JOHN SADLEIR and WILLIAM KEOGH - 19th Century Irish Turncoats .......
.......with support from the 'Independent Irish Party' in Westminster , British 'Lord' Aberdeen and the 'Whigs' took control of the Administration - and almost immediately offered less that had been agreed to the 'Independent Irish Party' in return for their support .......
This led to rows and bickering within the 'IIP' , a signal which 'Lord' Aberdeen picked-up on and used to his own advantage - in true Brit 'divide and conquer'-style , Aberdeen offered John Sadleir IIP MP the position of ' Lord of The Treasury' in the new British Administration , and also 'threw a bone' to the other dog , William Keogh IIP MP - that of the Office of British Solicitor-General for Ireland !
...And both men took the offer ; and the Catholic Church , subservient as ever to the Brits , supported them for doing so ! This tore not only the 'Independent Irish Party' asunder (although it did manage to 'hobble' on for another few years , disintegrating along the way ) until finally it disbanded in 1858 , but it also disappointed Charles Gavan Duffy IIP MP , (one of the more prominent members of the party) so much that , in October 1855 , he emigrated to Australia in despair .
So - despite success at the polls , and having the 'ear' of the political bosses , and the 'respect' of the 'Establishment' and good , favourable media coverage , being well-dressed , well-spoken and well-paid , if you lose your political principles , you're finished - draw your own conclusions....
(MORE LATER).
WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :
war and peace in rebel Cork ,
in the turbulent years 1916-21.
By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.
1921 - The Big Round-Up.......
".......One of our lads , Corney , wanted to visit his family in West Cork but my uncle Dan advised against doing so by the mountain track as it would be swarming with British troops . But the men decided to go that route with Corney anyway , and asked me to go with them ......."
" Reluctantly , I agreed and the seven of us left together ; we had travelled over half-a-mile across country towards Renanirree when I stopped and asked the others again to consider staying where we were , or even to go in the opposite direction - I told them that they were going to be chased if not caught by the British on the bare mountains and that they would have a peaceful week anywhere to the south or east of us . It was no use ; I wished them luck and watched them go , for I felt lonely when they left me . I would have gone with them against my own judgement , but I had another reason for staying as well ...
I returned to Knocksaharing , and that night my uncle and I slept peacefully at Patsy Cooney's of Kilmacarogue , a quarter-mile from Dan's house . All the following afternoon and until late in the evening , I lay stretched in the heather on top of one of the foothills of Rahoona - it commanded an excellent view of the winding Ballyvourney Road at Pool na Bro , and stretches here and there as far east as Coolavokig . Equipped with a powerful pair of field glasses , little could pass unknown to me . One did not need the glasses to see the enemy , however ...
...at about two o'clock the procession started ; the massed columns of British infantry formed its principal feature - it was an imposing display , calculated to overawe as well as to destroy . The British infantry was made up most of the regular troops from Cork and Ballincollig Barracks . Their motor transport , with tents , field kitchens and other impedimenta added to the display ......."
(MORE LATER).
ETHIOPIA - A Brief History .......
(First published in 'HOT PRESS' Magazine , 6th May 1988 , Volume 12 , No. 8 , page 28).
Re-produced here in 10 parts .
(9 of 10).
After their drubbing at Adowa , the Italians had retired to their Eritrean and Somalian enclaves but Mussolini , inflamed with his fevered dreams of a new Roman Empire , invaded Ethiopia in 1935 . Evelyn Waugh , an Italian supporter , wrote of "the eagles of Ancient Rome , as they came to our savage ancestors in France and Britain and Germany , bringing the inestimable gifts of fine workmanship and clear judgement ... " but , in truth , the Italian campaign , with a policy of using poison gas and killing ten Ethiopians for every Italian casualty , was a prelude to the genocidal brutalities of the Second World War .
The Italian rule did'nt stick , however , and in 1941 , an Allied Force liberated Ethiopia and restored Haile Selassie to his throne . Both Italian wars had immensely added to Ethiopian prestige .
The first African independence movements seized on Ethiopia as an example and inspiration for their anti-colonial struggle whilst , as a feudal monarch , Haile Selassie was obviously friendlier to the West than Moscow or Peking ...
(MORE LATER).
Friday, June 18, 2004
JOHN SADLEIR and WILLIAM KEOGH - 19th Century Irish Turncoats .......
.......With about forty elected members in the British Parliament in Westminster , the 'Independent Irish Party' put its requests to 'Lord' Derby's Tory-led Government but were re-buffed - so the 'IIP' withdrew its support and that Administration collapsed .......
The main opposition party in Westminster , the 'Whigs' , led by 'Lord' Aberdeen , apparently promised John Sadleir IIP MP and William Keogh IIP MP that the 'Whigs' would be sympathetic to the interests of the 'Independent Irish Party' and the two Irish MP's , in turn , passed this information on to the Ruling Body of their own Party ; it was agreed to support the 'Whigs' in their bid for power which , with 'IIP' support , they got .
...And no sooner had 'Lord' Aberdeen climbed into the Prime Ministerial Chair when his political promises to Sadleir and Keogh were cast aside ; he was , it seems , prepared to 'honour' part of the agreement he made with the 'Independent Irish Party' representatives and Party , but not enough to satisfy them , and certainly not enough when compared with what he said he would do . This led to rows and bickering within the 'IIP' , a signal which 'Lord' Aberdeen picked-up on and used to his own advantage , in true Brit 'divide-and-conquer'-style.......
(MORE LATER).
WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :
war and peace in rebel Cork ,
in the turbulent years 1916-21.
By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.
1921 - The Big Round-Up.......
".......We knew the Brits were planning a round-up ; our IRA Column had been temporarly disbanded , although seven of us stayed together . We were discussing our immediate plans to lay low somewhere......"
" The weather was unusually fine and dry and the mountains along and across the Cork/Kerry border would be well searched by enemy infantry - it was easy enough to search the same mountains , as most of them were bare and devoid of even heather . Certainly , a column of men could not hope to escape attention from enemy columns scattered about on the neighbouring hills . Even one man could not move without being seen by any fairly vigilant and well-posted sentry .
All of us present well knew the disadvantages of the bare Kerry mountain in a round-up or in a clash with stronger enemy forces ; yet , six out of the seven voted to go to Kerry well beyond the western limit of the circle . To escape the net was not entirely their motive - Corney wanted to avail of the period of inactivity to pay a visit home to west Cork , and the others declared that they would accompany him some distance and then go further into Kerry to meet some of the Kerry IRA men we knew .
My uncle and I opposed the decision to go into any mountain country or to leave our own ground at all - " I think, " said Dan , " it is a great mistake to go near those mountains now , for they will be swarming with troops . I'd much prefer to keep the low , broken boggy ground , be damned! "
The man was wise and the next few days were to prove his wisdom ; however , the others decided to go and asked me to come with them ......."
(MORE LATER).
ETHIOPIA - A Brief History .......
(First published in 'HOT PRESS' Magazine , 6th May 1988 , Volume 12 , No. 8 , page 28).
Re-produced here in 10 parts .
(8 of 10).
The traumas of war and revolution inevitably caused economic stagnation which hindered Ethiopia's own ability to counteract the 1984/'85 famine . Also , though the Russians did give economic help , it was starved of Western governmental development aid ; while Somalia received $70 per capita and Sudan got $29 , Ethiopia was permitted only $9 . It was inevitable , in time, that things would give ...
The next significant Emperor , after Emperor Theodorus (1855-1868) was Johannes IV (1887-1889) who extended the 'royal' power , but battle was only really joined during the reign of his successor , Menilek (1889-1913). Under-funded , under-manned and unaware of the strength and firepower of Menilek's forces , previously supplied by French gunrunners like the poet , Arthur Rimbaud , the Italians marched into the mountainous interiors to be overwhelmed at Adowa in 1896 in what was the only conclusive African victory over a European power in the Colonial period .
So Menilek became the founder of the Ethiopian state , extending its rule to the south , west and east ; building Addis Ababa ; and starting the slow , technical modernisation of the state . At his death , Haile Selassie attained power , first as Regent , in 1916 , finally ascending the imperial throne in 1930 to face the second Italian assault on Ethiopia .......
(MORE LATER).
.......With about forty elected members in the British Parliament in Westminster , the 'Independent Irish Party' put its requests to 'Lord' Derby's Tory-led Government but were re-buffed - so the 'IIP' withdrew its support and that Administration collapsed .......
The main opposition party in Westminster , the 'Whigs' , led by 'Lord' Aberdeen , apparently promised John Sadleir IIP MP and William Keogh IIP MP that the 'Whigs' would be sympathetic to the interests of the 'Independent Irish Party' and the two Irish MP's , in turn , passed this information on to the Ruling Body of their own Party ; it was agreed to support the 'Whigs' in their bid for power which , with 'IIP' support , they got .
...And no sooner had 'Lord' Aberdeen climbed into the Prime Ministerial Chair when his political promises to Sadleir and Keogh were cast aside ; he was , it seems , prepared to 'honour' part of the agreement he made with the 'Independent Irish Party' representatives and Party , but not enough to satisfy them , and certainly not enough when compared with what he said he would do . This led to rows and bickering within the 'IIP' , a signal which 'Lord' Aberdeen picked-up on and used to his own advantage , in true Brit 'divide-and-conquer'-style.......
(MORE LATER).
WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :
war and peace in rebel Cork ,
in the turbulent years 1916-21.
By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.
1921 - The Big Round-Up.......
".......We knew the Brits were planning a round-up ; our IRA Column had been temporarly disbanded , although seven of us stayed together . We were discussing our immediate plans to lay low somewhere......"
" The weather was unusually fine and dry and the mountains along and across the Cork/Kerry border would be well searched by enemy infantry - it was easy enough to search the same mountains , as most of them were bare and devoid of even heather . Certainly , a column of men could not hope to escape attention from enemy columns scattered about on the neighbouring hills . Even one man could not move without being seen by any fairly vigilant and well-posted sentry .
All of us present well knew the disadvantages of the bare Kerry mountain in a round-up or in a clash with stronger enemy forces ; yet , six out of the seven voted to go to Kerry well beyond the western limit of the circle . To escape the net was not entirely their motive - Corney wanted to avail of the period of inactivity to pay a visit home to west Cork , and the others declared that they would accompany him some distance and then go further into Kerry to meet some of the Kerry IRA men we knew .
My uncle and I opposed the decision to go into any mountain country or to leave our own ground at all - " I think, " said Dan , " it is a great mistake to go near those mountains now , for they will be swarming with troops . I'd much prefer to keep the low , broken boggy ground , be damned! "
The man was wise and the next few days were to prove his wisdom ; however , the others decided to go and asked me to come with them ......."
(MORE LATER).
ETHIOPIA - A Brief History .......
(First published in 'HOT PRESS' Magazine , 6th May 1988 , Volume 12 , No. 8 , page 28).
Re-produced here in 10 parts .
(8 of 10).
The traumas of war and revolution inevitably caused economic stagnation which hindered Ethiopia's own ability to counteract the 1984/'85 famine . Also , though the Russians did give economic help , it was starved of Western governmental development aid ; while Somalia received $70 per capita and Sudan got $29 , Ethiopia was permitted only $9 . It was inevitable , in time, that things would give ...
The next significant Emperor , after Emperor Theodorus (1855-1868) was Johannes IV (1887-1889) who extended the 'royal' power , but battle was only really joined during the reign of his successor , Menilek (1889-1913). Under-funded , under-manned and unaware of the strength and firepower of Menilek's forces , previously supplied by French gunrunners like the poet , Arthur Rimbaud , the Italians marched into the mountainous interiors to be overwhelmed at Adowa in 1896 in what was the only conclusive African victory over a European power in the Colonial period .
So Menilek became the founder of the Ethiopian state , extending its rule to the south , west and east ; building Addis Ababa ; and starting the slow , technical modernisation of the state . At his death , Haile Selassie attained power , first as Regent , in 1916 , finally ascending the imperial throne in 1930 to face the second Italian assault on Ethiopia .......
(MORE LATER).
Thursday, June 17, 2004
JOHN SADLEIR and WILLIAM KEOGH - 19th Century Irish Turncoats .......
.......the newly-formed 'Independent Irish Party' (composed of 'The Irish Brigade' and 'The Tenant Right League') appeared adamant that the British would be challenged on their mis-rule in Ireland , with particular reference to the 1851 'Ecclesiastical Titles Bill' ; however , the Brits had seen it all before .......
The new 'Independent Irish Party' was flexing its muscle ; as William Keogh (a Barrister and MP for Athlone) put it - " I will not support any party which does not make it the first ingredient of their political existence to repeal the Ecclesiastical Titles Bill . So help me God ..... " By this stage , Charles Gavan Duffy had been elected as an 'Independent Irish Party' MP to Westminster , representing the New Ross area of Wexford .
The ' IIP ' , with forty members elected to Westminster , did actually hold the balance of power in 'Lord' Derby's Tory-led government in Westminster and so pressed their claims with that administration regarding the 'Titles Bill' and other matters pertaining to Ireland - but they got no satisfaction from 'Lord' Derby or any of his Ministers ...
...so the 'IIP' 'pulled the plug' and the British Government of the day collapsed .......
(MORE LATER).
WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :
war and peace in rebel Cork ,
in the turbulent years 1916-21.
By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.
1921 - The Big Round-Up.
" The 'Big Round-Up' started on the evening of Sunday , 5th June 1921 , at Ballyvourney - we had been expecting it daily for at least a fortnight , and our IRA Column had been disbanded in the face of it . Seven of us had so far kept together ; Corney O'Sullivan , Jim and Miah Grey , Paddy Donncha Eoin , Patsy Lynch , my brother Pat and I : we had stayed in the neighbourhood of the village or Cross of Kilnamartyra , at Lios Bui , or kilmacarogue , or Doirin na Ceardchan , or Knocksaharing with our good friends and comrades .
Now , on Saturday morning , we had got definite news that the round-up was about to begin on the morrow . In the kitchen of the old house at Knocksaharing we discussed the matter ; my uncle was present with the seven of us . While nothing very definite was known about the impending enemy operation , we knew that it was going to be very thorough and widespread - to anticipate its boundaries was now the vital consideration . Hitherto , when hard pressed , we had always crossed the border into Kerry , and when things had quietened down again had returned .
Sure enough , there were large areas in Kerry that would escape encirclement in this round-up , but to select those areas was the crux - again , it was obvious that the nearest safe part of Kerry during this period would be many miles from the Cork border......."
(MORE LATER).
ETHIOPIA - A Brief History .......
(First published in 'HOT PRESS' Magazine , 6th May 1988 , Volume 12 , No. 8 , page 28).
Re-produced here in 10 parts .
(7 of 10).
For a year from September 1976 , a 'red terror' was conducted against students and civilians linked with the regime's revolutionary competitors in the 'Ethiopian Peoples Revolutionary Party' , albeit that the 'EPRP' had also begun its own assassination campaign against Mengisty's supporters . Some claim over 1,000 of the 5,000 students at Addis Ababa University died ; Amnesty International calculates 30,000 were imprisoned and several thousand killed - but the West has tolerated many regimes with a bloody birth . What it could'nt accept was Mengisty's Russian alliance .
At the most traumatic and apparently vulnerable point of the Ethiopian revolution , Somalia invaded the south-eastern Ogaden Desert region . Previously Russia had backed Somalia ; initially it tried to mediate before eventually siding with the more strategically valuable Ethiopia - it was Cuban troops who helped to drive out the Somalis , who themselves had switched over to an American alliance ...
(MORE LATER).
.......the newly-formed 'Independent Irish Party' (composed of 'The Irish Brigade' and 'The Tenant Right League') appeared adamant that the British would be challenged on their mis-rule in Ireland , with particular reference to the 1851 'Ecclesiastical Titles Bill' ; however , the Brits had seen it all before .......
The new 'Independent Irish Party' was flexing its muscle ; as William Keogh (a Barrister and MP for Athlone) put it - " I will not support any party which does not make it the first ingredient of their political existence to repeal the Ecclesiastical Titles Bill . So help me God ..... " By this stage , Charles Gavan Duffy had been elected as an 'Independent Irish Party' MP to Westminster , representing the New Ross area of Wexford .
The ' IIP ' , with forty members elected to Westminster , did actually hold the balance of power in 'Lord' Derby's Tory-led government in Westminster and so pressed their claims with that administration regarding the 'Titles Bill' and other matters pertaining to Ireland - but they got no satisfaction from 'Lord' Derby or any of his Ministers ...
...so the 'IIP' 'pulled the plug' and the British Government of the day collapsed .......
(MORE LATER).
WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :
war and peace in rebel Cork ,
in the turbulent years 1916-21.
By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.
1921 - The Big Round-Up.
