ON THIS DATE (27TH MAY) 143 YEARS AGO : BIRTH OF A PROVISIONAL GOVERNMENT MEMBER-IN-WAITING.'Francis Sheehy-Skeffington did not enter his wife Hanna's details on the 1911 Census form at their home...as the suffragettes had a campaign of non-cooperation with the 1911 Census. Francis recorded four people in the house : himself (aged 32), his one year old son (Owen) and two female servants, Philomena Morrissey (aged 23) and Mary Butler (aged 21).The enumerator, James Crozier, attempted to circumvent the boycott by recording Hanna’s details. Almost all of the information was incorrect. He entered her name as Emily, (but her correct name was Johanna), had the wrong age of 28 (her real age was 33), he recorded their marriage as 3 years in length (but they had been married for 8 years) and recorded her place of birth as Dublin (she was born in Kanturk, Co. Cork). He was correct in recording that they had had one child and that this child was alive (Owen Lancelot). The enumerators, who were from the police force, had extensive powers to make enquiries locally about those who refused to fill out the form.Johanna Mary Sheehy(pictured, in 1912, on her release from Mountjoy Prison in Dublin), known as Hanna, was born in Kanturk, County Cork, in May 1877. She belonged to a prosperous farming and milling family. Her father, David Sheehy (1844-1932), was a member of the IRB and later an MP, and had been imprisoned no less than six times for revolutionary activities. Hanna was a highly influential figure during the suffragette movement and was also active in the realms of socialism and Irish independence. She married Francis Skeffington in 1903. They joined their names together on marriage, a symbol of the equality in their relationship. Both were founder members of the Irish Women’s Franchise League in 1908 which fought for women’s suffrage. They had one child, Owen Lancelot, in 1909. She was fired from her teaching post in 1912 following her arrest for breaking windows during a militant suffragette protest. In 1912 she and her husband founded the 'Irish Citizen' newspaper. She was active in the labour movement assisting in the soup kitchen at Liberty Hall in 1913.Like her husband Hanna was a pacifist. She attended a meeting in Wexford organised by John Redmond for conscription to the British Army. Huge crowds attended as conscription was so popular and trains had been organised from Waterford and Kilkenny. Redmond was about to address the audience when a very heavily veiled Hanna stood up on a box asking people to repudiate Redmond and his recruiting. She was torn down from the box by the crowd and her clothes almost ripped from her. She was very badly mistreated by the crowd and if it were not for the intervention of the police and some members of the public she would have been thrown into Wexford Bay ;"A much battered and torn and, I am sure, very much bruised, Mrs Skeffington was rescued".During the Rising Hanna did not join the rebels but she brought food and messages to the various outposts. Her elderly uncle, a priest named Eugene Sheehy, a well-known Land League and IRB member, was at the GPO as a confessor to the rebels. She was in the confidence of some of the leadership as they selected her to act as a member of a civil provisional government to come into effect if the Rising was prolonged(she was to be one of five members of the Provisional government to be set up once the rebellion was victorious). She considered the Rising as the first point in Irish History where the struggle for women’s citizenship and national freedom converged. Her husband Francis, who was not involved in the Rising, was arrested while trying to prevent looting. He was detained by Captain Bowen-Colthurst and shot without a trial. She refused £10,000 in compensation and instead looked for a court martial for her husband’s killer.![]()
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ON THIS DATE (3RD JUNE) 46 YEARS AGO : FORCE-FED IRISH HUNGER-STRIKER DIES.Michael Gaughan (pictured), the eleventh Irish republican to die on hunger strike, was four months away from celebrating his 25th birthday.Immortalised in song by Seamus Robinson, Michael Gaughan was an IRA activist in England and, in December 1971, he found himself in front of a British judge in the Old Bailey, where he was sentenced to seven years in Wormwood Scrubs for taking part in a (republican fund-raising) bank raid in north London.Two years later, he was transferred to Albany Prison on the Isle of Wight and demanded that he be treated as a political prisoner. This was refused and he was placed in solitary confinement before being moved to Parkhurst Prison, also on the Isle of Wight. On the 31st of March, 1974, Michael Gaughan joined an on-going hunger-strike protest and, after 23 days, he was force-fed : the tube that was forced down his throat punctured his lung, killing him, in Parkhurst Prison, on the 3rd of June, 1974 - 46 years ago on this date. His body was removed from London and on Friday and Saturday, 7th and 8th June 1974, thousands of mourners lined the streets of Kilburn and marched behind his coffin, which was flanked by an IRA guard of honour, to a requiem mass held in the 'Church of the Sacred Heart of Jesus' in Kilburn.On that Saturday (8th June 1974), his body was transported to Dublin where, again, it was met by mourners and another IRA guard of honour(pictured) who brought it to the Adam and Eve's Franciscan church on Merchant's Quay, where thousands filed past as the body lay in state. The following day, his body was removed to Ballina, County Mayo. The funeral mass took place on the 9th June, at St. Muredach's Cathedral, Ballina, and the procession then went to Leigue Cemetery, Ballina.Michael Gaughan was given a full republican burial and was laid to rest in the republican plot. Mayo republican Jackie Clarke (Seán Ó Clérigh, whose family later had political disagreements with the Provisional Sinn Féin party) presided at the last obsequies, and the oration at his graveside was given by Dáithí Ó Conaill, who stated that Gaughan"..had been tortured in prison by the vampires of a discredited empire who were joined by decrepit politicians who were a disgrace to the name of Irishmen...". His coffin was draped in the same Tricolour that was used for Terence McSwiney's funeral 54 years earlier. He left a final message in which he stated -"I die proudly for my country and in the hope that my death will be sufficient to obtain the demands of my comrades. Let there be no bitterness on my behalf, but a determination to achieve the new Ireland for which I gladly die. My loyalty and confidence is to the IRA and let those of you who are left carry on the work and finish the fight."And today, 46 years after Michael Gaughan was buried, republicans are still working towards that same objective.'AMERICAN ITEMS OF INTEREST...'From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, June, 1955.The Labour sub-committee will consist of many AFL business agents and CIO officials and will help to get the prisoners' side of the story known at union meetings etc. Already many who are not Irish or even of Irish extraction have given a dollar or half-dollar to the Fund when informed by their fellow workers what the men in jail represented and why Ireland was still not free. Much more work along these lines is needed.Greater circulation for 'The United Irishman' newspaper is assured in New York now that the paper has increased in size to eight pages and has improved its appearance to make for livelier and more reading matter. Comment on the March issue was highly favourable and the task now is to get it into the hands of as many Irish here as possible and, towards this end, the new Sinn Féin Committee members are dedicating themselves. Death of Mrs. Nellie Hoyne Murray :Mrs. Nellie Hoyne Murray('Record 14046'here), whose funeral was held on Monday, May 2nd, from St. John the Evangelist Church in Los Angeles, was a tireless worker in the Irish Republican Movement ever since coming to Los Angeles nearly 25 years ago. As a girl in Kilkenny, her native city, she became an active participant in the struggle against the Black-and-Tans and, as a result, she was sentenced to a year in Kilmainham Jail in Dublin...(MORE LATER.)ON THIS DATE (3RD JUNE) 54 YEARS AGO : DEATH OF A POLITICAL WANDERER - FROM THE IRB TO FINE GAEL!Fionán Lynch(pictured, campaigning for votes in the 1920's) died on the 3rd June, 1966, just weeks after celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the 1916 Rising. He was active during the fight and was said to be a personal friend of Michael Collins, was sentenced to 10 years in prison but was released in 1917 in the general amnesty. He spent the rest of his 'political career' in politics and served as an abstentionist Leinster House member for Sinn Féin, before absconding into Free State politics with the Blueshirts (Cumann na nGaedheal/Fine Gael)!'Fionán Lynch (Irish: Fionán Ó Loingsigh; 17 March 1889 – 3 June 1966) was an Irish revolutionary, barrister, politician and judge...(he) was born in Cahersiveen, County Kerry in 1889 and educated in Rockwell College and Blackrock College. He qualified as a national school teacher in 1912 and joined the Gaelic League the same year (and) was a founder member of the Irish Volunteers in 1913 and was sworn into the Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB) that same year..(he) fought in the Easter Rising in Dublin in 1916 in the Four Courts garrison with Commandent Edward Daly in North King Street. Daly was executed and Captain Fionán Lynch was sentenced to death but commuted to 10 years Penal Servitude. He was imprisoned in Kilmainham Gaol and later in Mountjoy. He was one of the last Irish men to speak with Thomas Ashe before he died. He was later interned in prison in England and Wales until the general amnesty in late 1917.Upon his release Lynch resumed his paramilitary activities and was elected as an abstentionist Sinn Féin Member of Parliament for Kerry South at the 1918 Westminster Election, becoming a Member of the 1st Dáil. At this time one of the safe houses frequently used by Lynch and Collins was at 44 Mounjoy Square, Dublin, the house of Lynch’s aunt Miss Myna McCarthy. As Teachta Dála for Kerry South he spent much time in the county on parliamentary and paramilitary activities. Many meeting were held in Tralee, in the premises of Mr.Thomas Slattery who figured prominently in the National Movement. Here he met Miss Bridget Slattery and they were married in November 1919. They lived in Dublin and awaited the sound of the army Crossley tender which brought the threat of summary arrest under the terms of the amnesty.He was automatically elected as an abstenionist member of the House of Commons of Southern Ireland and a Member of the 2nd Dáil as a Sinn Féin Teachta Dála for Kerry–Limerick West at the 1921 elections. *He supported the Anglo-Irish Treaty like almost all IRB members and during the Dáil Debates criticised some Anti-Treaty TDs. During the Civil War he fought with the Irish Free State Army and rose to the rank of Brigadier. He left the Army in 1923 to concentrate on his political career.He was elected to the 3rd Dáil(sic) at the 1922 general election as a Pro-Treaty Sinn Féin TD and at each subsequent general election as a Cumann na nGaedhael and later Fine Gael deputy for the constituencies of Kerry from 1923 to 1937 and Kerry South from 1937 until 1944. Lynch served as Minister for Education from April to August 1922, as Minister for Fisheries from 1922–1930, and as Minister for Lands and Fisheries from 1930–32...in 1937 he was appointed Leas Ceann Comhairle (deputy speaker) of Dail Eireann (sic)but suffered serious ill health and relinquished the post in 1938...he qualified as a barrister after 1932 and remained a TD(sic-Leinster House member) until his appointment as a Circuit court judge in 1944 to the Irish Speaking Sligo and Donegal Circuit...'(from here.)*In speaking in support of 'The Treaty of Surrender', Mr. Lynch stated - "I stand for this Treaty on four grounds, and the one I mention last is the one that will mean the most to me. I stand for it because it gives us an army, because it gives us evacuation, because it gives us control over the finances of the country, and lastly, and greatest of all to me, because it gives us control over our education..."1) That (Free State) "army" allied itself, from inception, with Westminster (who helped establish it) and has never since opposed the continuing occupation of six of our counties by that institution.2) "Evacuation" - only partially so, which was never the objective for republicans.3) "Country finances" - what type of person would consider the 26 County State to be a "country"?4) That "control over education" was given, by Leinster House, to the Clergy. A disastrous decision, nothing to be proud of there.From the IRB to Fine Gael ; a confused political line, to say the least and, again - nothing to be proud of.KICKING AGAINST THE PRICKS...The heavy-handed official response to a number of Irish publications and websites has drawn attention to this country's growing satirical network. Which can only be a good thing. By Noel Baker.From 'Magill' magazine, July 2002.Describing'The Portadown News' as being written"from a pissed-off pro-Agreement perspective.." ,Portadown native 'Newt' began the website in March 2001, adding that"it seemed like a good idea at the time."Since its inception, the site has now reached the stage where it clocks up more than 1,000 hits a day.Considering that other Irish satirical websites such as'The Evil Gerald' and'Waffle-Iron.Com'attract similarly high numbers of mouse merchants, it seems that those in the business of lampooning officialdom can work on the margins and still attract readers. In fact, for the people behind websites like 'The Portadown News' and 'Evil Gerald', the real problem is staying one step ahead of reality.A clearly incredulous 'Newt' offers the following example ;"When one of our local councillors complained that green cycle paths made the roads look like tricolours, I couldn't think of any way to make the story more stupid than it already was. It's a constant battle with reality..."(MORE LATER.) 'LEINSTER HOUSE DEBATE : A TERRIBLE MESSAGE FOR THE NORTH.'From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, November 1954.Even in the face of Basil Brooke's declaration that there would be no unity at any price, the Leinster House politicians appear to be determined to continue their futile policy of wooing the Stormont junta. As if that were not enough they accompany theirplamás and soft talk for the anti-Irish elements in the country by deliberately misrepresenting the attitude and policy of the Republican Movement.Construing the two recent actions of the IRA as attacks on the people of the North instead of what they actually were - attacks on the British occupation forces - they then proceeded to condemn the use of force. Mr.(John Aloysius)Costello, Fine Gael, referred to the use of force as"immoral, unchristian and likely to endanger the vital interests of the Nation.." and, as a means of solving partition, he said,"..you are certainly not going to do it by force of arms."Mr. de Valera followed on the same line as that primed by Mr. Costello, namely by completely omitting all reference to the British Army of occupation and substituting what he chose to term"..the minority groups in this country..." as being responsible for partition. He condemned the IRA actions on that false premise, saying "..there is no easy line of conduct to follow which could guarantee to bring about a solution. This is made an excuse by the people referred to (the IRA) to pretend that it can be done by force.."Seán McBride took the same line...(MORE LATER.)Thanks for reading - Sharon and the '1169' team. Stay safe, and 'play' safe. Or at least don't be as reckless as the old you. Or, if you must be, don't get caught. But if you do get caught, leave our name out of it (especially if we were out partying with ya, but done a bunk out the side door before the Covid Cops arrived)...! And if you are 'persuaded' (!) to mention our name, don't do it as a bail reference, 'cause the Judge'll increase yer sentence for givin' him bogey info...
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'SAOIRSE IRISH FREEDOM' NEWSPAPER JUNE 2020...'Saoirse – Irish Freedom is the voice of the Irish Republican Movement. The monthly newspaper of Republican Sinn Féin, it takes its name from Irish Freedom – Saoirse, a Fenian paper which first appeared in November 1910 and continued as a monthly publication until December 1914 when it was suppressed by the British authorities. Among the contributors to that paper were Bulmer Hobson, PS Hegerty, Terence McSwiney, Pádraig Pearse, Ernest Blythe, Piaras Beaslaí, Pat Devlin, Fred Cogley, JW Good and Roger Casement. Irish Republicans have always attempted to produce a newspaper, as a means of speaking to the people. As revolutionaries we have had to rely on our own resources to counter-act the status quo message promoted by the Establishment media...' (from here.)The June 2020 issue of this Irish republican newspaper can be downloaded here for €1.50 - the newspaper, and the organisation which produces it, are (obviously!) not State-funded and your custom would be greatly appreciated. Thank You - GRMA!ON THIS DATE (10TH JUNE) 166 YEARS AGO : BIRTH OF A 'SUFFRAGE SOCIETY' LEADER."Our opinion of people depends less upon what we see in them than upon what they make us see in ourselves..." - Elizabeth Bellenden Clarke (aka 'Sarah Grand', pictured), who was born in County Down, Ireland, on this date, in 1854 ;'Sarah Grand was born Frances Elizabeth Bellenden Clarke in Donaghadee, County Down, on this day in 1854. She was a feminist writer and a major character in the 'New Woman' movement in the late 19th century, when women were beginning to have careers that could offer them financial independence from a man. Sarah Grand was the pen-name she adopted for her work. In 1868 she was expelled from her school for actively protesting against the Contagious Diseases Act, which solely blamed prostitutes for the spread of sexually transmitted diseases.She married an army surgeon and through his work she gained an extensive understanding of the anatomy (and), drawing on her own experiences in that work, became a leading female writer. She separated from her husband after they became estranged. She trusted her writing to support her and moved to London (where) her most notable works were 'The Heavenly Twins' and 'Babs the Impossible'. She wasn’t always praised for her work, but she did have a following, and her publications always attracted attention and created debate. One of her most noted fans was fellow Irish writer George Bernard Shaw...' (from here.)'Sarah' entered formal education at 14 years young when the family moved to Yorkshire, in England, and she attended 'finishing school' in Holland Park. Her (unhappy) marriage to an army surgeon ended in 1890 when she left him and their son to pursue a writing career in London and anonymously published 'Ideala: a Study from Life' at her own expense but it wasn't until she wrote 'The Heavenly Twins' that she found success.Influenced by Josephine Butler's campaign against the 'Contagious Diseases Act', the novel explored men passing on syphilis to their families and the restricted lives of women. Published under the pseudonym 'Sarah Grand', it became a best seller ; she published and lectured on women's suffrage and became president of the 'Union of Women's Suffrage Societies' in Tunbridge Wells, in Kent, England.Frances Elizabeth Bellenden Clarke ('Sarah Grand') died at 89 years of age on the 12th May, 1943, in Wiltshire, in England.'AMERICAN ITEMS OF INTEREST...'From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, June, 1955.Death of Mrs. Nellie Hoyne Murray...Upon Nellie's release from Kilmainham Jail in 1923, her health became impaired, hence her journey to California. She was the wife of George Murray, and for 20 years she was the Secretary of the 'Irish Republican Club' ; she leaves her husband and a daughter, Mrs Chris Flanagan. Requiem High Mass was offered by Father John Acton and the pastor, Msgr. Martin McNicholas, preached the sermon.The flag bearers were Richard Phelan and Thomas Ward for the American and Irish flags, and the pallbearers were Bill Sullivan, Dr. J.O. Murrin, Tommy White, Tom Dwyer, John J. O'Reilly and Denis Shea. The casket was draped in the Tricolour and, at the graveside, in Calvary Cemetery, Thomas White, President of the 'Peter Murray Irish Republican Club', gave a tribute on behalf of the members of that organisation.Bill Hayden of Kilkenny Dies in New York ;We regret to announce the death in New York on May 7th of Bill Hayden, an uncompromising Irish republican who served two terms in Kilkenny Jail under the Black and Tans and Free State forces.His untimely passing occurred following a car accident and he is mourned by many Irish in this city including his friends and comrades of the GAA and the Clan na Gael. Patrick O'Mahoney of the Clan na Gael and John ('Kerry') O'Donnell, President, New York GAA, paid last tributes to the dead Irish republican. Mr. O'Mahoney said -"Your comrades in Ireland's struggle will remember you all their lives as well as your friends who play the games of the Gael.I regret you cannot sleep in your native soil in some quiet churchyard, but such is denied you, Bill, because native traitor and foreign tyrant have, through all the years, made sure the youth of Ireland should seek the emigrant ship and eventually fill a grave far from home."(END of 'American Items Of Interest'. NEXT - 'The Cult Of The False Prophets', from the same source.)KICKING AGAINST THE PRICKS...The heavy-handed official response to a number of Irish publications and websites has drawn attention to this country's growing satirical network. Which can only be a good thing. By Noel Baker.From 'Magill' magazine, July 2002.With the ongoing situation in the North there is fertile ground for satire, but 'Newt' has no truck with taking a middle ground or ostensibly 'objective' position just for the sake of it ;"The real problem is balance",,
he says,"the idea that for every poke at 'them' you need to take a poke at 'us', with the writer assumed 'neutral'. I made it clear from day one that I wouldn't do this - I declared myself a unionist, and I just call it like I see it. Eight years into the ceasefire it shouldn't still be considered 'biased' to take a mainstream political position - that's what neutralises satire, and it's also an attitude that still keeps most people away from politics in general."He adds -"Pure negativity would just make me another part of the problem. I know that even in the case of preaching to the converted, a lot of the 'Portadown News' readers never realised there were other people about who shared their attitude, so even that's a good thing."Those behind the monthly 'Evil Gerald' website(sample headlines - 'Regularities Discovered in Fianna Fail Accounts' and, during the foot-and-mouth crisis, 'Last Remaining Irish Cow Located And Slaughtered') are in accord, and don't believe that a push towards a more obviously mainstream publication would benefit them.First established in UCD ('Ireland's Worst College', according to 'The Slate'), 'Evil Gerald' was launched on the web some 18 months ago. Up to 15 people are now involved, with a nucleus of six or seven writers at the helm and, according to those who run it, between the months of November and March last it received 1.5 million hits - half of those from America."The beauty of a website is that it's there, and it's always there," opines 'Alan'(no second names here, either) of 'Evil Gerald'...(MORE LATER.) 'LEINSTER HOUSE DEBATE : A TERRIBLE MESSAGE FOR THE NORTH..'From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, November 1954.Seán McBride took the same political line as Costello and de Valera - ignored the fact that there is a British Army of Occupation enforcing the division conquest of our country, scathingly referring to the recent republican actions in the North as"intrusions on partition" !For refusing to fall into line with the Leinster House policy of ignoring the facts, Mr Liam Kelly calls the republican methods"illogical and unreasonable."Little wonder that'The Dublin Evening Mail' newspaper summed-up all their attitudes as "an historic fusion", for this indeed is what it was. The shadowy differences between the political parties, north and south, are now seen to fade away in the light of realities.So much so that they would now appear to have formed an alliance to preserve the status quo and the basis of this alliance is misrepresentation. They all, as one, have misrepresented the republican policy by trying to insinuate that republicans wish to start a civil war rather than the obvious simple purpose - to get the English invader out!(MORE LATER.)Thanks for reading - Sharon and the '1169' team. Stay safe, and 'play' safe. Or at least don't be as reckless as the old you. Or, if you must be, don't get caught. But if you do get caught, leave our name out of it (especially if we were out partying with ya, but done a bunk out the side door before the Covid Cops arrived)...! And if you are 'persuaded' (!) to mention our name, don't do it as a bail reference, 'cause the Judge'll increase yer sentence for givin' him bogey info...and then, when ya eventually get out, you'll be 'judged' again - for rattin' on us...
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ON THIS DATE (17TH JUNE) 46 YEARS AGO : IRA BOMB WESTMINSTER.On Monday, 17th June 1974, the then IRA decided to make it's presence felt, once again, in 'the Belly of the Beast' - a 20lb device exploded at the British Parliament, causing widespread damage and injuring 11 people. Six months before that attack, the IRA had exploded two bombs in London - one at Madame Tussauds and one at a boat show which was taking place at Earls Court Exhibition Centre and, one month after the 17th June attack, two bombs also exploded in London - British government buildings in Balham, South London, were damaged in the first explosion that day and the Tower of London was the target for the second bomb. This is a BBC report of the 17th June 1974 IRA attack - 'A bomb has exploded at the Houses of Parliament, causing extensive damage and injuring 11 people. The IRA said it planted the 20lb (9.1 kg) device which exploded at about 0828 BST in a corner of Westminster Hall. The explosion is suspected to have fractured a gas main and a fierce fire spread quickly through the centuries-old hall in one of Britain's most closely-guarded buildings. Scotland Yard detectives have said they fear this attack could herald the start of a new summer offensive by the dissident Irish group on government buildings. No one expected in those days the House of Commons would be a target - security was extremely casual.'Former Labour MP Tam Dalyell ('Sir Thomas Dalyell of the Binns, 11th Baronet) gave this account - "A man with an Irish accent telephoned the Press Association with a warning only six minutes before the explosion. Police said a recognised IRA codeword was given. Although officers were not able to completely clear the palace before the bomb went off, most of the injured were only slightly hurt"and Edward Short, the Leader of the British 'Commons', announced that a review of security procedures would begin immediately, but he said the attack would not disrupt parliamentary business or intimidate MPs. Liberal Chief Whip David Steel was in the building when the device detonated and told the BBC the damage looked considerable -"I looked through Westminster Hall and the whole hall was filled with dust. A few minutes later it was possible to see flames shooting up through the windows..."Today, the group that carried out that attack are only a short step away from again entering that bastion of British misrule but, this time, to assist their new objective of administering the British writ in Ireland. Shame on them.'THE CULT OF THE FALSE PROPHETS.'From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, June, 1955.That Ireland was once the cultural centre of Europe is general knowledge, as also the fact that she retained her nationality throughout centuries of oppression. The latter implies the survival of learning, literacy and language ; the survival of those forces which, with organised religion, are the marks of a civilised nation.It was the wonder of Elizabeth's conquistadores, themselves with but a generation of renaissance learning behind them, to observe that Ireland had retained also something of the long-forgotten legacy of classical Europe ; but the Elizabethans and their successors were more adept masters in the perverted art of applying fruits of knowledge to the business of conquest. They appreciated the power of the pen and they formulated the dual policy of exterminating Ireland's culture along with her people.This fear, on the enemy's part, of language, literacy and learning, served to enhance their value for Ireland's people. Though the latter many times surrendered their swords, they never completely surrendered their native culture. Many apostatised during the 19th century, but the perfidy of some was a stimulus to others to provide the cultural reaction and national revival necessary for successful revolution...(MORE LATER.)ON THIS DATE (17TH JUNE) 175 YEARS AGO : BIRTH OF A GREEN-HEARTED LOYALIST.Emily Lawless, pictured, left (aka 'Emily Lytton'), the writer and poet, was born on the 17th of June, 1845, in Ardclough, County Kildare and was educated privately.War battered dogs are we
Fighters in every clime;
Fillers of trench and of grave,
Mockers bemocked by time.
War dogs hungry and grey,
Gnawing a naked bone,
Fighters in every clime -
Every cause but our own.
- Emily Lawless, 1902 ; "With the Wild Geese".She was born into a politically mixed background, the eldest daughter and one of eight children ('Sir' Horace Plunkett was her cousin). Her father was 'Titled' by Westminster (he was a 'Baron')even though his father (Emily's grandfather) was a member of the 'United Irishmen'. Her brother, Edward, seems to have taken his direction from his father rather than his grandfather - he held and voiced strong unionist opinions, wouldn't have a Catholic about the place and was in a leadership position within the (anti-Irish) so-called 'Property Defence Association'. Perhaps this 'in-house' political confusion (mixed between stauch unionism and unionism with sympathies for Irish nationalism/republicanism, coupled with the 'whisperings of shame' that Emily was a lesbian and was having an affair with one of the 'titled' Spencer women) was the reason why her father and two of his daughters committed suicide.She considered herself to be a Unionist although, unlike her brother, she appreciated and acknowledged Irish culture(...or, in her own words - "I am not anti-Gaelic at all, as long as it is only Gaelic enthuse and does not include politics...") and, despite being 'entitled' to call herself 'The Honourable Emily Lawless', it was a 'title' she only used occasionally. She spent a lot of her younger days in Galway, with her mother's family, but it is thought that family tragedies drove her to live in England, where she died, on the 19th of October 1913, at the age of 68, having become addicted to heroin. She was buried in Surrey.She wrote a full range of books, from fiction to history to poetry, and is best remembered for her 'Wild Geese' works, although some of her writings were criticised by journalists for its 'grossly exaggerated violence, its embarrassing dialect and staid characters...'.'The Nation' newspaper stated that 'she looked down on peasantry from the pinnacle of her three-generation nobility...' and none other than William Butler Yeats declared that she had "an imperfect sympathy with the Celtic nature..." and that she favoured "theory invented by political journalists and forensic historians." But she had a great talent :After AughrimShe said, "They gave me of their best,
They lived, they gave their lives for me ;
I tossed them to the howling waste
And flung them to the foaming sea."
She said, "I never gave them aught,
Not mine the power, if mine the will ;
I let them starve, I let them bleed,
they bled and starved, and loved me still."
She said, "Ten times they fought for me,
Ten times they strove with might and main,
Ten times I saw them beaten down,
Ten times they rose, and fought again."
She said, "I stayed alone at home,
A dreary woman, grey and cold ;
I never asked them how they fared,
Yet still they loved me as of old."
She said, "I never called them sons,
I almost ceased to breathe their name,
then caught it echoing down the wind
blown backwards, from the lips of fame."
She said, "Not mine, not mine that fame ;
Far over sea, far over land,
cast forth like rubbish from my shores
they won it yonder, sword in hand."
