may be borne by comrades dear.
But, Lord, take me from the offering throng, there are many far less prepared, through anxious and all as they are to die, that Ireland may be spared.
Let me carry your Cross for Ireland, Lord, my cares in this world are few, and few are the tears will for me fall, when I go on my way to You.
Spare Oh! spare to their loved ones dear, the brother and son and sire, that the cause we love may never die, in the land of our heart's desire!
Let me carry your Cross for Ireland, Lord! Let me suffer the pain and shame, I bow my head to their rage and hate, and I take on myself the blame.
Let them do with my body whate'er they will, my spirit I offer to You, that the faithful few who heard her call, may be spared to Roisin Dubh.
Let me carry your Cross for Ireland, Lord! For Ireland weak with tears, for the aged man of the clouded brow, and the child of tender years.
For the empty homes of her golden plains, for the hopes of her future, too! Let me carry your Cross for Ireland, Lord! For the cause of Roisin Dubh. (from here.)
Thomas Patrick Ashe - born 12th January 1885, died, at 32 years of age, on the 25th September 1917.
On the 29th April, 1924, 'The Daily Herald' newspaper printed an article under the heading 'Ulster Boundary Crisis', in which it condemned the pro-partition, anti-Irish 'Ulster Clauses' of the 1921 Treaty of Surrender.
The newspaper was not favoured by the political leadership in Westminster as it was not a 'propaganda pusher' for the 'Establishment' and was not as anti-Irish republican as Mr Lloyd George and his 'learned colleagues' would have liked.
The 'Ulster Clauses' (Articles 11 to 15, mostly) established the political mechanisms for the Occupied Six Counties to opt out of the new Irish Free State, should the (pro-British) Stormont administration decide to do so which, of course, was why the British established Stormont in the first place!
The 'Opt-Out' options, referenced in Articles 11 and 12, allowed for a 'grace period' of one month for Stormont politicians to judge the Leinster House (Free State) set-up and decide, basically, whether the occupied area should join the Staters or express allegiance to Westminster (a foregone conclusion, obviously, otherwise the 'option' would not have been offered!).
In its objection, the newspaper referenced Article 12, which established a 'Boundary Commission' ; the newspaper editor knew that such a commission, and its objective, would perpetuate the conflict rather than resolve it.
'The Daily Herald' frequently highlighted how the 'Ulster Clauses' and, indeed, the British military and political presence in Ireland, led to violence in the Occupied Six Counties and elsewhere in Ireland, viewing it as a direct result of Lloyd George's divisive policy, designed by him and his for political expediency.
A mainstream media outlet that's not bought by the politicians is sorely missed...
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Thanks for the visit, and for reading - appreciated!
Sharon and the team.
(We'll be back on Wednesday, 13th May 2026 - we're taking a 'lil more time off before then, 'cause me and himself are off soon for a few days in Waterford, so the 13th is an 'almost defo' date but...ah sure, ya know yerself...!)