" The 'Big Round-Up' started on the evening of Sunday , 5th June 1921 , at Ballyvourney - we had been expecting it daily for at least a fortnight , and our IRA Column had been disbanded in the face of it . Seven of us had so far kept together ; Corney O'Sullivan , Jim and Miah Grey , Paddy Donncha Eoin , Patsy Lynch , my brother Pat and I : we had stayed in the neighbourhood of the village or Cross of Kilnamartyra , at Lios Bui , or kilmacarogue , or Doirin na Ceardchan , or Knocksaharing with our good friends and comrades .
Now , on Saturday morning , we had got definite news that the round-up was about to begin on the morrow . In the kitchen of the old house at Knocksaharing we discussed the matter ; my uncle was present with the seven of us . While nothing very definite was known about the impending enemy operation , we knew that it was going to be very thorough and widespread - to anticipate its boundaries was now the vital consideration . Hitherto , when hard pressed , we had always crossed the border into Kerry , and when things had quietened down again had returned .
Sure enough , there were large areas in Kerry that would escape encirclement in this round-up , but to select those areas was the crux - again , it was obvious that the nearest safe part of Kerry during this period would be many miles from the Cork border......."
(MORE LATER).
ETHIOPIA - A Brief History .......
(First published in 'HOT PRESS' Magazine , 6th May 1988 , Volume 12 , No. 8 , page 28).
Re-produced here in 10 parts .
(7 of 10).
For a year from September 1976 , a 'red terror' was conducted against students and civilians linked with the regime's revolutionary competitors in the 'Ethiopian Peoples Revolutionary Party' , albeit that the 'EPRP' had also begun its own assassination campaign against Mengisty's supporters . Some claim over 1,000 of the 5,000 students at Addis Ababa University died ; Amnesty International calculates 30,000 were imprisoned and several thousand killed - but the West has tolerated many regimes with a bloody birth . What it could'nt accept was Mengisty's Russian alliance .
At the most traumatic and apparently vulnerable point of the Ethiopian revolution , Somalia invaded the south-eastern Ogaden Desert region . Previously Russia had backed Somalia ; initially it tried to mediate before eventually siding with the more strategically valuable Ethiopia - it was Cuban troops who helped to drive out the Somalis , who themselves had switched over to an American alliance ...
(MORE LATER).
Wednesday, June 16, 2004
JOHN SADLEIR and WILLIAM KEOGH - 19th Century Irish Turncoats .......
.......the pro-Catholic Church lobby-group , ' The Irish Brigade ' , and the 'Young Ireland Movement'-supported 'Tenant Right League' were against the British 'Ecclesiastical Titles Bill'.......
In 1852 , 'The Irish Brigade' and 'The Tenant Right League' joined forces to get the 'Ecclesiastical Titles Bill' revoked and , in July that year (1852) the new organisation came together as 'The Independent Irish Party' . This new Party declared that " legislative independence is the clear , eternal and inalienable right of this country , and that no settlement of the affairs of Ireland can be permanent until that right is recognised and established ....(we will) take the most prompt and effective measures for the protection of the lives and interests of the Irish people , and the attainment of their natural rights . "
John Sadleir and William Keogh , two of the more prominent MP's in 'The Independent Irish Party' (of which there were about forty , as the new 'IIP' was joined by Irish MP's in Westminster) , like all the other 'IIP' representatives , took a pledge not to accept any Office in a Westminster Administration or to co-operate with same until , amongst other things , the 'Ecclesiastical Titles Bill' was done away ; however , the British had seen developments like this in their other ' colony's ' and were preparing to manoeuvre things in their own favour .......
WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :
war and peace in rebel Cork ,
in the turbulent years 1916-21.
By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.
KNOCKSAHARING.......
"....... Ireland , early 20th Century ; Irishmen and women faced death each day , either from the enemy or from nature ; but the 'Poorhouse' was to be feared as well - families were split-up in these institutions : mothers pulled from their children , husbands from their wives , brothers from their sisters ......."
" And it happened in the 'Poorhouse' of Macroom , and Canon Peter O'Leary (An t-Ahair Peadar) has given the names of the family and the details of their sufferings in 'Mo Sgeal Fein' - he tells how Diarmaidin was separated from Sheila , his little sister , how he died and his body was thrown into the pit at Carraig a' Staire with other Famine victims ; how Sheila soon followed him there and how , a few days later , the father and mother struggled home to die .
He records how Padraig and Cait stopped at the Famine Pit at Carraig a' Staire : somewhere underneath were the bodies of their children , but their bright souls were in a better world "where tyrants 'taint not nature's bliss ." Having cried enough , the parents turned their faces towards their cabin in Doire Lia , six miles away to the north-west . Here they were found the following morning by a neighbour - both were dead . Cait's feet were clasped by Padraig to his breast inside his shirt ; it had been his last effort to somehow save her life...
Canon O'Leary almost lived to see the 'Poorhouse' laid low ; how the man who wrote 'Mo Sgeal Fein' would rejoice with us at its passing !
[END of 'KNOCKSAHARING.......'].
(Tomorrow - '1921-The Big Round-Up.)
ETHIOPIA - A Brief History .......
(First published in 'HOT PRESS' Magazine , 6th May 1988 , Volume 12 , No. 8 , page 28).
Re-produced here in 10 parts .
(6 of 10).
Only when British journalist Jonathan Dimbleby inflitrated the famine zone and smuggled his film of the horrific scenes back to London did Haile Selassie's government concede the immensity of the suffering ; it was the last throw of a corrupt and senile regime . The small young educated 'elite' in the universities and among the junior officers had already recognised the chasm between Haile Selassie and his showy international pretensions , and Ethiopia's true backwardness - the discontent erupted and the students struck and then marched on the Palace , bizarrely , after gathering at the only meeting the nervous authorities could'nt forbid - an American Peace Corps Fashion Show !
The Junior Officers took the leadership as 'the creeping coup' of 1974 displaced the Emperor . Finally , Haile Miriam-Mengisty emerged as leader of the revolutionary regime - a government which itself attracted much Western criticism during the 1984/'85 famine . This partially derived from the bloody events of the immediate post-revolutionary period ; many 'aristocrats' and Imperial Officials were executed . Within the military revolutionary 'elite' , opponents of Mengisty and his alies were also shot .......
(MORE LATER).
.......the pro-Catholic Church lobby-group , ' The Irish Brigade ' , and the 'Young Ireland Movement'-supported 'Tenant Right League' were against the British 'Ecclesiastical Titles Bill'.......
In 1852 , 'The Irish Brigade' and 'The Tenant Right League' joined forces to get the 'Ecclesiastical Titles Bill' revoked and , in July that year (1852) the new organisation came together as 'The Independent Irish Party' . This new Party declared that " legislative independence is the clear , eternal and inalienable right of this country , and that no settlement of the affairs of Ireland can be permanent until that right is recognised and established ....(we will) take the most prompt and effective measures for the protection of the lives and interests of the Irish people , and the attainment of their natural rights . "
John Sadleir and William Keogh , two of the more prominent MP's in 'The Independent Irish Party' (of which there were about forty , as the new 'IIP' was joined by Irish MP's in Westminster) , like all the other 'IIP' representatives , took a pledge not to accept any Office in a Westminster Administration or to co-operate with same until , amongst other things , the 'Ecclesiastical Titles Bill' was done away ; however , the British had seen developments like this in their other ' colony's ' and were preparing to manoeuvre things in their own favour .......
WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :
war and peace in rebel Cork ,
in the turbulent years 1916-21.
By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.
KNOCKSAHARING.......
"....... Ireland , early 20th Century ; Irishmen and women faced death each day , either from the enemy or from nature ; but the 'Poorhouse' was to be feared as well - families were split-up in these institutions : mothers pulled from their children , husbands from their wives , brothers from their sisters ......."
" And it happened in the 'Poorhouse' of Macroom , and Canon Peter O'Leary (An t-Ahair Peadar) has given the names of the family and the details of their sufferings in 'Mo Sgeal Fein' - he tells how Diarmaidin was separated from Sheila , his little sister , how he died and his body was thrown into the pit at Carraig a' Staire with other Famine victims ; how Sheila soon followed him there and how , a few days later , the father and mother struggled home to die .
He records how Padraig and Cait stopped at the Famine Pit at Carraig a' Staire : somewhere underneath were the bodies of their children , but their bright souls were in a better world "where tyrants 'taint not nature's bliss ." Having cried enough , the parents turned their faces towards their cabin in Doire Lia , six miles away to the north-west . Here they were found the following morning by a neighbour - both were dead . Cait's feet were clasped by Padraig to his breast inside his shirt ; it had been his last effort to somehow save her life...
Canon O'Leary almost lived to see the 'Poorhouse' laid low ; how the man who wrote 'Mo Sgeal Fein' would rejoice with us at its passing !
[END of 'KNOCKSAHARING.......'].
(Tomorrow - '1921-The Big Round-Up.)
ETHIOPIA - A Brief History .......
(First published in 'HOT PRESS' Magazine , 6th May 1988 , Volume 12 , No. 8 , page 28).
Re-produced here in 10 parts .
(6 of 10).
Only when British journalist Jonathan Dimbleby inflitrated the famine zone and smuggled his film of the horrific scenes back to London did Haile Selassie's government concede the immensity of the suffering ; it was the last throw of a corrupt and senile regime . The small young educated 'elite' in the universities and among the junior officers had already recognised the chasm between Haile Selassie and his showy international pretensions , and Ethiopia's true backwardness - the discontent erupted and the students struck and then marched on the Palace , bizarrely , after gathering at the only meeting the nervous authorities could'nt forbid - an American Peace Corps Fashion Show !
The Junior Officers took the leadership as 'the creeping coup' of 1974 displaced the Emperor . Finally , Haile Miriam-Mengisty emerged as leader of the revolutionary regime - a government which itself attracted much Western criticism during the 1984/'85 famine . This partially derived from the bloody events of the immediate post-revolutionary period ; many 'aristocrats' and Imperial Officials were executed . Within the military revolutionary 'elite' , opponents of Mengisty and his alies were also shot .......
(MORE LATER).
Tuesday, June 15, 2004
JOHN SADLEIR and WILLIAM KEOGH - 19th Century Irish Turncoats .......
....... At 36 years of age , in 1851 , and a prominent member of the Catholic Church-led lobby group 'The Irish Brigade' , John Sadleir witnessed the introduction by the British of the 'Ecclesiastical Titles Bill ' , which aimed to curb the activities of the Catholic Church .......
It was now 'illegal' to be described as a 'Parish Priest' , 'Bishop' etc - at least it was so in writing ; but this 'law' was not followed-up (ie enforced) on the ground (what we in Ireland would call "an Irish solution to an Irish problem " !). However , enforced or not , the 'Titles Bill' was vehemently opposed by John Sadleir and William Keogh and 'The Irish Brigade' (who were by now known by the nick-name of 'The Popes Brass Band' , such was their support for the Catholic Hierarchy !) ; others , too , were opposed to the 'Bill' ...
... a group known as the 'Tenant Right League' , which had been founded in 1850 by 'Young Ireland' Movement leaders Charles Gavan Duffy and Frederick Lucas (to secure better conditions for those that worked the land) also campaigned against 'The Ecclesiastical Titles Bill' .
The 'Tenant Right League' was formed in City Assembly House in William Street , Dublin , in August 1850 , after a four-day conference , attended by a right mix of people - magistrates , 'landlords' , tenants themselves , priests (of both Catholic and Presbyterian persuasion) and newspaper journalists and editors .......
(MORE LATER).
WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :
war and peace in rebel Cork ,
in the turbulent years 1916-21.
By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.
KNOCKSAHARING.......
".......According to the Brits , they suffered no casualties due to our ambush -their usual claim ! However , they got far more than they bargained for that day when they met us , instead of the unarmed civilians they were after ......."
" We rejoiced , also, to hear of the destruction of the 'Union of Macroom ' , or the 'Workhouse' , or 'Poorhouse' , as it was variously called ; that cursed institution , and all the others of its kind throughout the country , had been for long the nightmare of the people . For too long they had obtruded their obscene presence between them and the light of God . What untold suffering of mind and body did their vile and ugly walls and gates encompass , not so long ago ! But suffering and despair were not confined to their compass or environs ...
...their influence went abroad like a virulent miasma , like Cromwell's corpse "to poison half mankind." Built , ostensibly , as 'charitable institutions' , the devil quickly became their patron - charity , the most formidable of virtures , was soon deleted from his programme . As an instrument of oppression , the Poorhouse far surpassed the gaol (jail) or the hangman's rope . For it struck at the whole family : first it haunted the parents for , if the 'landlord' wanted their land or they failed to pay the rent , what were their prospects ?
If they had the money they could emigrate - that would be bad enough but , failing that , there was the other 'option' ; the 'Poorhouse' . The prospect of death would not appal an Irish man or woman unduly , but the 'Poorhouse' , where the father would be separated from the mother , and the brother from the sister ...what torture could be more diabolically devised ...?
(MORE LATER).
ETHIOPIA - A Brief History .......
(First published in 'HOT PRESS' Magazine , 6th May 1988 , Volume 12 , No. 8 , page 28).
Re-produced here in 10 parts .
(5 of 10).
Instead a second strategic factor came into play - if Ethiopia's highlands made her impregnable , her coast was a more attractive prospect : now it guards the oil-tanker routes but , in the 19th Century , Britain's most crucial interest was to protect the Suez Canal - Red Sea passage to its Indian empire .
The British did'nt want the rival French interfering so they tolerated and sponsored the Italians as 'junior imperial partners' to gain a foothold on the Eritrean coast . Against this bleak background came the '72/3 famine and the consequent revolution ; this drought , which afflicated all the Sahel countries , was accounted the most devastating in the region since 1913 but the Ethiopian people suffered the greatest ravages through the inexcusable apathy of their government .
Traditional Ethiopian attitudes to famine were fatalistic , indeed almost medieval , in a belief that famine was God's punishment for man's sins that could only be countered by prayer . But Haile Selassie's government denied even the existence of the famine , acting as if the tragedy was merely a seasonal culling of the peasantry .......
(MORE LATER).
....... At 36 years of age , in 1851 , and a prominent member of the Catholic Church-led lobby group 'The Irish Brigade' , John Sadleir witnessed the introduction by the British of the 'Ecclesiastical Titles Bill ' , which aimed to curb the activities of the Catholic Church .......
It was now 'illegal' to be described as a 'Parish Priest' , 'Bishop' etc - at least it was so in writing ; but this 'law' was not followed-up (ie enforced) on the ground (what we in Ireland would call "an Irish solution to an Irish problem " !). However , enforced or not , the 'Titles Bill' was vehemently opposed by John Sadleir and William Keogh and 'The Irish Brigade' (who were by now known by the nick-name of 'The Popes Brass Band' , such was their support for the Catholic Hierarchy !) ; others , too , were opposed to the 'Bill' ...
... a group known as the 'Tenant Right League' , which had been founded in 1850 by 'Young Ireland' Movement leaders Charles Gavan Duffy and Frederick Lucas (to secure better conditions for those that worked the land) also campaigned against 'The Ecclesiastical Titles Bill' .
The 'Tenant Right League' was formed in City Assembly House in William Street , Dublin , in August 1850 , after a four-day conference , attended by a right mix of people - magistrates , 'landlords' , tenants themselves , priests (of both Catholic and Presbyterian persuasion) and newspaper journalists and editors .......
(MORE LATER).
WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :
war and peace in rebel Cork ,
in the turbulent years 1916-21.
By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.
KNOCKSAHARING.......
".......According to the Brits , they suffered no casualties due to our ambush -their usual claim ! However , they got far more than they bargained for that day when they met us , instead of the unarmed civilians they were after ......."
" We rejoiced , also, to hear of the destruction of the 'Union of Macroom ' , or the 'Workhouse' , or 'Poorhouse' , as it was variously called ; that cursed institution , and all the others of its kind throughout the country , had been for long the nightmare of the people . For too long they had obtruded their obscene presence between them and the light of God . What untold suffering of mind and body did their vile and ugly walls and gates encompass , not so long ago ! But suffering and despair were not confined to their compass or environs ...
...their influence went abroad like a virulent miasma , like Cromwell's corpse "to poison half mankind." Built , ostensibly , as 'charitable institutions' , the devil quickly became their patron - charity , the most formidable of virtures , was soon deleted from his programme . As an instrument of oppression , the Poorhouse far surpassed the gaol (jail) or the hangman's rope . For it struck at the whole family : first it haunted the parents for , if the 'landlord' wanted their land or they failed to pay the rent , what were their prospects ?
If they had the money they could emigrate - that would be bad enough but , failing that , there was the other 'option' ; the 'Poorhouse' . The prospect of death would not appal an Irish man or woman unduly , but the 'Poorhouse' , where the father would be separated from the mother , and the brother from the sister ...what torture could be more diabolically devised ...?
(MORE LATER).
ETHIOPIA - A Brief History .......
(First published in 'HOT PRESS' Magazine , 6th May 1988 , Volume 12 , No. 8 , page 28).
Re-produced here in 10 parts .
(5 of 10).