She said, "God knows they owe me nought,
I tossed them to the foaming sea,
I tossed them to the howling waste,
Yet still their love comes home to me."Emily Lawless, 1845-1913.KICKING AGAINST THE PRICKS...The heavy-handed official response to a number of Irish publications and websites has drawn attention to this country's growing satirical network. Which can only be a good thing. By Noel Baker.From 'Magill' magazine, July 2002.'Alan' of the 'Evil Gerard' website opines -"With a newspaper, you print it, it's bought, it's read, it's thrown out and then two days later you're asking 'Oh, has anyone seen that paper?' It would seem that these things should be printed, but then you might end up over-stretching yourself and it gets a bit tired. 'The Slate' is great," he continues, adding that it would be harder for a website to transfer itself to print than vice-versa."Their features are very funny, such as 'Blacks in the Jacks' - I just think it shows that asylum seekers should be allowed work instead of being put in this horrible situation."As for the suggestion that a country of cronies such as ours deserves a 'Private Eye'-like publication, 'Alan' demurs."I think then it could be a case of too many cooks spoiling the broth. You could have people saying 'write about this' and that would be a problem. I don't think simply having a bigger audience would make it any better than it is."Yet it says much that the most recognisable champions of satire in this country at present are the 'Apres Match' team - and they don't make the screen unless a football match is on.And with other websites such as the excellent 'Salon.Com' charging for laughs, it could be argued that Irish websites such as 'Evil Gerard' and 'Waffle-Iron'(this month's headline - '02 planning to flood country. And they mean literally') are part of a shrinking majority. But as 'Alan' maintains -"People say we're copying 'The Onion.Com', which we are, but with a different style, and they were copying someone else anyway."And 'The Onion', the seminal site which is required reading for sub-editors everywhere, is still a free service...(MORE LATER.) 'LEINSTER HOUSE DEBATE : A TERRIBLE MESSAGE FOR THE NORTH..'From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, November 1954.Recognising the 800-year-old historical fact of British occupation, republicans are facing the task in the only way that it can be faced and anyone who ignores the fact of the British occupation by throwing the onus on to either majority or minority groups is either ignorant of the true position or deliberately falsifying the facts.The denunciation of force, based on the misrepresentation of the republican activity, as being directed against the minority group rather than against the army of occupation, was most effectively answered by one voice in Leinster House, that of ex-Fianna Fail deputy M. Maguire, when he said -"This is a terrible message for the people of the North."(END of 'Leinster House Debate : A Terrible Message For The North' ; NEXT - 'In Memoriam' and 'Barnes and McCormack Memorial'.)Thanks for reading - Sharon and the '1169' team. Stay safe, and 'play' safe!
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IN THIS MONTH (JUNE) 143 YEARS AGO : "YOU'LL NEVER SEE THE LIKES OF THEM AGAIN.."The graphic shows alleged members of the 'Molly Maguires' being led to their death.'On 21st June 1877, in the anthracite-mining county of Schuylkill, Pennsylvania, ten Irish immigrant men alleged to have been members of an oath-bound secret sect of vigilantes called the 'Molly Maguires' were hanged in what came to be known as 'The Day of the Rope'. Twenty members of the group in all would be executed, following a kangaroo court that American historian John Elliot called"one of the most disgraceful episodes in the history of the bench and bar in the United States." Oppression, exploitation, racial and ethnic bigotry, strikes and union-busting are common enough themes in the American labour movement, but the story of the 'Molly Maguires' and the ruling class's attempts to destroy these Irish workers is so especially contemptible it has achieved legendary status..'(from here.)On what became known as 'Black Thursday' (21st June, 1877), ten coal miners were hanged until dead in eastern Pennsylvania ; all ten had been born in Ireland but were forced to leave because of the attempted genocide known as 'An Gorta Mór'. It was claimed that they, and others, were involved in 'organised retributions' against corrupt and unfair employers and other members of the establishment, and operated as such under the name 'Molly Maguires' ('Molly Maguire' had become famous in Ireland [or 'infamous', as the 'landlord' class described her] for refusing to bow down or bend the knee to the monied 'gentry').The workers had been arrested for their alleged part in several killings and, despite much doubt cast over the 'evidence' used against them, they were convicted and sentenced to death. The court case was widely seen as employers drawing 'a line in the sand' in regards to what they considered to be 'uppity' workers looking for better wages and conditions, and an excuse for the establishment to vent its anti-labour and anti-Irish prejudice - the first trials began in January 1876. They involved 10 men accused of murder and were held in 'Mauch Chunk' (an Indian name meaning 'Bear Mountain') and Pottsville.A vast army of media descended on the small towns where they wrote dispatches that were uniformly pro-prosecution. The key witness for the prosecution was yet another Irishman, James McParlan : back in the early 1870's, when bosses had hired the Pinkerton Detective Agency to spy on workers, McParlan had gone under cover to infiltrate the 'Mollies' and gather evidence. And gather he did — or at least he claimed he did during the trials. On the stand he painted a vivid picture of 'Molly Maguire' secrecy, conspiracy and murder. With Irish Catholics and miners excluded from the juries, the verdicts were a foregone conclusion.All 10 were convicted and sentenced to hang. No doubt seeking to send the most powerful message to the region's mining communities, authorities arranged to stage the executions on the same day — June 21st, 1877 – in two locations. Alexander Campbell, Michael Doyle, Edward Kelly, and John Donahue were hanged in 'Mauch Chuck' (where the four men "all swung together"), while James Boyle, Hugh McGehan, James Carroll, James Roarity, Thomas Duffy, and Thomas Munley met a similar fate in Pottsville (where all six "swung two-by-two"). Although the hangings took place behind prison walls, they were nonetheless major spectacles that drew huge crowds and generated international news coverage. It was reported that there was"..screams and sobbing as husbands and fathers were bid goodbye.." and that"..James Boyle carried a blood-red rose and Hugh McGehan wore two roses in his lapel (as) James Carroll and James Roarity declared their innocence from the scaffold.."Over the following two years, ten more alleged members of the 'Molly Maguires' were hanged, including Thomas P. Fisher (on the 28th March 1878) and James McDonnell and Charlie Sharp (on the 14th January 1879). In 1979 - 101 years after the cruel deed - the state of Pennsylvania pardoned one of the men, John 'Black Jack' Kehoe, after an investigation by its 'Board of Pardons' at the behest of one of his descendants. John Kehoe was led to the gallows on the 18th December, 1878 - 141 years ago on this date (incidentally, Seán Connery played the part of John Kehoe in the film 'The Molly Maguires') ; on the 5th December 2005, the Pennsylvania State House of Representatives passed a resolution recognising the lack of due process for several of the men :'The basic facts of the case are clear. As the 'Death Warrant' indicates, Governor John F. Hartranft ordered the execution of John Kehoe. In l877, he had been tried by the 'Court of Oyer and Terminer', a 'court of criminal jurisdiction', and was found guilty of the murder of Frank W.S. Langdon, a mine foreman, fifteen years earlier. He was sentenced to death by hanging. Kehoe's attorney appealed the decision to the State Supreme Court, which supported the lower court. Governor Hartranft signed Kehoe's death warrant in February 1878. As a last resort Kehoe's attorney issued three pleas for clemency to the Pardon Board, which also denied his appeals. The Governor eventually signed a second death warrant on November 18, 1878. Kehoe was executed before a large crowd in Pottsville on December l8, l878..'(from here.)Make way for the Molly Maguires,
They're drinkers, they're liars but they're men.
Make way for the Molly Maguires,
You'll never see the likes of them again.Down the mines no sunlight shines,
Those pits they're black as hell,
In modest style they do their time,
It's Paddy's prison cell.
And they curse the day they've travelled far,
Then drown their tears with a jar.Backs will break and muscles ache,
Down there there's no time to dream
of fields and farms, of woman's arms,
"Just dig that bloody seam".
Though they drain their bodies underground,
Who'll dare to push them around.So make way for the Molly Maguires,
They're drinkers, they're liars but they're men ;
Make way for the Molly Maguires -
You'll never see the likes of them again.The 'Molly Maguires' were an organised labour group that had allegedly been responsible for some incidences of vigilante justice in the coalfields of eastern Pennsylvania, defending their actions as attempts to protect exploited Irish-American workers. We badly need the 'likes of them' again.'THE CULT OF THE FALSE PROPHETS...'From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, June, 1955.The 'Gaelic League' and early Sinn Féin were autogenous movements which not only drew strength from the force of Irish tradition, but added to it. The ensuing military movement, being built upon solid foundations, enjoyed a partial success, but a complete success might have been achieved had our people, in 1921, known their full strength, which was moral as well as military, passive as well as active.After 1921 we lost our unity and our self-confidence, and entered that wilderness in which we have remained to this day ; it is the duty of the Republican Movement to be to Ireland's people as Moses was to the children of Israel, and lead them to the 'Promised Land'. To start again that pilgrimage through the centuries which began before Rome and ends with the second coming of Christ. The fetters of partition('1169' comment - such as this political institution) prevent the forward march of our nation at present.The breaking of these is a means to the end of fulfilling our destiny, the necessary preliminary to further advances. Partition aside, there is one other factor which impedes our progress - the 'Cult of the False Prophets'. Let the 'Legion of the Rearguard' ('1169' comment - ie that which Fianna Fáil consider themselves to be!)first stand the examination of its fruits, and this by the convenient yardstick of its own publications, the 'Press' newspapers...(MORE LATER.)KICKING AGAINST THE PRICKS...The heavy-handed official response to a number of Irish publications and websites has drawn attention to this country's growing satirical network. Which can only be a good thing. By Noel Baker.From 'Magill' magazine, July 2002.'Alan' from the 'Evil Gerard' website said -"I don't think there's anything we wouldn't touch. I mean, we had an 'Abortion Referendum Special' and a 'September 11th' issue, so I don't think there's anything we wouldn't write about - not that we're fearless or anything."But the 'Gerard' man admits, a la Portadown's 'Newt', that Irish politics' mixture of the banal and the ridiculous is a confused blessing."There's only so many jokes you can make up about brown envelopes, or whatever, before people start going 'Oh God please stop!' he says."Sometimes you think 'Yeah, it's about time we did another bribe story', but we don't force ourselves into doing it."'Everything's Just Fine!' screams the most current headline on 'The Portadown News' - and thankfully for those charged with kicking against the prick's, it's not. And in case you're thinking that these cerebral, irascible/pissed-off people, who have offered assurances that they bear no resemblance to the comic-book store guy in 'The Simpsons, have lost their sense of humour and perspective while discussing satire in 'A Serious Manner', Portadown's 'Newt' makes a few pertinent points -"Portadown News is a bad ecstasy comedown in the back of a Vauxhall Corsa. Sometimes I think I've created something really cool, at other times I think I'm the biggest teenager this side of Newry. And journalists who write about journalism are like big stadium rock bands who sing about the loneliness of touring."(END of 'Kicking Against The Pricks'. NEXT - 'Freedom of Information Or Fumbling Of Information?', from the 'Magill Annual', 2002.) 'IN MEMORIAM' AND 'BARNES AND McCORMACK MEMORIAL'.From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, November 1954.'IN MEMORIAM' -Maurice O'Neill (Kerry), executed in Mountjoy Jail, 12-11-1942..
Jack Gaffney (Belfast), died on the prison ship 'Al Rawdah', 18-11-1940.John J. Kelly (Donegal), John J. Reynolds (Leitrim), Charles McCafferty (Tyrone), killed in accidental bomb explosion 28-11-1938.'BARNES AND McCORMACK MEMORIAL' -The Offaly County Executive Committee, Chaired by Tom Kenna, met at Tullamore on Sunday, 24th October last. Every town and village are getting organised to help the Memorial Fund. Mr. P. McLogan attended from Portlaoighse and received a warm reception and assured the committee of all the help possible from the Republican Movement.A ceili has been arranged for the County Ballroom, Tullamore, on Wednesday 8th December next ; the 'Gallowglass Ceili Band' will attend and it is expected that the function will be a great success.(END of 'In Memoriam' and 'Barnes and McCormack Memorial'. NEXT - 'UNION JACK TORN DOWN', from the same source. )Thanks for reading - Sharon and the '1169' team. Stay safe, and 'play' safe.
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ON THIS DATE(1ST JULY) 153 YEARS AGO - DEATH OF 'MEAGHER OF THE SWORD'."Abhor the sword - stigmatize the sword? No, for in the passes of the Tyrol it cut to pieces the banner of the Bavarian, and, through those cragged passes, struck a path to fame for the peasant insurrections of Innsbruck! Abhor the sword - stigmatize the sword? No, for at its blow a giant nation started from the waters of the Atlantic, and by its redeeming magic, and in the quiverings of its crimsoned light, the crippled colony sprang into the attitude of a proud Republic - prosperous, limitless, and invincible! Abhor the sword - stigmatize the sword? No, for it swept the Dutch marauders out of the fine old towns of Belgium - scourged them back to their own phlegmatic swamps - and knocked their flag and sceptre, their laws and bayonets, into the sluggish water of the Scheldt.."- Thomas Francis Meagher, pictured.Born on the 3rd August 1823, died (in mysterious circumstances) on the 1st July, 1867 - 153 years ago, on this date - 'Does the world even have heroes like Ireland's Thomas Francis Meagher anymore? After fighting for Irish independence ("I know of no country that has won its independence by accident") ,then condemned to death, pardoned and exiled, Thomas Francis Meagher escaped to America, where he became a leader of the Irish community and commanded the Irish Brigade during the Civil War. General Meagher's men fought valiantly at some of the most famous battles of the Civil War, including Antietam, Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville. After the war, Meagher served as Acting Governor of the Montana Territory. In 1867, Meagher disappeared on the Missouri River ; his body was never found..' (from here.)Thomas Francis Meagher was born in Waterford City (near the Commins/Granville Hotel) on August 3rd, 1823, into a financially-comfortable family ; his father was a wealthy merchant who, having made his money, entered politics, a route which the young Thomas was to follow. At 20 years young, he decided to challenge British misrule in Ireland and, at 23 years of age(in 1846), he became one of the leaders of the 'Young Ireland' Movement. He was only 25 years of age when he sat down with the Government of the Second French Republic to seek support for an uprising in Ireland. At 29 years of age, he wrote what is perhaps his best known work -'Speeches on the Legislative Independence of Ireland', of which six editions were published.He unveiled an Irish flag, which was based on the French Tricolour, in his native city, Waterford, on the 7th March 1848, outside the Wolfe Tone Confederate Club. The French Minister for Foreign Affairs, Alphonse de Lamartine, and a group of French women who supported the Irish cause, gave Meagher the new 'Flag of Ireland', a tricolour of green, white and orange - the difference between the 1848 flag and the present flag is that the orange was placed next to the staff and the red hand of Ulster adorned the white field on the original. On the 15th April that same year, on Abbey Street, in Dublin, he presented the flag to Irish citizens on behalf of himself and the 'Young Ireland' movement, with the following words :"I trust that the old country will not refuse this symbol of a new life from one of her youngest children. I need not explain its meaning. The quick and passionate intellect of the generation now springing into arms will catch it at a glance. The white in the centre signifies a lasting truce between the 'orange' and the 'green' and I trust that beneath its folds, the hands of the Irish protestant and the Irish catholic may be clasped in generous and heroic brotherhood.."He was arrested by the British for his part in the 1848 Rising, accused of 'high treason' and sentenced to death ("to be hanged, drawn and disemboweled..") but, while he was awaiting execution in Richmond Jail, this was changed by 'Royal Command' to transportation for life. Before he was deported, he spoke in Slievenamon, Tipperary, to a crowd estimated at 50,000 strong, about the country and the flag he was leaving behind -"Daniel O'Connell preached a cause that we are bound to see out. He used to say 'I may not see what I have laboured for, I am an old man ,my arm is withered, no epitaph of victory may mark my grave, but I see a young generation with redder blood in their veins, and they will do the work.' Therefore it is that I ambition to decorate these hills with the flag of my country.."In July 1849, at only 26 years of age, he was transported from Dun Laoghaire on the SS.Swift to Tasmania, where he was considered, and rightly so, to be a political prisoner (a 'Ticket of Leave' inmate) which meant he could build his own 'cell' on a designated piece of land that he could farm provided he donated an agreed number of hours each week for State use. In early 1852, Thomas Francis Meagher escaped and made his way to New Haven, in Connecticut, America, and travelled from there to a hero's welcome in New York. This fine orator, newspaper writer, lawyer, revolutionary, Irish POW, soldier in the American civil war and acting Governor of Montana died (in mysterious circumstances - he drowned after 'falling off' a Missouri River steamboat) on the 1st of July 1867 at 44 years of age. Once, when asked about his 'crimes', he replied -"Judged by the law of England, I know this 'crime' entails upon me the penalty of death ; but the history of Ireland explains that 'crime' and justifies it."This brave man dedicated twenty-four of his forty-four years on this earth to challenging British misrule in Ireland and, while it can be said without doubt that Thomas Francis Meagher did his best, a 'crime' does remain to be resolved.'THE CULT OF THE FALSE PROPHETS...'From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, June, 1955.The oldest of these newspapers, 'The Irish Press', still presents an appearance of representing republican ideals, but 'The Sunday Press' newspaper dilutes these with a big splash of the worst elements in Anglo-American culture.'The Evening Press' newspaper, its latest publication, seems to say that republicanism and nationality are dead, and that Fianna Fail itself is in danger of death, and to avert the latter 'calamity' there is sought the votes of the degenerate, the method being to degenerate them still further, with disc-jockey and dance-hall 'culture'.'The Irish Times' newspaper, to give it its due, stands for some kind of conception of Irish nationality. 'The Evening Press' falls short of the standards of the ex-unionist newspaper. Those three newspapers were founded at different periods in the life of Fianna Fail, with the earliest still retaining something of the true Republican Movement from which Fianna Fail seceded, but the latter illustrating the decline and fall of a movement which has severed its connection with the source of its strength...(MORE LATER.)ON THIS DATE (1ST JULY) 123 YEARS AGO : IRISH GUERRILLA LEADER BORN."On an extremely cold, wet night, the men began moving to Kilmichael to take on the dreaded Auxiliaries. All IRA positions were occupied at 9am. The hours passed slowly. Towards evening the gloom deepened over the bleak Kilmichael countryside. At 4.05 pm. an IRA scout signaled the enemy's approach.The first lorry came round the bend into the ambush position. Tom Barry, dressed in military style uniform stepped onto the road with his hand up. The driver gradually slowed down. When it was 35 yards from the Volunteers command post a Mills’ bomb was thrown by Barry and simultaneously a whistle blew signalling the beginning of the ambush. The bomb landed in the driver’s seat of the uncovered lorry. As it exploded, rifle shots rang out. The lorry, its driver dead, moved forward until it stopped a few yards from the small stone wall in front of the command post. While some of the Auxiliaries were firing from the lorry, others were on the road and the fighting was hand-to-hand. Revolvers were used at point blank range, and at times, rifle butts replaced rifle shots. The Auxiliaries were cursing and yelling as they fought, but the IRA coldly outfought them. In less than five minutes nine Auxiliaries were dead or dying. Barry and the three men beside him at the Command Post, moved towards the second lorry..."(from here.)"Many statements have been made by Ministers and Generals in various countries on the necessity for long periods of training before even an infantry soldier is ready for action. This is utter nonsense when applied to volunteers for guerilla warfare. After only one week of collective training, his Flying Column of intelligent and courageous fighters was fit to meet an equal number of soldiers from any regular army in the world, and hold its own in battle, if not in barrack-yard ceremonials". - Tom Barry, 'Guerilla Days in Ireland'.
"They said I was ruthless, daring, savage, blood thirsty, even heartless. The clergy called me and my comrades murderers ; but the British were met with their own weapons. They had gone in the mire to destroy us and our nation and down after them we had to go" - Tom Barry.And, four months later, Tom Barry (pictured, in 1921) was again active in an equally successful engagement with British forces - in the early hours of Saturday, 19th March 1921, under the command of Tom Barry (the son of an RIC officer who had retired to become a shopkeeper) and Liam Deasy (who, within less than two years afterwards, signed a Free State 'pledge' in exchange for his life), the West Cork Flying Column of the IRA turned the tables on a British Army and RIC column at Crossbarry, situated about twelve miles south-west of Cork city, despite being outnumbered ten-to-one.During the hour-long firefight, in which 104 IRA Volunteers (each carrying approximately 40 rounds of ammunition) successfully fought their way out of a 'pincer'-type movement by about 1,200 enemy troops, consisting of British soldiers from the Hampshire and Essex Regiments, Black and Tans and RIC men, three IRA men were killed in action (Peter Monahan, Jeremiah O'Leary and Con Daly) and three others were wounded. Reports varied in relation to British casualties but it seems certain that at least ten of their soldiers were killed and three wounded (more here).In an interview he gave a number of years later, Tom Barry recalled how"..about two hours had elapsed since the opening of the fight. We were in possession of the countryside, no British were visible and our task was completed. The whole Column was drawn up in line of sections and told they had done well.."- and they had indeed 'done well', only to witness, within months, their efforts (ab)used by those who yearned for a political career, which they were given by Westminster in return for their surrender. But, thankfully, although still outnumbered, a republican force still exists to this day.Tom Barry was born on this date(1st July, 1897) - 123 years ago. He died, at 83 years of age, on the 2nd July, 1980.'FREEDOM OF INFORMATION OR FUMBLING OF INFORMATION?'By Paul O'Brien.From 'The Magill Annual', 2002.('1169' comment - Interesting article, considering the recent changes to this particular piece of State legislation.)An FOI ('Freedom Of Information') request, forwarded to each of the 15 government departments earlier this year, was simple -'Magill wishes to apply, under the FOI Act 1997, for information relating to the following : statistics concerning sexual harassment and/or sexual discrimination claims by members of the department since the FOI Act came into effect.'The request asked for a break-down of complaints by gender, details of what (if any) investigations were undertaken and details of what (if any) disciplinary action was taken. It was done in the expectation that there is coherency in the Civil Service's approach to FOI requests.But the responses to the FOI request were very different ; a number of departments responded simply by saying there were no such recorded cases since the FOI Act came into effect in 1997. One department said it would release the records considered appropriate, provided 'Magill' paid a fee of £33 for research and retrieval of records, but another department indicated it was only likely to charge if the fee exceeded £40! Then there were departments that refused information on existing cases for a number of reasons, including that -'...disclosure would prejudice the effectiveness of investigations or inquiries conducted by or on behalf of the department..''Magill' was also told that -'..disclosure would have a significant adverse effect on the performance of the department of its functions relating to management..'and -'..such information is confidential..', '..such information is personal information..'.In contrast, other departments released details on the number of cases and brief outlines of them. One department, for example, said there had been two cases, that it had carried out formal investigations into both, that in one the complaint was upheld and in the other it was considered vexatious, that action was taken in both and that further legal action was anticipated...(MORE LATER.) POLITICAL 'WINNERS' ARE/AND 'LOSERS' IN A CORRUPT STATE.On Saturday last, the 27th June 2020, a 'new' political administration for this State took up Office in Leinster House, comprising the Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and Green parties. The Republican Movement issued the following statement in relation to same -'NEW 26-COUNTY CABINET UNDERLINES MARGINALISATION OF WESTERN AND RURAL IRELAND :The composition of the new 26-County cabinet underlines the highly centralised nature of the 26-County state and the ongoing marginalisation of western and rural Ireland. A whole swathe of the western seaboard from Donegal to Limerick will be without representation at the cabinet table, while six of the 15 ministers are Dublin based. Also in keeping with the long standing 26-County neglect of the Gaeltacht and failure to promote and develop the Irish language, ministerial responsibility for the Gaeltacht has been relegated to one of six areas of responsibility given to Green minister Catherine Martin.All of this is in stark contrast to the very real democratic decentralisation of power and decision making that is set out in SInn Féin Poblachtach’s Éire Nua programme. Under Éire Nua’s proposals for a Federal Ireland each province would have its own administration with real power and responsibility for economic and social development, employment, health and education within the province. This would ensure two things. Firstly, that those making the decisions are directly accountable to the people affected by them and are based in the regions affected. Secondly, that ensures that those making the decisions are in tune with the needs of their particular province, region and community.Currently rural Ireland is in fear and trepidation that largely urban based Green ministers with no feeling for, or understanding of rural Ireland are set to further compound the ongoing neglect of rural Ireland. For instance, under Éire Nua the people of rural Ireland including the Gaeltacht regions and the islands would be fully represented and involved in the making of, and implementation of the decisions that affect them. Likewise, urban areas affected by high unemployment, social exclusion and drug abuse would be involved directly in the rejuvenation and administration of their communities.Unlike the present partitionist setup, Éire Nua is about real participatory democracy and not merely paying lip service to the needs and demands of the people every five years. A New Ireland would not be simply about jobs for the boys or girls, the dispensing of political favours by the local TD or minister like some feudal lord of old. Real democracy involves all the people including those currently marginalised from the centre of the economy and society both urban and rural. The incoming 26-County administration is simply the same stale old wine in new bottles. The type of radical, creative and innovative thinking and action that is required will never come from parties that are wedded to the status quo. The Ireland envisaged in the 1916 Proclamation and the Democratic Programme of the First Dáil will never emerge from Leinster House. Sinn Féin Poblachtach is proud to put Éire Nua forward as a credible alternative to a system that has delivered nothing but failure and betrayal to the Irish people for 100 years.'Incidentally, the 8th February 2020 election was to elect members to the 31st Leinster House assembly and not, as declared by all and sundry, to "the 33rd Dáil Éireann". That latter term is a spoof, a spin, ignorant of the true position, deliberate misdirection and smoke and mirrors, like the outcome of the election itself, apparently - Mary Lou McDonald declared after the results were known that"Sinn Fein (sic) has won the election..."(from here) and"It's official. Sinn Fein (sic) won the election.." (from here).Yet, as 'winners', they are unable to form an administration without the help of the 'losers'!'UNION JACK TORN DOWN'.From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, November 1954.During the 'World Ploughing Championship' at Killarney, the 'Esso Petrol Company' had the flags of the competing nations flying on separate poles at the Lake Hotel, including the 'Union Jack'. They were under strong CID protection day and night but, at 5.30pm on Sunday evening, October 10th, the 'Union Jack' was torn from its post just before a big dinner in honour of the ploughing teams. This incident was not published in any of the daily newspapers or the local press.During August week the 'Union Jack' was flying from the Russell Court Hotel in Dublin, under police protection. At the Horse Show the same flag was carried in parade by a member of the Free State Army and - during the same week - cyclists taking part in a 'Round Ireland' race were stopped at the border and compelled by the RUC to remove small Tricolour pennants on their bikes!(END of 'Union Jack Torn Down'. NEXT - 'For Peace', from the same source. )Thanks for reading - Sharon and the '1169' team. Stay safe, and 'play' safe ; even if that means keeping a sensible distance from yourself...!
