Among the large number of departmental records made available to researchers in early January this year was one bulky file from 1968 containing correspondence relating to the repatriation of the remains of the Connaught Rangers mutineers who had died in India in 1920. The release of these documents renders timely an examination of their mutiny … Read more
Sir,—I could not help noticing that in the otherwise excellent articleabout the famous Soloheadbeg (County Tipperary) ambush of January 1919in the spring 1997 issue of History Ireland that Kevin Haddick Flynn(amongst others) is still claiming that this was the first action ofthe War of Independence. Not so. A flag must be raised for the ‘men … Read more
On the fourth and last day of his trial, in an exchange in court between the Attorney-General, Sir F.E. Smith—leading the prosecution—and the Chief Justice, reference was made for the first time to ‘Casement’s diary’. When rumours began to percolate among newspapers, politicians, ambassadors and gentlemen’s clubs in July 1916 about Roger Casement’s ‘sexual degeneracy’ … Read more
Sir,—I noticed a few assertions in Timothy Bowman’s article, The Irishat the Somme (HI 4.4, Winter 1996), which I believe are incorrect.Firstly, Mr Bowman mentions that there were twenty-three ‘Irish’battalions at the Somme; there were several more that I am aware of,namely: 1st and 2nd battalions/18th London Regiment (London IrishRifles), 4th Battalion Seaforth Highlanders, and … Read more
Sir,—In his article ‘Soloheadbeg: what really happened?’ Kevin Haddick Flynn betrayed a dated and shallow understanding of a complex event. He sets himself the purpose of examining the intent and actions of Seán Treacy, Dan Breen and their comrades at Soloheadbeg. Did they set out solely to capture the gelignite or did they have the … Read more