Instead a second strategic factor came into play - if Ethiopia's highlands made her impregnable , her coast was a more attractive prospect : now it guards the oil-tanker routes but , in the 19th Century , Britain's most crucial interest was to protect the Suez Canal - Red Sea passage to its Indian empire .
The British did'nt want the rival French interfering so they tolerated and sponsored the Italians as 'junior imperial partners' to gain a foothold on the Eritrean coast . Against this bleak background came the '72/3 famine and the consequent revolution ; this drought , which afflicated all the Sahel countries , was accounted the most devastating in the region since 1913 but the Ethiopian people suffered the greatest ravages through the inexcusable apathy of their government .
Traditional Ethiopian attitudes to famine were fatalistic , indeed almost medieval , in a belief that famine was God's punishment for man's sins that could only be countered by prayer . But Haile Selassie's government denied even the existence of the famine , acting as if the tragedy was merely a seasonal culling of the peasantry .......
(MORE LATER).
Monday, June 14, 2004
JOHN SADLEIR and WILLIAM KEOGH - 19th Century Irish Turncoats .......
.......The Irish were 'down' but not 'out' - various secret societies were striking-back as best they could against the ruthlessness of the British 'ruling-class' and their 'Landlords' and agents .......
It was into this era that a child was born in 1815 , in County Tipperary ; John Sadleir . At the time that John Sadleir was growing-up , a man named George Henry Moore (who was connected to , and supported by , the Catholic Church Hierarchy) was organising a 'pressure-group' which was to be called the 'Irish Brigade' to lobby Westminster on behalf of the Catholic Church , its members , and its 'flock' - John Sadleir joined the 'Irish Brigade' lobby-group and became a prominent member of it , as did about twenty liberal-minded British MP's , including William Keogh (who , in later years , was to be appointed a Judge by the British , to act against the Fenians).
When John Sadleir was 36 years of age (in 1851) the British Administration introduced the 'Ecclesiastical Titles Bill' (on 6th February 1851) making it 'illegal' for any Catholic prelate (ie Priest , Arch-Bishop , Bishop etc) to be that which the Vatican claimed him to be - that is , under the 'Ecclesiastical Titles Bill' it was deemed to be 'a crime' to be described as the 'Parish Priest of XXX' , 'Arch-Bishop of XXX' , 'Bishop of XXX' ! In short , the assumption of titles by Roman Catholic Priests was outlawed by Westminster .......
(MORE LATER).
WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :
war and peace in rebel Cork ,
in the turbulent years 1916-21.
By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.
KNOCKSAHARING.......
".......We had scattered the British Auxiliaries during our ambush , but now they had re-grouped and were coming back on foot ; it was time for us to withdraw ......."
" Leaving my uncle's house , we went southwards to Lios Bui where an aeroplane hovered over us in an azure sky ; it circled about as if looking for a movement of troops - that was one decided advantage we had over the British forces - we could , without aeroplanes , easily discover British troop movements , while it was quite impossible for them to detect ours, for the simple reason that the 'troops' did not exist ! It would require keen eyes to see the seven of us reclining against a rock in the middle of the Lios Bui Bog ...
The day being still young , and we feeling hungry , we crossed the Toon River to the Claonrath houses where we had tea - then , as the sun started to decline , we retraced our steps to Patsy Dineen's where we heard the news of the day . The Auxiliaries had retrieved their comrades and the lorry and started for Macroom but , at Carrigaphooca , three miles from the town , they found the road blocked by trees . In a panic , fearful of another ambush , they tore them away and broke through ; reaching Macroom , they found that the Workhouse had been burned in their absence ! It had not been , for them , a very profitable day - they had , in fact , received what the Irish would call "more kicks than ha'pence !"
We were unable to find out anything about the enemy's losses on that day ; the Auxies reported that they had no casualties , as they would do in any case , but we could not claim that we had inflicted any , even if we had killed numbers of them in the lorries . We had not even the opportunity of seeing what happened to the lorry that was ditched . The one thing certain was that they had got a bad fright - they had come out to Renanirree expecting to find a number of people , unarmed , gathered together in the school or dance hall . Had they found them , they would , like the brutal yeoman Hempenstall , have constituted themselves as judge , jury , hangman , gallows , rope and all......."
(MORE LATER).
ETHIOPIA - A Brief History .......
(First published in 'HOT PRESS' Magazine , 6th May 1988 , Volume 12 , No. 8 , page 28).
Re-produced here in 10 parts .
(4 of 10).
By then , Ethiopia's isolation had led to the romantic European myth of 'Prester John' , a benevolent Christian King encircled by the hordes of pagan Africa ; the reality was less glamorous - by the 19th Century , the 'King of Kings' had only a titular role , with the real powers held by the Provincial 'Lords' . As the European powers began the colonisation of Africa , the Ethiopian monarchy revived ; Emperor Theodorus (1855-1868) was the first to seek to re-establish its powers but when (British) Queen Victoria's minions (through insensitive bureaucratic omission , it must be said) refused to answer a diplomatic letter and he imprisoned the British representatives at his court , a punitive expedition led to his defeat and suicide .
But this colonial foray was'nt a prelude to British conquest . Their campaign had been much aided by the other Ethiopian Lords' refusal to support the unpopular and over-ambitious Theodorus . Besides , the British would soon be embroiled fighting the Mahdi in the neighbouring Sudan .......
(MORE LATER).
.......The Irish were 'down' but not 'out' - various secret societies were striking-back as best they could against the ruthlessness of the British 'ruling-class' and their 'Landlords' and agents .......
It was into this era that a child was born in 1815 , in County Tipperary ; John Sadleir . At the time that John Sadleir was growing-up , a man named George Henry Moore (who was connected to , and supported by , the Catholic Church Hierarchy) was organising a 'pressure-group' which was to be called the 'Irish Brigade' to lobby Westminster on behalf of the Catholic Church , its members , and its 'flock' - John Sadleir joined the 'Irish Brigade' lobby-group and became a prominent member of it , as did about twenty liberal-minded British MP's , including William Keogh (who , in later years , was to be appointed a Judge by the British , to act against the Fenians).
When John Sadleir was 36 years of age (in 1851) the British Administration introduced the 'Ecclesiastical Titles Bill' (on 6th February 1851) making it 'illegal' for any Catholic prelate (ie Priest , Arch-Bishop , Bishop etc) to be that which the Vatican claimed him to be - that is , under the 'Ecclesiastical Titles Bill' it was deemed to be 'a crime' to be described as the 'Parish Priest of XXX' , 'Arch-Bishop of XXX' , 'Bishop of XXX' ! In short , the assumption of titles by Roman Catholic Priests was outlawed by Westminster .......
(MORE LATER).
WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :
war and peace in rebel Cork ,
in the turbulent years 1916-21.
By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.
KNOCKSAHARING.......
".......We had scattered the British Auxiliaries during our ambush , but now they had re-grouped and were coming back on foot ; it was time for us to withdraw ......."
" Leaving my uncle's house , we went southwards to Lios Bui where an aeroplane hovered over us in an azure sky ; it circled about as if looking for a movement of troops - that was one decided advantage we had over the British forces - we could , without aeroplanes , easily discover British troop movements , while it was quite impossible for them to detect ours, for the simple reason that the 'troops' did not exist ! It would require keen eyes to see the seven of us reclining against a rock in the middle of the Lios Bui Bog ...
The day being still young , and we feeling hungry , we crossed the Toon River to the Claonrath houses where we had tea - then , as the sun started to decline , we retraced our steps to Patsy Dineen's where we heard the news of the day . The Auxiliaries had retrieved their comrades and the lorry and started for Macroom but , at Carrigaphooca , three miles from the town , they found the road blocked by trees . In a panic , fearful of another ambush , they tore them away and broke through ; reaching Macroom , they found that the Workhouse had been burned in their absence ! It had not been , for them , a very profitable day - they had , in fact , received what the Irish would call "more kicks than ha'pence !"
We were unable to find out anything about the enemy's losses on that day ; the Auxies reported that they had no casualties , as they would do in any case , but we could not claim that we had inflicted any , even if we had killed numbers of them in the lorries . We had not even the opportunity of seeing what happened to the lorry that was ditched . The one thing certain was that they had got a bad fright - they had come out to Renanirree expecting to find a number of people , unarmed , gathered together in the school or dance hall . Had they found them , they would , like the brutal yeoman Hempenstall , have constituted themselves as judge , jury , hangman , gallows , rope and all......."
(MORE LATER).
ETHIOPIA - A Brief History .......
(First published in 'HOT PRESS' Magazine , 6th May 1988 , Volume 12 , No. 8 , page 28).
Re-produced here in 10 parts .
(4 of 10).
By then , Ethiopia's isolation had led to the romantic European myth of 'Prester John' , a benevolent Christian King encircled by the hordes of pagan Africa ; the reality was less glamorous - by the 19th Century , the 'King of Kings' had only a titular role , with the real powers held by the Provincial 'Lords' . As the European powers began the colonisation of Africa , the Ethiopian monarchy revived ; Emperor Theodorus (1855-1868) was the first to seek to re-establish its powers but when (British) Queen Victoria's minions (through insensitive bureaucratic omission , it must be said) refused to answer a diplomatic letter and he imprisoned the British representatives at his court , a punitive expedition led to his defeat and suicide .
But this colonial foray was'nt a prelude to British conquest . Their campaign had been much aided by the other Ethiopian Lords' refusal to support the unpopular and over-ambitious Theodorus . Besides , the British would soon be embroiled fighting the Mahdi in the neighbouring Sudan .......
(MORE LATER).
Sunday, June 13, 2004
JOHN SADLEIR and WILLIAM KEOGH - 19th Century Irish Turncoats .......
....... ' The only time an Irish female slept in a bed was when her master was in it , and Irishmen were honoured when that happened ' - such was the attitude of the British 'ruling class' in 18th Century Ireland .......
However , the Irish spirit was strong ; the British 'Landlords' and their agents did not have it all their own way . The so-called " lower-ranks " , the " wretched people " , those who wore " the mark of slavery " , had organised themselves as best they could - secret , underground oath-bound societies fought back -
- the Whiteboys , Oakboys , Moonlighters , the Defenders and the Steelboys ; fences belonging to British 'Landlords' were ripped-up , the 'masters' cattle were taken , his haystacks and crop removed , his 'Big House' attacked and , when possible, levelled and burnt and he himself , and his minions , put to death when the opportunity presented itself to do so .
It was into this 'melting-pot of madness' that a child was born in County Tipperary in 1815 - John Sadleir .......
(MORE LATER).
WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :
war and peace in rebel Cork ,
in the turbulent years 1916-21.
By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.
KNOCKSAHARING.......
".......Six of the seven British lorries had left the scene - the troops from the seventh one were in hiding , pinned-down by us but still firing back at us . We were about to send a few men to out-flank them ......."
" A shout from Caherdaha Hill drew our attention to the east . A man stood on a fence and pointed downwards to Aha Tiompain . After the first outburst of firing , and as we had watched the British lorries disappear down the road to Macroom , we had heard a wild cheer from the same point . A group that watched there had given vent to their feelings in a 'Gair Caha' . The group was still there but now they had sounded a warning - the Brits had stopped in their lorries just out of our sight , and now they were coming back in skirmishing order along the high ground on both sides of the road . There was no hurry but yet any delay might endanger us .
We had a wholesome respect for the activity and physical fitness of the Auxies , if they found out that only a small group was opposed to them here . Woe to the man or men who allowed them to get the impression that they were weak in any way , for then they followed up relentlessly . In our case they had not yet caught sight of us , and so they would move cautiously . They already had experience of our heavy fire , and I have no doubt , were it not for the ditching of their lorry , they would not have returned at all . But they could not return to Macroom and admit that they had left their comrades to fight it out alone . So they must return to find them , and since we had not a few more men to keep in touch with their flanks , we must withdraw .
Sending the unarmed IRA Volunteer , by a detour to the west , to withdraw my uncle and his comrade , we also moved westwards to meet them , and again crossed the ridge of Knocksaharing and the upper Renanirree Road....... "
(MORE LATER).
ETHIOPIA - A Brief History .......
(First published in 'HOT PRESS' Magazine , 6th May 1988 , Volume 12 , No. 8 , page 28).
Re-produced here in 10 parts .
(3 of 10).
We consider Egypt the premier African civilisation but it was Ethiopia that reincarnated the Nile and its pantheon of Gods . Annually , the rich silt of the Ethiopian highlands passed down the Blue Nile to fertilise Lower Egypt and create the surplus that built the Pyramids and later made those lands the bread-baskets of the Roman Empire , the strategic prize for which Mark Antony courted Cleopatra .
Even then , the highland people had a mysterious , mythic repute , christened the " Ethiopians " , the people with " burnt faces " by the ancient Greeks . Beyond the grasp of the Roman Empire , its Axumite Kings traded myrrh , gold , resins and ivory with Egypt , India and Arabia , finally converting to Coptic Christianity in the 4th Century .
Islam affected but did'nt overpower Ethiopia ; members of Mohammed's inner circle sheltered in Ethiopia before his triumph as the Prophet . Remembering that hospitality and possibly wisely recognising the difficulty of the terrain for any holy war , Mohammed advised his followers " to leave the Ethiopians alone ." Instead Islam gradually infiltrated the Eastern coastlands , threatening only in the 16th Century when the Portuguese helped the Christian rulers ward off a Muslim assault .......
(MORE LATER).
....... ' The only time an Irish female slept in a bed was when her master was in it , and Irishmen were honoured when that happened ' - such was the attitude of the British 'ruling class' in 18th Century Ireland .......
However , the Irish spirit was strong ; the British 'Landlords' and their agents did not have it all their own way . The so-called " lower-ranks " , the " wretched people " , those who wore " the mark of slavery " , had organised themselves as best they could - secret , underground oath-bound societies fought back -
- the Whiteboys , Oakboys , Moonlighters , the Defenders and the Steelboys ; fences belonging to British 'Landlords' were ripped-up , the 'masters' cattle were taken , his haystacks and crop removed , his 'Big House' attacked and , when possible, levelled and burnt and he himself , and his minions , put to death when the opportunity presented itself to do so .
It was into this 'melting-pot of madness' that a child was born in County Tipperary in 1815 - John Sadleir .......
(MORE LATER).
WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :
war and peace in rebel Cork ,
in the turbulent years 1916-21.
By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.
KNOCKSAHARING.......
".......Six of the seven British lorries had left the scene - the troops from the seventh one were in hiding , pinned-down by us but still firing back at us . We were about to send a few men to out-flank them ......."
" A shout from Caherdaha Hill drew our attention to the east . A man stood on a fence and pointed downwards to Aha Tiompain . After the first outburst of firing , and as we had watched the British lorries disappear down the road to Macroom , we had heard a wild cheer from the same point . A group that watched there had given vent to their feelings in a 'Gair Caha' . The group was still there but now they had sounded a warning - the Brits had stopped in their lorries just out of our sight , and now they were coming back in skirmishing order along the high ground on both sides of the road . There was no hurry but yet any delay might endanger us .
We had a wholesome respect for the activity and physical fitness of the Auxies , if they found out that only a small group was opposed to them here . Woe to the man or men who allowed them to get the impression that they were weak in any way , for then they followed up relentlessly . In our case they had not yet caught sight of us , and so they would move cautiously . They already had experience of our heavy fire , and I have no doubt , were it not for the ditching of their lorry , they would not have returned at all . But they could not return to Macroom and admit that they had left their comrades to fight it out alone . So they must return to find them , and since we had not a few more men to keep in touch with their flanks , we must withdraw .
Sending the unarmed IRA Volunteer , by a detour to the west , to withdraw my uncle and his comrade , we also moved westwards to meet them , and again crossed the ridge of Knocksaharing and the upper Renanirree Road....... "
(MORE LATER).
ETHIOPIA - A Brief History .......
(First published in 'HOT PRESS' Magazine , 6th May 1988 , Volume 12 , No. 8 , page 28).
Re-produced here in 10 parts .
(3 of 10).
We consider Egypt the premier African civilisation but it was Ethiopia that reincarnated the Nile and its pantheon of Gods . Annually , the rich silt of the Ethiopian highlands passed down the Blue Nile to fertilise Lower Egypt and create the surplus that built the Pyramids and later made those lands the bread-baskets of the Roman Empire , the strategic prize for which Mark Antony courted Cleopatra .
Even then , the highland people had a mysterious , mythic repute , christened the " Ethiopians " , the people with " burnt faces " by the ancient Greeks . Beyond the grasp of the Roman Empire , its Axumite Kings traded myrrh , gold , resins and ivory with Egypt , India and Arabia , finally converting to Coptic Christianity in the 4th Century .
Islam affected but did'nt overpower Ethiopia ; members of Mohammed's inner circle sheltered in Ethiopia before his triumph as the Prophet . Remembering that hospitality and possibly wisely recognising the difficulty of the terrain for any holy war , Mohammed advised his followers " to leave the Ethiopians alone ." Instead Islam gradually infiltrated the Eastern coastlands , threatening only in the 16th Century when the Portuguese helped the Christian rulers ward off a Muslim assault .......