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ON THIS DATE (8TH JULY) 39 YEARS AGO : DEATH OF OUR 17TH HUNGER-STRIKER.'The fourth IRA Volunteer to join the (1981) hunger-strike for political status was Joe McDonnell, a thirty-year-old married man with two children, from the Lenadoon housing estate in West Belfast. A well-known and very popular man in the greater Andersonstown area he grew up in, he had a reputation as a quiet and deep-thinking individual, with a gentle, happy go-lucky personality, who had, nevertheless, a great sense of humour, was always laughing and playing practical jokes, and who, although withdrawn at times, had the ability to make friends easily.As an active republican before his capture in October 1976, Joe was regarded by his comrades as a cool and efficient Volunteer who did what he had to do and never talked about it afterwards. Something of a rarity within the Republican Movement, in that outside of military briefings and operational duty he was never seen around with other known or suspected Volunteers, he was nevertheless a good friend of the late Bobby Sands, with whom he was captured while on active service duty. Although he didn't volunteer for the earlier hunger strike in 1980, it was the intense disappointment brought about by British duplicity following the end of that hunger strike and the bitterness and anger that duplicity produced among all the blanket men that prompted Joe to put forward his name the next time round.And it was predictable, as well as fitting, when his friend and comrade Bobby Sands met with death on the sixty-sixth day of his hunger strike, that Joe McDonnell should volunteer to take Bobby's place and continue that fight. His determination and resolve in that course of action can be gauged by the fact that never once, following his sentencing to fourteen years imprisonment in 1977, did he put on the prison uniform to take a visit, seeing his wife and family only after he commenced his hunger-strike. The story of Joe McDonnell is of a highly-aware republican soldier whose involvement stemmed initially from the personal repression and harassment he and his family suffered at the hands of the British occupation forces, but which then deepened - through continuing repression - to a mature commitment to oppose an occupation that denied his country freedom and attempted to criminalise its people. It was that commitment which he held more dear than his own life.Joe McDonnell was born on September 14th 1951, the fifth of eight children, into the family home in Slate Street in Belfast's Lower Falls. His father, Robert, a steel erector, and his mother, Eileen (whose maiden name is Straney) , both came from the Lower Falls themselves, and they married in St. Peter's church there, in 1941, living first with Robert's sister and her husband in Colinward Street, off the Springfield Road, before moving into their own home in Slate Street, where the family were all born. A ninth child, Bernadette, was a particular favourite of Joe's, before her death from a kidney illness at the early age of three : "Joseph practically reared Bernadette", recalls his mother, "he was always with the child, carrying her around. He was about ten at the time. He even used to play marleys with her on his shoulders." Bernadette's death, a sad blow to the family, was deeply felt by her young brother Joe.Joe and his then girlfriend, Goretti, who also comes from Andersonstown, married in St.Agnes' chapel in 1970, and moved in to live with Goretti's sister and her family in Horn Drive in Lower Lenadoon. At that time, however, they were one of only two nationalist households in what was then a predominantly loyalist street, and, after repeated instances of verbal intimidation, in the middle of the night, a loyalist mob - in full view of a nearby British Army post, and with the blessing of the raving Reverend Robert Bradford, who stood by - broke down the doors and wrecked the houses, forcing the two families to leave. The McDonnells went to live with Goretti's mother for a while, but eventually got the chance to squat in a house being vacated in Lenadoon Avenue. Internment had been introduced shortly before, and in 1972 the British army struck with a 4.00 a.m. raid ; Joe was dragged from the house, hit in the eye with a rifle butt and bundled into a British Army jeep. Their house was searched and wrecked. Joe was taken to the prison ship Maidstone and later on to Long Kesh internment camp where he was held for several months. Goretti recalls that early morning as a "horrific" experience which altered both their lives. One minute they had everything, the next minute nothing.On his release Joe joined the IRA's Belfast Brigade, operating at first in the 1st Battalion's 'A' Company which covered the Rosnareen end of Andersonstown, and later being absorbed into the 'cell' structure increasingly adopted by the IRA. Both during his first period of internment, and his second, longer, internment in 1973, as well as the periods when he was free, the McDonnell's home in Lenadoon was a constant target for British army raids, during which the house would often be torn apart, photos torn up and confiscated and letters from Joe (previously read by the prison censor) re-read by infantile British soldiers, and Goretti herself arrested. In between periods of internment, and before his capture, Joe resumed his trade as an upholsterer which he had followed since leaving school at the age of fifteen. He loved the job, never missing a day through illness, and made both the furniture for his own home as well as for many of the bars and clubs in the surrounding area. His job enabled him to take the family for regular holidays - he took a strong interest in his children, Bernadette, aged ten and Joseph, aged nine, teaching them both to swim, and forever playing football with young Joseph on the small green outside their home - but Joe was a real 'homer' and always longed to be back in his native Belfast ; part of that attraction stemmed obviously from his responsibility to his republican involvement. An active Volunteer throughout the Greater Andersonstown area, Joe was considered a first-class operator who didn't show much fear. Generally quiet and serious while on an operation, whether an ambush or a bombing mission, Joe's humour occasionally shone through. Driving one time to an intended target in the Lenadoon area with a carload of Volunteers, smoke began to appear in the car. Not realising that it was simply escaping exhaust fumes, and thinking it came from the bags containing a number of bombs, a degree of alarm began to break out in the car, but Joe only advised his comrades, drily, not to bother about it: "They'll go off soon enough."Outside of active service, Joe mixed mostly with people he knew from work, never flaunting his republican beliefs or his involvement, to such an extent that it led some republicans to believe he had not reported back to the IRA on his second release from internment. The British, however, persecuted him and his family continually, with frequent house raids and street arrests. He could rarely leave the house without being stopped for P-checking, or held up for an hour at a roadblock if he had somewhere to go. A few months before his capture, irate British soldiers at a roadblock warned him that they would 'get' him, and they did - his capture took place in October 1976 following a firebomb attack on the Balmoral Furnishing Company in Upper Dunmurray Lane, near the Twinbrook estate in West Belfast.![]()
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ON THIS DATE (5TH AUGUST) 132 YEARS AGO : THE ONLY GOOD 'LITTLE PHIL' IS A DEAD ONE!"The only good Indian is a dead one" - 'Supreme Commander' of the U.S. Army, Major Philip Henry Sheridan (pictured) who, despite being only five feet and five inches tall, made a 'big' (and bad) impression on the native American population.He was born in Albany, New York, on the 6th of March 1831, the son of Irish immigrants from the parish of Killinkere in County Cavan who had to leave Ireland because of the attempted genocide of the Irish people by Westminster and its political and military agents. He 'made his name' by his evil treatment of the native American population, and was responsible for the slaughter of the Lakota Indians at Wounded Knee in 1890, where one-hundred victims, under Chief Big Foot, were massacred by the U. S. 7th Cavalry ; about half of the dead were women and children.The slain body of Chief Big Foot (his Lakota name was Si Tanka, 'Spotted Elk'), propped up in the snow at Wounded Knee.The Wounded Knee massacre was the last of the Indian uprisings, and prompted Sheridan to state that"The only good Indian I ever saw was dead." He knew he was in the wrong in what he was doing, as he said so himself : in 1878, he made a report to his Army superiors in which he stated -"We took away their country and their means of support, broke up their mode of living, their habits of life, introduced disease and decay among them, and it was for this and against this they made war. Could anyone expect less?"He wouldn't argue against the fact that he and other armed 'Bluecoats' were 'occupiers/invaders' in a land where they were not welcome yet he had no hesitation in planning the 'best practical' methods of removing the natives from their lands and, indeed, with that objective in mind, he once stated that he had"...never once taken a command into battle and had the slightest desire to come out alive unless I won.."He died, after suffering a series of massive heart attacks, on this date (5th August), at 57 years of age, in 1888, in Nonquitt, Bristol County, in Massachusetts - one battle he didn't win, and didn't deserve to win. The Irish and the Native Americans have a common enemy - imperialism. Phillip Sheridan was on the wrong side.'EDUCATION.'From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, June, 1955.Recently, on looking through a short calendar of Irish Saints, we were amazed by the number who founded schools. And, of course, immediately ascribed it to the fact they were 'Saints'! It struck us then that if conditions were so primitive in those days it must not be really so hard to found a school at all, provided one knows exactly what is necessary remembering, too, that the best of schools are associated with sparse furnishings, and even hedges! Sinn Féin has always been most aware of the crying need to change the educational system, but the job appears to be so great that few real attempts have been made. The main trouble is that we at once assume founding a large school is for the children or the very young alone but then, also, one asks how can a group of teachers give up their wages and live on thin air only, if finance is the main problem? When the 'Saints' founded their schools, did they found them for children or for the more mature? It is this question which provides a clue for Sinn Féin to make a start, and we propose to make the attempt now ; it is our idea to start with folk from adolescence upwards, not excluding ourselves, if necessary. It must be emphasised that what we have in mind is not adult education classes of the usual school subjects on a higher level, but an education in the true values with respect to life...(MORE LATER.)BUNDORAN HUNGER STRIKE COMMEMORATION, 2020.On Saturday 29th August 2020, the Bundoran/Ballyshannon H-Block Committee will be holding a rally in Bundoran, Donegal, to commemorate the 39th Anniversary of the 1981 Hunger Strike and in memory of the 22 Irish Republicans that have died on hunger strike between 1917 and 1981 ; those participating have been asked to form-up at 2.30pm at the East End. All are welcome to attend!UNSEEN SORROW. (By Bobby Sands)Her tears fall in the darkness as the rain falls in the night,
Silvery tears like silvery rain, hidden out of sight,
The stars fall from her eyes like floating petals from the sky,
Is there no one in all this world who hears this woman cry?A simple little floating dreamy thought has stirred this woman's heart,
The golden sleepy dream of yesterdays before they were apart,
What comfort can there be found for a petal so fair and slim
Alone in a forest dark of sorrow she weeps again for him?Warm silver rolling tears blemish a once complexion fair,
That once shown in the fairest radiance midst a cloak of golden hair.And the children whimper and cry for a father's care
and love they've never known,
Who sees their little tears of innocent years
as the winds of time are blown?
What sorrow will you know tonight when all the worlds asleep,
When through the darkness comes the wind
that cuts the heart so deep,
For there is no one there to dry your tears
or your childrens tears who cling around your frock,
When there has been another bloody slaughter
in the dungeons of H Block.The 2019 Bundoran Commemoration can be viewed here. Hope to see you all there on the 29th August this year!'FREEDOM OF INFORMATION OR FUMBLING OF INFORMATION...?'By Paul O'Brien.From 'The Magill Annual', 2002.('1169' comment - Interesting article, considering the recent changes to this particular piece of State legislation.)Honest mistakes, no doubt, but they stemmed from the fact that the various departments chose to interpret the FOI Act differently which, of course, has implications for how the Act is administered. Without a coherent understanding of the Act, who's to say that sensitive information won't be released again in the future, or that legitimate public information will be blocked?A spokesperson for the FOI Central Policy Unit (based at the Department of Finance), which can issue shared advice to the departments through a system known as the 'Civil Service Users' Network', admitted that any FOI request is a matter for the individual department, and the officials within that department, to decide upon. But he stressed that there is an effort made to ensure constituency in approach when possible."Where a common request goes in, the 'Users' Network' would be used to exchange information to try and arrange a common approach",he said,"we do try to ensure consistency, and try to ensure openness." As part of that, the Central Policy Unit might get advice from the Attorney-General if deemed necessary, and then pass it on to the Network...(MORE LATER.) 'SINN FÉIN' and 'NATIONAL COLLECTION'.From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, November 1954.SINN FÉIN ; With the prospect of the Westminster election coming ever nearer and the constant rumours that it may take place before the end of this year or in the early part of next year, Sinn Féin has decided to select their candidates to contest the twelve seats in the Six County area.It was decided that constituency conventions would be held before the 30th November next at which the candidates would be selected and, at a meeting of the Northern Election Committee, the dates for these conventions have been arranged ; the first being that for the 'Mid-Ulster' constituency, held on Sunday, 24th October, at which Tom Mitchell *, one of the men arrested in connection with the Omagh Raid, has been the unanimous choice as candidate.*'1169' comment : Tom Mitchell, who was born on the 29th July, 1931, died on Wednesday, 22nd July 2020, in his 89th year ; the big news of that 1955 election was Sinn Fein’s two seats and its 23.6% of the vote. Sinn Fein’s two successful candidates in Mid-Ulster and Fermanagh & South Tyrone had been imprisoned for their part in the raid on Omagh. Philip Clarke and Thomas Mitchell were the successful Sinn Fein candidates for Fermanagh & South Tyrone and Mid Ulster respectively.Both men stood for election to re-establish the All-Ireland Dáil and were elected, in 1955, on that basis, as T.D's but, as they were both "convicted prisoners", their election was overturned by Westminster and they were 'officially unseated'. Tom Mitchell contested for the seat in the second election and won again, with an increased vote, only to be unseated a second time, for the same 'reason'. Philip (Christopher) Clarke was released from prison in 1958 and died, at 62 years of age, in 1995.Statement on the death of Thomas Mitchell from the Republican Movement -"Sinn Féin Poblachtach regret to hear of the death of Tom Mitchell. Tom was a faithful Irish Republican. As a member of the Irish Republican Army he was imprisoned for his part in the raid on Omagh British Army barracks in 1954, he was elected as Sinn Féin TD for Mid-Ulster in 1955.The British government used the archaic Westminster Forfeiture Act of 1870 to subvert the democratic vote of the people of Mid-Ulster. On 18 July 1955 a resolution of the British House of Commons, passed by 197 votes to 63, formally declared that Tom Mitchell was covered by this provision, vacated his seat, and ordered that a by-election be held. In the subsequent by-election Tom won with an increased majority.Following this, unionist Charles Beattie, whom Tom defeated in both elections lodged an election petition stating that the votes of those who voted for Tom Mitchell were invalid. Tom was not allowed to attend the election court. The court overturned the result of the election and declared Beattie the winner in defiance of the democratically expressed wishes of the people of Mid-Ulster. The Westminster Forfeiture Act used to unseat Tom Mitchell in 1955 had also been used to unseat John Mitchell in 1875.Tom later served as Ard Runaí of Sinn Fêin. He remained a faithful Irish Republican and regularly attended the Sinn Féin Poblachtach Ard Fheis. Deepest sympathy to his family.Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam."(From here.)NATIONAL COLLECTION ; In South Armagh, some members of Sinn Féin had their names taken by the RUC for making the National Collection. One man, Frank McCann, has been served with a summons for collecting at Carrickcuppin Chapel ; the summons was signed by a 'Justice of the Peace' named King, a former 'B Special', who now carries on business as a traveller for a seed merchant in South Armagh and South Down.(END of 'Sinn Féin' and 'National Collection' : NEXT - 'The Slave Mind', from the same source.)Thanks for reading - Sharon and the '1169' team. Regarding our recent 'staycation' : can't say too much, as legal proceedings are still pending (!)...we got escorted by State militia in a six-vehicle convoy that stopped traffic, broke traffic lights, drove on footpaths in the wrong direction on one-way systems and, eventually, got thrown out of our still-moving armoured vehicle at a roundabout on a busy road. And that was only on our way there!But, seriously, we 'vacated' (as posh people do!) our 'staycation' abode which was located in the sunny South-East (and very plush it was, too. Well...then, it was, but we soon fixed that..!) on fairly good terms (!) with the owners, their neighbours and the village who, for some reason, all lined the streets on the morning of our departure, waving something they held in their fists at us. Ah sure, we had the craic, and as soon as it's legal to publish our pics, we'll be doing that. Unanimously. On the 'Dark Web'...
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ON THIS DATE (12TH AUGUST) 66 YEARS AGO ; SCOTLAND YARD MEN IN DUBLIN.'Commander Len Burt, Special Branch Chief of Scotland Yard, and an Inspector Gale, also of Scotland Yard, visited Dublin on August 12th last where they met Chief Superintendent P. Carroll, head of the Special Branch, Dublin. The visit was described as "purely routine", whether that means there is a routine police inspection similar to the military inspection of General Woodall at the Curragh is not clear.It is also said that the police in Northern Ireland (sic), in conjunction with Scotland Yard, had been taking extensive precautions against the possibility of hostile demonstrations on the occasion of the English Queen's visit to Belfast, and the visit of the Scotland Yard men may have been to gather information on the likelihood of protests organised from the 26 Counties.It is interesting to note that Kevin McConnell, who was sentenced in Belfast for having copies of 'The United Irishman', was first arrested on Friday 13th August, taken to the barracks for questioning and then released. The following evening Special Branch men called to his home in Dublin and questioned his parents, at the request, as they admitted, of Belfast. About three hours later Kevin was again arrested in Belfast, and this time held for sentence.Another interesting item is that since the Scotland Yard men's visit, the Dublin Special Branch have started a check-up on those men and women who had been deported from England during the Bombing Campaign in 1939-1940. A number of deportees have already been visited, questioned as to their own movements, whether they were going back to England, whether any of their comrades had already gone back, where they were and so on.How's that for cooperation?'(From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, October 1954.)'EDUCATION...'From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, June, 1955.It would cost comparatively few shillings to hire a room for a few evenings per week. The whole trouble, however, is the curriculum. It could easily take us a whole year, or more, to compose a curriculum because it must be chosen wisely and with great care.Sinn Féiners know well the original work of Padraig Pearse in this field but, as time passes, he is being put into a special class of his own and is in danger of losing his humanity and, on account of this, one unconsciously gives tacit consent to the idea that only a Pearse could found such a school. Pearse, however, being a most human man, would be the last to desire this attitude, as the main principle of his system was to develop individuality and, consequently, individuality of effort.Now, as Pearse's school was suitable for his generation, so we feel the type of school which we have in mind may be more suitable for our times and for the present generation...(MORE LATER.)ON THIS DATE (12TH AUGUST) 100 YEARS AGO : 'ARRESTED' BY BRITISH FORCES FOR POSSESSION OF "SEDITIOUS ARTICLES AND DOCUMENTS".Terence MacSwiney, pictured, with his wife Muriel and their daughter, Máire, photographed in 1919."If I die I know the fruit will exceed the cost a thousand fold. The thought of it makes me happy. I thank God for it. Ah, Cathal, the pain of Easter week is properly dead at last..." - Terence MacSwiney wrote these words in a letter to Cathal Brugha on September 30th, 1920, the 39th day of his hunger strike. The pain he refers to is that caused by his failure to partake in the 1916 Easter Rising. Contradictory orders from Dublin and the failure of the arms ship, the Aud, to land arms in Tralee left the Volunteers in Cork unprepared for insurrection...' (from here.)In his book 'History of the Irish Working Class', Peter Beresford Ellis wrote :"On October 25th, 1920, Lord Mayor of Cork, Terence MacSwiney - poet, dramatist and scholar - died on the 74th day of a hunger-strike while in Brixton Prison, London. A young Vietnamese dishwasher in the Carlton Hotel in London broke down and cried when he heard the news - "A Nation which has such citizens will never surrender". His name was Nguyen Ai Quoc who, in 1941, adopted the name Ho Chi Minh and took the lessons of the Irish anti-imperialist fight to his own country..."On the 12th August, 1920 - 100 years ago on this date - Terence MacSwiney was 'arrested' in Cork by the Crown Forces for possession of “seditious articles (a cipher key) and documents". He was born on the 28th March 1879, was the Commandant of the 1st Cork Brigade of the IRA and was elected as the Lord Mayor of Cork. He died after 74 days on hunger strike (a botched effort to force feed him hastened his death) in Brixton Prison, England, on the 25th October, 1920, and his body lay in Southwark Cathedral in London where tens of thousands of people paid their respects.He summed-up the Irish feeling at that time (a feeling and determination which is still prominent to this day) -"The contest on our side is not one of rivalry or vengeance but of endurance. It is not those who can inflict the most but those who can suffer the most who will conquer. Those whose faith is strong will endure to the end in triumph."And our faith is strong.ON THIS DATE (12TH AUGUST) 150 YEARS AGO : 'DIVISIVE' BRITISH ARMY GENERAL BORN.British Army General 'Sir' Hubert Gough (pictured) was a contentious figure (a man of "extreme opinions") in the (on-going) history of British imperialism('a key figure in the Curragh Mutiny..') and, occasionally, caused confusion in the posh halls of Westminster.He was born in London on the 12th August, 1870(150 years ago on this date) and apparently found it hard to 'play cricket' with those around him, both politically and militarily - 'Historians are divided in opinion about Gough ; some label him a callous "butcher among generals", whereas others judge him to have been unusually considerate towards his soldiers...in his retirement, he stewarded the Fifth Army Comrades Association and led the Chelsea Home Guard in the second World War. It was in this capacity that, ironically, Gough attacked Northern Ireland’s(sic) unionist government in August 1941. He co-authored a letter to Churchill and Canadian prime minister William Mackenzie King, criticising Stormont for organising a local defence force, analogous to Britain’s home guard, but "recruited along politico-sectarian lines". Gough, and other retired Anglo-Irish officers, castigated Craigavon for his policies...'(from here.)'On the morning of Friday 20 March (1914?), Arthur Paget (Commander-in-Chief, Ireland) addressed senior officers at his headquarters in Dublin. By Gough's account (in his memoirs 'Soldiering On'), he said that "active operations were to commence against Ulster," that officers who lived in Ulster would be permitted to "disappear" for the duration, but that other officers who refused to serve against Ulster would be dismissed rather than being permitted to resign, and that Gough – who had a family connection with Ulster but did not live there – could expect no mercy from his "old friend at the War Office..."(from here.)In 1921, British General Sir Hubert Gough stated -"Law and order (in Ireland) have given place to a bloody and brutal anarchy in which the armed agents of the Crown violate every law in aimless and vindictive and insolent savagery. England has departed further from her own standards, and further from the standards even of any nation in the world, not excepting the Turk and Zulu, than has ever been known in history before..".However - he stood-by those "Crown standards" and died, as he had lived ie a member of the British 'establishment', at 92 years of age, in London, in 1963. The damage in Ireland done by that man and his type lives on. 'FREEDOM OF INFORMATION OR FUMBLING OF INFORMATION...?'By Paul O'Brien.From 'The Magill Annual', 2002.('1169' comment - Interesting article, considering the recent changes to this particular piece of State legislation.)But, explaining the confusion over the 'Magill' request, the spokesman said -"Each body has their own decision-makers, and there's no obligation to take a common approach."While they might later be reined in, as appeared to have happened with the 'Magill' request, the nature of the initial responses to that request would seem to indicate the departments not only take their own decisions but understand the Act differently. Is this really good enough when the importance of the Act is considered?It must be said, in the departments' defence, that the FOI Act is still relatively new, and may take some time yet before the system is totally streamlined. And, no doubt, the vast majority of requests have been handed in the correct fashion. But there remains an issue at stake here.The purpose of the FOI Act is explained by the Office of the Information Commissioner as follows -"An Act to enable members of the public to obtain access, to the greatest extent possible consistent with the public interest and the right to privacy, to information in the possession of public bodies and to enable persons to have personal information relating to them in the possession of such bodies corrected. Thus, the Act is designed to provide a right of access to information held by public bodies to the greatest extent possible."Laudable indeed, but what's "the greatest extent possible" if the government departments interpret the Act as they see fit?(END of 'Freedom Of Information Or Fumbling Of Information?' ; NEXT - 'Why are we Turning a blind eye to Psychiatric Patients who have a Propensity for Violence?', from the same source.) ON THIS DATE (12TH AUGUST) 98 YEARS AGO : DEATH OF TREATY-SIGNING SINN FÉIN FOUNDER.Arthur Griffith was born on the 31st March, 1872, at 61 Upper Dominick Street, Dublin, and matured into a somewhat contradictory political life -'..a printer by trade, he developed a passionate interest in Irish history and culture and became active in the Gaelic League. A gifted and influential journalist, he was made editor of several radical newspapers. He had been an admirer of Parnell but after 1891 he developed a growing contempt for the Irish Parliamentary Party and sought to map out an alternative strategy for Ireland.He rejected the use of force.Influenced by the experience of dissidents in Hungary, he argued in 1904 that Irish MPs should withdraw from Westminster and set up an assembly at home. It was his belief that the Irish electorate would support this policy and in time the British government would be compelled to support it too. Ireland would thus become a self-governing state and equal partner with Britain under the Crown. Drawing on the German economist Friedrich List, Griffith also suggested that Ireland could develop a balanced national economy, mainly through imposing high tariffs on British industrial imports. These two elements were central to the programme of the Sinn Féin party which he helped set up in 1905. It attracted little popular support but had disproportionate influence largely because of Griffith's propaganda skills..'(from here.)There are two schools of thought in relation to the 'Sinn Féin Republican/Sinn Féin Home Rule Party'-issue in relation to the political organisation that Griffith founded in 1905. Contrary to the perception which has been advanced by some that Sinn Féin in its first years was not Republican in character but rather sought a limited form of Home Rule on the dual monarchist model, Brian O'Higgins, a founding member of Sinn Féin, who took part in the 1916 Rising, and was a member of the First and Second Dáil, remaining a steadfast Republican up to his death in 1962, had this to say in his Wolfe Tone Annual of 1949 :"It is often sought to be shown that the organisation set up in 1905 was not Republican in form or spirit, that it only became so in 1917 ; but this is an erroneous idea, and is not borne out by the truths of history. Anyone who goes to the trouble of reading its brief constitution will see that its object was 'the re-establishment of the independence of Ireland.' The Constitution of Sinn Féin in 1905, and certainly the spirit of it, was at least as clearly separatist as was the constitution of Sinn Féin in and after 1917, no matter what private opinion regarding the British Crown may have been held by Arthur Griffith."Arthur Griffith was one of those who were in a pivotal position during the talks on the 'Treaty of Surrender' in 1921 which he accepted and signed, stating, in a press release immediately after dipping his pen in the blood -"I have signed a Treaty of peace between Ireland and Great Britain. I believe that treaty will lay foundations of peace and friendship between the two Nations. What I have signed I shall stand by in the belief that the end of the conflict of centuries is at hand."Yet historian Nicholas Mansergh noted that, at practically the same time as Griffith had penned the above, the British were talking between themselves of "..concessions (from the Irish) wrung by devices...some of which can be described at best as devious...every word used and every nuance was so important..."The Treaty-signing Sinn Féin founder never did see "the end of the conflict of centuries" and was certainly never going to see it if he was depending on that Treaty to deliver it - for it was designed to make British misrule in Ireland easier for them to 'manage', rather than to bring to an end that misrule. Arthur Griffith died of a brain haemorrhage in Dublin on the 12th August, 1922, at only 51 years of age, and is buried in Glasnevin Cemetery in Dublin.'THE SLAVE MIND'.From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, November 1954.The newly formed 'Waterford Cricket Club' invited the Duke of Edinburgh to become its honorary patron and president. The invitation was sent by Mr AJ Blyth, Organising Secretary to the Club.Questioned about it, he said he did it in a burst of enthusiasm (loyality, we suppose). Even 'Duke' Philip realised what a blunder it was, and refused the 'honour'. It is an indication of the continued existence of active anti-Irish elements throughout the country. The well-organised 'RAF Association', the various British Army and Navy clubs, are all centres for British espionage and hostile fifth-column activity against the Irish nation. But they are not interfered with, certainly not by Leinster House.(END of 'The Slave Mind'. NEXT - 'He Objects', from the same source.)ON THIS DATE (12TH AUGUST) 29 YEARS AGO : JUDITH THERESA WARD WAS 'GRANTED A REVIEW' OF THE CASE AGAINST HER.Judith Ward (pictured), an 'IRA activist', was arraigned on the 3rd October 1974 at Wakefield Crown Court, West Yorkshire, England, on an indictment containing 15 counts : Count 1 - causing an explosion likely to endanger life or property on the 10th September 1973, at Euston Station, Count 2 - a similar count relating to the explosion on the motorcoach on the M62 on the 4th February 1974, Counts 3-14 - twelve counts of murder relating to each of the persons killed in the explosion on the motorcoach and Count 15: causing an explosion as before on February 12, 1974, at the National Defence College at Latimer. She pleaded "not guilty" to all counts but, on the 4th November 1974, she was convicted on all counts, by a majority of 10 to two on Count 1 and unanimously on all the others.She was sentenced to five years' imprisonment on Count 1, 20 years' imprisonment concurrently on Count 2, life imprisonment for the murder Counts 3-14 and to 10 years on Count 15, to be served consecutively to the 20 years on Count 2, making a determinate sentence of 30 years.On the 12th August, 1991 - 29 years ago on this date - Judith Ward was 'granted a review' of the case against her ; it took eighteen years of campaigning to have her conviction quashed, which it was on the 11th May 1992. It transpired that she had changed her 'confession' several times and that the police and the prosecution selected various parts of each 'confession' to assemble a version which they felt comfortable with!One of the main pieces of forensic evidence against her was the alleged presence of traces of nitroglycerine on her hands, in her caravan and in her bag. 'Thin Layer Chromatography' and the 'Griess Test' were used to establish the presence of nitroglycerine but later evidence showed that positive results using these methods could be obtained with materials innocently picked up from, for instance, shoe polish, and that several of the forensic scientists involved had either withheld evidence or exaggerated its importance.Her book, 'Ambushed - My Story' makes for interesting reading and allows the reader to draw comparisons with the injustices suffered by the Maguire Seven, the Birmingham Six and the Guildford Four ; a total of 18 innocent people, including Judith Ward (13 men, 3 women and two children) who, between them, spent a total of 216 years in prison. Anne Maguire, a mother of 5 children, was menstruating heavily and denied all toiletries for a week and was beaten senseless. Carol Richardson, who didn't even know she was pregnant, miscarried in Brixton Prison days after her arrest.Pat O'Neill, who had minutes before entered the Maguires house to arrange for a baby-sitter when the police arrived, was told by a cop to swear that he saw a big cardboard box on Maguires table or else he would be done, but he refused to lie - he served eleven years. On his release, he found his marriage was broken beyond repair and that his six children had left the family home.How many more Irish children will have to 'leave the family home' before the British eventually give a date for their political and military withdrawal from Ireland, because the situation as it still exists here is that their very presence continues to be objected to by Irish republicans and continues to give rise to unrest. And, if our history is to be used as a yardstick, that will always be the case.Thanks for reading - Sharon and the '1169' team. And here we go again ; we won't be here next Wednesday (19th August 2020) as we're still trying to deal with what this part of the world and its mother (!) are calling 'Staycationgate'. It seems we left a suitcase and at least one holiday-maker behind us, in our haste to depart from our posh holiday accommodation a few weeks ago...yes, I know it sounds careless, to put it mildly, but think 'Home Alone', only in reverse ; the '1169' team come from large families and...well, sometimes, after a certain number of days without sleep, a few flagons of cider, no phone signal or wi-fi and no change of clothes, you tend to forget your own name, never mind whatshisnames cousin or auntie or sister-in-law or whoever...anyway, long story short : we've been served legal paperwork by three sturdy bailiffs to call in person to 'collect our belongings'.Apparently, all concerned are too afraid to actually open the suitcase, for some reason (!), and the cousin/auntie/sister-in-law/whoever has gone rabid and was 'speaking in tongues' and, we're told, 'reverted to something that must have existed in the Stone Age..'. Ah Jaysus, there's always somethin', isn't there..?!!Anyway - we won't be here on the 19th, but should - all going well with the bailiffs, the medical people and the cops - be back on the blog on Wednesday, 26th August 2020. Unless we win the lotto in the meantime, thus enabling us to buy/build a Time Machine and go back to put a stop to this bleedin' nonsense. And ya can only imagine how far back we'll have to go and how long that would take us..!
