2009 Hugh Leonard, pseudonym of John Keyes Byrne, dramatist and writer, notably of Da (1973), died. 1997 Stephen Restorick (23) of the Royal Horse Artillery was shot dead by a sniper whilst manning a checkpoint in Bessbrook, Co. Armagh—the last British soldier to be killed before the IRA called its second ceasefire. 1989 In one … Read more
1992 Albert Reynolds was elected leader of Fianna Fáil. 1922 At Clones railway station, Co. Monaghan, the IRA attacked a group of Ulster Special Constables travelling from Newtownards to Enniskillen. Four Specials and an IRA commander were shot dead. News of the incident sparked off fresh sectarian violence in Belfast, including the killing of six … Read more
1932 The Army Comrades Association (ACA), latterly the National Guard or Blueshirts, was formed by Commandant Edward Cronin as a benevolent society for ex-members of the Free State Army. 1923 Dr T.F. O’Higgins, father of Minister for Home Affairs Kevin O’Higgins, was shot dead by the anti-Treaty IRA at his home in Stradbally, Co. Laois. … Read more
1971 Five men working for the BBC were killed when an IRA bomb, intended for the security forces, exploded as they made their way in a Land Rover to inspect a transmitter on Brougher Mountain, Co. Tyrone. 1996 The IRA detonated a bomb in Canary Wharf, one of London’s two main financial districts, killing two, … Read more
1933 The eighth Dáil Éireann assembled: Eamon de Valera formed his second government, with a one-seat majority. 1929 James Connell, County Meath-born Fenian, Land Leaguer and writer of the British Labour Party anthem The Red Flag, died. 1926 The Plough and the Stars by Seán O’Casey opened in the Abbey Theatre. During the fourth performance … Read more