(MORE LATER).
Saturday, June 12, 2004
JOHN SADLEIR and WILLIAM KEOGH - 19th Century Irish Turncoats .......
....... Ireland , 18th Century ; as a race , we had almost been ground down - 'Landlords' , over-crowding , poverty , hunger, depression ; a "wretched and destitute people" , as the philosopher Berkeley called us . The British 'ruling class' , too , put the boot in .......
" I hoped to be excused for representing to His Majesty the miserable situation of the lower ranks of His subjects in this kingdom , that from the rapaciousness of their unfeeling landlords and the restrictions on their trade , they are amongst the most wretched people on earth . "
- that was said in 1770 , by the then British Viceroy , who was apparently content to simply report to "His Majesty" on the poverty in this country and not do anything about it . Then , in 1776 , an English agricultural specialist , a Mr. (or should that be 'Master' ?) Arthur Young , wrote (re his visit to Ireland) -
- " Landlords of consequence have assured me that many of their cottiers (ie 'tenants') would think themselves honoured by having their wives or daughters sent for to the bed of their masters , a mark of slavery that proves the oppression under which such people live . The cottages of the Irish, which are called cabins, are the most miserable-looking hovels that can well be conceived .
The furniture of the cabins is as bad as the architecture ; in very many consisting only of a pot for boiling their potatoes , a bit of a table , and one or two broken stools . Beds are not found universally , the family lying on straw . "
So the only time an Irish female slept in a bed was when "her master" was in it - and Irishmen were "honoured" when that happened ! As Oscar Wilde said - " To know nothing about their great men is one of the necessary elements of English education . " Enough said ...
(MORE LATER).
WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :
war and peace in rebel Cork ,
in the turbulent years 1916-21.
By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.
KNOCKSAHARING.......
"....... Ireland 1921 ; we were preparing to ambush a patrol of British Auxiliaries near the Macroom Road in Cork ....... "
" We could not get a clear view of the road from where we were , so we decided to send the two local IRA Volunteers across the road into Clohina Wood ; my uncle went with them . They crossed the river by the little plank bridge , and soon signalled to us from an excellent position in the Wood . We had not long to wait - one of our two riflemen returned with a suggestion that their position would be a good one for the Lewis-Gun . I had just told him that since we had little hope of stopping the British lorries , I was going to follow them down the road with a raking fire , and that I had command of all the four hundred yards to Aha Tiompain .
He agreed that I was in a better position , and had mounted the fence to leave when I dragged him down again - the first lorry was almost on the firing line . The chagrin of our riflemen was terrible - my comrade made a movement as if to dash down the steep slope to the road , as he had left his rifle on the other side . I tried to console him - " It will be all right , " I said , " Dan will take care of it . " As if in answer , a rifle spoke loudly from Clohina Wood ; I opened fire into a steel-plated lorry . The British Auxiliaries sat on the floor of that lorry , around the sides , their legs extended inwards . It passed from my sight for the time being , so I turned my attention to the next lorry , and favoured each with a burst of fire , then quickly changed the drum for a full one .
Six British lorries were now speeding down the road to Aha Tiompain - I enfiladed them generally , and the rifles near me were still firing at right-angles to the road . Soon the six lorries , three Tenders and three steel-plated Crossleys , passed from my sight just beyond the cross-roads . The seventh and last British Tender had stopped just underneath us ; it was quite close , too close to sight it even , for it had been 'ditched' under the lee of a high bank . We could not locate a single one of its occupants , but some of them appeared to be very active , for they maintained a heavy fire at us . Our two riflemen in Clohina Wood could not see them because of a thick hedge , on their side of the road . The Auxies could not cross the road to fire through the hedge because of us , but they tried another method .
Crouching under the bank on our side , the Auxies fired grenades over the hedge - but these fell in the Wood and exploded with a lot of noise but did no harm to us . We had brought no hand grenades with us , and now regretted it , for a few grenades dropped over the bank would have routed-out the Auxiliaries on to the road again . It would have been madness to cross the fence and run down the steep slope to fire down on them , so the only method left was to send a few men to have at them from the Renanirree side , if possible ......."
(MORE LATER).
ETHIOPIA - A Brief History .......
(First published in 'HOT PRESS' Magazine , 6th May 1988 , Volume 12 , No. 8 , page 28).
Re-produced here in 10 parts .
(2 of 10).
The Tigreans have been fighting their own battle for independence since the mid-70's ; lately they've been making some progress militarily , the two guerilla groups having delivered a double blow to the Ethiopians around St. Patricks Day last (ie 17th March 1988). The Tigreans attacked the legendary 'royal' city of Axum , while the Eritreans won a critical tank battle in the North . The Ethiopian government's response was swift and dramatic - 'National Mobilisation' was ordered and the government signed an accord with Somalia which would let them re-deploy troops from the South-Eastern frontier for Northern duty . Meanwhile , they evacuated all foreign relief workers from the troubled regions .
In famine terms , the effect could be devastating - even before this latest crisis , Aregani Hajos , Regional Chief of the government's 'Relief and Rehabilitation' Commission estimated that at least two million of the combined 5.7 million population of Eritrea and Tigre were in peril . The famine itself , he believed , was worse than it was in 1984 - 1985 , with only improved logistics and organisation saving the people from equal or greater devastation .
With the escalation of war activities and the evacuation of relief workers , those buffers are no longer in operation . The prospect , indeed , is bleak .......
(MORE LATER).
....... Ireland , 18th Century ; as a race , we had almost been ground down - 'Landlords' , over-crowding , poverty , hunger, depression ; a "wretched and destitute people" , as the philosopher Berkeley called us . The British 'ruling class' , too , put the boot in .......
" I hoped to be excused for representing to His Majesty the miserable situation of the lower ranks of His subjects in this kingdom , that from the rapaciousness of their unfeeling landlords and the restrictions on their trade , they are amongst the most wretched people on earth . "
- that was said in 1770 , by the then British Viceroy , who was apparently content to simply report to "His Majesty" on the poverty in this country and not do anything about it . Then , in 1776 , an English agricultural specialist , a Mr. (or should that be 'Master' ?) Arthur Young , wrote (re his visit to Ireland) -
- " Landlords of consequence have assured me that many of their cottiers (ie 'tenants') would think themselves honoured by having their wives or daughters sent for to the bed of their masters , a mark of slavery that proves the oppression under which such people live . The cottages of the Irish, which are called cabins, are the most miserable-looking hovels that can well be conceived .
The furniture of the cabins is as bad as the architecture ; in very many consisting only of a pot for boiling their potatoes , a bit of a table , and one or two broken stools . Beds are not found universally , the family lying on straw . "
So the only time an Irish female slept in a bed was when "her master" was in it - and Irishmen were "honoured" when that happened ! As Oscar Wilde said - " To know nothing about their great men is one of the necessary elements of English education . " Enough said ...
(MORE LATER).
WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :
war and peace in rebel Cork ,
in the turbulent years 1916-21.
By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.
KNOCKSAHARING.......
"....... Ireland 1921 ; we were preparing to ambush a patrol of British Auxiliaries near the Macroom Road in Cork ....... "
" We could not get a clear view of the road from where we were , so we decided to send the two local IRA Volunteers across the road into Clohina Wood ; my uncle went with them . They crossed the river by the little plank bridge , and soon signalled to us from an excellent position in the Wood . We had not long to wait - one of our two riflemen returned with a suggestion that their position would be a good one for the Lewis-Gun . I had just told him that since we had little hope of stopping the British lorries , I was going to follow them down the road with a raking fire , and that I had command of all the four hundred yards to Aha Tiompain .
He agreed that I was in a better position , and had mounted the fence to leave when I dragged him down again - the first lorry was almost on the firing line . The chagrin of our riflemen was terrible - my comrade made a movement as if to dash down the steep slope to the road , as he had left his rifle on the other side . I tried to console him - " It will be all right , " I said , " Dan will take care of it . " As if in answer , a rifle spoke loudly from Clohina Wood ; I opened fire into a steel-plated lorry . The British Auxiliaries sat on the floor of that lorry , around the sides , their legs extended inwards . It passed from my sight for the time being , so I turned my attention to the next lorry , and favoured each with a burst of fire , then quickly changed the drum for a full one .
Six British lorries were now speeding down the road to Aha Tiompain - I enfiladed them generally , and the rifles near me were still firing at right-angles to the road . Soon the six lorries , three Tenders and three steel-plated Crossleys , passed from my sight just beyond the cross-roads . The seventh and last British Tender had stopped just underneath us ; it was quite close , too close to sight it even , for it had been 'ditched' under the lee of a high bank . We could not locate a single one of its occupants , but some of them appeared to be very active , for they maintained a heavy fire at us . Our two riflemen in Clohina Wood could not see them because of a thick hedge , on their side of the road . The Auxies could not cross the road to fire through the hedge because of us , but they tried another method .
Crouching under the bank on our side , the Auxies fired grenades over the hedge - but these fell in the Wood and exploded with a lot of noise but did no harm to us . We had brought no hand grenades with us , and now regretted it , for a few grenades dropped over the bank would have routed-out the Auxiliaries on to the road again . It would have been madness to cross the fence and run down the steep slope to fire down on them , so the only method left was to send a few men to have at them from the Renanirree side , if possible ......."
(MORE LATER).
ETHIOPIA - A Brief History .......
(First published in 'HOT PRESS' Magazine , 6th May 1988 , Volume 12 , No. 8 , page 28).
Re-produced here in 10 parts .
(2 of 10).
The Tigreans have been fighting their own battle for independence since the mid-70's ; lately they've been making some progress militarily , the two guerilla groups having delivered a double blow to the Ethiopians around St. Patricks Day last (ie 17th March 1988). The Tigreans attacked the legendary 'royal' city of Axum , while the Eritreans won a critical tank battle in the North . The Ethiopian government's response was swift and dramatic - 'National Mobilisation' was ordered and the government signed an accord with Somalia which would let them re-deploy troops from the South-Eastern frontier for Northern duty . Meanwhile , they evacuated all foreign relief workers from the troubled regions .
In famine terms , the effect could be devastating - even before this latest crisis , Aregani Hajos , Regional Chief of the government's 'Relief and Rehabilitation' Commission estimated that at least two million of the combined 5.7 million population of Eritrea and Tigre were in peril . The famine itself , he believed , was worse than it was in 1984 - 1985 , with only improved logistics and organisation saving the people from equal or greater devastation .
With the escalation of war activities and the evacuation of relief workers , those buffers are no longer in operation . The prospect , indeed , is bleak .......
(MORE LATER).
Friday, June 11, 2004
JOHN SADLEIR and WILLIAM KEOGH - 19th Century Irish Turncoats .......
....... Six-and-a-half million people on the island of Ireland , supported mostly by the potato crop , which allowed for a 'better' standard of 'living' for the "Irish peasant farmer" . The British 'Landlords' , too , noticed this 'improvement' .......
... 'Rents' were increased at the same period that land was scarce (due to the population increase); the 'rent' for a 'holding' quadrupled between 1760 and 1815 , so the 'holding' (ie small farm) was sub-let , usually to the farmers sons , so that the 'rent owed' for that patch of soil could be shared by the family .
Pressure from the so-called 'Landlords' , over-crowding , poverty , hunger , depression , desperately bad 'living' conditions - such was the scene which a well-known philosopher of the day , Berkeley , witnessed in Ireland in 1750 , prompting him to ask " whether there be upon the earth any Christian or civilised people so beggardly wretched and destitute as the common Irish ? "
I wonder did Berkeley 'philosophise' as to why "the common Irish" were in that position in the first place ? And while we're on the subject of what 'our betters' thought of us , the British Viceroy at the time was also fond of kicking people while they were down.......
(MORE LATER).
WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :
war and peace in rebel Cork ,
in the turbulent years 1916-21.
By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.
KNOCKSAHARING.......
".......We all agreed that the British Auxiliaries were most likely heading for Renanirree to break-up a Sinn Fein Court , which we knew to have been postponed - we were also in agreement that the Brits would most likely return to their base by the Knocksaharing route ......."
" The seven of us were rushing out the door , through the haggard gate-way , over a fence and making a bee-line for Knocksaharing . A few days before we had heard of the capture , by the enemy , of a bag containing some documents . It was said to belong to a Judge who was on a Circuit of Sinn Fein Courts . In the bag was a reference to the Court which was to have been held at Renanirree on that very day ; needless to say , it was not now being held . But now we had a reasonable clue to the movements of the Auxies . They had gone to see if the Sinn Fein Court was being held at the appointed time . They would not delay there , and since it was not a routine visit they would be of the opinion that there would be no danger in returning by the same road .
Our time was short - to intercept them at the nearest point we would have to travel two miles over hedges and ditches . Renanirree was but three miles from that point . My uncle's house was straight across our path and we found him , with two other local IRA Volunteers , at Carraig a' Radhairc ; they had with them two service rifles from an arms dump and the three of them accompanied us . My uncle's house stood a hundred yards south of the upper Renanirree Road ; we crossed this with some little caution , and went swiftly upwards to the ridge of Knocksaharing , passing by the Mass Rock of Carraig a' tSagairt . Then we quickly descended the northern slope , through small fields of every shape with their big stone fences , which generations had made at a terrible cost of murderous toll .
Soon we reached the spot we sought , a corner of one of these little fields ; it sloped steeply towards the lower Renanirree Road , and was a bad corner to get out of , if one had to . But it commanded a long stretch of the road to Macroom , and was back from it only thirty yards . We had not a long view of the on-coming enemy , and that was one of our fears : if some of the rear lorries stopped to the west of us , the British Auxiliaries could work up an easy gradient and come down on us in the pocket we were in ......."
(MORE LATER).
ETHIOPIA - A Brief History .
(First published in 'HOT PRESS' Magazine , 6th May 1988 , Volume 12 , No. 8 , page 28).
Re-produced here in 10 parts .
(1 of 10).
Ethiopia has been at war for 26 years . In the world's longest-running guerilla struggle , the Eritrean People's Liberation Front (EPLF) have fought to regain the independence of the province since it was subsumed into the Ethiopian state by Haile Selassie in 1962 . The tragedy is that neither side appears capable of a conclusive military victory - or of gaining sufficient control of the territory to allow unhindered relief operations .
While the soldiers battle , famine victims come eyeball to eyeball with the grim reaper . The war grinds on , pitilessly . The EPLF shelter in impregnable highland strongholds , hiding elaborate underground tunnels to escape the strafing Ethiopian planes : the mountains offer ideal protection for guerrila fighters . Thus the rebels deny the government control of the countryside . The cities , however , remain in government hands .
The Eritreans are firm in their conviction that the war can be won , believing that government conscripts cannot match the passion and commitment of their volunteers indefinitely . But for the government , defeat cannot be contemplated - Eritrean commands Ethiopia's only coastline , making it strategically vital in terms of supply routes . And besides , the concession of independence could only encourage Sudan , Somalia and the Tigreans in the potential dismemberment of Ethiopia ...
(MORE LATER).
....... Six-and-a-half million people on the island of Ireland , supported mostly by the potato crop , which allowed for a 'better' standard of 'living' for the "Irish peasant farmer" . The British 'Landlords' , too , noticed this 'improvement' .......
... 'Rents' were increased at the same period that land was scarce (due to the population increase); the 'rent' for a 'holding' quadrupled between 1760 and 1815 , so the 'holding' (ie small farm) was sub-let , usually to the farmers sons , so that the 'rent owed' for that patch of soil could be shared by the family .
Pressure from the so-called 'Landlords' , over-crowding , poverty , hunger , depression , desperately bad 'living' conditions - such was the scene which a well-known philosopher of the day , Berkeley , witnessed in Ireland in 1750 , prompting him to ask " whether there be upon the earth any Christian or civilised people so beggardly wretched and destitute as the common Irish ? "
I wonder did Berkeley 'philosophise' as to why "the common Irish" were in that position in the first place ? And while we're on the subject of what 'our betters' thought of us , the British Viceroy at the time was also fond of kicking people while they were down.......
(MORE LATER).
WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :
war and peace in rebel Cork ,
in the turbulent years 1916-21.
By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.
KNOCKSAHARING.......
".......We all agreed that the British Auxiliaries were most likely heading for Renanirree to break-up a Sinn Fein Court , which we knew to have been postponed - we were also in agreement that the Brits would most likely return to their base by the Knocksaharing route ......."
" The seven of us were rushing out the door , through the haggard gate-way , over a fence and making a bee-line for Knocksaharing . A few days before we had heard of the capture , by the enemy , of a bag containing some documents . It was said to belong to a Judge who was on a Circuit of Sinn Fein Courts . In the bag was a reference to the Court which was to have been held at Renanirree on that very day ; needless to say , it was not now being held . But now we had a reasonable clue to the movements of the Auxies . They had gone to see if the Sinn Fein Court was being held at the appointed time . They would not delay there , and since it was not a routine visit they would be of the opinion that there would be no danger in returning by the same road .