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ON THIS DATE (26TH AUGUST) 107 YEARS AGO : A 146-DAY LOCKOUT BEGINS IN DUBLIN.On the 26th August, 1913 - 107 years ago on this date - at about 9.40am, drivers and conductors on Dublin trams stepped-out of their vehicles and 'walked off the job' ; they, and other workers, were objecting to the poor working conditions they were forced to endure and their lack of rights to challenge those conditions, including an 'unofficial' workplace 'rule' that would practically ensure that if a worker joined a trade union he or she would be sacked.The workers, who were fully supported by James Larkin, a revolutionary socialist who despised capitalism and supported the underprivileged, wanted better working conditions and the right to join a trade union without being penalised or sacked for doing so. The tram workers were not then unionised(either were Dublin Corporation employees, building workers or the staff that worked in Guinness' Brewery) but they had admired and supported Larkin and the then four-years-young, ten-thousand-membered ITGWU in the manner in which they had been fighting for improved conditions for the so-called 'unskilled workers' in Dublin, who were, mostly, members of the ITGWU : the workers and their trade union representatives were strongly agitating for a shorter working day(to work 8 hours a day rather than 12 or more hours a day), for better provision (if not actual jobs) for the many unemployed in the city, guaranteed pensions for workers who survived into their 60th year and a 'Labour Court', of sorts, where disagreements could be aired and settled in a neutral atmosphere.It should be remembered that the Catholic Church as an institution decided not to organise 'soup kitchens' etc or offer assistance of any kind which might be of benefit to children during the lockout, as those poor kids were the sons and daughters of the striking workers and that particular church supported the employers and branded Jim Larkin(pictured) as a 'political troublemaker'. Also worth remembering is the fact that anti-republican Arthur Guinness refused to close his premises or follow other such advice/demands from William Martin Murphy and, while he didn't actually join with Murphy and other employers in directly opposing the strikers, he organised for what was a large sum of money in those days - £500 - to be donated to a 'fighting fund' set-up by Murphy and other employers -'...(the Guinness company) had a policy against sympathetic strikes, and expected its workers – whose conditions were far better than the norm in Ireland – not to strike in sympathy ; six who did were dismissed. 400 of its staff were already ITGWU members, so it had a working relationship with the union. Larkin appealed to have the six reinstated, but without success..'(from here.)The lockout ended after 146 days as the workers and their families were literally penniless and starving, even though their conditions, wages, hours worked, health and safety issues etc remained unchanged, and they were 'obliged' to sign a pledge that they would not join a trade union. However, if any good came out of it, it was that the strikers had at least laid claim to the principle of joining a trade union and had seen that, properly organised, they could defend themselves from attacks by the military and political establishment.One of the better known connections between Irish republicanism and that period in our history was that Thomas Patrick Ashe(pictured), who was a member of the 'Irish Republican Brotherhood'(IRB) and who had established IRB circles in Dublin and Kerry and eventually became President of the IRB Supreme Council in 1917, espoused the Labour policies of James Larkin.Writing in a letter to his brother Gregory he said"We are all here on Larkin's side. He'll beat hell out of the snobbish, mean, seoinín employers yet, and more power to him". Ashe supported the unionisation of north Dublin farm labourers and his activities brought him into conflict with landowners such as Thomas Kettle in 1912. During the lockout, Thomas Ashe was a frequent visitor to Liberty Hall and become a friend of James Connolly. Long prior to its publication in 1916, Thomas Ashe was a practitioner of Connolly’s dictum that "the cause of labour is the cause of Ireland, the cause of Ireland is the cause of labour". Like Jim Larkin and James Connolly, Thomas Patrick Ashe was a supporter and organiser of 'the men (and women) of no property'.'EDUCATION...'From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, June, 1955.It isn't either that we should preach political bias, but that our training in ideals, principles and native things should be so clear as to make the aims of our Movement also abundantly clear and attractive in reason.As Sinn Féin caters for every aspect of national life, so our school will have to cater for every aspect of human character - spiritual, intellectual and physical. It does not matter how small the start is as it, itself, will provide its own momentum. Our education must be an education in wisdom for the purpose of leading a full life in harmony with God and nature, realising that we, individually, are created a necessary part of the great universal rhythm.Our first aim should be to find the best methods by which this may be quickly and effectively achieved. We, one and all, must strive to remove the imprisonment of the spirit and shake off this inertia by action, particularly through fostering creative work, intellectually and manually. We give below a general statement of the principles which should motivate our teaching system, and also an indication of some of the methods and subjects which we consider necessary for the successful achievement of our aims...(MORE LATER.)UPDATED DETAILS FOR THE 2020 BUNDORAN HUNGER STRIKE COMMEMORATION.On Saturday 29th August 2020, the Bundoran/Ballyshannon H-Block Committee will be holding a rally in Bundoran, Donegal, to commemorate the 39th Anniversary of the 1981 Hunger Strike and in memory of the 22 Irish Republicans that have died on hunger strike between 1917 and 1981 ; please note that the location in Bundoran for this event has changed - it will now take place in the Republican Garden in that town. Wreaths will be laid for the Hunger Strikers and a new plaque will be unveiled in the Republican Garden.The 2019 Bundoran Commemoration can be viewed here. Hope to see you all there on the 29th August this year!'WHY ARE WE TURNING A BLIND EYE TO PSYCHIATRIC PATIENTS WHO HAVE A PROPENSITY FOR VIOLENCE?'By Mairead Carey.From 'The Magill Annual', 2002.Gerry Connell is spending the first days of his jail term behind the walls of Limerick Prison. The 54-year-old County Limerick man killed his son, Barry, at their home in the summer of 1999. The incident was only one of a number of violent encounters over the past 14 years, a period which the family have described as being "absolute hell". The reason, they say, is that 25-year-old Barry suffered from acute manic psychosis and, as a result, he violently terrorised his own family. A jury in the Central Criminal Court found his father guilty of manslaughter - three years of his four-year sentence will be suspended.A month before the shooting, Barry's father had signed him into a psychiatric unit, but he was back home within days. Sentencing Gerry Connell, Mr. Justice McKechnie said this was"an absolute tragedy for the Connell family" and he had"nothing but sympathy for those involved who were left to deal with it. There must be some other way to respond to a situation, even one as grim as the Connell family lived with and that Gerry Connell faced on this fateful evening.."(MORE LATER.) ON THIS DATE (26TH AUGUST) 51 YEARS AGO : B-SPECIALS RESIGNATIONS ANNOUNCED (OVER MONEY).'On August 26, 1969(51 years ago on this date), it emerged that a platoon of 21 B-Specials, at Dunmore, in Down, resigned...they arrived at their Ballynahinch headquarters during the weekend and handed over their arms and uniforms. No reason was given for the resignations..."(from here.)The B-Specials were a part-time but fully-armed pro-British paramilitary outfit, that were sent out on patrol duty, with or without the British Army or RIC. Fifteen-thousand of them were unleashed on the public in February 1921 and those of them that were not ex-UVF men were said to have been unsuitable even for membership of that loyalist gun-gang!Our history has shown how deranged that gun-gang were and how thrilled its members must have felt to be wearing an 'official' British military uniform, with a full weapons kit at their disposal, and plenty of 'taigs' to practice on, but it seems that money was their second motivation (their first being religious hatred) - 'A signed petition to have the 'B' Specials disarmed was taken up at all Mass in Newtownbutler and Lisnaskeagh on Sunday, 24/8/1969. On Monday night, 25th/26th August, 1969, about 500 troops moved into Omagh. There were about 500 troops already there. There is one Company of British 'Green Jacket' troops in Enniskillen, Co. Fermanagh. There are about 250 troops in all in Enniskillen. There is one Company of Green Jackett troops in Omagh and another one in Ballykelly. There is some ill feeling amongst the 'Green Jacket' troops in Enniskillen. Their pay is a fortnight overdue and this is the reason for the bad feelings...'(from here.)They were 'loyal' to their religious bigotry and the Half-Crown.'HE OBJECTS'.From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, November 1954.'Letter To the Editor, The Irish Press newspaper, 18th October 1954, from John Lucy, Lieut. Col. OBE, The Royal Ulster Rifles, Roynane's Court, Rochestown, Cork'."Sir ; As an Irishman who fought in both great wars I take the strongest objection to the posting of Irish nationals to any British military station in this country. During the rebellion such men were moved to England. It is iniquitous that young lads from the Twenty-Six Counties whose first loyalty is to their own nation should be held in any degree as part of the British garrison of the Six Counties where they are liable to suffer at the hands of their blood brothers.If the English Government wish to continue to support the partition of Ireland they should use English soldiery to further their strange political ambitions here. For no government outside Ireland has the slightest right to colour the definition of prior loyalty for any of our countrymen by word or deed or implication, as England does by posting our young men to North of the border.It is a deadly sin to create a situation which gives occasion to the crime of fratricide. As I am particularly interested in the welfare of Irish soldiers in the British services I am sending a copy of this letter to the Under-Secretary of State, the War Office, who is responsible for postings.Yours faithfully,
John Lucy,
Lieut. Col. OBE,
The Royal Ulster Rifles,
Roynane's Court,
Rochestown,
October 18, 1954.(MORE LATER ['The Irish Press' newspaper replies]...)Thanks for reading - Sharon and the '1169' team. But, before we sign off, we need to bring to an end our Staycation Saga Story (!)...Longest staycation EVER!!We eventually collected our misplaced suitcase and our 'lost' family member, all in one fell swoop! Dunno what all the fuss was about - no need, really, for the cops, the custom people, the bailiffs, helicopters, the SWAT team etc to be rushin' around the gaff as they were ; sure it was all just a simple 'misunderstanding', to be sure.After hours and hours of questioning, tea, 'soup' (!), toilet and smoke breaks, we had convinced the cops that there 'was nothing to see here' but the custom lads and lassies, the helicopter pilot and yer man that served us our 'soup' still, apparently, had their doubts. The bailiffs had started a fight with the SWAT fellas and were chasing each other around one of the runways when a phone call came through from the New York JFK Security Department, which had been contacted by one of the SWAT guys, before he was rushed to hospital.The JFK/CIA/FBI/Homeland Security chaps, sobbing and shouting for some reason, pleaded with the Irish guys not to make a big issue of this thing, as to do so would make us reluctant to take any more staycations and would encourage us to go back to wreck havoc on New York for a holiday..!Anyways ; they held us for another hour or so, keeping their distance, not quite sure what to say or do to us, when all of a sudden a big brown envelope with USA stamps on it was thrown into the room where we all were and the pilot, the soup man and the rest of them took it over to a corner, opened it, whispered to themselves, gave us back our belongings and opened a side door, telling us they were going for a cúpan tae and pleaded with us not to be there when they got back. And we weren't, which is why we're back here now!So there ya have it ; more-or-less the usual type of holiday for us, whether home or abroad. And we're grounded for now, according to the suits from the Parole Board, so we'll see yis next week. Hopefully...!
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September 2, 2020, 2:11 am
ON THIS DATE (2ND SEPTEMBER) 97 YEARS AGO : FIFTH HUNGER-STRIKER IN SEVEN YEAR PERIOD DIES.Pictured ; the grave of 19-years-young Irish republican Joe Whitty, who died on hunger-strike on the 2nd September 1923 - 97 years ago on this date - and was buried in Ballymore cemetery, Killinick, Co. Wexford.Joseph Whitty came from Connolly Street in Wexford town. He was a volunteer in the IRA's South Wexford Brigade and was arrested and imprisoned in late 1922, after the counter-revolution had begun. Prior to his imprisonment, he was among the many Republicans in County Wexford to suffer at the hands of Britain's occupation forces and later at the hands of the Free State traitors.In February 1923, members of Cumann na mBan had gone on hunger strike in protest against ongoing internment and successfully secured their release. By May the Civil War had officially ended, but thousands of republicans remained imprisoned, often in very poor conditions. This resulted in further hunger strikes during 1923. The Free State government had since passed a motion outlawing the release of prisoners on hunger strike, and this was to have dire consequences for Joseph Whitty and others. He died in Newbridge Internment Camp, on September 2nd, 1923, at the age of 19. He was the fifth Republican to die on hunger strike since 1917, and was laid to rest in Ballymore Cemetery, Killinick with full military honours.'At a public meeting held in New Ross on Sunday July 22nd 1923, Miss Dorothy MacArdle read a letter from Newbridge prison camp. She did not think it had passed through the hands of the censor. The letter referred to the condition of 19 year old Óglach Joseph Whitty, William Street, Wexford. She asserted that he was not in the organisation at all and that he was being punished as revenge for the activities of his brothers. He signed the undertaking reluctantly on the advice of a friend but despite the boasting of the government that signing meant release, he was still in gaol and dying.
The first time his mother went to visit him the authorities refused to allow to do so. The second time when they allowed her to see her son he was unable to recognise her.
The meeting should demand that he be released before he died, said Miss MacArdle. Professor Caffery proposed a resolution demanding the immediate release of Joseph Whitty and the other prisoners in Ireland and Britain and suggested that a telegram should be sent to the pope. Miss Nellie O'Ryan seconded the resolution which was put to the meeting. All present signified assent by raising their right hands. Unfortunately, the free state government failed to release Joseph Whitty (pictured). On Thursday September 2nd, 1923, he died in the Newbridge military hospital. He had been arrested about a year earlier. Interment took place in Ballymore the following Sunday before a large crowd. When the remains were laid to rest his comrades fired three volleys over them and recited a decade of the rosary in Irish....'(from 'Boards.ie')Joe Whitty is one of twenty-two Irish republicans to die on hunger-strike between 1917 and 1981, all of whom are remembered each year by the Republican Movement.'EDUCATION...'From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, June, 1955.Principles, Methods and Subjects -1. Most people think that some higher education, or years of study, are necessary to understand advanced subjects such as science, music, philosophy, art etc but, as a person at the age of reason, or thereabouts, can intelligently accept the greatest of all principles - God and the Holy Trinity - then an intelligent student should be able to understand all lesser principles when broadly explained. Thus, each and every subject may be quickly brought within the students grasp so that he (sic) may realise its significance as a universal value.2. The purpose of education in relation to God, man, nature and country, so that the student clearly understands the reason for his(sic) actions and his (sic) work.3. The development of human attributes ; the spiritual and intellectual in union with the individual and physical aspects of man. The development of feeling, thinking and willing.4. The development of the individual creative faculty.5. Approach to subjects by forming immediate associations and statement of Great Principles involved. Also, where possible, to go back on one's own furrow, so to speak.(MORE LATER.)ON THIS DATE (2ND SEPTEMBER) 217 YEARS AGO : EXECUTED BY THE BRITISH FOR BEING "FOUND IN ARMS" IN DUBLIN.![]()
Maxwell Roach, hanged in Thomas Street, Dublin, September 2.
Denis Lambert Redmond, hanged at Coal Quay (now Wood Quay), Dublin, September 8.
John Killeen, hanged in Thomas Street, Dublin, September 10.
John McCann, hanged in Thomas Street, Dublin, September 10.
Felix Rourke, hanged outside his own home, Rathcoole, September 10.
Thomas Keenan, hanged in Thomas Street, Dublin, September 11.
John Hayes, hanged in Thomas Street, Dublin, September 17.
Michael Kelly, hanged in Thomas Street, Dublin, September 17.
James Byrne, hanged in Thomas Street, Dublin, September 17.
John Begg, hanged in Thomas Street, Dublin, September 17.
Thomas Donnelly, hanged at Palmerstown, Dublin, September 17.
Nicholas Tyrrell, hanged at Palmerstown, Dublin, September 17.
Robert Emmet, hanged in Thomas Street, Dublin, September 20.
Henry Howley, hanged at Kilmainham Jail, Dublin, September 28.
John McIntosh, hanged in Patrick Street, Dublin, October 3.
Thomas Russell, hanged at Downpatrick, Co. Down, October 21.
James Corry, hanged at Downpatrick, Co. Down, October 22.
James Drake, hanged at Downpatrick, Co. Down, October 22.
Andrew Hunter, hanged at Carrickfergus, Co. Antrim, October 26.
David Porter, hanged at Carrickfergus, Co. Antrim, October 26.Tradesmen were prominent in Robert Emmet's movement in Dublin. Edward Kearney, John Killeen, Thomas Keenan, John Hayes, Michael Kelly, Henry Howley and John McIntosh were carpenters; Owen Kirwan and John Begg were tailors; Thomas Donnelly and Nicholas Tyrrell were factory workers; Maxwell Roach was a slater; Denis Lambert Redmond was a coal factor; John McCann was a shoemaker; Felix Rourke was a farm labourer and James Byrne was a baker.(Source: Bold Robert Emmet (1778-1803) by Seán Ó Brádaigh.)[from here.]it was not only college-educated men and women like Robert Emmet (ie those who might be perceived as being 'upper class') who decided to challenge Westminster's interference in Irish affairs in 1803 : so-called 'working class' men and women also acknowledged the need for such resistance. And the same can be said for today.'WHY ARE WE TURNING A BLIND EYE TO PSYCHIATRIC PATIENTS WHO HAVE A PROPENSITY FOR VIOLENCE...?'By Mairead Carey.From 'The Magill Annual', 2002.The real tragedy is that Gerry Connell's situation is not unique ; hundreds of parents around the country face years of "absolute hell" from children with severe psychiatric problems and a tendency to violence. For many, there is simply nowhere to go for help.As of now, if you live in Kildare, Wicklow, South or West Dublin, there are no secure beds available for violent psychiatric patients. St. Brendan's Hospital, which caters for patients who are a danger to themselves and others, is closed to admissions and, last month, the psychiatric unit 'Vergemount', in Clonskeagh, was forced to close for the weekend because a patient became violent and there was no place to put him.Some are familiar with the situation. The boardroom table of the 'Psychiatric Nurses Association' is covered with newspaper clippings highlighting the failures of the health system to deal with the violently disturbed : 'Schoolboy tortured and killed by psychiatric patient' is the headline on a piece about an 11-year-old from Strabane who was battered to death on the day 21-year-old Brian Doherty discharged himself from a psychiatric hospital...(MORE LATER.) ON THIS DATE (2ND SEPTEMBER) 78 YEARS AGO :"IF FROM THE PATH YOU CHANCE TO STRAY...Tom Williams, pictured (Tomás Mac Uilliam) ; born 12th May, 1923, murdered by Westminster - he was hanged in Crumlin Road Jail in Belfast on Wednesday 2nd September 1942 - 78 years ago on this date. The executioner was the 'official' English hangman, Thomas Pierrepoint, who was assisted by his nephew, Albert Pierrepoint...KEEP IN MEMORY OF THAT MORN, WHEN IRELAND'S CROSS WAS PROUDLY BORNE.."![]()
"I met the bravest of the brave this morning..." Tom Williams, 12th May 1924 – 2nd September 1942."Williams was one of six IRA volunteers sentenced to death by hanging in 1942. A group of eight, including two women, had mounted a diversionary operation to take away attention from three republican parades held in Belfast to celebrate the 1916 Easter Rising. All such parades had been banned under the Stormont regime since the partition of Ireland and the introduction of the Civil Authorities (Special Powers) Act of 1922. A police (RUC) patrol managed to capture the group but not before an exchange of shots which resulted in the death of RUC constable Patrick Murphy. Although only 18 years old, Tom Williams was in charge of the unit and in a controversial statement to the police he assumed full responsibility for the shooting. Following a remarkable international reprieve campaign, the colonial Governor of Northern Ireland commuted five of the six death sentences to terms of penal servitude. But the British had decided that Tom Williams should hang..."(from here)'Time goes by as years roll onwards
But in my memory fresh I'll keep
Of a night in Belfast Prison
Unshamefully I saw men weep
For the time was fast approaching
A lad lay sentenced for to die
And on the second of September
He goes to meet his god on high
Now he's walking to the scaffold
Head erect he shows no fear
For on his proud and gallant shoulders
Ireland's cross he holds so dear
Now the cruel blow has fallen
For Ireland he has fought and died
And we the countrymen who bore him
Will love and honour him with pride
Brave Tom Williams we salute you
And we never will forget
Those who planned your cruel murder
We vow to make them all regret
So come all you Irish rebels
If from the path you chance to stray
Bear in memory of the morn, when Irelands cross was proudly borne
By a lad who lay within these prison walls.'(From here) For Tom, and all the other brave men and women.ON THIS DATE (2ND SEPTEMBER) 100 YEARS AGO : 'SPECIAL (LOYALIST) CONSTABULARY' FIRST MOOTED.At a meeting in London on the 2nd September 1920 - 100 years ago on this date - the then 'Prime Minster' of Stormont, 'Sir' James Craig ("All I boast is that we are a Protestant Parliament and Protestant State...") demanded that a force of 'Special Constabulary' be established for 'Ulster' and, six days later - on the 8th September - Westminster agreed that a force of "loyal citizens" were needed, and insisted that the then pro-British paramilitary gang known as the 'Ulster Volunteer Force' should be made 'official' and employed as such. And, with a simple name change and the provision of a British uniform, a new State-sponsored paramilitary gang, the A,B and C Specials, was spawned.The 'A' gang (about 3,500 of them in total) were full-time operatives who lived in the local RIC barracks and were used as re-inforcements for the RIC, and were armed and on a wage. Essentially, their presence allowed more 'police officers' free to leave their desks and assist their British colleagues in cracking nationalist skulls. The 'B' outfit (numbering 16,000 approximately) were armed but part-time and on 'expenses' only, and were usually to be found on street patrol and operating checkpoints and the 'C' grouping (about 1,000) were a reserve force with no specific duty as such but were 'on call' as an armed militia.Nationalists knew the danger of such a move for them - the UVF/Specials were not by any means 'neutral' in the conflict. The then'Daily News' newspaper stated, re the establishment of the 'Specials' -'The official proposal to arm "well-disposed" citizens to "assist the authorities" in Belfast raised serious questions of the sanity of the government. It seems the most outrageous thing which they have ever done in Ireland. A citizen of Belfast who is "well-disposed" to the British government is, almost from the nature of the case, an Orangeman, or at any rate, a vehement anti-Sinn Feiner. These are the very same people who have been looting Catholic shops and driving thousands of Catholic women and children from their homes...' But all words of opposition, or even caution, were ignored.The officer class in the 'Specials' were hired if they passed a civil service examination and were mostly upper and middle-class protestants with a moral connection to their 'mainland' (England) whereas the rank-and-file consisted of the thugs that once populated any anti-Irish paramilitary gang that would have them. The latter were not allowed 'serve' in their own county or that of a family member and were relocated on a fairly regular basis, living in the local barracks and single men were not allowed to leave same at night to socialise. 'Specials' who wanted to get married could only do so after they had been with the gang for seven years or more and even then only if their girlfriend was deemed 'suitable' by the officer class, a 'test' which included the nature of her job before and after the marriage. Any such 'Special' family were under orders not to take in lodgers, not to sell produce locally (ie eggs, vegetables etc) and the husband was not entitled to days off (no 'rest days' or annual holidays) and was not permitted to vote in elections!After Westminster forcibly partitioned Ireland in 1921 the British wanted control over the new 'State' to be exercised by their own kind (as opposed to 'Paddies in British uniforms') and, in late 1925, they felt confident enough to declare that the 'Specials' should be wound-up and a kitty containing £1,200,000 was put on the table to secure their disbandment : their main man in that part of Ireland, 'Sir' James Craig - up to then a great friend and supporter of the Specials - was jobbed to pass on the bad news : on 10th December 1925, Craig told the 'A' and 'C' Specials that they were out of work (the 'B' gang were to be kept on) and offered each man two months pay. End of announcement - at least as far as Craig and Westminster were concerned, but the 'A' and 'C' Specials were not happy with the "disband" order and discontent in the ranks grew. The 'A' and 'C' Specials held meetings between themselves and, on 14th December 1925, they mutinied!'A' and 'C' members in Derry 'arrested' their own Officers, as they did in Ballycastle - two days later (ie on 16th December 1925) a demand from the 'A' and 'C''rebels' was handed over to 'Sir' Richard Dawson Bates, the Stormont 'Minister for Home Affairs', a solicitor by trade, who was also Secretary of the 'Ulster Unionist Council', a position he had held since 1905. He was not impressed with their conduct. The 'A' and 'C' Specials were looking for more money ; they demanded a £200 tax-free 'bonus' for each member that was to be made redundant. Two days later (ie on 18th December 1925)'Sir' Bates replied to the Special 'rebels' that not only would they not be getting the £200 'bonus' but if they didn't back down immediately they would loose whatever few bob they were entitled to for being made redundant and, on 19th December 1925, the 'rebels' all but apologised to Bates, released their hostages and signed on for the dole - the 'hard men' of the 'Specials' had been put in their place by a bigger thug than they were!By Christmas Day, 1925, the 'A' and 'C' Sections of the 'Ulster (sic) Special Constabulary Association (the 'Specials') were disbanded. It was only in 1970 that the 'B' Special gang of thugs 'disbanded' (ie changed uniform into that of the 'Ulster Defence Regiment' (UDR) and carried-on with their mis-deeds). It was actually in September 1969 that the British 'Cameron Commission' described the 'B' Specials as"a partisan and paramilitary force..." while the October 1969 'Hunt Report' recommended that the 'B' Specials be disbanded.Since then, the RUC, formed in 1922, have been amalgamated into the 'PSNI' but, even though the uniforms changed, the objective didn't - the preservation of British rule in Ireland.'HE OBJECTS...'From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, November 1954.'The Irish Press' newspaper replies to the published 'Letter To the Editor' from John Lucy, Lieut. Col. OBE, The Royal Ulster Rifles, Roynane's Court, Rochestown, Cork.'Irish Press, 20-10-1954.One aspect of the Omagh raid which has excited considerable comment was the fact that the most badly wounded of the British soldiers was a man from Sligo, while some of the others were also Irishmen.The above letter represents one view of the position this creates and we publish it with the idea of clarifying the republican position on the points raised. First of all, we agree wholeheartedly that "young lads from the Twenty-Six Counties first loyalty is to their own nation." This applies equally to the young lads from the Six Counties - there is only one Irish Nation - embracing 32 Counties, and the loyalty of man and woman from within the four shores of Ireland is due to that nation and to that nation alone.The writer goes on to imply that transferring these young Irish lads in the British Army to posts outside Ireland would meet the situation. Maybe it would, from England's point of view. Their places here would be taken by Scotchmen or Welshmen or possibly Englishmen and the Empire would be protected as before. But what of the Irish point of view? As we said, the loyalty of every Irishman is due to Ireland and Ireland only...'(MORE LATER.)Thanks for reading - Sharon and the '1169' team.
