By late August 1969 Belfast had settled down to an uneasy calm, with several areas now patrolled by vigilantes and defence committees. The barricades thrown up during August were soon adorned with all manner of slogans: ‘This is Free Belfast’, ‘The Falls will never fall’, ‘SS-RUC’ and ‘B-Men child killers beware’ among them. But while … Read more
In mid-1969 the Department of Justice presented the Irish government with its view of the threat posed by the IRA, which it suggested had perhaps 1,200 members in the Republic. IRA members were said to be centrally involved in housing protests and land agitation, having decided that ‘social unrest would be exploited’ in order to … 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
In April 1966 the Revd Ian Paisley, who had already earned his first token conviction for a public order offence, addressed the inaugural meeting in Belfast’s Ulster Hall of what became the Ulster Constitutional Defence Committee. In the course of a fiery speech he told his audience that in anticipation of republican subversion to accompany … Read more