Our time was short - to intercept them at the nearest point we would have to travel two miles over hedges and ditches . Renanirree was but three miles from that point . My uncle's house was straight across our path and we found him , with two other local IRA Volunteers , at Carraig a' Radhairc ; they had with them two service rifles from an arms dump and the three of them accompanied us . My uncle's house stood a hundred yards south of the upper Renanirree Road ; we crossed this with some little caution , and went swiftly upwards to the ridge of Knocksaharing , passing by the Mass Rock of Carraig a' tSagairt . Then we quickly descended the northern slope , through small fields of every shape with their big stone fences , which generations had made at a terrible cost of murderous toll .
Soon we reached the spot we sought , a corner of one of these little fields ; it sloped steeply towards the lower Renanirree Road , and was a bad corner to get out of , if one had to . But it commanded a long stretch of the road to Macroom , and was back from it only thirty yards . We had not a long view of the on-coming enemy , and that was one of our fears : if some of the rear lorries stopped to the west of us , the British Auxiliaries could work up an easy gradient and come down on us in the pocket we were in ......."
(MORE LATER).
ETHIOPIA - A Brief History .
(First published in 'HOT PRESS' Magazine , 6th May 1988 , Volume 12 , No. 8 , page 28).
Re-produced here in 10 parts .
(1 of 10).
Ethiopia has been at war for 26 years . In the world's longest-running guerilla struggle , the Eritrean People's Liberation Front (EPLF) have fought to regain the independence of the province since it was subsumed into the Ethiopian state by Haile Selassie in 1962 . The tragedy is that neither side appears capable of a conclusive military victory - or of gaining sufficient control of the territory to allow unhindered relief operations .
While the soldiers battle , famine victims come eyeball to eyeball with the grim reaper . The war grinds on , pitilessly . The EPLF shelter in impregnable highland strongholds , hiding elaborate underground tunnels to escape the strafing Ethiopian planes : the mountains offer ideal protection for guerrila fighters . Thus the rebels deny the government control of the countryside . The cities , however , remain in government hands .
The Eritreans are firm in their conviction that the war can be won , believing that government conscripts cannot match the passion and commitment of their volunteers indefinitely . But for the government , defeat cannot be contemplated - Eritrean commands Ethiopia's only coastline , making it strategically vital in terms of supply routes . And besides , the concession of independence could only encourage Sudan , Somalia and the Tigreans in the potential dismemberment of Ethiopia ...
(MORE LATER).
Thursday, June 10, 2004
JOHN SADLEIR and WILLIAM KEOGH - 19th Century Irish Turncoats .
Ireland , 1815 - approximately six-and-a-half million people 'lived' on the island of Ireland ; a rise in population of about three-and-a-quarter million since the introduction of the potato into the country in the middle of the 18th Century (ie 1760 - pop. of approximately three-and-a-quarter million ; 1815 - pop. of approximately six-and-a-half million).
With the potato being in itself highly nutritional and a good basis for an adequate diet , as well as being a prolific crop , the poor were able to get better use from what little land they had and use their land to support more people , which led to an increase in the population . Also , the potato needed less land than , for instance , grain , and allowed the farmer to grow other crop elsewhere which he could then sell .
Unfortunately for the Irish 'peasant' farmer (as the Brits described us) , his 'good fortune' was noticed by the British 'Landlords' .......
(MORE LATER).
WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :
war and peace in rebel Cork ,
in the turbulent years 1916-21.
By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.
KNOCKSAHARING.......
".......We knew they were after us - seven lorry loads of British Auxiliaries in the area . Should we move-out , or stay put ...? "
" We could not block a large percentage of all the roads , since we would greatly harm our own people . Where roads had been trenched , a rough by-pass had been allowed for the use of horse-traffic . The year 1921 had an unusually fine , dry summer , and the motor transport of the enemy often got through the by-passes easily , or crossed trenches over specially made planks . So the game of 'hide-and-seek' went on , and we were now at our wits' end to forecast the Auxiliaries' movements on reaching Renanirree .
They could go on through the glen to Ballingeary , or turn north to Ballyvourney , or south over Doiranaonaig to Inchigeela , or go along the Toon Road a mile to the south of us , and so return to Macroom . Or they could come from the Toon Road past our gate , and go home by the Cross . Or they could come by the upper road from Renanirree to the Cross , and pass within half a mile of us at Bearnasalach . And having come to Bearnasalach they could even say -
- " There's the road to Patsy Dinneen's . He'll be terribly distressed if he hears we passed and never called ..." Three or four of us must have thought of the solution together ; there was a sudden upsurge of men , which nearly wrecked the table . For a moment a babel of short questions and shorter answers - " Sinn Fein Court ! " and "Bloody Judges !" , " Captured documents ! " , "The bag !" ; Renanirree - a Sinn Fein Court , which we knew had been postponed , was to be held there this day . The Auxiliaries would not know it was postponed ......."
(MORE LATER).
A PAINFUL CASE .......
(First published in 'In Dublin' Magazine , 'Under The Bridge' column , 12th November 1987 , Page 4).
Reproduced here in 2 parts .
[2 of 2].
Paul Travers afterwards pleaded guilty . Last month (ie October 1987) the State declined to proceed against Tony Brown on certain charges which had been preferred against him . However , last March (1987) , Garda Martin Caffrey was convicted of using excessive force in order to restrain Tony Brown , who is five foot in height , forty-six years old and suffers from spina bifida .
During his arrest by Garda Martin Caffrey , Brown sustained cuts to his head - one of these cuts required five stitches ; he also had broken bones in both hands , and there was a cut on his left knee . Garda Caffrey said in evidence that that when he tried to handcuff Brown in order to search him for possible weapons , Brown had struggled , and this had necessitated the use of force . Neither man (Travers or Brown) had any weapons .
Paul Travers got eight months in jail for the theft of £130 (Euro 165) . Garda Martin Caffrey was fined £150 (Euro 190) for breaking both hands of a suspect .......
[END of 'A PAINFUL CASE .......'].
(Tomorrow - 'ETHIOPIA : A BRIEF HISTORY..' - from 1988...).
Ireland , 1815 - approximately six-and-a-half million people 'lived' on the island of Ireland ; a rise in population of about three-and-a-quarter million since the introduction of the potato into the country in the middle of the 18th Century (ie 1760 - pop. of approximately three-and-a-quarter million ; 1815 - pop. of approximately six-and-a-half million).
With the potato being in itself highly nutritional and a good basis for an adequate diet , as well as being a prolific crop , the poor were able to get better use from what little land they had and use their land to support more people , which led to an increase in the population . Also , the potato needed less land than , for instance , grain , and allowed the farmer to grow other crop elsewhere which he could then sell .
Unfortunately for the Irish 'peasant' farmer (as the Brits described us) , his 'good fortune' was noticed by the British 'Landlords' .......
(MORE LATER).
WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :
war and peace in rebel Cork ,
in the turbulent years 1916-21.
By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.
KNOCKSAHARING.......
".......We knew they were after us - seven lorry loads of British Auxiliaries in the area . Should we move-out , or stay put ...? "
" We could not block a large percentage of all the roads , since we would greatly harm our own people . Where roads had been trenched , a rough by-pass had been allowed for the use of horse-traffic . The year 1921 had an unusually fine , dry summer , and the motor transport of the enemy often got through the by-passes easily , or crossed trenches over specially made planks . So the game of 'hide-and-seek' went on , and we were now at our wits' end to forecast the Auxiliaries' movements on reaching Renanirree .
They could go on through the glen to Ballingeary , or turn north to Ballyvourney , or south over Doiranaonaig to Inchigeela , or go along the Toon Road a mile to the south of us , and so return to Macroom . Or they could come from the Toon Road past our gate , and go home by the Cross . Or they could come by the upper road from Renanirree to the Cross , and pass within half a mile of us at Bearnasalach . And having come to Bearnasalach they could even say -
- " There's the road to Patsy Dinneen's . He'll be terribly distressed if he hears we passed and never called ..." Three or four of us must have thought of the solution together ; there was a sudden upsurge of men , which nearly wrecked the table . For a moment a babel of short questions and shorter answers - " Sinn Fein Court ! " and "Bloody Judges !" , " Captured documents ! " , "The bag !" ; Renanirree - a Sinn Fein Court , which we knew had been postponed , was to be held there this day . The Auxiliaries would not know it was postponed ......."
(MORE LATER).
A PAINFUL CASE .......
(First published in 'In Dublin' Magazine , 'Under The Bridge' column , 12th November 1987 , Page 4).
Reproduced here in 2 parts .
[2 of 2].
Paul Travers afterwards pleaded guilty . Last month (ie October 1987) the State declined to proceed against Tony Brown on certain charges which had been preferred against him . However , last March (1987) , Garda Martin Caffrey was convicted of using excessive force in order to restrain Tony Brown , who is five foot in height , forty-six years old and suffers from spina bifida .
During his arrest by Garda Martin Caffrey , Brown sustained cuts to his head - one of these cuts required five stitches ; he also had broken bones in both hands , and there was a cut on his left knee . Garda Caffrey said in evidence that that when he tried to handcuff Brown in order to search him for possible weapons , Brown had struggled , and this had necessitated the use of force . Neither man (Travers or Brown) had any weapons .
Paul Travers got eight months in jail for the theft of £130 (Euro 165) . Garda Martin Caffrey was fined £150 (Euro 190) for breaking both hands of a suspect .......
[END of 'A PAINFUL CASE .......'].
(Tomorrow - 'ETHIOPIA : A BRIEF HISTORY..' - from 1988...).
Wednesday, June 09, 2004
JOSEPH BRENAN ; 1828-1857 : 'Young Ireland' Leader .......
....... Irish Rebel Joseph Brenan was 'on-the-run' from the British in New Orleans in America - the year was 1851 .......
In August that year (1851) , at 23 years young , Joseph Brenan married Mary Savage , his friends sister , and the couple stayed and settled in New Orleans . In 1857 , at 29 years of age , Joseph Brenan died in New Orleans and was buried in that City , in the old French Cemetery . He had dedicated the final ten years of his short life to not only writing about British mis-rule in Ireland but challenging it militarily as well .
Again , as is so often the case with the subjects of this 'weblog' , we found it difficult to find information on Joseph Brenan ; out of the six reference books we usually compile material from , only two made reference to him . He was apparently not as well-known as others of his time who were also involved in the 'Young Ireland' Movement , journalism and military matters . Joseph Brenan deserves recognition nonetheless , and we have attempted to do that here ...
[END of ' JOSEPH BRENAN ; 1828-1857 : 'Young Ireland' Leader...'].
(Tomorrow - the story behind two 19th Century Irish 'Turncoats' , who mixed with the 'best' of British society ...).
WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :
war and peace in rebel Cork ,
in the turbulent years 1916-21.
By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.
KNOCKSAHARING.......
".......a system of beacons on hill-tops had been established to notify those in the surrounding area of when the Brits had left their base ; once the beacon was set alight , we knew the enemy was out on a raid ......."
" I remember Saint Johns night when the British were signalled by our beacons . At the same time , fires were lighted in honour of Saint John , causing dire confusion and some slight strain in relations between the patrons of Saint John and the disciples of Baal ! The latter decreed , like King Laoghaire , that in future " 'till Baal's enkindled fire shall rise , no fire shall flame instead . " Perhaps our enemy thought to avail of the confusion , but in any case he had not come very far when he changed his mind and returned again .
It was the morning of the Feast of Corpus Christi ; we were sound asleep when we got the news - it was Mrs. Dinneen herself who urgently called us : " The Black-and-Tans , lads , the Black-and-Tans ! " she cried . I ran to an upstairs window and looked out - they were not yet in sight at any rate . Just then Jer Dinneen appeared and shouted - " No hurry , no hurry ." He had come from Mass ; while we got dressed , he told us the news . " The Tans crossed Carrigaphooca Bridge and we waited to see if they would go straight on for Ballyvourney . But no , they came on for The Cross (our Village) , and crossing Con Lynch's Bridge went on by the lower road to Renanirree . So there ye are . "
There we were , as Jer said , trying hard to anticipate their further movements . We asked each other what they were likely to do next and , while hurriedly drinking a cup of tea , we pondered on it . They were a strong party , seven lorries of British Auxiliaries , and they might do anything . They were not at all shy of travelling over by-roads ; in fact , it had become popular with them , as it contributed towards their safety . The main roads had become dangerous for them , so when they chose a quiet route the chances were much in their favour . Returning by a different and circuitous way was another favourite manoeuvre of theirs , and had often saved them from unwelcome attention . It was impossible to watch for them on more than one road at the same time , since we had not the armed numbers to do so .
Should we move out , or stay put .......? "
(MORE LATER).
A PAINFUL CASE .
(First published in 'In Dublin' Magazine , 'Under The Bridge' column , 12th November 1987 , Page 4).
Reproduced here in 2 parts .
(1 of 2).
The on-going saga regarding Garda Martin Caffrey of Coolock Garda Station in Dublin reached a conclusion of sorts in the High Court on Friday last . The Court upheld a conviction against Garda Caffrey - he had been fined , with £82 expenses (Euro 104) , in the District Court last March (ie March 1987).
On 4th August 1986 , £130 (Euro 165) was taken from a petrol station owned by Desmond McLoughlin . Tony Brown and Paul Travers were followed by the Gardai , and were suspected of having stolen the money . Evidence tendered by the petrol-pump attendant suggested that Paul Travers had taken the money when he was attending to Tony Brown's car .
Evidence was also tendered in the case that Paul Travers had told Brown he had robbed the station , but only after a Garda car approached the men at Lusk , in County Dublin . Both men fled the car , and two Gardai , one of whom was Garda Caffrey , pursued them ...
(MORE LATER).
....... Irish Rebel Joseph Brenan was 'on-the-run' from the British in New Orleans in America - the year was 1851 .......
In August that year (1851) , at 23 years young , Joseph Brenan married Mary Savage , his friends sister , and the couple stayed and settled in New Orleans . In 1857 , at 29 years of age , Joseph Brenan died in New Orleans and was buried in that City , in the old French Cemetery . He had dedicated the final ten years of his short life to not only writing about British mis-rule in Ireland but challenging it militarily as well .
Again , as is so often the case with the subjects of this 'weblog' , we found it difficult to find information on Joseph Brenan ; out of the six reference books we usually compile material from , only two made reference to him . He was apparently not as well-known as others of his time who were also involved in the 'Young Ireland' Movement , journalism and military matters . Joseph Brenan deserves recognition nonetheless , and we have attempted to do that here ...
[END of ' JOSEPH BRENAN ; 1828-1857 : 'Young Ireland' Leader...'].
(Tomorrow - the story behind two 19th Century Irish 'Turncoats' , who mixed with the 'best' of British society ...).
WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :
war and peace in rebel Cork ,
in the turbulent years 1916-21.
By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.
KNOCKSAHARING.......
".......a system of beacons on hill-tops had been established to notify those in the surrounding area of when the Brits had left their base ; once the beacon was set alight , we knew the enemy was out on a raid ......."
" I remember Saint Johns night when the British were signalled by our beacons . At the same time , fires were lighted in honour of Saint John , causing dire confusion and some slight strain in relations between the patrons of Saint John and the disciples of Baal ! The latter decreed , like King Laoghaire , that in future " 'till Baal's enkindled fire shall rise , no fire shall flame instead . " Perhaps our enemy thought to avail of the confusion , but in any case he had not come very far when he changed his mind and returned again .
It was the morning of the Feast of Corpus Christi ; we were sound asleep when we got the news - it was Mrs. Dinneen herself who urgently called us : " The Black-and-Tans , lads , the Black-and-Tans ! " she cried . I ran to an upstairs window and looked out - they were not yet in sight at any rate . Just then Jer Dinneen appeared and shouted - " No hurry , no hurry ." He had come from Mass ; while we got dressed , he told us the news . " The Tans crossed Carrigaphooca Bridge and we waited to see if they would go straight on for Ballyvourney . But no , they came on for The Cross (our Village) , and crossing Con Lynch's Bridge went on by the lower road to Renanirree . So there ye are . "
There we were , as Jer said , trying hard to anticipate their further movements . We asked each other what they were likely to do next and , while hurriedly drinking a cup of tea , we pondered on it . They were a strong party , seven lorries of British Auxiliaries , and they might do anything . They were not at all shy of travelling over by-roads ; in fact , it had become popular with them , as it contributed towards their safety . The main roads had become dangerous for them , so when they chose a quiet route the chances were much in their favour . Returning by a different and circuitous way was another favourite manoeuvre of theirs , and had often saved them from unwelcome attention . It was impossible to watch for them on more than one road at the same time , since we had not the armed numbers to do so .
Should we move out , or stay put .......? "
(MORE LATER).
A PAINFUL CASE .
(First published in 'In Dublin' Magazine , 'Under The Bridge' column , 12th November 1987 , Page 4).