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September 9, 2020, 1:41 am
ON THIS DATE (9TH SEPTEMBER) 98 YEARS AGO : FIRST FREE STATE INSTITUTION ASSEMBLES.An election was held in the 26-County so-called 'Free State' on the 16th of June, 1922, in which the Staters won 58 seats and republicans won 35 seats. On the 9th September 1922 - 98 years ago on this date - a political assembly was held in Leinster House in Dublin which described itself as 'the Third Dáil Éireann' and which was boycotted by republicans. Within weeks, that political assembly adopted a 'Constitution of an Irish Free State' and defined itself as comprising 'an Oireachtas, a Dáil, a Seanad and a King' as its constituent parts.The 'King' it made itself available, answerable and subservient to was 'King' George V, aka George Frederick Ernest Albert, who was listed in the 'Who's Who' of its day as 'King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India.' This was the first Leinster House/Free State political institution of which, to date, thirty-one have been spawned. It is not the '33rd Dáil', as it is sometimes mistakenly described, as the two political institutions which were up to then in place were 32-County bodies. The Leinster House assembly is, in fact, a product of Westminster - assembled, promoted and supported by that London institution to assist in implementing British political and military policy in Ireland, similar to its sister administration in our occupied six counties, the 'Stormont Parliament' ; it is one of three institutions of 'Government' (Westminster, Stormont and Leinster House) which, working hand-in-hand, purport to legislate for an Ireland forcibly partitioned by an alien power. Irish republicans have unfinished business in relation to that subject.'EDUCATION...'From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, June, 1955.Principles, Methods and Subjects...6. Methods of Learning, Reading and Studying ; exhaustive analyses of subjects or objects carried out individually.7. Training in memory, concentration and sense observation.8. Re-approach to history and geography as one - not as a sequence of names and dates, but as a living record of race movements, characteristics and achievements, their cultures and customs.9. Study of native and continental languages by non-grammatical methods during early stages.10. Study of nature ; animal, vegetative and geological forces.(MORE LATER.) ON THIS DATE (9TH SEPTEMBER) 46 YEARS GO : 'THE CLONAGH AFFAIR' ACKNOWLEDGED.The title, 'Clonagh Affair', is in reference to the 'Irish Industrial Explosives' factory, Clonagh, Enfield, Co Meath(pictured), in relation to which questions were asked if explosives from within this State were used in the Dublin and Monaghan bombings?'..in an interview with ‘Magill’ magazine, Garrett Fitzgerald said he personally had no knowledge of Captain (Patrick) Walshe's efforts to stem the flow of explosives to subversive elements. He was unaware that a fellow minister had been apprised of the situation in mid-April 1974 pertaining to the Clonagh factory and that the Taoiseach of the day, Liam Cosgrave, was personally aware of the situation at the factory by at least 9th September 1974.He expressed surprise at learning that Colonel (James K) Cogan had felt the need to seek an urgent meeting with Cosgrave to discuss the deteriorating situation at the factory –"You would have thought," Garrett Fitzgerald said,"the government, having been informed, would have done something about it." While expressing the opinion that this was an interesting line of inquiry and should be pursued he did not, however, accept that the Irish government(sic) knew about the situation at Clonagh before the British Army. He said –"They may or may not have reacted adequately to concerns about security but that doesn't mean that they knew or believed that explosives were actually leaking out. You wouldn't expect any government to allow that to happen if they thought that..."The above paragraph is from an article entitled 'The Clonagh Affair', a report on which starts here. Free State Army officer, Colonel James K Cogan, described in a 1984 affidavit what he described as"..a scandalous and criminal lack of security.." at the factory and it was also Cogan who described the Clonagh affair as"..the greatest scandal in the history of the Irish state.."Fear was expressed"..that the State's neglect, and in particular the loss and destruction of large amounts of documentation relating to the investigation of the bombings, reflected an active cover-up of the crimes...not merely (was) a large amount of documentation lost or destroyed but it is not even possible to discover what these documents were. This extreme carelessness makes it very difficult for the State to criticise, as it should, the failure of the British authorities.."(from here.)As usual in this corrupt and gombeen-ran State, satisfaction has not been obtained and justice has not been served.ON THIS DATE (9TH SEPTEMBER) 106 YEARS AGO : "TO PREPARE THE PUBLIC MIND FOR THE GREAT EVENT THAT WAS TO COME".No. 25 Parnell Square (pictured ; known then as Rutland Square) - the headquarters of the 'Gaelic League' (or Conradh na Gaeilge, founded in 1893 by Douglas Hyde) and the 'seat' of the 1916 Rising. On the 9th September 1914, a top-level meeting was held there, in the library, by republican representatives at which a decision was made to challenge the British writ in Ireland."Tom Clarke, Pádraig Pearse and Seán Tobin represented both the Volunteers and the IRB, which Pearse had recently joined. Griffith represented Sinn Féin, Jim Connolly represented the Labour movement and the Citizen Army, and I was there as a volunteer and also as Gaelic League Secretary. This was the first decisive arrangement between the Citizen Army and the Volunteers, for instance, and one of the decisions we took at the meeting was that each of us would undertake to do our utmost to strengthen both of these organisations" - the words of one of those in attendance at that historic meeting, Seán T Ó Ceallaigh. Amongst others present was Tom Clarke, Seán Mac Diarmada, Joseph Plunkett, Pádraig Mac Piarais, Thomas MacDonagh, Éamonn Ceannt, James Connolly, Arthur Griffith and William O'Brien.Speaking in New York in 1926, Ó Ceallaigh declared that the Rising was "a coldly and deliberately planned affair" and he points to this meeting as the moment when the intention to rise during the War was first agreed upon by a group representing"all shades of advanced nationalist political thought in Ireland who pledged themselves and their organisations to do all in their power to carry on the agreement arrived at and to prepare the public mind for the great event that was to come...at that meeting it was decided that a Rising should take place in Ireland if the German army invaded Ireland ; secondly, if England attempted to enforce conscription on Ireland and thirdly if the war were coming to an end and the Rising had not already taken place, we should rise in revolt, declare war on England and when the conference was held to settle the terms of peace, we should claim to be represented as a belligerent nation..."In 1964, Ó Ceallaigh stated re that meeting -"It was Tom Clarke who proposed the meeting to me and who asked me to fix a safe house to hold it in. The Castle detectives were very active at this time. Virtually every speech I ever made, for instance, since I became a member of Dublin Corporation in 1906, was carefully noted, as I learned later following the Rising. Every member of Sinn Féin, the Volunteers , the Gaelic League, the Fianna, was followed by G-men. We were all quite used to it and, of course, took much pleasure in 'ditching' our shadows when we most wanted to."Had such a meeting took place today in that venue, the 'G-Men' and 'shadows' would have found it even easier to spy and tout on republicans as representatives of Leinster House and British rule in Ireland now have two offices in that Square....'WHY ARE WE TURNING A BLIND EYE TO PSYCHIATRIC PATIENTS WHO HAVE A PROPENSITY FOR VIOLENCE...?'By Mairead Carey.From 'The Magill Annual', 2002."Man Sought To Limit Time In Hell By Killing" was the headline over a report explaining how a paranoid schizophrenic killed a 13-year-old girl under the delusion that"...he had to kill three people to get three sections of 12 minutes off a 36-minute torture session in hell."The young girl died on 14th April 1996. Three months earlier, her killer had been released from St. Columba's Psychiatric Hospital in Sligo.The face of Brendan O'Donnell stands out from the others. The young County Clare man who killed Imelda Riney, her three-year-old-son Liam, and Father Joe Walsh(believing that the priest was going to christen the devil's baby son) was found guilty of their murders but ended his days in the Central Mental Hospital. He died from an overdose of an anti-psychotic drug being taken for the mental illness the jury found he did not have ; his was in fact a 'personality disorder' which should have required long-term care and rehabilitation. But this would have been expensive."We turned our backs on Brendan O'Donnell," says the head of the Psychiatric Nurses Association, Des Kavanagh."We discharged him from hospital on the grounds that nothing else could be done. He went into the woods in County Clare and stayed there until he killed people. The system turns its back on people like him. We wait for them to offend, and let the courts deal with them."A full ten years before Brendan O'Donnell emerged from the woods around Mountshannon to kidnap Imelda Riney and her young child, the then Health Minister Barry Desmond launched a major report into the future of mental health care. Institutions were to be closed, and the focus was to shift from custodial to community care. There were two great advantages from the politician's point of view - it made progress on the liberal agenda while at the same time making huge savings. As a consequence, there are 2,000 fewer nurses working in psychiatric care today. Bed numbers have been cut dramatically. Patients are now forced to queue in Accident and Emergency wards, and in some units a patient must die before a bed becomes available...(MORE LATER.) ON THIS DATE (9TH SEPTEMBER) 100 YEARS AGO - SHOT ELEVEN TIMES IN THE STOMACH BY AN RIC MAN.'The lorries full of armed men tore down the road from Renmore and the shooting began. The first shots sounded like machine gun fire followed by dreadful screaming. This was when Sergeant Fox shot young Seamus Quirke. Quirke was taken from his lodgings in the New Dock and shot through the stomach eleven times. He crawled on his hands and knees from the lamppost on the quay where he was shot to the door of his house. The screaming was the background to all the horrors of the next five hours until the poor boy died at dawn. Fr. Griffin was sent for and stayed with him until he died...'(from here.)Ireland, Galway, 1920 : IRA Volunteer Seamus Quirke(christened James Augustine Quirke), a Cork man, was staying at a house in the docks area in Galway and was active in the on-going fight against the Black and Tans. The day before he was tortured to death by an RIC Sergeant named Fox, who operated from the RIC barracks in Eglinton Street in Galway (that is, on September 8th 1920) a driver for the Tans, a man named Edward Krumm, had visited the houses of the few friends he had in the area and drank as much alcohol as was offered to him in each house, before going for a nightcap in a near-by pub.He was boasting about how handy he was with a weapon and, as proof, he started shooting at bottles he had placed on a wall -'..reports that the constable (Krumm) pulled his gun from its holster and ran amok, forcing the (IRA) volunteers to intervene in order to stop him killing or injuring nearby civilians. In the record there is one witness report that suggested Krumm had intentionally opened fire on civilians, which would cause an incident that would give the ‘Black and Tans’ a pretext for bloody reprisals on the Irish population of the city...'(from here.)This activity caused alarm to local IRA men as they had made plans for that night which didn't include an armed and drunk Tan drawing attention to them, and action was taken against him :'...Tom Hynes, the local IRA Intelligence Officer, heard of this and sent his brother Michael to warn any IRA Volunteers that an armed man seemed to be preparing to create trouble. The Volunteers were in the habit of going to the local train station every night to meet the train, watch the British troop movement, collect dispatches and meet Volunteers from other districts, and this night they were also going to collect arms from the Longford area. Krumm and a companion went on to the platform by the gate on the arrivals side. The Volunteers warned the men arriving with the Longford guns, and the train stopped for a moment outside the station while they went out by the signal box with the guns. The train came into the station and as the passengers started to go out the gate Krumm drew his gun and made as if to shoot into the crowd...'(more here.)It should be noted that Father Michael Griffin(mentioned, above) was himself, within weeks, to fall victim to the same thugs that had butchered Seamus Quirke - -'..about midnight on Sunday 14th November 1920, Fr Griffin was lured from the presbytery by British forces directly, or someone aiding them. He was taken to Lenaboy Castle where he was questioned. After being interrogated, he was shot through the head and his body was taken away by lorry and buried in an unmarked grave at Cloghscoltia, near Barna...on 20th November 1920 his remains were discovered by a local man, William Duffy, while he was attending cattle...'(from here.)'The Irish Times' newspaper, issue dated 17th November 1920, published the following piece -'Responding apparently to a 'sick call', the Rev. Michael Griffin, junior Roman Catholic curate for the parishes of Bushy Park and Barna, Galway, went out on Sunday night in the company of three men, who are said to have worn trench coats. He disappeared as completely as if the earth had swallowed him. All efforts to trace his whereabouts have so far proved futile. A civilian search party is putting forward every effort to find some trace of the missing clergyman...' and, on the 27th November 1920, the same newspaper reported -'..later in the night, by the light of a lantern, the water-logged soil was dug up. Beneath two feet of the peaty soil the dead body of Father Griffin was found. He had a bullet wound on the right temple...'Whether they murder, kill or execute an IRA Volunteer or a priest, the British government and its armed or unarmed representatives are not welcome in Ireland and never will be.'HE OBJECTS...'From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, November 1954.'The Irish Press' newspaper replies to the published 'Letter To the Editor' from John Lucy, Lieut. Col. OBE, The Royal Ulster Rifles, Roynane's Court, Rochestown, Cork.'Irish Press, 20-10-1954...The fact that there are British forces of occupation on Irish soil is an act of aggression, an act of war, by England, on the Irish Nation. Any Irishman who joins England's forces is a deserter and a traitor to the Irish Nation.That is quite logical, simple, easily understood. Whether that deserter serves England in Egypt, Kenya, Palestine or elsewhere is beside the point ; in effect he(sic) relieves another of England's soldiers for service in Ireland against the Irish people and therefore he is directly responsible for, and partner to, England's crimes against the Irish Nation.Let us face the facts squarely : let us not get lost in maudlin sympathy. These young Irishmen (sic) serving in England's forces, whether active or reserve, are merely hired bandits in the pay of the greatest gangster organisation this world has seen and whether they are shot in India, in Egypt, in Kenya or in Ireland, they are entitled to no sympathy and should get none."('1169' Comment - Oh to have a voice like that in what passes for 'newspapers' today, instead of the 'polite/PC' political garbage that they print. So-called 'journalists' today are honest in that, when bought by the political 'establishment', they stay bought.)(END of 'He Objects'. NEXT - 'The Republican Position ; Statement issued by Óglaigh na h-Éireann and Sinn Féin', from the same source.)ON THIS DATE (9TH SEPTEMBER) 101 YEARS AGO : ABSENCE OF INFORMERS ANGERS BRITISH FORCES."...the people of Fermoy lived on the (British) military. Otherwise they would live by taking in each other's washing.." - part of the excuse uttered by anti-republican elements in an attempt to gloss over the thug-behaviour of British forces regarding the incident in question, as reported in 'The Auckland Star' newspaper(pictured, left) on the 11th of September, 1919.This particular incident began days previous to the date mentioned in our headline - on Sunday, 7th September , 1919, the date usually recognised for the first planned, organised and co-ordinated IRA attack against British forces in Ireland since the 1916 Rising. During the Black and Tan war (which started on the 21st January, 1919) IRA units attacked Royal Irish Constabulary(the RIC - a British 'police force' in Ireland) barracks on a regular basis to 'relieve' them of their weapons, which were then used against them.The commander of an IRA Brigade, Liam Lynch (Cork No. 2 Brigade), realised that he could use the frequency of IRA attacks on the RIC to his advantage ; by mounting a surprise attack on those that were endeavouring to protect the RIC - the British Army. He contacted IRA General Head Quarters to seek approval for this as yet untried 'twist' to an old plan, but the leadership thought it unwise to proceed with the action and turned him down ; at the time, the IRA attacks on RIC barracks' were obtaining the desired results - extra weapons for the IRA with a minimum of casualties : 'if its not broke , don't fix it', was the thinking behind the refusal.But Lynch persisted ; the other IRA Volunteer in charge of the Cork No.2 Brigade, Michael Fitzgerald, was convinced that Lynch's idea was sound, so both men put together a plan of attack which they intended to take back to GHQ. On the strength of that plan and with both Lynch and Fitzgerald insisting that it would work, they got the go-ahead for the operation.It had been observed that a party of up to twenty armed British soldiers, stationed in Fermoy Barracks in Cork , marched to Mass each Sunday morning to the local Wesleyan Church, about half a mile from their barracks. At that time, Fermoy was a stronghold for the British Army and one of the last places where the British would expect an attack. The IRA plan was to carry-out just such an operation. A number of sites in which to dump the liberated weapons would be needed and these were sourced and secured ; two cars would be required to transport the goods out of the area quickly and that, too, was arranged. Finally, a method to stop those in pursuit of the escaping cars was required and obtained and, on Sunday, 7th September, 1919, the plan was put into action ; twenty-five IRA Volunteers, including Liam Lynch and Michael Fitzgerald, took up position around the Wesleyan Church gates in Fermoy.The IRA men mingled with the people at the church gates and in the grounds. At the same time, other IRA men were preparing to topple two trees across the road at Carrickbrack, outside Fermoy, the agreed route of escape for the IRA cars. The IRA unit at the Church received word at about 10.45am on that Sunday morning that fifteen armed British soldiers, led by a Corporal, had minutes beforehand left their barracks and were marching towards the Church for 11AM Mass, as per usual ; as the British marched from the road onto the footpath to enter the Church grounds they were surrounded by the IRA Unit, most of whom were armed - some of the Volunteers were only there to load the captured weapons into the cars. Liam Lynch shouted at the British patrol to surrender, telling them that it was just the weapons that they were after this time, and not the soldiers. The British were stunned and surprised to find themselves in that position, and a number of them went to fire their rifles but the IRA men fired first and, in a brief but bloody gun-battle, four British soldiers fell to the ground - one was dead, the other three were badly wounded.The shooting ended there - the British surrendered and were relieved of their rifles - fifteen in all - which were loaded into two waiting cars. The Volunteers loading the rifles into the cars got in themselves and both vehicles sped off towards the Lismore Road. Their comrades who were covering the now-disarmed British patrol inched away and withdrew from the area. Within fifteen minutes the British had filled two trucks with armed troops and were driving at top speed on the Lismore Road, minutes behind the two cars they were chasing. When the two IRA vehicles passed the town of Carrickbrick, the IRA men at the side of the road toppled the two trees which they had weakened earlier that morning. The trees fell across the road, blocking it, and the IRA lumberjacks made off across the fields. The two British Army trucks skidded to a halt at the road-block and spent a number of minutes trying to move the trees, but couldn't, so they drove back to try and find a side-road which would take them around the blockage and back out onto the Lismore Road ; they failed there, too! By this time, the rifles had been stashed in the pre-arranged dumps. The operation was successful.For the rest of that day (Sunday, 7th September, 1919), and up until evening fell on the following day, hundreds of British troops, in trucks and on foot, raided the nearest towns and practically imposed martial law on the population in their search for the rifles and the IRA men responsible for the operation. Shops, houses and other buildings were searched, and people were stopped, searched and questioned as to their knowledge of events.No-one knew anything, and the British went back to barracks on early Monday evening (8th September, 1919), empty-handed. However, that was not the end of the matter ; at about 8pm that Monday, hundreds of British troops stationed in the area were sent into Fermoy town-centre to make the locals pay for their silence. People on the street were pistol-whipped, shops were broken in to and looted and pubs were thrashed. The British troops spent at least two hours on the wrecking spree and then went back to base, having threatened all and sundry that unless they received the information they were looking for by end of business on the following day - Tuesday, 9th September, 101 years ago on this date - - they would 'call' again, on Wednesday 10th, to make more 'inquiries'. But not one person contacted them with information on the IRA attack so, not convinced that they had made their point, the British officers sent the same number of their troops out on that Wednesday (10th September, 1919) to terrorise the population again.But this time the IRA were monitoring the situation, and hundreds of civilians, armed with shovels, hammers, sticks and stones etc, were waiting in Emmet Street for the British troops. Following many skirmishes and standoffs, the British troops returned early to base, having been pushed back by people-power, and had to accept the fact that not only were they not getting the information they demanded but that they were not wanted in the area nor, indeed, in the rest of the country. And they remain unwanted here today. Thanks for reading - Sharon and the '1169' team.
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September 16, 2020, 1:59 am
'UNQUIET GRAVES' DOCUMENTARY, RTE ONE TV, WEDNESDAY 16TH SEPTEMBER 2020, 9.35PM.....IF IT'S NOT 'POSTPONED' AGAIN.'The story of the Glenanne Gang details how members of the RUC and UDR were centrally involved in the murder of over 120 innocent civilians. Now known as the Glenanne Gang, the group of killers rampaged through Counties Tyrone and Armagh and across into the Irish Republic in a campaign that lasted from July 1972 to the end of 1978...'(from here.)'The Glenanne gang was based at a farm in Glenanne, County Armagh, in the 1970s. Its members are suspected of involvement in about 90 attacks during the Troubles, including the 1974 Dublin and Monaghan bombings, which killed 33 people, and the 1975 Miami Showband Massacre targeting one of Ireland's best known showbands...'(from here.)Collusion between pro-British elements in Ireland and the forces of Westminster - political and/or military collusion, that is - has always been a part of the British occupation of Ireland, going back over 800 years ; we have, unfortunately, never had a decade in all that time when some political or military tout didn't make his/her presence felt, and the same is true today, except those operatives are more 'in-your-face' than they were in the past.Since this State was spawned almost 100 years ago, those in political and military power have been pro-partition and have enforced that writ from a Westminster-imposed institution in Kildare Street in Dublin. They continue to benefit, financially, from being 'big fish in a small pond' and have no desire to change that position by having to work for a living in the changed political landscape that re-unification will bring, and if maintaining their position entails supporting overt and covert political and military manoeuvres by Westminster, anywhere in Ireland, then so be it.Anyway - if it is broadcast as stated, it will be worth watching : RTE One television, tonight (Wednesday 16th September 2020), 9.35pm. It will hopefully be 90 minutes well spent!ON THIS DATE (16TH SEPTEMBER) 175 YEARS AGO : DEATH OF AN IRISH REVOLUTIONARY, POET AND POLITICAL THEORIST.'Davis, Thomas Osborne(pictured), poet and politician, was born at Mallow (Cork), 14th October 1814. From his very earliest years he was noted for his passionate love of Ireland. In 1835 he graduated with distinction at the University of Dublin, mathematics and modern history being his favourite studies. In the debates of the College Historical Society he was distinguished more for talents and learning than for eloquence. Although called to the Bar in his twenty-fourth year he afterwards evinced little taste for following up the profession of the law. He travelled on the Continent, and collected a good library...In 1840 he contributed a series of articles on the state of Europe to the Dublin Morning Register — contending that a crisis was approaching in which Ireland would be able to obtain her legislative independence. He became an active member of the Repeal Association, where his ability and the sincerity of his character soon obtained for him an effective and influential position. At times he did not shrink from opposing O'Connell, for whom he had the greatest veneration.In 1842, with a few other persons desirous of strengthening the spirit of nationality in Ireland, he started the Nation newspaper...'(from here.)Thomas Osbourne Davis was a revolutionary Irish writer and was one of the leaders of the 'Young Ireland' movement. He was well educated, having studied in Trinity College, from which institution he received an Arts Degree and, at 24 years young, he was 'called to the Irish Bar'.In 1842, Thomas Davis and two of his colleagues, Charles Gavan Duffy and John Blake Dillon, were walking together in the Phoenix Park in Dublin discussing, among other issues, no doubt, the 'Hughes/Armagh Assizes' case, an infamous case of its day, and the manner in which it was being reported on. The three politically like-minded men made a decision there and then to start their own (weekly) newspaper which would present the news in a manner which would not be slanted towards the Westminster point-of-view. 'The Nation' newspaper was born that day.The first copies of the newspaper were printed from a premises in Trinity Street in Dublin but later moved to a more suitable location in D'Olier Street, before finding a permanent home in Middle Abbey Street, Dublin. It was well received by Irish society, at home and abroad. In 1900, it merged with 'The Irish Weekly Independent' -'There has never been published in this, or any other country, a journal, which was imbued with higher ideals of nationality, which attracted such a brilliant band of writers in prose and verse, which inspired such widespread enthusiasm, or which exercised a greater influence over all classes of its readers, which after a time included every section of the community.'The Nation' preached a nobler and more self-sacrificing Gospel of Nationality than Irishmen and women had been accustomed to hear for many years. It sought, not only to disinfect the political life of the country, but to raise the whole standard of national self-respect based on the inalienable right of people to guard their own destinies ; to inculcate a sentiment of pride in Ireland and everything Irish - in our history, legends, language and literature ; in our music and in our art ; in our magnificent contributions to the culture and civilisation of other countries ; in our sacred ruins scattered throughout the land and in lonely islands off our coasts, silently preaching silent sermons on Irish sanctity, learning and foreign rapacity ; in our heroic struggle for freedom throughout the ages ; in the brilliant achievements of our soldiers on the continent of Europe and in America, where they helped the oppressed colonists to achieve their independence – and it strove to regenerate the motherland intellectually, spiritually, socially and nationally...'(from here.)On the 16th September, 1845 - 175 years ago on this date - Thomas Osborne Davis, at only 30 years of age, died in Dublin from scarlet fever. He is buried in Mount Jerome Cemetery, in Dublin.'EDUCATION...'From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, June, 1955.Principles, Methods and Subjects...11. Elements of philosophy.12. Theoretical and practical elements of art, science and music. Non-formal as well as formal study, with special attention to the creative faculty. 13. Development of manual work and craftmanship. Exclusion of competition and sense of time.14. Elements of money.As we have stated, the above is but an indication of some methods and subjects which could be adopted. To develop any such work, it will be necessary to obtain the co-operation of any member, or reader, who can assist in any way. We would therefore be glad to hear from those interested with a view to having a meeting in the near future.(END of 'Education'. NEXT - 'Ulster Letter', from the same source.)ON THIS DATE (16TH SEPTEMBER) 100 YEARS AGO : 'OH WHAT A TANGLED WEB WE WEAVE..''16th September 1920 : British double agent John Henry Gooding aka F. Digby Hardy(pictured) offers to betray his superior, Basil Thomson, to the IRA. It is unknown if the offer was genuine or part of a trap for Michael Collins ; exposed by Irish press as an ex-convict, forger and bigamist, 'Gooding' admits his past and scores a propaganda victory for the IRA; he is allowed to flee Ireland unharmed and dies of natural causes in 1930...''John Henry Gooding, alias Frank Digby Hardy was an English naval writer, journalist, soldier, career criminal and would-be spy during the Irish War of Independence. Born in Devonport, Plymouth to a middle-class family, he was educated in London before gaining notoriety in his native Devon as a bigamist and a cheque forger. Imprisoned numerous times throughout his life, he was enlisted by British intelligence to capture Irish Republican Army leader Michael Collins in 1920...his enlistment into the British intelligence services came at a time when membership of the organisation was low and a recruitment drive had been initiated by its leadership for the purposes of action in Ireland during the Irish War of Independence...''A convicted forger serving a 5 year sentence in a London prison, one F. Digby Hardy, offered his services as a spy. Hardy was to travel to Ireland and establish contact with the IIS(the Irish Republican Intelligence agency). Hardy's letter, however, had been intercepted and transmitted to IIS Headquarters, where Irish operatives began to amass a dossier of incriminating information concerning Hardy's past. Collins actually got a copy of the letter Gooding wrote offering his services.Collins permitted Hardy to make contact with the IIS, and shortly there after arranged what Hardy had been led to believe was a conference with IIS officers. Those present were in fact American and British journalists anticipating the scoop that Hardy was shortly to provide. During this meeting the leaders of the IIS confronted Hardy with his criminal past, and his mission to penetrate the IIS. When Hardy learned the true identity and purpose of his host, he made a full confession, hoping thereby to obtain leniency from his inquisitors. Because of Hardy's cooperation, the IIS spared his life and gave him until the next morning to be out of Ireland. The story made international news headlines, and the BIS suffered a humiliating reversal before world opinion...'The paragraphs above were taken from various sources as, indeed, was the subject matter - a hired mercenary, spawned, like all mercenaries, from a half-successful coupling between a couple, one of whom - or both - lacked the moral fibre to do it right.Your manifest perfections never cease
To drive the day-long terrors out of mind
They are the lights the darkness hides behind
Allowing satisfaction its increase
Beyond the petty boundaries designed
To keep us well aware the world's unkind
And still your eyes proclaim a reign of peace...(from here.)John Henry Gooding, alias Frank Digby Hardy, infected this world from the 5th April, 1868, until the 28th October 1930. He was 52 years of age when he died. From natural causes. He did good to make it that far.'WHY ARE WE TURNING A BLIND EYE TO PSYCHIATRIC PATIENTS WHO HAVE A PROPENSITY FOR VIOLENCE...?'By Mairead Carey.From 'The Magill Annual', 2002.The West-Dublin area covers a population of over 350,000. As such, it is supposed to have 175 acute beds available to psychiatric patients. It has 50. The promised 'step-down units' - which were to be built when they closed the acute admission unit at St. Loman's in Palmerstown - never materialised. The general admission unit at St. Loman's services the largest catchment area in the country. In one 22-bed unit in the last six months alone, there have been eight assaults on staff and six on patients, one of them leading to very serious injuries. Five psychiatric nurses have retired prematurely because of injuries suffered at work in the last five years, three more are in the process of retiring and another four are on long-term sick leave.The nurses at St. Loman's were in industrial dispute in 1993, 1995 and 1997, and have returned to the Labour Relations Commission twice in the past month. The issues are the same as they were in the early 1990's - a shortage of staff and a dangerous shortage of facilities. The incidence of attacks on nurses is growing, and there is no compensation for them when serious attacks take place...(MORE LATER.)ON THIS DATE (16TH SEPTEMBER) 95 YEARS AGO - BIRTH OF "A VERY SHALLOW PERSON".Charles James Haughey was born in Castlebar, County Mayo, on the 16th September 1925 (95 years ago on this date) and died on the 13th June, 2006 ; he was 'Taoiseach' of the Free State on three occasions. His father was in the IRA but then fought against his old colleagues, as a member of the Free State Army."He hid in plain sight. Was it a failure of journalism (not to investigate that fully)? He refused point blank to explain where his wealth came from...his wealth was vastly beyond anything he could accrue from a salary...he represented everything that people were refusing to speak about until then : sex, money and power. There was an oppressive relationship about all of those topics. He had all three of those, and a lifestyle way beyond the meagre existence of the 1960's..something happened. He became crooked and began behaving in an unethical and corrupt way..."(from here.)However, despite his own taxpayer-funded luxury lifestyle, he had no hesitation in attempting to convince the State taxpayers whom he used to sustain himself that they were 'living beyond their means' -"As a community we are living away beyond our means. I don't mean that everyone in the community is living too well, clearly many are not and have barely enough to get by, but taking us all together we have been living at a rate which is simply not justified by the amount of goods and services we are producing..."(from here.)'Evidence emerged yesterday that substantial cheques made out to Fianna Fail and sent to party Headquarters in Upper Mount Street, Dublin, ended up in the party leader's account which Mr Charles Haughey ran from his office in Leinster House. It also emerged that Mr Haughey was able to make withdrawals from this account for reasons that had nothing to do with politics. In February 1991, when he was Taoiseach, a cheque for £8,332 was written on the account and used to buy a draft in French francs. The draft was used to pay Chevret, Paris, an expensive shirtmaker used by Mr Haughey. In September of that same year a further £7,500 was used for the same purpose...'(from here.)He liked socialising with poets and painters, although not all of the latter profession got on with him(!) and Irish republicans certainly didn't -'Taoiseach Charles Haughey speaks out strongly against the H Block activists who attempt to disrupt his election campaign : RTÉ News reports on the Taoiseach Charles Haughey, leader of the Fianna Fáil party, as he campaigns throughout the country(sic) in advance on the 1981 general election. In the border counties of Donegal, Monaghan and Cavan , supporters of the hunger strikers in the H Block prison attempt to disrupt the campaign...the National H-Blocks Committees had announced that they would harass the Taoiseach during all public appearances during the election campaign because, they claimed, he had not done enough to end the hunger strike in the Maze Prison...'(from here.)'Maintain the Border, Haughey - you're Maggie's little boy ;
You bolster up what Irishmen still suffer to destroy.
