Nick Maxwell Constable Daniel Murphy, a Black-and-Tan from Cork, was captured and executed by the IRA’s East Clare Brigade on 12 March 1921. Murphy had been making frequent trips to the district where the Glenwood ambush had taken place, posing as an agricultural labourer whilst making inquiries about local republicans. Two members of the IRA, Martin McNamara … Read more
Roger Casement: imperialist, rebel, revolutionary Séamas Ó Síocháin (Lilliput Press, €40) ISBN 978 843510215 Those who speak truth to power often meet violent ends. Rodolfo Walsh, Ken Saro Wiwa and Chico Mendes are all recent examples; Roger Casement, who spent much of his life drawing attention to unspeakable truths, is another. His official investigation of … Read more
The Irishman who took a bullet for Bolívar The uniform of Colonel William Owen Ferguson, 1800–28 Lar Joye of the National Museum of Ireland kicks off a new regular series on historical artefacts and the stories behind them. The National Museum of Ireland, Decorative Arts and History’s permanent exhibition Soldiers and Chiefs: The Irish at … Read more
Augustus (Gusty) Spence, a shipyard worker and former regular soldier in the Royal Ulster Rifles as well as an active Orangeman, has recalled accepting a lift early in 1965 to a farm near Pomeroy, Co. Tyrone. Once there, he and three others were led into a building lit by hurricane lamps. In the presence of … Read more
The UVF man incinerated in the bungled Ballyshannon attack in October 1969,Thomas McDowell, a quarry worker and father of ten, is stillcommemorated on UVF rolls of honour. As recently as 2006 one of itspublications, The Fallen and the Brave, puts his name at the head of alist of its volunteers killed in the Troubles. It … Read more