Reproduced here in 2 parts .
(1 of 2).
The on-going saga regarding Garda Martin Caffrey of Coolock Garda Station in Dublin reached a conclusion of sorts in the High Court on Friday last . The Court upheld a conviction against Garda Caffrey - he had been fined , with £82 expenses (Euro 104) , in the District Court last March (ie March 1987).
On 4th August 1986 , £130 (Euro 165) was taken from a petrol station owned by Desmond McLoughlin . Tony Brown and Paul Travers were followed by the Gardai , and were suspected of having stolen the money . Evidence tendered by the petrol-pump attendant suggested that Paul Travers had taken the money when he was attending to Tony Brown's car .
Evidence was also tendered in the case that Paul Travers had told Brown he had robbed the station , but only after a Garda car approached the men at Lusk , in County Dublin . Both men fled the car , and two Gardai , one of whom was Garda Caffrey , pursued them ...
(MORE LATER).
Tuesday, June 08, 2004
JOSEPH BRENAN ; 1828-1857 : 'Young Ireland' Leader .......
.......Once again , Joseph Brenan was 'on-the-run' from the British ; he ended up in New Orleans , in America , and got a job as a reporter with 'The New Orleans Times' newspaper - he was to witness a 'war' of a different kind .......
.....a newspaper circulation war ! This was best exemplified by an incident in 1856 ; the founder of the 'The San Francisco Sunday Times' , a Mr. James P. Casey , was at 'war' with a rival newspaper , the 'The San Francisco Bulletin' , and disliked the ' Bulletin's ' Editor , a Mr. James King . The feeling was mutual...
...one day , the 'Bulletin' published an article highlighting the fact that James P. Casey , from the 'Times' newspaper , had served a prison sentence in 'Sing-Sing' Prison for larceny . Casey was raging and , following a 'war of words' between himself and James King , he pulled out a gun and shot King dead !
Then a gang of what were described as " vigilantes " ('Bulletin' employees ?) got hold of James P. Casey and hung him ; it was reported at the time (probably not by the 'San Francisco Bulletin' !) that James P. Casey " ... was given a tremendous funeral by his Irish followers ..." !
However - back to Joseph Brenan : at 23 years young , he got married .......
(MORE LATER).
WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :
war and peace in rebel Cork ,
in the turbulent years 1916-21.
By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.
KNOCKSAHARING.......
"....... Ireland , 1921 ; our IRA Column had temporarly been disbanded , as we knew the Brits were coming in force for us ......."
" The 'Disband' order was a wise move - soon after , a wider area than was anticipated was literally trampled by ten-thousand British troops ; seven of us kept together - Corney O'Sullivan , Jim and Miah Grey , Paddy Donncha Eoin , Patsy Lynch , my brother Pat and I . Six were armed with rifles and revolvers , while I carried the light aeroplane Lewis-Gun . We had come at night-fall to the house of our good friend Patsy Dinneen at Lios-Bui-Beag , a mile south-west of Kilnamartyra Cross . We never went early to bed in Patsy's farmhouse - he himself , his wife and family were all active comrades of ours , from the start to the finish of our campaign .
Here was always the genuine and generous welcome ; the possible consequences of our coming were not thought of . They never counted what might be the cost of harbouring us , nor did they look forward to the chances of our being trapped in their home by the enemy . If we succeeded in breaking through and getting away , they would still have had to suffer heavily - their entire property would be destroyed and possibly their menfolk shot or at least thrown into prison . But the Dinneen family never thought of that and when we reminded them of it they gave it scant consideration . Patsy Dinneen used to say : "It would be no harm to stir up things around here , the place is very quiet anyway !" Nevertheless , we always felt we were doing wrong when we rested at such a homestead , without posting at least one sentry .
At that time , there were area signal stations by night and day ; beacons on hilltops were lighted at night when the enemy was observed leaving his base . These beacons were relayed forward and proved of great value on several occasions when the enemy ventured out on a raid ......."
(MORE LATER).
GETTING OUT .......
'Britain has the economic clout to impose peace in Northern Ireland (sic), argue BOB ROWTHORN and NAOMI WAYNE . Why does'nt it use it ? '
(First published in 'New Statesman and Society' Magazine , 9th September , 1988 , pages 12 and 13).
Re-produced here in 10 parts .
[Apologises beforehand for the use of the descriptions "Northern Ireland" and "Province" , and the constant use of the terms "Catholics" and "Protestants" in the following ten-part article ; they are not our descriptions or terms , but the Authors].
[10 of 10].
Britain is upholding a state which represents the victory of one community over another . Equally , the usual argument put against the course we advocate - that its undemocratic to force re-unification upon the majority (sic) against their wishes- ignores the artificial nature of that majority . Prior to partition , the Protestants themselves were very much the minority .
For 20 years (sic) Britain has fought an unwinnable war in 'Northern Ireland' to save a state which cannot be saved ; only a resolute and well-planned withdrawal can bring peace to the troubled 'province' . For once in its long and unhappy relationship with Ireland , Britain should do the right thing at the right time . And that time is now .
(This ten-part article was adopted from the book 'Northern Ireland : The Political Economy Of Conflict' , which was published by 'Polity Press' in October 1988 . The Authors are BOB ROWTHORN [who , at the time , was a Reader in Economics at Cambridge] and NAOMI WAYNE [who , at the time , was a Trade Union Official]).
[END of ' GETTING OUT .......'].
(Tomorrow - 'A PAINFUL CASE' : Free State police use excessive force - a two-parter from 1987 ...).
.......Once again , Joseph Brenan was 'on-the-run' from the British ; he ended up in New Orleans , in America , and got a job as a reporter with 'The New Orleans Times' newspaper - he was to witness a 'war' of a different kind .......
.....a newspaper circulation war ! This was best exemplified by an incident in 1856 ; the founder of the 'The San Francisco Sunday Times' , a Mr. James P. Casey , was at 'war' with a rival newspaper , the 'The San Francisco Bulletin' , and disliked the ' Bulletin's ' Editor , a Mr. James King . The feeling was mutual...
...one day , the 'Bulletin' published an article highlighting the fact that James P. Casey , from the 'Times' newspaper , had served a prison sentence in 'Sing-Sing' Prison for larceny . Casey was raging and , following a 'war of words' between himself and James King , he pulled out a gun and shot King dead !
Then a gang of what were described as " vigilantes " ('Bulletin' employees ?) got hold of James P. Casey and hung him ; it was reported at the time (probably not by the 'San Francisco Bulletin' !) that James P. Casey " ... was given a tremendous funeral by his Irish followers ..." !
However - back to Joseph Brenan : at 23 years young , he got married .......
(MORE LATER).
WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :
war and peace in rebel Cork ,
in the turbulent years 1916-21.
By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.
KNOCKSAHARING.......
"....... Ireland , 1921 ; our IRA Column had temporarly been disbanded , as we knew the Brits were coming in force for us ......."
" The 'Disband' order was a wise move - soon after , a wider area than was anticipated was literally trampled by ten-thousand British troops ; seven of us kept together - Corney O'Sullivan , Jim and Miah Grey , Paddy Donncha Eoin , Patsy Lynch , my brother Pat and I . Six were armed with rifles and revolvers , while I carried the light aeroplane Lewis-Gun . We had come at night-fall to the house of our good friend Patsy Dinneen at Lios-Bui-Beag , a mile south-west of Kilnamartyra Cross . We never went early to bed in Patsy's farmhouse - he himself , his wife and family were all active comrades of ours , from the start to the finish of our campaign .
Here was always the genuine and generous welcome ; the possible consequences of our coming were not thought of . They never counted what might be the cost of harbouring us , nor did they look forward to the chances of our being trapped in their home by the enemy . If we succeeded in breaking through and getting away , they would still have had to suffer heavily - their entire property would be destroyed and possibly their menfolk shot or at least thrown into prison . But the Dinneen family never thought of that and when we reminded them of it they gave it scant consideration . Patsy Dinneen used to say : "It would be no harm to stir up things around here , the place is very quiet anyway !" Nevertheless , we always felt we were doing wrong when we rested at such a homestead , without posting at least one sentry .
At that time , there were area signal stations by night and day ; beacons on hilltops were lighted at night when the enemy was observed leaving his base . These beacons were relayed forward and proved of great value on several occasions when the enemy ventured out on a raid ......."
(MORE LATER).
GETTING OUT .......
'Britain has the economic clout to impose peace in Northern Ireland (sic), argue BOB ROWTHORN and NAOMI WAYNE . Why does'nt it use it ? '
(First published in 'New Statesman and Society' Magazine , 9th September , 1988 , pages 12 and 13).
Re-produced here in 10 parts .
[Apologises beforehand for the use of the descriptions "Northern Ireland" and "Province" , and the constant use of the terms "Catholics" and "Protestants" in the following ten-part article ; they are not our descriptions or terms , but the Authors].
[10 of 10].
Britain is upholding a state which represents the victory of one community over another . Equally , the usual argument put against the course we advocate - that its undemocratic to force re-unification upon the majority (sic) against their wishes- ignores the artificial nature of that majority . Prior to partition , the Protestants themselves were very much the minority .
For 20 years (sic) Britain has fought an unwinnable war in 'Northern Ireland' to save a state which cannot be saved ; only a resolute and well-planned withdrawal can bring peace to the troubled 'province' . For once in its long and unhappy relationship with Ireland , Britain should do the right thing at the right time . And that time is now .
(This ten-part article was adopted from the book 'Northern Ireland : The Political Economy Of Conflict' , which was published by 'Polity Press' in October 1988 . The Authors are BOB ROWTHORN [who , at the time , was a Reader in Economics at Cambridge] and NAOMI WAYNE [who , at the time , was a Trade Union Official]).
[END of ' GETTING OUT .......'].
(Tomorrow - 'A PAINFUL CASE' : Free State police use excessive force - a two-parter from 1987 ...).
Monday, June 07, 2004
JOSEPH BRENAN ; 1828-1857 : 'Young Ireland' Leader .......
....... James Fintan Lalor hit back at the British in September 1849 , with Joseph Brenan by his side ; the armed action took place in Cappoquin , Waterford .......
The Rising of 1849 started in September that year - but it was over by the following month ; its objective was not achieved : parts of the south-east of the island took a stand against the British , but to no avail . Joseph Brenan was forced to go 'on-the-run' and made it to New Orleans in America , where he got a job as a reporter with 'The New Orleans Times' newspaper - he was still only a young man of 21 years of age .
He became friendly with the sister of John Savage , a comrade of his , who was a young Dublin art student who was himself 'on-the-run' from the British ; John Savage had fled to New York and got a job as a proof-reader with 'The New York Tribune' newspaper (incidentally - that newspapers 'European Correspondent' was Karl Marx !).
A small tangent here concerning a 'war' of a different kind which was taking place in American journalism at the time .......
(MORE LATER).
WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :
war and peace in rebel Cork ,
in the turbulent years 1916-21.
By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.
KNOCKSAHARING.
" Knocksaharing , literally translated into English , means 'Saturday Hill .' But it is probably the hill dedicated to Saturn . On top of this hill is a big rock known as Carraig a' tSagairt , where Mass was said in the Penal Days , but which in Druidical times was possibly a pagan altar . The northern slope of Knocksaharing comes down to meet the southern slope of Clohina . In the depression so formed flows the little river , the Sullane Beag , and parallel to it runs the Macroom-Renanirree Road .
It was a lovely glen at the time I write about , with its clumps of holly everywhere , surrounding the little green fields and mingling with the stunted oak to form Clohina Wood , as quiet a spot as one who longed for peace could wish to meet . The cascading of the little river , down the slope to the bridge at Aha Tiompain , was a sound which spoke everlastingly of rest . The little bridge was but half a mile north of the place where I was born . To me it was once the bridge of romance , a goal I longed to reach . I pictured it a mighty structure , spanning a wide and deep current . When I managed to walk to it and was held on its parapets , to gaze on the rippling water underneath .
I was quite pleased with it and I never wearied of that pleasure , even when later I discovered that it was but a very small bridge after all . The road it carried was the nearest way to Ballyvourney , from the village of Kilnamartyra . It was much used by us at the time ; it was quiet and the enemy made little use of it , deterred perhaps by the frowning Rahoona and its foothills , where IRA marksmen might lie close to the road in safety . It was the eve of the Feast of Corpus Christi , 1921 ; our IRA Column had been disbanded for the time being , as a 'round-up' by the British was on the way and it was thought wiser to disperse the men .
It proved to be a wise decision ......."
(MORE LATER).
GETTING OUT .......
'Britain has the economic clout to impose peace in Northern Ireland (sic), argue BOB ROWTHORN and NAOMI WAYNE . Why does'nt it use it ? '
(First published in 'New Statesman and Society' Magazine , 9th September , 1988 , pages 12 and 13).
Re-produced here in 10 parts .
[Apologises beforehand for the use of the descriptions "Northern Ireland" and "Province" , and the constant use of the terms "Catholics" and "Protestants" in the following ten-part article ; they are not our descriptions or terms , but the Authors].
(9 of 10).
The risk of widespread bloodshed could thus be reduced to almost negligible proportions . There's no question of conventional warfare , given the quality of the arms at the disposal of militant Protestants , but however intensively 'Northern Ireland' were policed , there would almost certainly be a burst of sectarian killings during the process of transition .
But this risk has to be weighed against the absolute certainty that thousands will die if Britain remains in 'Northern Ireland' , and countless more will suffer in other ways . Finally , there is the moral dimension - Britain presents itself as an honest broker in Ireland , desperately trying to establish peace between two hostile communities . But its involvement is partisan simply because the 'Northern Ireland' state (sic) is itself a partisan creation .
Discrimination against Catholics is built into its very being .......
(MORE LATER).
....... James Fintan Lalor hit back at the British in September 1849 , with Joseph Brenan by his side ; the armed action took place in Cappoquin , Waterford .......
The Rising of 1849 started in September that year - but it was over by the following month ; its objective was not achieved : parts of the south-east of the island took a stand against the British , but to no avail . Joseph Brenan was forced to go 'on-the-run' and made it to New Orleans in America , where he got a job as a reporter with 'The New Orleans Times' newspaper - he was still only a young man of 21 years of age .
He became friendly with the sister of John Savage , a comrade of his , who was a young Dublin art student who was himself 'on-the-run' from the British ; John Savage had fled to New York and got a job as a proof-reader with 'The New York Tribune' newspaper (incidentally - that newspapers 'European Correspondent' was Karl Marx !).
A small tangent here concerning a 'war' of a different kind which was taking place in American journalism at the time .......
(MORE LATER).
WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :
war and peace in rebel Cork ,
in the turbulent years 1916-21.
By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.
KNOCKSAHARING.
" Knocksaharing , literally translated into English , means 'Saturday Hill .' But it is probably the hill dedicated to Saturn . On top of this hill is a big rock known as Carraig a' tSagairt , where Mass was said in the Penal Days , but which in Druidical times was possibly a pagan altar . The northern slope of Knocksaharing comes down to meet the southern slope of Clohina . In the depression so formed flows the little river , the Sullane Beag , and parallel to it runs the Macroom-Renanirree Road .
It was a lovely glen at the time I write about , with its clumps of holly everywhere , surrounding the little green fields and mingling with the stunted oak to form Clohina Wood , as quiet a spot as one who longed for peace could wish to meet . The cascading of the little river , down the slope to the bridge at Aha Tiompain , was a sound which spoke everlastingly of rest . The little bridge was but half a mile north of the place where I was born . To me it was once the bridge of romance , a goal I longed to reach . I pictured it a mighty structure , spanning a wide and deep current . When I managed to walk to it and was held on its parapets , to gaze on the rippling water underneath .
I was quite pleased with it and I never wearied of that pleasure , even when later I discovered that it was but a very small bridge after all . The road it carried was the nearest way to Ballyvourney , from the village of Kilnamartyra . It was much used by us at the time ; it was quiet and the enemy made little use of it , deterred perhaps by the frowning Rahoona and its foothills , where IRA marksmen might lie close to the road in safety . It was the eve of the Feast of Corpus Christi , 1921 ; our IRA Column had been disbanded for the time being , as a 'round-up' by the British was on the way and it was thought wiser to disperse the men .
It proved to be a wise decision ......."
(MORE LATER).
GETTING OUT .......
'Britain has the economic clout to impose peace in Northern Ireland (sic), argue BOB ROWTHORN and NAOMI WAYNE . Why does'nt it use it ? '
(First published in 'New Statesman and Society' Magazine , 9th September , 1988 , pages 12 and 13).
Re-produced here in 10 parts .
[Apologises beforehand for the use of the descriptions "Northern Ireland" and "Province" , and the constant use of the terms "Catholics" and "Protestants" in the following ten-part article ; they are not our descriptions or terms , but the Authors].
(9 of 10).
The risk of widespread bloodshed could thus be reduced to almost negligible proportions . There's no question of conventional warfare , given the quality of the arms at the disposal of militant Protestants , but however intensively 'Northern Ireland' were policed , there would almost certainly be a burst of sectarian killings during the process of transition .