Our constitution claims its right, but you in breach bear stain -
You expend the people's millions, the Border to maintain..'He was the driving force behind the founding of the politically-motivated 'Special Criminal Court'(staffed at that time by personnel from the Free State Army, as opposed to just Free State sympathisers, as it is today) and developed a reputation for organising party nights within the State for what became known as 'the men in mohair suits', a breed of Free State 'politician' which one of Haughey's pals, Martin Mansergh, described as "..not holding much store by political correctness and (who) did not retire early to bed..". Another of his political pals, George Colley, equated Haughey with "low standards in high places".He had what is known as 'a whiff of sulphur' off him and used that 'wink wink' codology to make a name and a political career for himself, just as other Leinster House reps did before him, and are still doing to this day.'THE REPUBLICAN POSITION ; STATEMENT ISSUED BY ÓGLAIGH NA H-ÉIREANN AND SINN FÉIN.'From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, November 1954.'A Chara,The following statement has been released for publication. Please publish it in full or not at all.On a number of occasions within recent years, individuals acting on their own behalf or on behalf of some organised group, have made approaches to the Republican Movement. It is assumed that the motives prompting such individuals contain some measure of sincerity and that there is present, in some degree, genuine concern for the welfare of the national interest which the Republican Movement exists to serve.Invariably, such approaches have had one thing in common ; the purpose was to ascertain how far members of the Republican Movement are prepared to compromise on issues having a fundamental bearing on Ireland's struggle for full freedom, in order to reach some measure of unified effort between republicans and one or other of the political parties in which the individuals concerned have an interest.To the individuals making the approaches and irrespective of what interests they serve, or what motives prompt their approach, the reasons have been fully explained why the Republican Movement rejects compromise agreements or understandings which, if entered into, could only lead to a facade of unity lacking any element of intrinsic value. Lest those reasons may have been imperfectly understood or that there might be deliberate misrepresentation of the republican attitude, it is considered advisable to reiterate, officially and publicly, the reasons already given...'(MORE LATER.)Thanks for reading - Sharon and the '1169' team.
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September 20, 2020, 8:16 am
WHISTLEBLOWERS.''Monday, 21st September 2020, 9.35pm - RTÉ Investigates Whistleblowers: 'Fighting to be Heard' ; Barry O'Kelly reports on the importance of whistleblowers to society and the price they often pay for speaking out..'...and there is a 'price' for speaking out, but it's a price worth paying.We have mentioned this local act of in-house vandalism (to put it mildly) a few times already on the blog and are availing of the above-mentioned RTE programme to do so again, in the hope that it may offer warning signs to look out for if you or yours find yourself in such an unfortunate position. It's in connection with a family here in the Clondalkin, Dublin, area who are splintered beyond repair because of the unbelievable actions of two family members and their families, due to their own greediness.The elderly husband and wife, both deceased now, God Bless them, were a truly beautiful couple and were well known in the Clondalkin area, for their friendly, chatty, helpful nature, and were much loved and respected by all who had the pleasure to know them. The greed that was publicly displayed by two of their daughters, and their families, knocked everyone here in the area for six and, even now - nine years after the Gentleman passed away and three years after his Lady wife was re-united with him beyond the stars - tensions between the 'evil' and the decent side of the families involved are still raw, and all because of the little money, and their bungalow, that the couple actually had left when they passed.About €73,000 - the couple's life savings - was spent by the two daughters on themselves over a four-year period, €3,500 was taken from the couple's Credit Union (and spent in Boston, on a holiday, by one of the daughters and her family), household bills were left unpaid etc etc ; it was harrowing to hear about it and to witness, in public, the very real anger of the wrongdoers when they realised they had been caught and then copped-on to the fact that there would be no going back to the 'old', money-no-object ways, for them. Their anger exploded on the streets and in the pubs of the area, blood and drink was spilt, the cops were involved and legal offices were brought into play. But the decent side of the family won out in the end, 100%, over the nasty side of that same family, but they had to fight for their victory, legally and physically, although morally they had already won.If you're reading this, and you have an elderly parent or parents, and you have siblings, please remember that it won't always be strangers from outside the family that pose the potential threat."...after my Nana died (in February 2017) it transpired that my two robbing Aunties and one of their daughters, 'EM' had, in 2014, taken my poor Nana to a solicitor where she was instructed to sign and date some legal papers, which she did 'cause she "didn't want to make a fuss". Those legal papers turned out to be a Will, which Nana didn't know anything about and was never given a copy of for herself (neither was either of my Uncles, who knew nothing about it at the time) and in that Will one of my Aunties, 'M', had named herself as the sole executor of my Nana's property, including the bungalow that Nana and my Grandad lived in. My two Uncles had always been named as joint executors in the Will(s) that my Nana and Grandad had made up to that point.But that so-called 2014 Will troubled my Nana to the extent that she asked my Uncle 'S' to take her to a different solicitor, which he did, and she made a proper Will, in which the two robbing Aunties were left less than anyone else and my two Uncles were again named as joint executors. All this only became known after my Nana died and my two Aunties (and their families) are very very sore about it and that robbing side of the family actually started a fist fight with one of my two Uncles at a 60th birthday party that they all happened to be at. The robbers lost that fight, just as they had lost out in their plan to take over my Nana's and Grandad's bungalow and property and, on another occasion, an attempt was made to physically prevent one of my Uncles from leaving his late Dad and Mam's house, and that resulted in another punch-up, which the thieving side of the family also lost...."This is the blog in question ; it's a heart-breaking read, but it may just save other blogs like it having to be written in the future.Thanks for reading,Sharon. We'll be back here on Wednesday, 23rd September 2020.
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September 23, 2020, 1:55 am
ON THIS DATE (23RD SEPTEMBER) 209 YEARS AGO : BIRTH OF A REBEL'S BRIDE.
Lucy Caroline O'Brien (nee Gabbett)(pictured) was born on the 23rd of September, 1811 - 209 years ago on this date - in Limerick, to Joseph Gabbett and Lucy Maunsell. At 21 years young she married William Smith O'Brien, who was then 29 years of age, and they had seven children(five boys and two girls).Most of the information that we could find in relation to Lucy was based on her marriage to William Smith O'Brien, a man we had mentioned before in regards to his endeavours in fighting against the British military and political presence in Ireland.But there was another side to him as well, which would have added to the pressures on his poor wife : "..admittedly, he had earlier entertained so passionate an affection for a young woman in London that he had got her pregnant. Because she was not considered suitable for marriage to the son of a substantial Anglo-Irish landowner, the girl was bought off with an annuity of £50 a year by his older brother and their father...by the time he became one of the leaders of Young Ireland, in the middle of the 19th century, William Smith O’Brien was married to Lucy and had fathered several children.."(from here.)He was held in captivity in Van Diemen's Land for five years and this 'garden seat incident' with a young girl was recorded, in writing, by his British captors who, it must be borne in mind, had(and still have)'form' in inventing 'private lives' for those they wish to belittle. However, it does seem that Lucy's husband might have been prone to putting his own hand out to be slapped - "Mary Ann Wilton bore, in 1830, a son William by him. The boy was baptised in fashionable St Margaret’s, Westminster, London, on 6 January 1832. The child’s sister, Mary Wilton O’Brien, born 1831, was baptised at the same ceremony. Note that Wilton, her mother’s family name, was given as her Christian name. The birth certificate records Mary Ann Wilton as their mother and William Smith O’Brien as their father. Nine months later, the latter married Lucy Caroline Gabbett..."(from here.)Lucy Caroline O'Brien died on the 13th June, 1861, in Limerick, Ireland, only 41 years of age, and he himself passed away three years later, in his 61st year, in Bangor, Wales, and is buried in Rathronan Churchyard in Limerick. The inscription on the family mausoleum reads -'Lucy Caroline O'Brien, Born 1811, Died 18 June 1861 ; William Smith O'Brien, Born 17 October 1803, Died 18 June 1861 and Here Lies Edward William, Eldest Son of William Smith O'Brien, A Just Man, Lover of His People. Born 24 Jan 1837, Died 21 Jan 1909.''William Smith O’Brien married Lucy Caroline Gabbett, daughter of Mayor William Gabbett, in 1832. She was born in 1811 and died on the 13 June 1861.(from here.)Trying to make ends meet and raise seven children is a full-time job in itself. Attempting to do that andhave to worry about an absent husband gives an indication of the strength of the woman.'ULSTER LETTER'.From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, June, 1955.With the advent of each successive generation of party politicians it becomes ever more important for republicans to set out clearly the principles of their Movement. The fundamental principle of republicanism is 'Freedom' and Wolfe Tone, the founder of Irish republicanism, has spoken clearly on its objective - "To break the connection with England."Ireland is denied her freedom by England and by England's minions, hence it is that today Irish republicans reiterate the words of their founder - "break the connection with England." Wolfe Tone found it necessary 150 years ago to clarify the issues at stake in Ireland in his day, so also do we find it incumbent upon us to remove any doubts as to what are the issues at stake in our day.This clarification is necessary in Ulster, which is predominantly Protestant, and in the other three Provinces, which are predominantly Catholic ; this letter is for Ulstermen. It has always been an extraordinary feature of the Irish Republican Movement that it was and is attacked with equal harshness by Protestants and Catholics, or rather by politicians of both religious denominations. Unfortunately the people, following the example of their various party political leaders, criticise the Republican Movement and, in doing so, they put forward criticisms which of themselves are contradictory...(MORE LATER.)ON THIS DATE (23RD SEPTEMBER) 44 YEARS AGO : "A THUNDERING DISGRACE".Ireland, 1970's : turmoil in the country, due to the then-as-now unwanted political and military interference here by Westminster. The Leinster House administration was headed-up at the time by Fine Gael'sLiam Cosgrave(pictured), and among the many harsh laws introduced, enforced and 'improved on' by the Blueshirts was a censorship act, 'Section 31'. The then Free State President was a Fianna Fail man, Cearbhall Ó Dálaigh , said to be a compromise candidate by the powers-that-be at the time, as he fitted the requirements dictated by the 'establishment' (ie 'a safe pair of hands') - he was previously the Free State Attorney General and Chief Justice of the FS Supreme Court, and was given the Office, unopposed, in 1974, following the death of Erskine Hamilton Childers.But it was that legal training which raised a red flag with him in relation to a piece of legislation which the Blueshirt Leinster House administration wanted him to 'rubber stamp' - the 'Emergency Powers Act', and the fact that Ó Dálaigh and Cosgrave didn't agree with each other, socially or politically, came into play : Ó Dálaigh refused to simply 'sign off' on the 'EPA' without first testing its constitutionally.On the 23rd of September, 1976 - 44 years ago on this date - Ó Dálaigh(pictured) spent four hours consulting with a bunch of posh suits known as the Free State 'Council of State' on whether or not it would be best practice to refer the legislation to the Free State Supreme Court to test its constitutionality before he could declare it to be 'the law' and it was decided that that would be the best thing to do, a decision which annoyed the Blueshirt administration.Just over three weeks later (ie on the 15th October 1976) the FS Supreme Court declared that the 'EPA' was a legitimate piece of legislation and it was only then that Ó Dálaigh deemed it necessary to sign-off on it, which he did, reluctantly(or so it was alluded at the time) but that 'victory' wasn't enough for Cosgrave and his people - they considered themselves to have been disrespected by the actions of Ó Dálaigh and, three days later (ie on the 18th October 1976) , they could contain themselves no longer : it was on that date that the Free State Minister of Defence, Paddy Donegan, was opening a new Free State army barracks in Mullingar, County Westmeath(having, seemingly, forgot that Ó Dálaigh was the Commander-In-Chief of said army!) that he made a remark (he was concussed at the time, he later claimed!) which was to haunt him for the rest of his life.He 'kicked himself up the transom' , if you like, which wouldn't have caused as much damage as firing a shotgun over dwellings in which people lived - more about that 'eccentric'(!) Free State politician can be read here...'WHY ARE WE TURNING A BLIND EYE TO PSYCHIATRIC PATIENTS WHO HAVE A PROPENSITY FOR VIOLENCE...?'By Mairead Carey.From 'The Magill Annual', 2002.Meanwhile, patients with acute psychiatric problems and violent tendencies are being betrayed by a system which doggedly and deliberately fails to recognise their needs. Psychiatric care in Ireland is stumbling from crisis to crisis.Unless this unglamorous aspect of healthcare is given a significantly higher status when the government meets to attribute the 'new and improved' health budget, we can confidently expect another tragedy of the magnitude of the Riney case. Or perhaps even worse.(END of 'Why Are We Turning A Blind Eye To Psychiatric Patients Who Have A Propensity For Violence?' ; NEXT - 'Is It Time To Ask Questions Of The Legal Profession?', from the same source.)ON THIS DATE (23RD SEPTEMBER) 100 YEARS AGO : MURDER OF A SINN FÉIN COUNCILLOR.'At 1.15 am Captain Geoffrey Thomas Baggallay, a one-legged courts-martial officer, had phoned Dublin Castle telling of John Lynch’s presence at the Exchange Hotel. A group of 12 British soldiers entered the Exchange Hotel, wearing military caps and long black Burberry coats. They held the hotel porter, William Barrett, at gunpoint. After consulting the register they went to the bedroom of John Lynch(pictured). It was number 6 on the third floor, where John Lynch had been staying since 12 Sept.They shot him and the soldiers left ; the British soldiers claimed Lynch had fired a shot at them when they attempted to arrest him. The military reported a death at the hotel at 2.15 am. The RIC arrived after the military reported the death to them. The coroners verdict was that Lynch was shot by a soldier in self-defence. No evidence was given by any soldiers at the inquiry.The IRA believed that the actual murder was carried out by Henry James Angliss and Charles Ratsch Peel working undercover. The group of khaki-clad men who shot Lynch numbered about 12, and the IRA certainly believed that Angliss and Peel were among them from the inside information that they received from “Lt G” at Dublin castle. Lt G is believed to be Lily Mernin who worked as a typist at army headquarters. Michael Collins believed that many of the British officers that were later killed on ‘Bloody Sunday’ shot John Lynch in the Exchange Hotel. Lynch was the local Sinn Féin organiser of a loan and was in Dublin to hand over £23,000 in subscriptions to Collins. Altogether £370,163 was raised in the loan effort in Ireland by September 1920 when it closed down.It is not possible to know who the 12 men on the raiding party were who shot Lynch, however, apparently Lt. Angliss, under the influence of drink, divulged his participation in the shooting to a girl who passed this information on to an IIS (the republican intelligence department) informant. Peel escaped death on ‘Bloody Sunday’ by barracading himself in his room. George Osbert Smyth (on attachment to avenge his brother (Gerald’s death, shot by the IRA after a speech he gave in Listowel, Co Kerry) is understood to have been part of the raiding party, from information given to his family on a visit home. Osbert Smyth was shot dead in October 1920 while trying to arrest IRA suspects Dan Breen and Sean Treacy at a house in Drumcondra...'(from here.)Like Liam Lynch, John Lynch had made his preference known in relation to how to deal with the unwanted British presence in Ireland - he was for a military solution ie to 'fight fire with fire'. This was known to the enemy in Westminster, so much so that they instructed their 'Cairo Gang' mercenaries to concentrate on admired soldiers like (Liam) Lynch and, in their rush to do so, the Sinn Féin councillor, John Lynch, was shot dead by 'Cairo' member Lieutenant Angliss (aka 'McMahon'- he had been recalled from spy work in Russia for the 'Cairo Gang' job in Dublin).The British assassin is said to have believed that John Lynch was Liam Lynch, or related to him, but expressed no remorse when his mistake was pointed out to him. The Ciaro man was playing billiard's in Dublin after he killed John Lynch when the IRA shot him, but he was only wounded. He wanted revenge - and his position in the 'Cairo Gang' gave him that opportunity, or so he thought. But, in November, 1920, he was in lodgings at 22 Lower Mount Street in Dublin when two of the 'Twelve Apostles' entered his room. He reached for his revolver but was shot dead before he could get to it.Sinn Féin County Councillor John Aloysius Lynch of Kilmallock, County Limerick was murdered at the Exchange Hotel in Dublin by a British agent on September 23rd, 1920 - 100 years ago on this date. The British mercenary who murdered him has been named over the years as a Captain John Fitzgerald(a native of Cappawhite, County Tipperary, who was later assassinated by the IRA), and Henry James Angliss and Charles Ratsch Peel were also named as the murderer. Whatever the case, justice was served afterwards.'THE REPUBLICAN POSITION ; STATEMENT ISSUED BY ÓGLAIGH NA H-ÉIREANN AND SINN FÉIN...'From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, November 1954."A Chara,The following statement has been released for publication. Please publish it in full or not at all...This official reiteration is now released for publication on behalf of Óglaigh na h-Éireann and on behalf of Sinn Féin. Its release at this juncture is considered necessary for the reasons stated above, and because of a recent approach made to ascertain if some kind of compromise agreement or understanding could be reached between the Republican Movement and Fianna Uladh, the most recent splinter party to enter the arena of party politics('1169' Comment -"We in Fianna Uladh recognise the Constitution of the Republic of Ireland under which this State operates and we are prepared to work within its framework to extend its operation to the whole of Ireland..." - from here.).
The Republican Movement accepts and endorses the axiom that, to complete the task of freeing Ireland, the greatest possible measure of unity amongst our people is essential. Achievement of such measure of unity as a means to an end is a main aim of, and a principal plank in, the platform of the Movement. Republicans go further by fostering and endorsing the fundamental principle that the basis upon which unity rests is of greater national importance than mere achievement of a facade of unity behind which the politicians would manoeuvre for tactical positions in a game of political party stunting.
No useful purpose would be served through alignment of the Republican Movement with political splinter parties, whose national outlook is coloured by party interests and whose national endeavour is circumscribed by the personal ambitions of party leaders. Such alignment would at once bring the Republican Movement within the ambit of party politics, deprive it of any claim to national status, and reduce it to a level of yet another political party..."(MORE LATER.)
Thanks for reading - Sharon and the '1169' team.
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September 30, 2020, 3:02 am
THE O'RAHILLY : NATIONLESS AND NOW HOMELESS.Joseph O'Rahilly('The O'Rahilly') was born in Ballylongford, in County Kerry, on the 22nd April, 1875. He had a busy, well-travelled and interesting life and took part in the 1916 Easter Rising in Ireland, during which he was killed in the fighting."Friday April, 29 1916. The General Post Office in Dublin, occupied on the Monday as the headquarters of republican insurrection, was burning fiercely. The insurgents inside had decided they had to make their escape across Henry Street to the network of small houses and shops on Moore Street. A small party of twenty armed men dashed across the open street to establish a toehold there and to clear out a British barricade. At their head was a distinguished looking gentleman in green uniform, complete with Victorian moustache and sword.The charging party was hit by volleys of British bullets from the barricades on both sides. Four Volunteers were killed outright. Their leader, the moustached gentleman, fell wounded in the face. He managed to drag himself out of the line of fire to Sackville Lane, where he lay, bleeding, grievously injured. His name was Michael O'Rahilly..."(from here.)More information re 'The O'Rahilly' himself -'His interest in Irish history led him slowly and inexorably towards nationalism. The first indication of nationalism is in a letters controversy in 1899 in the European edition of the New York Herald, following celebrations of Queen Victoria's 80th birthday. Rahilly criticised the celebrations, pointing out the miseries her reign had inflicted on Ireland. Some of his criticism was censored by the paper as too offensive..' - can be read here, and his family history can be read here, including a local [Clondalkin] connection : 'Aodogán and Marion (O'Rahilly) lived Moreen, Clondalkin, Co.Dublin (junction of Belgard Rd and Naas Rd, opposite Newlands golf course, townland of Mooreenaruggan). They spelt house "Moreen", but it is now spelt "Mooreen". The house was built 1936. Aodogán listed as living there by [Thom's, 1938]. The house website says: "In 1932, in America" [Aodogán and Marion] "purchased plans for use in building their new home, Mooreen House. The design was already famous and had been awarded the title House of the Year, and a full-scale replica was constructed in Macy's New York Department Store..."'.But read it quickly, in case it, too, vanishes -'Dublin City Council is investigating the circumstances surrounding the demolition of the former home of a 1916 Rising leader in Ballsbridge this morning(Tuesday, 29th September 2020). The property at 40 Herbert Park, which once belonged to The O’Rahilly, was bulldozed by a company developing the site at around 6.30am this morning. The site and two adjoining addresses at 36 and 38 Herbert Park are set to be developed into 105 apartments and the extension of an aparthotel by Derryroe Limited, a company owned by the Kennedy and McSharry families...' (from here.)Another State-inspired atrocity against our history, in the vein of, and for the same motive(€€€) as Hume Street, Wood Quay and Archers Garage. A corrupt State desecrating a part of its own history which it is ashamed of. Shame on the political system and those that operate same for paying lip-service to our historic past while counting the contents of their brown envelopes at the same time.'SING of The O'Rahilly,
Do not deny his right;
Sing a "The" before his name;
Allow that he, despite
All those learned historians,
Established it for good;
He wrote out that word himself,
He christened himself with blood.
How goes the weather?Sing of The O'Rahilly
That had such little sense
He told Pearse and Connolly
He'd gone to great expense
Keeping all the Kerry men
Out of that crazy fight;
That he might be there himself
Had travelled half the night.
How goes the weather?"Am I such a craven that
I should not get the word
But for what some travelling man
Had heard I had not heard?"
Then on Pearse and Connolly
He fixed a bitter look:
"Because I helped to wind the clock
I come to hear it strike."
How goes the weather?What remains to sing about
But of the death he met
Stretched under a doorway
Somewhere off Henry Street;
They that found him found upon
The door above his head
"Here died The O'Rahilly.
R.I.P." writ in blood.
How goes the weather?(By William Butler Yeats.)ON THIS DATE (30TH SEPTEMBER) 26 YEARS AGO : DEATH OF AN IRISH REPUBLICAN LEGEND.Michael Flannery (pictured) - born in North Tipperary in 1902, died in New York on the 30th September 1994, age 92. He joined the Irish Volunteers in 1916 (as did his brother, Peter) and often recounted how, as a teenage POW in a British prison in Ireland that year, he stood on a bucket at the window in his cell and watched the storm clouds gather over Dublin as the men of the Rising were executed.He had three brothers and three sisters but spent his youth separated from them and the rest of his family - he was constantly 'on the run' from the British and, still only in his early teens, was known as a skilled guerrilla fighter, having learned to kill enemy forces "...without regret and without bitterness. I felt anger but not bitterness towards them. I hated their actions but always said 'God have mercy on your soul' as they died."One of those who served with him, Jack Moloney, described him as"..cool as a cucumber under fire. He had brains to burn, and he never got angry. You couldn't shake him."He stayed through to the Republic and fought for the Anti-Treaty side but, on the 11th November 1922, he was captured in Tipperary by Free State soldiers and spent nearly a year and a half in Mountjoy Prison(C Wing) during which time he witnessed the execution of IRA men like Dick Barrett, Joe McKelvey, Liam Mellowes and Rory O'Connor. His internment was interspersed with periods of solitary confinement and culminated in a 28 day hunger strike during which he was transferred to the Curragh prison camp in Kildare (Tintown camp #3, prisoner #886).He was eventually released on the 1st May 1924 and went to America in 1927 on behalf of the Republican Movement, sailing from Cobh in Cork and arriving in New York on the 14th February of that year. His job and intention was to help to organise, firstly, those in New York who, like himself, had remained true to Irish republicanism. He married Margaret Mary Egan((known as 'Pearl') in Rockville Center, New York in 1928, and settled in Jackson Heights in that city, earning a wage as an insurance actuarial. Tipperary-born Margaret was a research chemist, educated at University College Dublin and University of Geneva. The couple had no children, but helped to raise and educate fourteen of their nephews and nieces both in Ireland and America.As part of his work for the Movement, he formed the 'Congress for Irish Freedom', and then the New York-based 'Irish Northern Aid Committee'('Noraid'). In 1982, Michael Flannery and four other Noraid officials(Thomas Falvey, Daniel Gormley, George Harrison and Patrick Mullin) were charged in New York of gunrunning to the I.R.A. but were subsequently acquitted. The trial of the 'Brooklyn Five' ran from 23rd September to 5th November, during which the defence reportedly asserted that the men were acting at the behest of the Central Intelligence Agency. He died in New York on the 30th September 1994 - 26 years ago on this date - and is buried in Mount Saint Mary's Cemetery in Flushing, New York with his wife Margaret, who died on the 12th November 1991.The 'National Irish Freedom Committee'('Cumann Na Saoirse Náisiúnta'), which he co-founded in 1987, hold an annual testimonial awards dinner in Astoria, New York, every spring at which the 'Michael Flannery Spirit of Freedom Award' and the 'Pearl Flannery Humanities Award' are presented.Finally, I couldn't mention Michael without also commending those who, already referenced, above, worked alongside him in supporting the Cause of Irish republicanism - Pat Mullin, George Harrison, Tom Falvey and Danny Gormley. Legends all!'ULSTER LETTER...'From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, June, 1955.You Protestants of Ulster attack republicanism because you say it is allied to Catholicism and a victory for republicanism would result in religious discrimination against you. But are you aware that the Catholics assail the cause of republicanism because they allege it is dominated by sinister Protestant influences and, mind you, the Catholics can point to the fact that Wolfe Tone, Robert Emmet, Thomas Davis, John Mitchell and a host of other republican leaders down through the years were Protestants?Political opponents, Catholics and Protestants alike, criticise republicans because they uphold the right and maintain the tradition of fighting for freedom. Irish republicans are not segregated into particular religious denominations but rather are united under the one banner of freedom - freedom in all its thousand spheres. The freedom of Irishmen(sic) to govern their own nation. The freedom of the workers from the whims and dictates of their employers. The freedom of families and individuals from the worry and care now burthening them as a result of the multi-social evils which infest this generation.The freedom of individuals to follow the guidance of their own consciences ; everyone will naturally retain and pursue their own religious faith in a republican Ireland but religious bigotry and antagonism provoked by the vested interests of rich property owners and corrupt party politicians shall be as it is at present, something alien to the teaching and practice of Irish republicanism...(MORE LATER.)ON THIS DATE (30TH SEPTEMBER) 27 YEARS AGO : EX-REPUBLICANS TRIP THEMSELVES UP (ONCE AGAIN!).Gerry Adams ( aka'Crown Steward and Bailiff of the Manor of Northstead'), pictured, looking at his "national responsibility"."Since the partition of Ireland, successive Dublin governments have run away from the Northern problem and thus have been part of the problem. Now it must become part of the solution. Dublin must assume its national responsibility" - from the Provisional Sinn Féin newspaper 'AP/RN', 30th September 1993, page 6, 'editorial column'. The Leinster House administration('Dublin government') claims jurisdiction over the 26-county State only ; since when has it had a "national responsibility"?That Kildare Street political administration was established, by the British, almost 100 years ago specifically to assume 'responsibility' for the Free State, not for the country ie 'national responsibility' was never its remit. But when you lie down with political dogs you get up with their political fleas.'IS IT TIME TO ASK QUESTIONS OF THE LEGAL PROFESSION?'By John Drennan.From 'The Magill Annual', 2002.We have always been a society with a facility for the creation of myths. However, not even the most dewy-eyed devotee of the dreams of the Celtic Twilight could have invented the present status of the legal profession in Ireland. The dominant viewpoint is that barristers are currently playing a crucial role in exorcising political corruption in Ireland, as dodgy politicians, bankers and others experience the modern-day equivalent of the religious missions of the 1950's.Within the Dail(sic) politicians defer to them, whilst within the media no one seriously questions practitioners of the law because they are seen to be beyond reproof and rather powerful enemies. Whispers of discontent about the salaries of top barristers in cases funded by the taxpayer tend to be no more than just whispers - the kind of bugbear so beloved of taxi drivers and lefty students. Most other people simply accept the payment of fees of £1,500 per day to each senior counsel as a necessary evil in a society where truth lies at the bottom of a tribunal.Yet in other, more fundamental ways, certain members of the legal profession have questions to answer, but will almost certainly never be forced to do so by our current social consensus. Certainly, there have been legal actions which have been far from edifying sights. The cessation of the mini CTC signalling system inquiry, in particular, was not impressive to watch. There, we were treated to the unique claim that the constitutional rights of a dead person should stop a public inquiry. Most citizens would like to see these types of inquiries move ahead - and positive results achieved. Yet this hasn't been the case with many...(MORE LATER.)ON THIS DATE (30TH SEPTEMBER) 78 YEARS AGO : FREE STATE RAIDING PARTY STORM WEDDING RECEPTION. Ireland, 1942 : IRA Volunteers Paddy Dermody (who was the then Commanding Officer of the IRA's Eastern Command) and Harry White were both on the run from the Free Staters and, on the 30th September, 1942 - 78 years ago on this date - decided to 'take a day off' and attend a wedding reception in a house near Mount Nugent in Cavan : Paddy's sister, Jane, was getting married that day to Michael Tuite, a small farmer(their union produced eleven children - nine sons and two daughters). The house reception was in full swing when an armed Free State raiding party burst in, acting on information from two of their own type who had been observing proceedings and had seen the two IRA men enter the house.A gun battle said to be reminiscent to that of any such encounter during the 1920's ensued and one of the musician's, a man named Finnegan, was shot in the leg. A Free State Detective, a Mr. M.J. Walsh, was in the house and moved past a window when one of his colleagues outside mistakingly fired at him, a wound from which he died later, in hospital. At the same time, Paddy Dermody was killed instantly by a bullet in the back, just as he and Harry White were about to try and escape through a different window.Harry White was on his own now, in a house which was surrounded by armed Staters, some of whom were coming in. He dived through a window into the night and shot his way through an armed cordon : hit twice in the leg, he collapsed in a clump of whins half-a-mile from the house. For two cold October nights he lay wounded under the stars as Free State soldiers scoured the area for him. A sympathetic soldier found him, fed him, got him to shelter and finally escorted him by bicycle to Dublin - he was back on active service for the IRA. Later on that same month (October, 1942) as part of what the Free Staters called 'an ongoing investigation into major criminal activity', a detective Garda Mordaunt was one of a number of armed Free Staters who went to house number 14 on Holly Park in Donnycarney, Dublin, to arrest a group of wanted men. Just prior to the arrival of the Gardai the men escaped from the house and during the course of a search for them detective Garda Mordaunt became separated from his colleagues. It was a short time later that he was missed, and on a search being made for him, his body was discovered in the garden of a house in an adjoining street - he had been fatally wounded by a firearm and Harry White was one of those considered to be responsible.It was October 1946 before Harry White was finally captured on a lonely mountain farm on the Derry side of the Sperrins. Four days later, he was 'released' from Crumlin Road Jail, bundled into an RUC car and driven to a bridge on the Armagh-Monaghan road : a Garda car stopped on the other side and he was bundled across the border without the slightest pretence of judicial process. Six weeks later, at the 'Special Criminal Court' in Dublin, he was sentenced to death. Sean McBride was his defence counsel and, under cross-examination, a detective admitted he and his companions had fired on three men in a passageway near the house.Of thirty to forty bullets fired in the lane, only two were ever produced - neither of those was the bullet that killed State detective Mordaunt. Instead, a pathologist claimed that the hole in Mordaunt's skull was too small to have been made by a shot from any of the Gardai's .45 revolvers, despite the fact there was evidence some had weapons of smaller calibre. Evidence was produced that Garda fire had hit targets well away from the lane. The State Appeal Court reduced Harry White's conviction to 'manslaughter', on the basis that the Gardai had not identified themselves as such before opening fire...(...more on this event can be read here.)
ON THIS DATE (30TH SEPTEMBER) 41 YEARS AGO : SELECTIVE CONDEMNATION FROM ROME.
On the 30th September, 1979, Pope John Paul II, the spiritual head of the Catholic Church, became the first Pope to visit Ireland.
Those half-hoping that such an influential person might use the occasion to highlight the many injustices inflicted by Westminster on the Irish were to be disappointed : instead, we got the opposite - a pro-establishment, pro-Westminster/Free State and anti-Republican rant, during which, in an address to the Irish nation, the man said -"On my knees I beg you to turn away from the paths of violence and return to the ways of peace..."
No mention of the British military and political presence in Ireland ; no reference to the continuing claim of British jurisdiction over six Irish counties ; not a word about "the paths of violence" which lead to and from Number 10 Downing Street and that other British institution, Leinster House. Condemnation, only, for those attempting to resist foreign occupation. However , we salute those who wear a similar collar and are not afraid to speak the truth -"Sometimes, I'm jealous of the Palestinians. They have one enemy, the Israelis. The Israelis are stealing Palestinian land and the Palestinians are resisting it and so they fight..."
If that particular institution had more people like that active within it, it might not be in the troubled position it's in today.
ON THIS DATE (30TH SEPTEMBER) 103 YEARS AGO : LET ME CARRY YOUR CROSS FOR IRELAND....
The funeral procession in Dublin, 30th September 1917 (pictured) - 103 years ago on this date - for Thomas Ashe, an IRB leader who died on the 25th September that year, after being force fed by his British jailers - he was the first Irish republican to die as a result of a hunger-strike and, between that year and 1981, twenty-one other Irish republicans died on hunger-strike.
The jury at the inquest into his death found"..that the deceased, Thomas Ashe, according to the medical evidence of Professor McWeeney, Sir Arthur Chance, and Sir Thomas Myles, died from heart failure and congestion of the lungs on the 25th September, 1917 and that his death was caused by the punishment of taking away from the cell bed, bedding and boots and allowing him to be on the cold floor for 50 hours, and then subjecting him to forcible feeding in his weak condition after hunger-striking for five or six days.."
Michael Collins organised the funeral and transformed it into a national demonstration against British misrule in Ireland ; armed Irish Republican Brotherhood Volunteers in full uniform flanked the coffin, followed by 9,000 other IRB Volunteers and approximately 30,000 people lined the streets. A volley of shots was fired over Ashe's grave, following which Michael Collins stated -"Nothing more remains to be said. That volley which we have just heard is the only speech which it is proper to make over the grave of a dead Fenian ."
The London-based 'Daily Express' newspaper perhaps summed it up best when it stated, re the funeral of Thomas Ashe, that what had happened had made'100,000 Sinn Féiners out of 100,000 constitutional nationalists.' The level of support shown gave a boost to Irish republicans, and this was noted by the 'establishment' in Westminster - 'The Daily Mail' newspaper claimed that, a month earlier, Sinn Féin, despite its electoral successes, had been a waning force. That newspaper said -'..It had no practical programme, for the programme of going further than anyone else cannot be so described. It was not making headway. But Sinn Féin today is pretty nearly another name for the vast bulk of youth in Ireland...'
Thomas Patrick Ashe’s activities and interests included cultural and physical force nationalism as well as trade unionism and socialism. He also commanded the 5th Battalion of the Dublin Brigade who won the Battle of Ashbourne on the 29th of April 1916. Born in Lispole, County Kerry on the 12th of January 1885, he was the seventh of ten siblings. He qualified as a teacher in 1905 at De La Salle College, Waterford and after teaching briefly in Kinnard, County Kerry, in 1906 he became principal of Corduff National School in Lusk, County Dublin. Thomas Ashe was a fluent Irish speaker and a member of the Keating branch of the Gaelic League and was an accomplished sportsman and musician setting up the Roundtowers GAA Club as well as helping to establish the Lusk Pipe Band. He was also a talented singer and poet who was committed to Conradh na Gaeilge.
Politically, he was a member of the Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB) and established IRB circles in Dublin and Kerry and eventually became President of the Supreme Council in 1917. While he was actively and intellectually nationalist he was also inspired by contemporary socialism. Ashe rejected conservative Home Rule politicians and as part of that rejection he espoused the Labour policies of James Larkin. Writing in a letter to his brother Gregory he said"We are all here on Larkin's side. He'll beat hell out of the snobbish, mean, seoinín employers yet, and more power to him".
Ashe supported the unionisation of north Dublin farm labourers and his activities brought him into conflict with landowners such as Thomas Kettle in 1912. During the infamous lockout in 1913 he was a frequent visitor to Liberty Hall and become a friend of James Connolly. Long prior to its publication in 1916, Thomas Ashe was a practitioner of Connolly’s dictum that "the cause of labour is the cause of Ireland, the cause of Ireland is the cause of labour". In 1914 Ashe travelled to the United States where he raised a substantial sum of money for both the Gaelic League and the newly formed Irish Volunteers of which he was an early member.
Ashe founded the Volunteers in Lusk and established a firm foundation of practical and theoretical military training. He provided charismatic leadership first as Adjutant and then as O/C (Officer Commanding) the 5th Battalion of the Dublin Brigade. He inspired fierce loyalty and encouraged personal initiative in his junior officers and was therefore able to confidently delegate command to Charlie Weston, Joseph Lawless, Edward Rooney and others during the Rising. Most significantly, he took advantage of the arrival of Richard Mulcahy at Finglas Glen on the Tuesday of the Rising and appointed him second in command. The two men knew one another through the IRB and Gaelic League and Ashe recognized Mulcahy’s tactical abilities. As a result Ashe allowed himself to be persuaded by Mulcahy not to withdraw following the unexpected arrival of the motorised force at the Rath crossroads. At Ashbourne on the 28th of April Ashe also demonstrated great personal courage, first exposing himself to fire while calling on the RIC in the fortified barracks to surrender and then actively leading his Volunteers against the RIC during the Battle.
After the 1916 Rising he was court-martialed (on the 8th of May 1916) and was sentenced to death. The sentence was commuted to penal servitude for life. He was incarcerated in a variety of English prisons before being released in the June 1917 general amnesty. He immediately returned to Ireland and toured the country reorganising the IRB and inciting civil opposition to British rule. In August 1917, after a speech in Ballinalee, County Longford, he was arrested by the RIC and charged with "speeches calculated to cause disaffection". He was detained in the Curragh camp and later sentenced to a year's hard labour in Mountjoy Jail. There he became O/C of the Volunteer prisoners, and demanded prisoner-of-war status. As a result he was punished by the Governor. He went on hunger strike on the 20th September 1917 and five days later died as a result of force-feeding by the prison authorities. He was just 32 years old. The death of Thomas Ashe resulted in POW status being conceded to the Volunteer prisoners two days later.
Thomas Ashe's funeral was the first public funeral after the Rising and provided a focal point for public disaffection with British rule. His body lay in state in Dublin City Hall before being escorted by armed Volunteers to Glasnevin Cemetery. 30,000 people attended the burial where three volleys were fired over the grave and the Last Post was sounded. While imprisoned in Lewes Jail in 1916, Thomas Ashe had written his poem 'Let Me Carry Your Cross for Ireland, Lord' which later provided the inspiration for the Battle of Ashbourne memorial unveiled by Sean T. O'Kelly on Easter Sunday, 26th April 1959 at the Rath Cross in Ashbourne :
Let me carry your Cross for Ireland, Lord
The hour of her trial draws near,
And the pangs and the pains of the sacrifice
May be borne by comrades dear.
But, Lord, take me from the offering throng,
There are many far less prepared,
Through anxious and all as they are to die
That Ireland may be spared.
Let me carry your Cross for Ireland, Lord
My cares in this world are few,
and few are the tears will for me fall
When I go on my way to You.
Spare Oh! Spare to their loved ones dear
The brother and son and sire,
That the cause we love may never die
In the land of our Heart's desire!
Let me carry your Cross for Ireland, Lord!
Let me suffer the pain and shame
I bow my head to their rage and hate,
And I take on myself the blame.
Let them do with my body whate'er they will,
My spirit I offer to You,
That the faithful few who heard her call
May be spared to Roisin Dubh.
Let me carry your Cross for Ireland, Lord!
For Ireland weak with tears,
For the aged man of the clouded brow,
And the child of tender years;
For the empty homes of her golden plains,
For the hopes of her future, Too!
Let me carry your Cross for Ireland, Lord!
for the cause of Roisin Dubh.
(from here.)
'THE REPUBLICAN POSITION ; STATEMENT ISSUED BY ÓGLAIGH NA H-ÉIREANN AND SINN FÉIN...'
From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, November 1954.
"A Chara,
The following statement has been released for publication. Please publish it in full or not at all...
The creation and maintenance of political splinter parties is a complete negation of a sincere and genuine purpose aimed at unified efforts to free Ireland.
Except for those who desire leadership in the limelight of party politics, their existence is quite unnecessary. In so far as they purport to cater for those who profess allegiance to republican principals, there is no need for them. Within the scope of the Republican Movement ample provision is made for all who desire to serve the cause dedicated to the achievement of Ireland's full freedom and the welfare of all her people.
There maintenance serves only to confuse and distract the nationally-minded among our people, to retard progress towards unified action and to serve, substantially and directly, the purpose and interests of those who deny Ireland's just claim to freedom, and who oppose her liberation from foreign agression. To accord them recognition would not promote or advance the effort towards unified action since their very existence is the acme of disruptive tactics..."(MORE LATER.)
Thanks for reading - Sharon and the '1169' team. Stay stayin' safe, and 'playing' safe!
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ON THIS DATE (7TH OCTOBER) 98 YEARS AGO : BODIES OF THREE MURDERED NFÉ YOUTHS FOUND IN DUBLIN.Na Fianna Éireann members(pictured), three of whose Dublin members, all under 18 years of age, were executed by Free State forces in 1922.On the evening of Friday October 6th 1922, a young Dublin lady, Jennie O'Toole - a member of Cumann na mBan - was pasting republican leaflets on lamp posts on the Clonliffe Road in Drumcondra, Dublin and, when she got near the Distillery Road junction, she was shouted at repeatedly and verbally abused by a local man when he saw the nature of the material involved. That loudmouth was, according to information distributed in Irish republican circles at the time, Free State Army Captain Pat Moynihan, who lived on that same road. Moynihan, an Irish republican 'poacher-turned-gamekeeper', could very well have been watching that street as two of his nieces were expected home on that route from a date to a theatre which they had been on with two anti-republican State operatives, Nicholas Tobin and Charlie Dalton, who both worked for the Free State Army Intelligence Section at Wellington Barracks.When Charlie Dalton was the same age as one of the NFÉ youths mentioned in this piece - Joseph Rogers (16) - he was recruited by Michael Collins and joined the squad that Collins was then assembling : this IRA unit was permanently housed in Abbey St, Dublin, in a 'front' premises in which a 'legitimate' business operated from - 'George Moreland, Cabinet Maker'- and squad members were paid £4 10s a week to carry out assassinations on a full-time basis. Shortly after his 17th birthday, as a member of that Squad, Charlie Dalton took part in the executions of British Army Major C M Dowling and British Army Captain Leonard Price in their bedrooms in Baggot Street.The distressed young lady, Jennie(pictured), encountered three young lads, members of Na Fianna Éireann, who offered to take over the work : Edwin Hughes (17), who lived at 107 Clonliffe Road, Drumcomdra, Brendan Holohan (17), 49 St.Patrick’s Road, Drumcondra and Joseph Rogers (16), 2 Upper St.Patrick’s Road, Drumcondra. It appears to be the case that Free State Captain Moynihan met Nick Tobin and Charlie Dalton and told them that republicans were in the area, pasting leaflets, and that Tobin and Dalton contacted a near-by Free State Army barracks for a search party and arranged to meet them in the area. Dalton could very well have known who he was hunting, as young Brendan Holohan and Joseph Rogers were near-neighbours of his and the nature of his job would have dictated that he familarise himself with local Republican activists.The three young boys were still pasting leaflets on poles on that route which took them in the vicinity of Free State Captain Pat Moynihan's house when, shortly after 10.30pm on that Friday night, the 6th of October 1922, a Free State Army truck screeched to a halt beside them and they were violently thrown in to the back of it and taken to Wellington Barracks, where they were interrogated and released. Their Free State captors included Charlie Dalton and Nick Tobin. The next day - Saturday 7th October 1922, 98 years ago on this date - the three young lads were lifted again by the Free Staters and soon found themselves standing in waste ground just off the Naas Road in an area known then as 'The Quarries', in Clondalkin, Dublin(near to the Naas Road/Monastery Road junction, not far from what is now the 'Red Cow Roundabout') : each of them was riddled with bullets and had a coup de grâce delivered to 'finish the job' - a shot to the head. The youngest of the three lads, 16-years-old Joseph Rogers, was the son of well know Dublin Bookmaker Mr. Thomas Rodgers and had served two years of his apprenticeship as a mechanical engineer - his body was identified by his older brother, Michael. The remains of Edwin Hughes (17) was identified by his older brother, Gerald, and 17-year-old Brendan Holohan's body was identified by his father Michael. Their bodies were taken to Tallaght Aerodrome on the Belgard Road in Tallaght, Dublin, and the inquest into their deaths was later held in Clondalkin Library.At the inquest, Dr Frederick Ryan, who performed the post mortem, described the wounds that killed them ;"Joseph Rogers' overcoat was saturated with blood. He had 16 wounds altogether. There was an entrance wound in the back of the skull, about an inch and a half from the ear. There was no exit wound. It was possible for a man to inflict this wound while both were standing. There was no singeing. In the left upper jaw there was an entrance wound, but no corresponding exit wound. There were superficial wounds on the left side of the body corresponding to the nipple, on the left side of the abdomen, a punctured wound on the left side of the nose, an entrance and exit wound at the base of the left index finger, superficial wounds on the left arm, an entrance and exit wound in the middle of the left thigh, a large contused wound on the left shin bone, and an incised wound on the left knee, probably caused after death. Regarding Brendan Holohan there was a bullet hole through the peak of his cap, but no mark on his head. The coat was torn on the right elbow, and there was a wound through the flesh of the arm, corresponding with the perforation in the sleeve. There were two entrance wounds, four inches from each other, in the right chest...(but no exit wounds). They were clean cut, such as might be made by an instrument of the same diameter as a pencil. The clothing was perforated at the place corresponding with these wounds. There was a wound over the right shoulder blade, which was an old one. There was an entrance wound in the lower portion of the abdomen, and a bullet lodged in the surface over the left hip bone and the shin. There was a wound in the back of the skull in the occipital protuberance, which took a downward direction into the neck and severed the spinal cord. This was sufficient to cause death immediately. If a man was standing on top of a ditch he could have been shot in the head, otherwise he must have been lying down."In the case of Edwin Hughes (17), he said"The first wound, on the right-hand side corresponding to the second rib, took a horizontal direction and pierced the great vessels of the heart. There was no exit wound to it. There was no singeing. Another bullet pierced the overcoat on the right side, but there was no mark on the inner coat or vest. There were wounds in the abdomen and on the left thigh. On the right knee and right arm there were superficial wounds, such as might be caused by grazing bullets. The clothes were cut as if by barbed wire. The abdomen wound might possibly be caused by a prod of some instrument, but that was not probable."But this crime did not go unnoticed - Dermot MacGiolla Phadraig, a Na Fianna Éireann training officer, was passing by the area at the time on Saturday 7th October 1922 and witnessed the executions and a Charles Byrne, an undercover man for the IRA in Oriel House, was also passing by and actually spoke to one of the Free State gunmen, Charlie Dalton(pictured) and, in November 1922, an inquest was held at which the prosecution demanded that a verdict of murder be brought against Charlie Dalton but, apparently, the jury were 'reminded' by the State that they were living in 'exceptional times' and, following that and possibly other 'reminders', the jury declined to entertain the prosecution.In an effort to suggest that 'justice will be done', Dalton was then 'arrested' by his colleagues in the CID but was never charged with an offence related to the 'Quarrie Killings'. Incidentally, Nick Tobin, one of the Free State 'Quarrie Gunmen', was in charge of a Free State raiding party later on that same month (October 1922) when they went to kill more republicans who, they were told, were operating an IRA bomb-making factory from house number 8 in Gardiner Place, in Dublin city centre: Nick never made it back to his Free State base that day, having been shot dead by 'accident' by his own colleagues.The Na Fianna Éireann organisation is still active to this day and, as in 1922, continues to support the republican position : Na Fianna Éireann (literally 'Warriors of Ireland') has had several subtitles in its history ; Irish National Youth Movement, Irish Republican Youth Movement, Irish Republican Scouts etc but its central ethos has never changed. It has always had the object of educating the youth of Ireland in national ideas and re-establishing the independence of the nation.The goal of the organisation on its foundation in 1909 was"...to re-establish the independence of Ireland by means of training the youth of Ireland to fight Ireland’s fight when they are older and the day comes...". Members are trained in scouting skills and parade drill and receive education regarding republicanism and Irish history and heritage. In short, the NFÉ organisation instills a sense of pride, worth and value into those who join - worthy character traits which they carry with them into adulthood, and they will continue to do so, regardless of how many 'Charlie Dalton'-types try to 'persuade' them otherwise.(Incidentally, Jennie O'Toole later accepted the 1921 'Treaty of Surrender' and accepted various political positions in the Free State administration.)'ULSTER LETTER...'From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, June, 1955.Remember, men(sic) of Ulster, that it was in your Province that Irish republicanism was born and that protestant and catholic imperialists joined forces to crush the republicans in 1798. In that war the United Irishmen represented the first unification of Irishmen(sic) of different religious denominations and their protestant leader, Wolfe Tone, in his campaign to substitute the common name of Irishman for protestant, catholic and dissenter set the pattern of republican policy for posterity.Thus it is to this day. Do you agree with that policy?(END of 'Ulster Letter' ; Next - 'In Jail For Ireland', from the same source.)ON THIS DATE (7TH OCTOBER) 42 YEARS AGO : 'THE MONSTER RETREATS...'"...don't let them beat you. I need to hear those voices. They anger the monster. It retreats. The voices scare the devils. Sometimes I really long to hear those voices. I know if they shout louder they will scare the monster away and my suffering will be ended. I remember, and I shall never forget, how this monster took the lives of Tom Ashe, Terence MacSwiney, Michael Gaughan, Frank Stagg and Hugh Coney, and I wonder each night what the monster and his black devils will do to me tomorrow. They always have something new. Will I overcome it ? I must. Yes, I must..."On this date - 7th October, in 1978 - an article by Bobby Sands entitled 'I Fought a Monster Today' was first published :"I fought a monster today and once more I defeated the monster's army. Although I did not escape, I survived to fight another day. It was hard. Harder today than ever before, and it gets worse every day. You see I am trapped and all I can do is resist. I know some day I will defeat this monster, but I weary at times. I think and feel that it may kill me first.
The monster is shrewd. It plays with me; it humiliates me, and tortures me. I'm like a mouse in comparison to this giant, but when I repel the torture it inflicts upon me I feel ten feet tall for I know I am right. I know that I am what I am, no matter what may be inflicted upon me, and it will never change that fact. When I resist it doesn’t understand. You see it doesn’t even try to comprehend why I resist. Why don’t you give in to me, it says. Give in, give in to us, the monsters army jibes. My body wants to say yes, yes, do what you want with me, I am beaten, you have beaten me, but my spirit prevails.
My spirit says no, no, you cannot do what you want with me. I am not beaten, you cannot do what you want with me. I refuse to be beaten. This angers the monster. It goes mad, it brutalises me to the point of death, but it does not kill me. I often wonder why not, but each time I face it, death materialised before me. The monster keeps me naked, it feeds me, but it didn’t feed me today, because it had tried so hard to defeat me and failed, this angered it once more. You see I know why it won’t kill me. It wants me to bow before it, to admit defeat. If you don’t do as I say, I will never release you. I refuse.
My body is broken and cold. I'm lonely and I need comfort. From somewhere afar I hear those familiar voices which keep me going: we are with you, son. We are with you. Don’t let them beat you. I need to hear those voices. They anger the monster. It retreats. The voices scare the devils. Sometimes I really long to hear those voices. I know if they shout louder they will scare the monster away and my suffering will be ended. I remember, and I shall never forget, how this monster took the lives of Tom Ashe, Terence MacSwiney, Michael Gaughan, Frank Stagg, and Hugh Coney, and I wonder each night what the monster and his black devils will do to me tomorrow.
They always have something new. Will I overcome it? I must. Yes, I must. Tomorrow will be my seven hundred and fortieth day of torture - an eternity. Yes, tomorrow I’ll rise in the H-Blocks of Long Kesh. Yes, tomorrow I’ll fight the monster and his devils again!"The sectarian realities of ghetto life materialised early in Bobby's life when at the age of ten his family were forced to move home owing to loyalist intimidation even as early as 1962. Bobby recalled his mother speaking of the troubled times which occurred during her childhood ;"Although I never really understood what internment was or who the 'Specials' were, I grew to regard them as symbols of evil". Of this time Bobby himself later wrote: "I was only a working-class boy from a Nationalist ghetto, but it is repression that creates the revolutionary spirit of freedom. I shall not settle until I achieve liberation of my country, until Ireland becomes a sovereign, independent socialist republic..."(..from here.)The fight for the same Cause that Bobby Sands died for in 1981 is on-going today, as six Irish counties remain under the jurisdictional control of Westminster, which enforces that control with political and military occupation.'IS IT TIME TO ASK QUESTIONS OF THE LEGAL PROFESSION...?'By John Drennan.From 'The Magill Annual', 2002.The Lindsay Tribunal, for instance, has been so unimpressive that the Irish haemophiliacs are on the point of declaring no confidence in whatever findings it may issue. Given that the tribunal is not investigating the circumstances of 95 per cent of the infections, it is not difficult to understand why they are taking such a negative position. Meanwhile, the Flood Tribunal is set to last for a decade and cost £100m.Most are agreed that prosecutions or jail sentences for corruption are unlikely and, with the possible exception of Michael Lowry, this is also likely to be the case with the Moriarty Tribunal. Even then, however, Lowry is likely to be prosecuted under the Revenue Acts rather than as a direct result of any tribunal report. Against a backdrop such as this, the relationship of utter thralldom between the Dail (sic -Leinster House) and the law library was epitomised by the call by Fine Gael, Labour and the Greens for a tribunal of inquiry into the McBrearty affair. Perhaps the same people should read up on the transcripts of the 'Kerry Babies Inquiry'. These calls represent another example of how the principle of the separation of powers, in which a healthy democracy gives equal rights to the parliament, the government and the courts, has been abrogated to the point where attorney-generals are now more powerful than ministers. The legal profession directs, and ministers duly sue Brigid McCole or Kathryn Sinnott and ignore the plight of HIV-positive haemophiliacs...(MORE LATER.)ON THIS DATE (7TH OCTOBER) 177 YEARS AGO - THE 'DOC' BACKS DOWN.The 'Monster Meetings' (pictured) held by Daniel O'Connell were a great success, despite all the 'misfortunes' (as the British would have it) that the Irish people were suffering in their daily lives ; the desire, the demand, for a British withdrawal had not gone away. But, after the Tara 'Monster Meeting'(held on the 15th August 1843) the British decided such meetings were not to the benefit of the 'Union' and were not to be allowed. A 'Monster Meeting' planned for Clontarf, in Dublin, which was to take place on Sunday, 8th October, 1843, was, on Saturday 7th October - 177 years ago on this date - banned by the British authorities ; the day before the event was due to take place.Daniel O'Connell and others in the leadership of 'The Loyal National Repeal Association' quickly lodged a complaint. They protested at the banning and were arrested by the British and sentenced to a year in prison for 'conspiracy', but this judgement was then reversed in the 'British House of Lords'. When, on that Saturday, the 7th of October 1843, O'Connell noticed that posters were being put up in Dublin by the British 'authorities' stating that the following days meeting had been banned(those posters were issued from Dublin Castle and were written by the 'Prime Minister of Britain and Ireland', Sir Robert Peel, who called the proposed meeting [for the restoration of the Irish Parliament, abolished in 1801] "an attempt to overthrow the constitution of the British Empire as by law established") and O'Connell backed down ; in this scribblers opinion he should have 'stuck to his guns' and ignored the British 'writ' - he should have went ahead with the Clontarf 'Monster Meeting' thereby 'putting it up' to the British but 'moral force only' won the day ; O'Connell issued his own poster that same day (ie Saturday 7th October 1843) as well as spreading the word through the 'grapevine' that the meeting was cancelled. That poster makes for interesting reading - NOTICEWHEREAS there has appeared, under the signatures of E.B. SUGDEN, C DONOUGHMORE, ELIOT F BLACKBURN, E. BLAKENEY, FRED SHAW, T.B.C. SMITH, a paper being, or purporting to be, a PROCLAMATION, drawn up in very loose and inaccurate terms, and manifestly misrepresenting known facts ; the objects of which appear to be, to prevent the PUBLIC MEETING, intended to be held TO-MORROW, the 8th instant, at CLONTARF, TO PETITION PARLIAMENT for the REPEAL of the baleful and destructive measure of the LEGISLATIVE UNION.AND WHEREAS, such Proclamation has not appeared until LATE IN THE AFTERNOON OF THIS SATURDAY, THE 7th, so that it is utterly impossible that the knowledge of its existence could be communicated in the usual official channels, or by the post, in time to have its contents known to the persons intending to meet at CLONTARF, for the purpose of petitioning , as aforesaid, whereby ill-disposed persons may have an opportunity, under cover of said proclamation, to provoke breaches of the peace, or to commit violence on persons intending to proceed peaceably and legally to the said meeting. WE, therefore, the COMMITTEE of the LOYAL NATIONAL REPEAL ASSOCIATION, do most earnestly request and entreat, that all well-disposed persons will, IMMEDIATELY on receiving this intimation, repair to their own dwellings, and not place themselves in peril of any collision, or of receiving any ill-treatment whatsoever. And we do further inform all such persons, that without yielding in any thing to the unfounded allegations in said alleged proclamation, we deem it prudent and wise, and above all things humane, to declare that said MEETING IS ABANDONED, AND IS NOT TO BE HELD.SIGNED BY ORDER,
DANIEL O'CONNELL,
CHAIRMAN OF THE COMMITTEE. T. M. RAY, Secretary.