But this risk has to be weighed against the absolute certainty that thousands will die if Britain remains in 'Northern Ireland' , and countless more will suffer in other ways . Finally , there is the moral dimension - Britain presents itself as an honest broker in Ireland , desperately trying to establish peace between two hostile communities . But its involvement is partisan simply because the 'Northern Ireland' state (sic) is itself a partisan creation .
Discrimination against Catholics is built into its very being .......
(MORE LATER).
Sunday, June 06, 2004
JOSEPH BRENAN ; 1828-1857 : 'Young Ireland' Leader .......
....... Ireland , 1849 ; Joseph Brenan was writing for 'The Irishman' newspaper when he heard that James Fintan Lalor , one of 'The Young Ireland' Movement leaders , was planning an attack on the British.......
A date for the J F Lalor-inspired Rising had been set - 16th September (1849) , and a venue had been chosen ; Cappoquin , in Waterford . Joseph Brenan left 'The Irishman' newspaper and set-out to meet up with James Fintan Lalor .
James Fintan Lalor took the position that the issue of land was at the core of the British/Irish conflict , and that it was necessary to organise the "peasantry" [as Westminster called them] into a fighting force , militarily and politically , to challenge British mis-rule in Ireland - as he himself said :
: " The entire ownership of Ireland is vested of right in the people of Ireland : that they , and none but they , are the land owners and law makers of this island . That all ties to land are invalid if not conferred or confirmed by them , and that this full right of ownership may and ought to be asserted and enforced by any and all means which God has put into the power of men . "
The armed action started in September 1849 .......
(MORE LATER).
WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :
war and peace in rebel Cork ,
in the turbulent years 1916-21.
By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.
A DRIVE TO CORK CITY .......
"....... The Brits in Ballinhassig Barracks heard our car pass them by , but they did'nt come out to us ; instead , they notified all their posts in the district to be on alert for us ......."
" From Coachford we went north to Peake , then north-west to Ballinagree . Here we rested during the day as we got word that the British Auxiliaries were out across our road home . When night fell we returned by our old route to Carraig an Ime and reached our camp at Cumuiclumhain before midnight .
Approaching , with full lights on , a narrow part of the road shaded by trees , a horse-cart was suddenly run in front of us , bringing us to a stop . Around us we could see muzzles of rifles and shotguns , but nothing else ...
... " All right lads , " shouted Jim Grey into the darkness . It was the IRA guard for the night . They welcomed us home . "
[END of ' A DRIVE TO CORK CITY .......'].
(Tomorrow - 'Knocksaharing ...').
GETTING OUT .......
'Britain has the economic clout to impose peace in Northern Ireland (sic), argue BOB ROWTHORN and NAOMI WAYNE . Why does'nt it use it ? '
(First published in 'New Statesman and Society' Magazine , 9th September , 1988 , pages 12 and 13).
Re-produced here in 10 parts .
[Apologises beforehand for the use of the descriptions "Northern Ireland" and "Province" , and the constant use of the terms "Catholics" and "Protestants" in the following ten-part article ; they are not our descriptions or terms , but the Authors].
(8 of 10).
Would the British armed forces in the North stay loyal and hold their discipline ? This would be far more likely if the British and Irish governments guaranteed the future employment and pension rights of those who obeyed orders . Apart from the UDR and RUC , the Protestants own most of the 100,000 or so guns - mostly shotguns- which are 'legally' held in the 'province' . There are also an unknown quantity of revolvers , rifles and machine-guns held 'illegally' by Protestants in self-defence and , of course , by the paramilitaries . There is no way Britain can do anything about these weapons .
But regardless of how well-armed the Protestants are , would they actually fight ? Most Protestants are opposed to British withdrawal , and they know that the threat of massive bloodshed is a formidable deterrent . But to threaten is one thing , to deliver is another . More relevant here than their armed strength are two quite different factors : war-weariness and economic self-interest . The majority of Protestants are heartily sick of the violence . If they were genuinely convinced that Britain was going and would crush resistance by strong economic sanctions , and were at the same time fully reassured about their future , most Protestants would accept re-unification as a fait accompli .
Some Protestants would emigrate , and the few who wanted to take up arms would be likely to find only minimal support .......
(MORE LATER).
....... Ireland , 1849 ; Joseph Brenan was writing for 'The Irishman' newspaper when he heard that James Fintan Lalor , one of 'The Young Ireland' Movement leaders , was planning an attack on the British.......
A date for the J F Lalor-inspired Rising had been set - 16th September (1849) , and a venue had been chosen ; Cappoquin , in Waterford . Joseph Brenan left 'The Irishman' newspaper and set-out to meet up with James Fintan Lalor .
James Fintan Lalor took the position that the issue of land was at the core of the British/Irish conflict , and that it was necessary to organise the "peasantry" [as Westminster called them] into a fighting force , militarily and politically , to challenge British mis-rule in Ireland - as he himself said :
: " The entire ownership of Ireland is vested of right in the people of Ireland : that they , and none but they , are the land owners and law makers of this island . That all ties to land are invalid if not conferred or confirmed by them , and that this full right of ownership may and ought to be asserted and enforced by any and all means which God has put into the power of men . "
The armed action started in September 1849 .......
(MORE LATER).
WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :
war and peace in rebel Cork ,
in the turbulent years 1916-21.
By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.
A DRIVE TO CORK CITY .......
"....... The Brits in Ballinhassig Barracks heard our car pass them by , but they did'nt come out to us ; instead , they notified all their posts in the district to be on alert for us ......."
" From Coachford we went north to Peake , then north-west to Ballinagree . Here we rested during the day as we got word that the British Auxiliaries were out across our road home . When night fell we returned by our old route to Carraig an Ime and reached our camp at Cumuiclumhain before midnight .
Approaching , with full lights on , a narrow part of the road shaded by trees , a horse-cart was suddenly run in front of us , bringing us to a stop . Around us we could see muzzles of rifles and shotguns , but nothing else ...
... " All right lads , " shouted Jim Grey into the darkness . It was the IRA guard for the night . They welcomed us home . "
[END of ' A DRIVE TO CORK CITY .......'].
(Tomorrow - 'Knocksaharing ...').
GETTING OUT .......
'Britain has the economic clout to impose peace in Northern Ireland (sic), argue BOB ROWTHORN and NAOMI WAYNE . Why does'nt it use it ? '
(First published in 'New Statesman and Society' Magazine , 9th September , 1988 , pages 12 and 13).
Re-produced here in 10 parts .
[Apologises beforehand for the use of the descriptions "Northern Ireland" and "Province" , and the constant use of the terms "Catholics" and "Protestants" in the following ten-part article ; they are not our descriptions or terms , but the Authors].
(8 of 10).
Would the British armed forces in the North stay loyal and hold their discipline ? This would be far more likely if the British and Irish governments guaranteed the future employment and pension rights of those who obeyed orders . Apart from the UDR and RUC , the Protestants own most of the 100,000 or so guns - mostly shotguns- which are 'legally' held in the 'province' . There are also an unknown quantity of revolvers , rifles and machine-guns held 'illegally' by Protestants in self-defence and , of course , by the paramilitaries . There is no way Britain can do anything about these weapons .
But regardless of how well-armed the Protestants are , would they actually fight ? Most Protestants are opposed to British withdrawal , and they know that the threat of massive bloodshed is a formidable deterrent . But to threaten is one thing , to deliver is another . More relevant here than their armed strength are two quite different factors : war-weariness and economic self-interest . The majority of Protestants are heartily sick of the violence . If they were genuinely convinced that Britain was going and would crush resistance by strong economic sanctions , and were at the same time fully reassured about their future , most Protestants would accept re-unification as a fait accompli .
Some Protestants would emigrate , and the few who wanted to take up arms would be likely to find only minimal support .......
(MORE LATER).
Saturday, June 05, 2004
JOSEPH BRENAN ; 1828-1857 : 'Young Ireland' Leader .......
.......Although only in his early 20's , Joseph Brenan was in a leadership position in 'The Young Ireland' Movement ; he joined up with a group of Rebels , under the command of John O'Mahony , in the Waterford area .......
Joseph Brenan fought alongside O'Mahony's group against the British forces when 'The Young Irelanders' rose-up in July 1848 but , following the collapse of that Rising , Joseph Brenan was captured and imprisoned in Newgate Jail first , then, after a few months , was shifted to Carrickfergus Jail , then to Kilmainham Jail in Dublin .
Finally , after seven months detention , he was released (without trial) and became involved with Bernard Fulham in the production of a new Rebel newspaper , ' The Irishman ' ; he used 'The Irishman' to call for the population to take back in arms that which the Brits held by arms ; that was in March 1849 - in September that same year (1849) , after seven months writing articles and Editorials for 'The Irishman' newspaper , Joseph Brenan was told that James Fintan Lalor was planning an attack on the British .
J F Lalor was also in a leadership position in 'The Young Ireland' Movement and was well-known for his writings on the land issue .......
(MORE LATER).
WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :
war and peace in rebel Cork ,
in the turbulent years 1916-21.
By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.
A DRIVE TO CORK CITY .......
".......The man who was following Jim Grey had been warned off ; the local IRA then picked him up and investigated him and his family - we all agreed to leave the matter at that , as there seemed to be no threat to us ......."
" We finished our shopping and returned to the milk-cart . The tyres we purchased had arrived and we stowed them under the seat and the milk churns . Sitting aboard , we started out the Douglas Road , but had not gone far when we found the street partly blocked and a group of RIC men searching every vehicle that passed either way . Driving up to the barricade we were motioned through without question . Evidently , they tired of questioning the milk-man who passed them by every day . In any case , since the advent of the Black-and-Tans the RIC had ceased to be enthusiastic about the 'law'.
Very soon we were clear of the city and saw with relief the open country . It was good to be safely back at Ballygarvan with our four comrades and to see the Buick , and the Lewis-Gun , and our rifles . That night , having said good-bye to our kindly hostess , Miss Walsh , we started on our journey home to Ballyvourney . This time we choose the southern route , through Ballinhassig where we slipped by the rear of the British Barracks .
The Brits heard our Buick climbing the hill , however , and sent out a message to warn all their posts that we had passed . Our road from the south led us to within a mile of the British Barracks at Ballincollig , and , since we could not use lights , we had to travel very slowly . By-passing trenched roads delayed us further ; finally , we crossed the River Lee at Rooves Bridge and came into Coachford as day was breaking . So far , so good ......."
(MORE LATER).
GETTING OUT .......
'Britain has the economic clout to impose peace in Northern Ireland (sic), argue BOB ROWTHORN and NAOMI WAYNE . Why does'nt it use it ? '
(First published in 'New Statesman and Society' Magazine , 9th September , 1988 , pages 12 and 13).
Re-produced here in 10 parts .
[Apologises beforehand for the use of the descriptions "Northern Ireland" and "Province" , and the constant use of the terms "Catholics" and "Protestants" in the following ten-part article ; they are not our descriptions or terms , but the Authors].
(7 of 10).
Contraception is now legal and available in the 'Republic' . Abortions are banned north and south of the border , and all Irish women , Protestant and Catholic , have to come to Britain for terminations . Divorce remains the main area of apparent difference , but even here the gulf should not be insurmountable . While divorce remains prohibited under the constitution of the 'Republic' (whereas the 'province's' divorce laws parallel Britain's) , new laws being introduced will soon give much the same entitlements as divorce , save the right to remarry .
These positive measures should do much to minimise the risk and extent of inter-community violence . But Britain would also have to act immediately to take all practicable measures to disarm Protestants . There are around 6,000 members of the Ulster Defence Regiment and a further 13,000 in the RUC . Most of them carry personal arms for self-defence and also have access to 'official' arsenals containing more destructive weapons (high-velocity rifles , sub-machine guns ,etc) . The UDR should be disbanded , thus greatly reducing Protestant access to 'official' arsenals .
It may also be necessary to disband the RUC , but much would depend on whether the RUC's loyalty and discipline held .......
(MORE LATER).
.......Although only in his early 20's , Joseph Brenan was in a leadership position in 'The Young Ireland' Movement ; he joined up with a group of Rebels , under the command of John O'Mahony , in the Waterford area .......
Joseph Brenan fought alongside O'Mahony's group against the British forces when 'The Young Irelanders' rose-up in July 1848 but , following the collapse of that Rising , Joseph Brenan was captured and imprisoned in Newgate Jail first , then, after a few months , was shifted to Carrickfergus Jail , then to Kilmainham Jail in Dublin .
Finally , after seven months detention , he was released (without trial) and became involved with Bernard Fulham in the production of a new Rebel newspaper , ' The Irishman ' ; he used 'The Irishman' to call for the population to take back in arms that which the Brits held by arms ; that was in March 1849 - in September that same year (1849) , after seven months writing articles and Editorials for 'The Irishman' newspaper , Joseph Brenan was told that James Fintan Lalor was planning an attack on the British .
J F Lalor was also in a leadership position in 'The Young Ireland' Movement and was well-known for his writings on the land issue .......
(MORE LATER).
WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :
war and peace in rebel Cork ,
in the turbulent years 1916-21.
By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.
A DRIVE TO CORK CITY .......
".......The man who was following Jim Grey had been warned off ; the local IRA then picked him up and investigated him and his family - we all agreed to leave the matter at that , as there seemed to be no threat to us ......."
" We finished our shopping and returned to the milk-cart . The tyres we purchased had arrived and we stowed them under the seat and the milk churns . Sitting aboard , we started out the Douglas Road , but had not gone far when we found the street partly blocked and a group of RIC men searching every vehicle that passed either way . Driving up to the barricade we were motioned through without question . Evidently , they tired of questioning the milk-man who passed them by every day . In any case , since the advent of the Black-and-Tans the RIC had ceased to be enthusiastic about the 'law'.
Very soon we were clear of the city and saw with relief the open country . It was good to be safely back at Ballygarvan with our four comrades and to see the Buick , and the Lewis-Gun , and our rifles . That night , having said good-bye to our kindly hostess , Miss Walsh , we started on our journey home to Ballyvourney . This time we choose the southern route , through Ballinhassig where we slipped by the rear of the British Barracks .
The Brits heard our Buick climbing the hill , however , and sent out a message to warn all their posts that we had passed . Our road from the south led us to within a mile of the British Barracks at Ballincollig , and , since we could not use lights , we had to travel very slowly . By-passing trenched roads delayed us further ; finally , we crossed the River Lee at Rooves Bridge and came into Coachford as day was breaking . So far , so good ......."
(MORE LATER).
GETTING OUT .......
'Britain has the economic clout to impose peace in Northern Ireland (sic), argue BOB ROWTHORN and NAOMI WAYNE . Why does'nt it use it ? '
(First published in 'New Statesman and Society' Magazine , 9th September , 1988 , pages 12 and 13).
Re-produced here in 10 parts .
[Apologises beforehand for the use of the descriptions "Northern Ireland" and "Province" , and the constant use of the terms "Catholics" and "Protestants" in the following ten-part article ; they are not our descriptions or terms , but the Authors].
(7 of 10).
Contraception is now legal and available in the 'Republic' . Abortions are banned north and south of the border , and all Irish women , Protestant and Catholic , have to come to Britain for terminations . Divorce remains the main area of apparent difference , but even here the gulf should not be insurmountable . While divorce remains prohibited under the constitution of the 'Republic' (whereas the 'province's' divorce laws parallel Britain's) , new laws being introduced will soon give much the same entitlements as divorce , save the right to remarry .
These positive measures should do much to minimise the risk and extent of inter-community violence . But Britain would also have to act immediately to take all practicable measures to disarm Protestants . There are around 6,000 members of the Ulster Defence Regiment and a further 13,000 in the RUC . Most of them carry personal arms for self-defence and also have access to 'official' arsenals containing more destructive weapons (high-velocity rifles , sub-machine guns ,etc) . The UDR should be disbanded , thus greatly reducing Protestant access to 'official' arsenals .
It may also be necessary to disband the RUC , but much would depend on whether the RUC's loyalty and discipline held .......
(MORE LATER).
Friday, June 04, 2004
JOSEPH BRENAN ; 1828-1857 : 'Young Ireland' Leader .......
....... Joseph Brenan was living in Dublin when the British 'Authorities' closed-down 'The United Irishman' newspaper in May 1848 ; the Brits had been keeping an eye on Joseph Brenan , who was writing articles for various publications calling on people to rise up in arms against them .......
After they closed down 'The United Irishman' newspaper , the Brits watched as Joseph Brenan began writing for the 'The Irish Tribune' newspaper , edited by Richard Dalton Williams and Kevin Izod O'Doherty , and another short-lived Rebel newspaper , 'The Irish Felon' , edited by John Martin .