SATURDAY, 7th OCTOBER, 1843. 3 O 'CLOCK P.M.
RESOLVED - That the above cautionary notice be immediately transmitted by express to the Very Reverend and Reverend Gentlemen who signed the requisition for the CLONTARF MEETING, and to all adjacent districts, SO AS TO PREVENT the influx of persons coming to the intended meeting. GOD SAVE THE QUEEN.![]()
*They accept and recognise as legitimate* one of the partition institutions of 'government in Ireland' and towards the Stormont regime they adopt attitudes that vary according to individual political outlook('1169' comment - * that was written in 1954 ; today, in 2020, one such splinter/faction recognises, operates in and are paid by both of the partition institutions in Ireland, yet still insist that they are a 'republican organisation' following the republican Cause!).
They deny that each institution serves, equally well, the purpose of those who designed partition, and they do not accept the simple truth that both institutions must be abolished before the government of the Irish Republic can be re-enthroned with full governmental control over all Ireland. Without compromising national principles, without reneging the ideals and the cause for which past generations of Irishmen (sic) have made sacrifices, members of the Republican Movement cannot align themselves with such leadership. Even if there exists a common purpose to get rid of England - and it is very open to doubt that such purpose exists in the minds of political leaders - such common purpose is not all-sufficing, nor does it justify republicans in making common cause to a limited and circumscribed extent with party politicians.."(MORE LATER.)
ON THIS DAY NEXT WEEK (WEDNESDAY 14TH OCTOBER 2020)...
..we won't be here!
The last Cabhair monthly raffle was held in April 2020 - and then the Covid issue reared its ugly head. Well, its head and the rest of it is still as ugly as ever but the Cabhair Committee have decided, regardless (and rightly so, in our opinion!), to hold the usual 650-ticket fund-raiser this coming Sunday, 11th October, 2020, albeit in a different venue and format. The 'party atmosphere' and the guaranteed craic that always accompanies this gig will be absent on the 11th, due to the changed circumstances ; it will be more of a 'business type' operation ; eight winning tickets will be picked from the raffle drum, no few drinks, dancing, meal, story-telling, few more drinks (!) etc will be had before or after the raffle, but that's as it has to be, for now, anyway.
And, because we'll be part of the skeleton crew that will be assisting before and after the gig, we won't be in a position to put a blog post together for Wednesday 14th October, 2020 ; but we'll be back on Wednesday, 21st October with, among other items, an article about a meeting that was held in a hotel in the West of Ireland (not this one!) which caused some agitation at the time...!
CABHAIR CHRISTMAS SWIM, 2020.
The 44th successive Cabhair Christmas Swim(1976-2020) will, as usual, be held on Christmas Day at 12 Noon at the 3rd Lock of the Grand Canal, in Dublin(opposite the Kelly's/Blackhorse Inn building in Inchicore, Dublin 8).
The organisers are of course aware of the Covid issue and the current changed circumstances which accompany that issue and have allowed for two possible scenarios re this event : it either goes ahead in full 'party'-type mode ie music, dancing, 'soup' for the adults(!), crowds etc etc, presuming that, by the 25th December 2020, Covid will have been dealth with or it takes place in a restrained manner to take account of Covid-enforced social distancing and other common-sense guidelines ie just the 'bare bones' - the swimmers themselves, one family member with each swimmer, a much-reduced Cabhair Crew on the ground and the public being asked to observe from a safe distance, with no foodstuffs, no 'lemonade or soup' (!), no music etc on site.
Whatis certain, however, is that, for the 44th successive year, the Swim will be going ahead!
Thanks for reading - Sharon and the '1169' team. Hope your safer than you were last week (or just as safe), and that you are still 'playing' safe : see you back here on the 21st October next!
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October 21, 2020, 1:32 am
ON THIS DATE (21ST OCTOBER) 141 YEARS AGO : 'FAIR RENT, FIXITY OF TENURE, FREEDOM OF SALE'.On the 21st October 1879- 141 years ago on this date- a meeting of concerned individuals was held in the Imperial Hotel in Castlebar, County Mayo, to discuss issues in relation to 'landlordism' and the manner in which that subject impacted on those who worked on small land holdings on which they paid 'rent', an issue which other groups, such as tenants' rights organisations and groups who, confined by a small membership, agitated on land issues in their own locality, had voiced concern about.Those present agreed to announce themselves as the 'Irish National Land League' (which, at its peak, had 200,000 active members) and Charles Stewart Parnell(who, at 33 years of age, had been an elected member of parliament for the previous four years) was elected president of the new group, with Andrew Kettle, Michael Davitt, and Thomas Brennan being appointed as honorary secretaries.The leadership had 'form' in that each had made a name for themselves as campaigners on social issues of the day and were, as such, 'known' to the British authorities ; for instance, Michael Davitt, who was born into poverty in Straide, Mayo, on the 25th of March, 1846 - at the time of the attempted genocide - was the second of five children, and was only four years of age when his family were evicted from their home over rent owed and his father, Martin, was left with no choice but to travel to England to look for a job. Martin's wife, Sabina, and their five children, were given temporary accommodation by the local priest in Straide. The family were eventually reunited, in England, where young Michael attended school for a few years. His family were struggling, financially, so he obtained work, aged 9, as a labourer(he told his boss he was 13 years old and got the job - working from 6am to 6pm, with a ninty-minute break and a wage of 2s.6d a week) but within weeks he had secured a 'better' job, operating a spinning machine but, at only 11 years of age, his right arm got entangled in the machinery and had to be amputated.![]()
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Seán Stephenson, London (Wormwood Scrubbs), 8 years penal servitude.
Manus Canning, Derry (Wormwood Scrubs), 8 years penal servitude.
Joseph Campbell, Newry (Crumlin Road), 5 years penal servitude.
Leo McCormack, Dublin (Crumlin Road), 4 years penal servitude.
JP McCallum, Liverpool (Stafford), 6 years penal servitude.
Kevin O' Rourke, Banbridge (Crumlin Road), 5 years penal servitude.
Eamon Boyce, Dublin (Crumlin Road), 12 years penal servitude.
Philip Clarke, Dublin (Crumlin Road), 10 years penal servitude.
Paddy Kearney, Dublin (Crumlin Road), 10 years penal servitude.
Tom Mitchell, Dublin (Crumlin Road), 10 years penal servitude.
John McCabe, Dublin (Crumlin Road), 10 years penal servitude.
Seán O'Callaghan, Cork (Crumlin Road), 10 years penal servitude.
Seán Hegarty, Cork (Crumlin Road), 10 years penal servitude.
Liam Mulcahy, Cork (Crumlin Road), 10 years penal servitude.
Hugh Brady, Lurgan (Crumlin Road), 3 years penal servitude.(END of 'In Jail For Ireland' ; Next - 'British Occupation Challenged', from the same source.)ON THIS DATE (21ST OCTOBER) 217 YEARS AGO : HANGED AND BEHEADED BY THE BRITISH.'By Downpatrick goal I was bound to fare
on a day I'll remember, feth;
for when I came to the prison square
the people were waitin' in hundreds there
an' you wouldn't hear stir nor breath!
For the sodgers were standing, grim an' tall,
round a scaffold built there foment the wall,
an' a man stepped out for death!' (from here.)Thomas Paliser Russell(pictured) was born in Cork, to an Anglican family (his father was a British Army Officer), on the 21st of November, 1767 and, at just 16 years of age, he joined the British Army and fought under the Butchers Apron in India for about five years, but resigned because of'...the disgust and indignation which filled him on witnessing the extortions, the cruelties, the usurpations and brutalities which were carried out and sanctioned by the government under which he served..' and he returned to Ireland. In the late 1780's he schooled himself in science, philosophy and politics.In 1791, at 24 years of age, Thomas Russell and a group of like-minded individuals - Protestants, Anglicans and Presbyterians - held a public meeting in Belfast, out of which was formed 'The Belfast Society of United Irishmen' (the organisation became a secret society three years later), and one of his colleagues, Sam McTier, was elected as 'President of the Society'. Also present were Theobald Wolfe Tone (who gave Robert Simms his nickname, 'Tanner'), William Sinclair, Henry Joy McCracken, Samuel Neilson, Henry Haslett, Gilbert McIlveen, William Simms (Robert's brother), Thomas McCabe, Thomas Pearce and Samuel McTier, among others.He and his comrades set about organising a militant resistance to the English political and military presence in Ireland and his actions brought him to the attention of Westminster and, in 1796, at 29 years of age, he was 'arrested' and imprisoned in Dublin before being transported to Fort George, near Inverness, in Scotland, where he was held until 1802(forcing him to miss the 1798 Rising).He took a leadership role in the 1803 Rising and was again imprisoned by the English for same, this time in Downpatrick Jail ; he was 'tried for High Treason', found 'guilty', hanged and then beheaded at the gate of that prison on the 21st October, 1803 - 217 years ago on this date. He was 36 years of age. His last words were"I forgive my persecutors. I die in peace with all mankind, and I hope for mercy through the merits of my Redeemer Jesus Christ."His body lies in Downpatrick Churchyard.'Into our townlan' on a night of snow,rode a man from God knows where...''IS IT TIME TO ASK QUESTIONS OF THE LEGAL PROFESSION...?'By John Drennan.From 'The Magill Annual', 2002.After all, it is much easier to follow legal advice than to make tough decisions oneself, especially when those decisions pose a difficult choice between social morality and tempting political expediency.If your lawyer makes the nasty choice for you, it's always possible to point the finger later on. This is why politicians and their legal advisors have such a cosy and mutually beneficial relationship. Meanwhile, within the media, the tentacles of the law library have stretched to the point where journalists are now experiencing the curious phenomenon of having incontrovertible facts excised from articles on the grounds that these are 'libellous'. In the ideal discourse of legal ethics, these laws are needed to protect the widows mute and the defenceless chimney sweep but, unfortunately, here in the real world, Ireland's smothering libel laws attract a great deal more Beverley Cooper-Flynns to the Four Courts than they do chagrined chimney sweeps.Overwhelmingly male? Devotees of an impenetrable scholastic language which is used to exclude the outside world? The preserve of one class? Defenders of the powerful and the wealthy against the voiceless masses? Censors of a free press? Feared by politicians and worryingly unaccountable? These descriptions were all, at one point in modern Irish history, levelled at another large Irish institution whose day has now passed but, in our inimitable way in this State, we are happy to live unquestioningly under the template set up by the new secular 'church' of the legal profession...(MORE LATER.)'THE REPUBLICAN POSITION ; STATEMENT ISSUED BY ÓGLAIGH NA H-ÉIREANN AND SINN FÉIN...'From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, November 1954."A Chara,The following statement has been released for publication. Please publish it in full or not at all...It is of equal importance that there shall be common agreement on the means to be used, the strategy to be employed and the opportunities to be availed of to drive the British out. If political leaders came to agreement on these fundamentals there would be a headlong rush of them back into the ranks of the Republican Movement.To select any one of the political splinter parties and claim it has some greater merit or that the measure of its national content is greater than some or all of the others is mere pretence. It does not require a very close analysis to reveal the fact that, in matters affecting the artificial division of the national territory or, indeed, on questions affecting the welfare of the nation, there is little if any difference between the parties. In some cases, such as the 'Anti-Partition League' and the 'Anti-Partition Association' where, ostensibly at least, an effort was made to achieve unity with or amongst political leaders, the effort was fore-doomed to failure simply because of the political manoeuvering for kudos and control by party adherents within these organisations. It must be realised, therefore, that the Republican Movement cannot be aligned with leaders who designedly ascend the political rostrum to gratify personal ambitions or to vent personal spleens in preference to rendering service in the field of national endeavour..."(MORE LATER.)Thanks for reading - Sharon and the '1169' team. Hope you are as 'safe' as you (hopefully!) have been and that you can make sense of the confusing 'advice/rules and regulations' being dumped on State citizens by the 'experts' in, and associated with, Leinster House. 'Cause their left hand doesn't appear to know what their right hand is doing.
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October 28, 2020, 12:34 pm
ON THIS DATE (28TH OCTOBER) 44 YEARS AGO : IRISH REPUBLICAN LEADER ASSASSINATED BY PRO-BRITISH DEATH SQUAD."We must take no steps backward, our steps must be onward, for if we don't, the martyrs that died for you, for me, for this country, will haunt us forever" - Máire Drumm, (pictured).On the 28th October 1976 - 44 years ago on this date - the then Sinn Féin Vice President, Máire Drumm, was shot dead in her hospital bed by a pro-British loyalist death squad. She was born in the townland of Killeen, South Armagh, on the 22nd October 1919 to a staunchly republican family(the McAteer's) and her mother had been active in the Tan War and the Civil War.In 1940, Máire joined Sinn Féin in Dublin but, in 1942, she moved to Belfast, which became her adopted city, and she continued her republican activities. Every weekend, she would carry food parcels to the republican prisoners in Crumlin Road Jail and it was here that she met Jimmy Drumm, who she married in 1946. When the IRA renewed the armed struggle in the late 1950s, Jimmy was again interned without trial from 1957 to 1961, and Máire became more actively involved in the civil rights movements of the 1960s. She worked tirelessly to rehouse the thousands of nationalists forced from their homes by unionist/loyalist pogroms.![]()
In 1972, she became Vice President of the then Sinn Féin organisation and, due to her dedication and the dedication of her family to the republican struggle, they were continuously harassed by the RUC, British Army and by loyalist paramilitaries.
The British Army even constructed an observation post facing their home in Andersonstown and, at one point, her husband and son were interned at the same time. Her husband, Jimmy, became known as the most jailed republican in the Six Counties and Máire herself was also jailed twice for 'seditious' speeches, once along with her daughter.
In 1976, at only 57 years of age, her eyesight began to fail and she was admitted for a cataract operation to the Mater Hospital, Belfast. On the 28th October 1976, as Máire lay in her hospital bed, loyalist killers wearing doctors white coats walked into her room and shot her dead. Máire Drumm, freedom fighter and voice of the people, was buried in Milltown Cemetery.
'BRITISH OCCUPATION CHALLENGED'.
From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, June, 1955.
In spite of attempts by the unionists, the 'nationalists' and the so-called 'national press' to misrepresent the policy of Sinn Féin, the republicans and the separatists in the north rallied to the cause of Irish freedom and unity and elected two representatives to the republican parliament of the 32 Counties. The results are a striking vindication of Pearse's dictum that "the great, silent suffering mass of the Irish people are always ready to assert their right to freedom. The people have never failed Ireland. Always it has been the leaders who have failed the people."
On nomination day, the unionists tried to stampede the electors by declaring that votes cast for Mitchell and Clarke would be thrown away - that they would be completely discounted and the unionist candidate elected, but the republican electors were not deceived nor intimidated by the unionist tactics. Now that the smoke and fire of battle has cleared away, the unionists are regretting their rash threat and cannot decide what to do.
The legal position was made quite clear by the lobby correspondent of the London 'Observer' newspaper on Sunday 29th May, 1955, three days after the election :"Several Sinn Féin candidates were elected in 1918 although they were in prison, but no attempt was made to unseat them, and there has been no change in the law since then..."
(MORE LATER.)
ON THIS DATE (28TH OCTOBER) 169 YEARS AGO : 'REBEL' MP AND BARRISTER (AND PLEDGE-BREAKER) EXPOSED.
It's practically impossible to write about William Keogh (pictured) without mentioning his pledge-breaking colleague and fellow charlatan, John Sadleir. Both men were born into difficult times, but so were many others and not all of them resorted to being 'snake oil' sales people, the path chosen by Keogh and Sadleir.
Their 19th century Ireland was one in which approximately six-and-a-half million people 'lived' in, which was 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, population of approximately three-and-a-quarter million ; 1815 - population 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 British described us), this 'good fortune' was noticed by the British 'landlords' and 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.
However, the Irish spirit was strong, and 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.
At the time that John Sadleir (pictured) 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. 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' etc - in short, the assumption of titles by Roman catholic priests was outlawed by Westminster : the British wanted to curb the activities and influence of the catholic church, but this 'law' was not always 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) and 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 in Dublin in August 1850, after a four-day conference which was attended by a right mix of people - magistrates, 'landlords', tenants themselves, priests(of both Catholic and Presbyterian persuasion) and newspaper journalists and editors. In his own constituency, where he was entertained to a public banquet on the 28th October, 1851 - 169 years ago on this date - William Keogh declared, in the presence of Archbishop McHale :"I will not support any party which does not make it the first ingredient of their political existence to repeal the Ecclesiastical Titles Act..." and again, in Cork, on the 8th March, 1852, he declared :"So help me God, no matter who the Minister may be, no matter who the party in power may be, I will support neither that minister nor that party unless he comes into power prepared to carry the measures which universal popular Ireland demands..."As the British themselves are fond of saying -'Fine words butter no parsnips'.
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 grouping came together as 'The Independent Irish Party', which 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, among other things, the 'Ecclesiastical Titles Bill' was done away with ; however, the British had seen developments like this elsewhere in their 'empire' and were preparing to manoeuvre things in their own favour.
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.
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'Lord' 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, despite already having their parsnips well buttered, both men took the offer, and the Catholic Church, subservient as ever to the British, when push came to shove, 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 so that, in October 1855, he emigrated to Australia in despair.
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Despite success at the polls, and having the 'ear' of the political bosses and the 'respect' of the British '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....
'IS IT TIME TO ASK QUESTIONS OF THE LEGAL PROFESSION...?'
By John Drennan.
From 'The Magill Annual', 2002.
The law exists to protect us but, as with the moral law of the Church, those who devote their lives to it should be under its closest scrutiny, precisely because they are more empowered by it than anyone else in our society.
It is time that journalism and politics started asking difficult questions of the legal profession. For starters, we can look into the scandal of the family courts, and then go on to ask who benefits the most from our relatively new-found public tribunal culture. Only then will we even begin to redress the balance of power between the people and the courts.
(END of 'Is It Time To Ask Questions Of The Legal Profession?' ; NEXT - 'In The Name Of The Law', from the same source.)
'THE REPUBLICAN POSITION ; STATEMENT ISSUED BY ÓGLAIGH NA H-ÉIREANN AND SINN FÉIN...'
From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, November 1954.
"A Chara,
The following statement has been released for publication. Please publish it in full or not at all...
Those who think in terms of a compromise with the leadership of Fianna Uladh must also realise that when they seek to get an alignment with the latest arrival of the splinter parties they are seeking that which is tantamount to an alignment with either Clann na Poblachta or Fianna Fail, both of which, for their own separate ends, foster and promote the growth of Fianna Uladh, whose advent can only distract our people further.
Its continued existence can but serve to create further dissensions and its leaders appear to do all in their power to retard and obstruct the advance of the Republican Movement.
Issued by the Army Council, Óglaigh na hÉireann, and the Standing Committee, Sinn Féin."
(END of 'The Republican Position ; Statement Issued By Óglaigh na hÉireann and Sinn Féin'. NEXT - 'Return To Sinn Féin', from the same source.)
Thanks for reading - Sharon and the '1169' team. Are you still with us, out there? Hard to know just where we are, in this State, in relation to the health and safety of the citizens of this State, as 'regulated' by Leinster House, that is : we think, as it's a Wednesday, we're somewhere between level 3.5 and level 5 of the 'lockdown'. Not sure. And it could change tomorrow. Or maybe not. Sure we'll see how it goes...
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November 4, 2020, 11:55 am
ON THIS DATE (4TH NOVEMBER) 19 YEARS AGO : BRITISH PARAMILITARIES CHANGE NAME AND UNIFORM.On the 10th October, 1969, 'The Hunt Report' recommended that the RUC (which had been formed on the 5th April 1922) should be changed into an unarmed force, that the 'B Specials' (the 'Ulster Special Constabulary') should be disbanded and a new reserve force be established, to be known as the 'Ulster Defence Regiment'. The RUC name was given to the then-existing RIC force on the 1st June 1922 in an attempted sleight-of-hand manoeuvre to present an existing pro-British paramilitary force as a 'new entity' and that 'new entity' - the RUC - was, in turn, amalgamated into the 'new' PSNI on the 4th November 2001 - 19 years ago on this date.This was another tweaking of the name and uniform of a paramilitary outfit(and they've done it again!), as the 'police force' in that part of Ireland are still administered by Westminster and are as anti-republican as they were when they bore the 'RIC' name, and maintain the same structure and objective as when they were known by that latter name.The more gullible in Leinster House and elsewhere among us(although they are well salaried to be so or, at least, to give theimpression that they are that gullible) profess themselves convinced that a new day has dawned, ignoring the fact that the shadow in the room is caused by an elephant that they themselves have encouraged.'BRITISH OCCUPATION CHALLENGED...'From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, June, 1955.However, the electors of Mid-Ulster and Fermanagh-South Tyrone realised quite clearly that no matter what English law says or does, a vote for Philip Clarke and Tom Mitchell was a vote for the unity and freedom of Ireland and an end to British rule in Ireland. Although no other Sinn Féin representatives were elected in the other constituencies, the electors voted with the same clear realisation - that a vote for Sinn Féin was a vote for a united and free Ireland.The political situation in the North of Ireland has for many years been confused by a general classification of all Catholics as 'nationalists' and all Protestants as 'unionists'. This has been demonstrated to be false in this election ; we interpet 'nationalist' to mean one who believes in the freedom and unity of the nation and separated from English influence and control, and 'unionist' to mean one who believes in Ireland remaining subject to English power and control and domination by the English Parliament at Westminster.Previous elections in the North of Ireland have been contested on a purely sectarian issue - Catholic versus Protestant. The 'status quo' was never seriously challenged and the 'castle catholics' could with safety vote for the 'nationalist' candidate. The issue in this election was really serious - England's 'right' to rule in Ireland was challenged and only the brave and the Irish voted for Ireland.It now remains for the people in the 26 Counties to follow the lead given by the North : *vote Sinn Féin at every opportunity, organise branches of Sinn Féin in every area in Ireland*. A united people cannot be defeated.(*'1169' comment - if you "vote/organise" for that grouping now, you will be doing so to benefit an organisation that has accepted/works with the Free State and Westminster administrations in Ireland, and will be prolonging the British military and political presence in this country and/or shoring-up the capitalist political situation that exists here.)(END of 'British Occupation Challenged' ; NEXT - 'The West's Awake', from the same source.)ON THIS DATE (4TH NOVEMBER) 46 YEARS AGO : JUDITH THERESA WARD WAS 'CONVICTED ON ALL COUNTS' IN AN 'UNPROFESSIONAL TRIAL'.Judith Ward (pictured), an 'IRA activist', was arraigned on the 3rd October 1974 at Wakefield Crown Court, West Yorkshire, England, on an indictment containing 15 counts : Count 1: causing an explosion likely to endanger life or property on the 10th September 1973, at Euston Station, Count 2: a similar count relating to the explosion on the motorcoach on the M62 on the 4th February 1974, Counts 3-14: twelve counts of murder relating to each of the persons killed in the explosion on the motorcoach and Count 15: causing an explosion as before on February 12, 1974, at the National Defence College at Latimer.She pleaded "not guilty" to all counts but, on the 4th November 1974 - 46 years ago on this date - she was convicted on all counts, by a majority of 10 to two on Count 1 and unanimously on all the others. She was sentenced to five years' imprisonment on Count 1, 20 years' imprisonment concurrently on Count 2, life imprisonment for the murder Counts 3-14 and to 10 years on Count 15, to be served consecutively to the 20 years on Count 2, making a determinate sentence of 30 years.It took eighteen years of campaigning to have her conviction quashed, which it was on the 11th May 1992 and it transpired that she had changed her 'confession' several times and that the police and the prosecution selected various parts of each 'confession' to assemble a version which they felt comfortable with! One of the main pieces of forensic evidence against her was the alleged presence of traces of nitroglycerine on her hands, in her caravan and in her bag. Thin layer chromatography and the Griess test were used to establish the presence of nitroglycerine but later evidence showed that positive results using these methods could be obtained with materials innocently picked up from, for instance, shoe polish, and that several of the forensic scientists involved had either withheld evidence or exaggerated its importance.Her book,'Ambushed - My Story' makes for interesting reading and allows the reader to draw comparisons with the injustices suffered by the Maguire Seven, the Birmingham Six and the Guildford Four ; a total of 18 innocent people, including Judith Ward(13 men, 3 women and two children) who, between them, spent a total of 216 years in prison. Anne Maguire, a mother of 5 children, was menstruating heavily and denied all toiletries for a week, and was beaten senseless and Carol Richardson, who didn't even know she was pregnant, miscarried in Brixton Prison days after her arrest. Pat O'Neill, who had minutes before entered the Maguires house to arrange for a baby-sitter when the police arrived, was told by a cop to swear that he saw a big cardboard box on Maguires table or else he would be done, but he refused to lie - he served eleven years. On his release, he found his marriage was broken beyond repair and that his six children had left the family home. How many more Irish children will have to 'leave the family home' before the British eventually give a date for their political and military withdrawal from Ireland, because the situation as it now (and still) exists here is that their very presence continues to be objected to by Irish republicans and continues to give rise to unrest. And, if our history is to be used as a yardstick, that will always be the case.'IN THE NAME OF THE LAW.'Confidence in the Garda Siochana continues to erode as more incidents of questionable Garda 'evidence' emerge.By Sandra Mara.From 'The Magill Annual', 2002.As Pat Byrne's tenure as Garda Commissioner draws to a close, he could be forgiven for wishing he could fast-forward his retirement and hand over the poisoned chalice, particularly in the light of Abbeylara, allegations of garda corruption in Donegal, the Dean Lyons affair and numerous other 'occasions of sin' for the guardians of law and order in Ireland (sic).In the latest round of events, the legal team acting for Donegal publican Frank McBrearty and his family(which now numbers five barristers and two solicitors) secured leave from the High Court to take an action designed to compel the Garda Commissioner to fully investigate allegations of perjury by five of his officers in District Court proceedings against the McBreartys between December 1998 and April 1999.Martin Giblin SC, for the McBrearty family, instructed by Ken Smyth of Binchy's Solicitors, told Mr Justice O'Neill that his clients were the subject of intense garda attention following the death of Raphoe man Richie Barron in 1996. Mr Barron was found by two local men on a roadway close to his home in the early hours of 14th October 1996 ; seriously injured and lying in a pool of blood, Mr Barron was taken to hospital by ambulance but subsequently died from his injuries...(MORE LATER.)'RETURN TO SINN FÉIN.'From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, November 1954.A plea for a return to Sinn Féin principles of self-reliance was made at the Irish Club in Eaton Square last night by Professor John Busteed, who lectured on the future of Ireland.Suggesting that emigration should be regarded as a test of the efficiency of the national economy(sic), Professor Busteed said that, on present figures, out of every 1,000 boys aged 14 now, 350 would have left the country in twenty years, and out of every 1,000 girls, 390 would have left.That was a phenomenon that existed nowhere else in the world ; Denmark, for instance, had three times the national(sic) income of Ireland and had no emigration problem. When the Free State was set up there were 1,220,000 at work, of whom over half were employed in agriculture. Today the total was 1,200,000, and the number engaged in agriculture had declined from 650,000 to 480,000. (From an 'Irish Independent' London letter, 27-9-1954.)(END of 'Return to Sinn Féin' ; NEXT - 'British Garrisons And The Ban', from the same source.)'ROLLING STONES' (/'STROLLIN' BONES!') WRONG - TIME IS NOT ON OUR SIDE.......we won't be posting our usual contribution, and probably won't be in a position to post anything at all, next Wednesday, 11th November 2020. This coming weekend (Saturday/Sunday 7th/8th) is spoke for already with a 650-ticket raffle to be run for the Dublin Executive of Sinn Féin Poblachtach in a different venue than usual, due to the Covid 19 issue, and in a slightly different format.But, closed venues and social distancing etc or not, work on this gig began yesterday, Tuesday 3rd November 2020, and the paperwork 'autopsy' into it will be held on Monday, 9th, so - between the three of us - we're booked up solid with our 'pay-the-bills/day-job' work and the work on the raffle, and Ard Fheis paperwork, even though the Ard Fheis itself has been defered. Then it's straight on to the December 2020 Cabhair raffle and the Cabhair Christmas Day Swim and loads of other stuff which one committee or another will no doubt be looking to have done!But it's all for a good Cause and we don't mind helping out. Check back here for us on Wednesday 18th November 2020 ; sure you'd never know what it is that we'll be givin' out about!Thanks for reading - Sharon and the '1169' team....and we're still in 'Lockdown 2' in this State, but most citizens are less compliant than they were during the first 'Lockdown' and, in our opinion, with good reason ; State politicians grant themselves exemptions from Covid rules for golf society/business meetings and for attending other such business/political meetings in the State and abroad but insist that the rest of us comply! They provide faulty PPE and declare that clothes are not essential items (!), resulting in State 'officialdom' losing more of whatever 'authority' it had left. And they continue to pay themselves their full salary while offering the rest of us a State payment which is, for most people, inadequate to meet their needs. There is general unrest and resentment here as a result, and that unrest and resentment is growing...
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