Joseph Brenan , now in his early 20's , and in a leadership position in 'The Young Irelanders' Movement , was quite openly calling for an immediate Rising against the British , to begin in Dublin , and which , he opined , would spread to the rest of the country ; but Dublin was the then stronghold of the British presence (mid-1848) and it was suggested that a military campaign against the Brits would have a better chance of success were it to start in the rural areas .
A group of Irish Rebels , under the Command of John O'Mahony (who was later to be elected leader of the American Fenian Organisation , 'Clann na Gael' , and was to be described by the Fenian author John O'Leary as - " ...an advanced democrat of socialist opinions " ) was operating in the County Waterford area and Joseph Brenan caught up with O'Mahony and his group near the Comeragh Mountains .......
WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :
war and peace in rebel Cork ,
in the turbulent years 1916-21.
By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.
A DRIVE TO CORK CITY .......
"....... Jim Grey and I split-up , with myself about twenty-yards behind him , as we walked to 'Johnson and Perrots' garage for tyres ; Jim did'nt know it yet , but he had 'picked-up' a 'tail' , and I kept a close eye on both Jim and this other man . When this stranger was satisfied that Jim was in the Office of the garage , he turned to go ......."
" My left hand fell on the strangers neck ; he struggled to complete his exit but failed - I pushed him in the doorway , and into the corner formed by the sliding door and its pillar . He demanded an explanation but I told him to wait for a little while . Presently Jim returned from the garage Office . " We will go , Mick ," he said , then he caught sight of the prisoner . " Who is he ? " he asked . " I don't know , " I answered , and told him the story .
The man admitted that I had told the truth , that he had followed Jim , but said that he had done so through idle curiosity . " You were going to Union Quay ," (the British Barracks) Jim said gently , " and now my poor man , " he added , " you may carry on , but you'll never reach the place . " The tout made further protests against the idea that he meant to do us any harm , and so we left him . We reported the matter to 'Flurrie' , one of our men in the area , and the tout was picked-up , tried and acquitted ; his plea was still that of idle curiosity .
It seemed an extraordinary plea , but all his people were found to be honest and in no way hostile towards us - we were glad to hear that he got the benefit of the doubt . To hear of a young Irishman convicted of spying on his own people would be the most melancholy news of all ......."
(MORE LATER).
GETTING OUT .......
'Britain has the economic clout to impose peace in Northern Ireland (sic), argue BOB ROWTHORN and NAOMI WAYNE . Why does'nt it use it ? '
(First published in 'New Statesman and Society' Magazine , 9th September , 1988 , pages 12 and 13).
Re-produced here in 10 parts .
[Apologises beforehand for the use of the descriptions "Northern Ireland" and "Province" , and the constant use of the terms "Catholics" and "Protestants" in the following ten-part article ; they are not our descriptions or terms , but the Authors].
(6 of 10).
Many Protestants fear that they would be oppressed by the Catholic majority in a united Ireland ; this fear is greatly exaggerated . Leading nationalist politicians of all kinds have frequently made it clear that they would guarantee Protestant religious and political freedoms in a united Ireland . But Britain and the 'Republic' should at once take positive measures to reassure Protestants about the kind of future they could expect .
They would have to be welcomed into the new state and given specific guarantees over employment rights , civil and religious liberties , and so on . Britain's continued aid would underpin these assurances and Britain could make it clear that its continuing economic power in Ireland would be used , if need be , further to protect their rights and liberties .
In any event , the gap between Catholic and Protestant moral values is nowhere near as large as is often assumed . It should by no means be unbridgeable in a united Ireland .......
(MORE LATER).
....... Joseph Brenan was living in Dublin when the British 'Authorities' closed-down 'The United Irishman' newspaper in May 1848 ; the Brits had been keeping an eye on Joseph Brenan , who was writing articles for various publications calling on people to rise up in arms against them .......
After they closed down 'The United Irishman' newspaper , the Brits watched as Joseph Brenan began writing for the 'The Irish Tribune' newspaper , edited by Richard Dalton Williams and Kevin Izod O'Doherty , and another short-lived Rebel newspaper , 'The Irish Felon' , edited by John Martin .
Joseph Brenan , now in his early 20's , and in a leadership position in 'The Young Irelanders' Movement , was quite openly calling for an immediate Rising against the British , to begin in Dublin , and which , he opined , would spread to the rest of the country ; but Dublin was the then stronghold of the British presence (mid-1848) and it was suggested that a military campaign against the Brits would have a better chance of success were it to start in the rural areas .
A group of Irish Rebels , under the Command of John O'Mahony (who was later to be elected leader of the American Fenian Organisation , 'Clann na Gael' , and was to be described by the Fenian author John O'Leary as - " ...an advanced democrat of socialist opinions " ) was operating in the County Waterford area and Joseph Brenan caught up with O'Mahony and his group near the Comeragh Mountains .......
WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :
war and peace in rebel Cork ,
in the turbulent years 1916-21.
By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.
A DRIVE TO CORK CITY .......
"....... Jim Grey and I split-up , with myself about twenty-yards behind him , as we walked to 'Johnson and Perrots' garage for tyres ; Jim did'nt know it yet , but he had 'picked-up' a 'tail' , and I kept a close eye on both Jim and this other man . When this stranger was satisfied that Jim was in the Office of the garage , he turned to go ......."
" My left hand fell on the strangers neck ; he struggled to complete his exit but failed - I pushed him in the doorway , and into the corner formed by the sliding door and its pillar . He demanded an explanation but I told him to wait for a little while . Presently Jim returned from the garage Office . " We will go , Mick ," he said , then he caught sight of the prisoner . " Who is he ? " he asked . " I don't know , " I answered , and told him the story .
The man admitted that I had told the truth , that he had followed Jim , but said that he had done so through idle curiosity . " You were going to Union Quay ," (the British Barracks) Jim said gently , " and now my poor man , " he added , " you may carry on , but you'll never reach the place . " The tout made further protests against the idea that he meant to do us any harm , and so we left him . We reported the matter to 'Flurrie' , one of our men in the area , and the tout was picked-up , tried and acquitted ; his plea was still that of idle curiosity .
It seemed an extraordinary plea , but all his people were found to be honest and in no way hostile towards us - we were glad to hear that he got the benefit of the doubt . To hear of a young Irishman convicted of spying on his own people would be the most melancholy news of all ......."
(MORE LATER).
GETTING OUT .......
'Britain has the economic clout to impose peace in Northern Ireland (sic), argue BOB ROWTHORN and NAOMI WAYNE . Why does'nt it use it ? '
(First published in 'New Statesman and Society' Magazine , 9th September , 1988 , pages 12 and 13).
Re-produced here in 10 parts .
[Apologises beforehand for the use of the descriptions "Northern Ireland" and "Province" , and the constant use of the terms "Catholics" and "Protestants" in the following ten-part article ; they are not our descriptions or terms , but the Authors].
(6 of 10).
Many Protestants fear that they would be oppressed by the Catholic majority in a united Ireland ; this fear is greatly exaggerated . Leading nationalist politicians of all kinds have frequently made it clear that they would guarantee Protestant religious and political freedoms in a united Ireland . But Britain and the 'Republic' should at once take positive measures to reassure Protestants about the kind of future they could expect .
They would have to be welcomed into the new state and given specific guarantees over employment rights , civil and religious liberties , and so on . Britain's continued aid would underpin these assurances and Britain could make it clear that its continuing economic power in Ireland would be used , if need be , further to protect their rights and liberties .
In any event , the gap between Catholic and Protestant moral values is nowhere near as large as is often assumed . It should by no means be unbridgeable in a united Ireland .......
(MORE LATER).
Thursday, June 03, 2004
JOSEPH BRENAN ; 1828-1857 : 'Young Ireland' Leader .......
....... At 19 years young (in January 1848) , Joseph Brenan met John Mitchel , one of the leaders of the 'Young Ireland' Movement , in Cork .......
The two men apparently knew of each other , and Joseph Brenan began writing articles for the 'Young Irelanders' newspaper , 'The United Irishman' . It was in this newspaper that John Mitchel first suggested that England should be attacked by Irish Rebels while that country was preoccupied with war elsewhere (an example which Sean Russell was to refer to 91 years later , in 1939 , during the IRA Bombing Campaign in England . However , for what its worth , we should also mention the fact that the Irish Rebel leader John Mitchel fought in the American Civil War on the side of the South and slavery ... !).
However , I digress (again !) ; Joseph Brenan was told by John Mitchel that plans were at an advanced stage in Dublin regarding a Rising against the British , and Joseph Brenan wanted to play his part - so he moved from Cork , to Dublin , and was living in the capital when 'The United Irishman' newspaper was suppressed by the British , in May 1848 . Due to his constant "call-to-arms" in his various writings , Joseph Brenan was being monitored by the British 'Authorities in Dublin Castle .......
(MORE LATER).
WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :
war and peace in rebel Cork ,
in the turbulent years 1916-21.
By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.
A DRIVE TO CORK CITY .......
".......We were calm and pleasant to the Black and Tan who had stopped and 'searched' us , with his comrades looking on . He was happy with our claim to be on his side , just from a different Barracks . We had been only seconds away from a shoot-out , had the Tan behaved differently ......."
" Well over 40 years have passed since that incident and it is still fresh in my memory - indeed , while I have Jim Grey to revive it , there is no fear that I shall forget it . For when we meet and there is a quorum , Jim does not fail to turn the laugh against me - " Wisha , Mick , " he says , " do you remember the day you picked up the cap for the Black-and-Tan in the Grand Parade ? "
We left the Grand Parade after our encounter with the Tan and soon stood at the counter of Wallaces Shop in St. Augustine Street . Scarcely had we done so , when Sheila and Nora came in with the news that the whole block of buildings around us was cordoned off and a search was proceeding ; we looked out - both ends of the narrow street were held by British troops . We slipped unnoticed across to St. Augustine's Church , and went through the church to the Washington Street door . Here , too , it was cordoned off at the Parade and Main Street . We would have to wait and see what happened .
We knelt down and prayed while we waited . When we looked out , they had gone , so we returned to Wallaces Shop and got any news that was going from Sheila and Nora . Then I insisted on Jim going into a barber's shop at the corner for a shave . He did so and we started for Johnson and Perrots Garage to get the tyres for the Buick . Jim was to go first , with me following twenty yards behind . We had just started out when I noticed a man in civilian clothes fall in behind Jim and follow him at a distance of ten yards or so ; I fell in behind the tout at about the same distance . Jim turned many a corner and crossed many roads before we reached the open space in front of the garage .
Then he crossed the open space and entered the garage through the big door ; the 'shadow' followed to the big door but stopped at the doorway on the right hand side - hidden from view from inside , he craned his neck around the sliding door to watch Jim cross diagonally a space of floor to the office . I had been an interested spectator from across the street . Satisfied , now , that he had located Jim in the office of the garage , the tout took a pace backwards and had started to execute a left turn when my left hand fell on his neck ....... "
(MORE LATER).
GETTING OUT .......
'Britain has the economic clout to impose peace in Northern Ireland (sic), argue BOB ROWTHORN and NAOMI WAYNE . Why does'nt it use it ? '
(First published in 'New Statesman and Society' Magazine , 9th September , 1988 , pages 12 and 13).
Re-produced here in 10 parts .
[Apologises beforehand for the use of the descriptions "Northern Ireland" and "Province" , and the constant use of the terms "Catholics" and "Protestants" in the following ten-part article ; they are not our descriptions or terms , but the Authors].
(5 of 10).
Perhaps the most common objection to British withdrawal is the fear that the Protestant community would take to arms to preserve an independent 'state' , thus precipitating a bloodbath in which large numbers of Catholics and Protestants would be killed . This danger is taken so much for granted , even among people who would otherwise advocate re-unifying Ireland , that it is rarely subjected to any scrutiny . But how well-founded is it in reality ?
If Britain simply pulled-out , this sort of scenario is quite possible ; but a planned and responsible withdrawal , founded upon a firm and unequivocal decision to leave and buttressed by the economic strategy we have outlined , would have entirely different results . The decision would have to be clearly irreversible and the timetable for withdrawal would have to be fairly short to minimise the time available for resistance to be mobilised .
The certain knowledge of British withdrawal would produce confusion and disunity within the Protestant community , which already knows that to destroy a rebellion would require no military campaign by Britain , but merely a few weeks' economic sanctions ...
(MORE LATER).
....... At 19 years young (in January 1848) , Joseph Brenan met John Mitchel , one of the leaders of the 'Young Ireland' Movement , in Cork .......
The two men apparently knew of each other , and Joseph Brenan began writing articles for the 'Young Irelanders' newspaper , 'The United Irishman' . It was in this newspaper that John Mitchel first suggested that England should be attacked by Irish Rebels while that country was preoccupied with war elsewhere (an example which Sean Russell was to refer to 91 years later , in 1939 , during the IRA Bombing Campaign in England . However , for what its worth , we should also mention the fact that the Irish Rebel leader John Mitchel fought in the American Civil War on the side of the South and slavery ... !).
However , I digress (again !) ; Joseph Brenan was told by John Mitchel that plans were at an advanced stage in Dublin regarding a Rising against the British , and Joseph Brenan wanted to play his part - so he moved from Cork , to Dublin , and was living in the capital when 'The United Irishman' newspaper was suppressed by the British , in May 1848 . Due to his constant "call-to-arms" in his various writings , Joseph Brenan was being monitored by the British 'Authorities in Dublin Castle .......
(MORE LATER).
WHERE MOUNTAINY MEN HAVE SOWN :
war and peace in rebel Cork ,
in the turbulent years 1916-21.
By Micheal O'Suilleabhain : published 1965.
A DRIVE TO CORK CITY .......
".......We were calm and pleasant to the Black and Tan who had stopped and 'searched' us , with his comrades looking on . He was happy with our claim to be on his side , just from a different Barracks . We had been only seconds away from a shoot-out , had the Tan behaved differently ......."
" Well over 40 years have passed since that incident and it is still fresh in my memory - indeed , while I have Jim Grey to revive it , there is no fear that I shall forget it . For when we meet and there is a quorum , Jim does not fail to turn the laugh against me - " Wisha , Mick , " he says , " do you remember the day you picked up the cap for the Black-and-Tan in the Grand Parade ? "
We left the Grand Parade after our encounter with the Tan and soon stood at the counter of Wallaces Shop in St. Augustine Street . Scarcely had we done so , when Sheila and Nora came in with the news that the whole block of buildings around us was cordoned off and a search was proceeding ; we looked out - both ends of the narrow street were held by British troops . We slipped unnoticed across to St. Augustine's Church , and went through the church to the Washington Street door . Here , too , it was cordoned off at the Parade and Main Street . We would have to wait and see what happened .
We knelt down and prayed while we waited . When we looked out , they had gone , so we returned to Wallaces Shop and got any news that was going from Sheila and Nora . Then I insisted on Jim going into a barber's shop at the corner for a shave . He did so and we started for Johnson and Perrots Garage to get the tyres for the Buick . Jim was to go first , with me following twenty yards behind . We had just started out when I noticed a man in civilian clothes fall in behind Jim and follow him at a distance of ten yards or so ; I fell in behind the tout at about the same distance . Jim turned many a corner and crossed many roads before we reached the open space in front of the garage .
Then he crossed the open space and entered the garage through the big door ; the 'shadow' followed to the big door but stopped at the doorway on the right hand side - hidden from view from inside , he craned his neck around the sliding door to watch Jim cross diagonally a space of floor to the office . I had been an interested spectator from across the street . Satisfied , now , that he had located Jim in the office of the garage , the tout took a pace backwards and had started to execute a left turn when my left hand fell on his neck ....... "
(MORE LATER).
GETTING OUT .......
'Britain has the economic clout to impose peace in Northern Ireland (sic), argue BOB ROWTHORN and NAOMI WAYNE . Why does'nt it use it ? '
(First published in 'New Statesman and Society' Magazine , 9th September , 1988 , pages 12 and 13).
Re-produced here in 10 parts .
[Apologises beforehand for the use of the descriptions "Northern Ireland" and "Province" , and the constant use of the terms "Catholics" and "Protestants" in the following ten-part article ; they are not our descriptions or terms , but the Authors].
(5 of 10).
Perhaps the most common objection to British withdrawal is the fear that the Protestant community would take to arms to preserve an independent 'state' , thus precipitating a bloodbath in which large numbers of Catholics and Protestants would be killed . This danger is taken so much for granted , even among people who would otherwise advocate re-unifying Ireland , that it is rarely subjected to any scrutiny . But how well-founded is it in reality ?
If Britain simply pulled-out , this sort of scenario is quite possible ; but a planned and responsible withdrawal , founded upon a firm and unequivocal decision to leave and buttressed by the economic strategy we have outlined , would have entirely different results . The decision would have to be clearly irreversible and the timetable for withdrawal would have to be fairly short to minimise the time available for resistance to be mobilised .
The certain knowledge of British withdrawal would produce confusion and disunity within the Protestant community , which already knows that to destroy a rebellion would require no military campaign by Britain , but merely a few weeks' economic sanctions ...
(MORE LATER).
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