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 Aughrim
She 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!
'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...
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 their plamás 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...
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.
IN THIS MONTH (MAY) 266 YEARS AGO : BIRTH OF A 'UNITED IRISHMEN' FOUNDING FATHER.
"Nor one feeling of vengeance presume to defile
The cause, or the men, of the Emerald Isle." - the words of William Drennan, physician, poet, educationalist political radical and one of the founding fathers of the 'Society of United Irishmen', who was born on the 23rd May in 1754, 266 years ago in this month.
As well as his involvement with the 'United Irishmen', William Drennan will be forever associated with the descriptive term 'Emerald Isle' being used as a reference for Ireland, although he himself stated that that expression was first used in an anonymous 1795 song called 'Erin, to her own Tune'.
When he was 37 years of age, a group of socially-minded Protestants, Anglicans and Presbyterians held their first public meeting in Belfast and formed themselves as 'The Belfast Society of United Irishmen' (the organisation became a secret society three years later), electing Sam McTier as 'President', strengthing the link that William Drennan had forged with that revolutionary organisation - Sam McTier was married to Martha, who was a sister of William Drennan.
'..he was born on May 23, 1754, at the manse of the First Presbyterian Church, Rosemary Street, Belfast, where his father was minister. A doctor by profession, he became one of the pioneers of inoculation against smallpox. Drennan became one of the founder members of the United Irishmen, and upon moving to Dublin in 1789 was appointed its chairman...after he was tried and acquitted of sedition in 1794, he withdrew from the movement and emigrated to Scotland (but remained) committed to radical politics..he married Sarah Swanwick in 1800, and they had four sons and a daughter...' (from here.)
William Drennan died on the 5th February 1820, at 66 years of age, and is buried in Clifton Street Graveyard, Belfast.
'AMERICAN ITEMS OF INTEREST.'
From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, June, 1955.
Election Committee : A Sinn Féin Election Aid Committee was set up in New York toward the end of April to raise money for the Sinn Féin candidates in the Six County elections.
A couple of socials and meetings were planned and great interest was shown from the outset by many in the re-activisation among the exiled Irish of the Sinn Féin idea.
Veteran Kerry republican Seán O' Riada, who first took a leading part in Irish-Ireland affairs back during the '98 Centenary celebrations (57 years ago) and hasn't ceased to work for the Irish Republic since then, was appointed Chairman, Peter Loughran (Armagh) was elected Co-Chairman, the Secretary is Seán Canning (Derry), whose brother, Manus Canning, is serving a penal servitude term in Wormwood Scrubs, and the Treasurer is Joseph Sullivan (Louth), a trade union leader in New York.
Committee workers include Mrs. Michael Fearon, Armagh, John McGovern, Cavan, Jeremiah Carroll, Cork, Henry McGuigan, Armagh, Hubert MacManus, Dublin, John Carroll, Galway, George Harrison, Mayo, Simon Farrelley, Cavan, and many others... (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.
In one unremarkable Dublin hostelry there is a glass-case partition containing your typical smattering of Oirish pub bric-a-brac. Amidst the clutter of museum-piece Oxo cube boxes and random bits of clay is a red-covered magazine declaring itself to be 'The National Humorous Journal of Ireland' - no problem there, except that the magazine is called 'Dublin Opinion'. Either the title itself was meant to be ironic, or else Ireland's humourists really didn't give a toss about people outside of the Pale. Well...it was from the 1950's, I suppose, and the barman wouldn't let me prise open the casing to find out.
Of the modern day successors to 'Dublin Opinion', monthly magazine 'The Slate' shares a similar attitude towards people who don't live by the Liffey (or 'culchies', as they are invariably referred to), and it's hard to imagine a copy making an appearance in a kitschy pub cabinet any time soon.
But if you can gauge the success of a satirical publication by the amount of official opprobrium thrown in its direction, 'The Slate' is carrying out its job to perfection. A visceral but brutally funny read, 'The Slate' administers a sound kicking to virtually every feature of contemporary Ireland (including 'Magill' magazine, obviously)… (MORE LATER.)
'EITHNE NIC SUIBHNE...'
From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, November 1954.
Eithne Nic Suibhne (pictured) stated, in her letter -
"I was going to suggest that the Standing Committee (of Sinn Féin) send a circular to all County Councillors, Corporations and Urban Councils asking them to demand a public declaration that this country is to be strictly neutral in case of any war and to be really neutral - not make-believe, as it was the last time. If the Circular were worded so as to bring out the horror of the Atomic and Hydrogen bombs, and if the Councils were called to take their individual stand for the people they represent and called on not to try to evade their duty by saying 'we leave it to the government'.
They will not escape responsibility if they do not do all in their power to keep these horrors from our land, and warning them that the attempt to mark the letter 'read' will be taken as a deliberate alliance with those who wish to embroil this country in England's wars and not only to send our boys as cannon fodder for her advantage, but bring destruction and incalculably appalling diseases on the land.
If the Circular did this, and in addition pointed out that once England gets into war mood she will immediately begin to 'fight for Christianity' and the 'Free World' against 'Godless Russia' etc, but we have heard that before and will decline to be fooled or let our people be fooled..."
(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...!
ONE-THIRD PLAYGROUND, ONE-THIRD RIC MEMORIAL, ONE-THIRD BROWN-ENVELOPED APARTMENT BLOCK FOR A BUILDER BUDDY?
Another Moore Street fiasco in the making?
A Fine Gael political representative is currently flying a kite to gauge reaction/opposition to a proposal to build a playground for children on a 1798 graveyard.
The 'Croppies Acre' in Dublin, a memorial to the 'Croppy Boys' of the 1798 rebellion and believed to be where the men and women of '98 were buried after being executed by the British is, unfortunately, being stared at, financially and for votes, by the Blueshirts.
This is probably why the political 'powers-that-be' allowed this sacred spot to fall into disrepair in the first place ie '..anything would be better than the drug den it has become..' but those of us who see and appreciate more than a profit margin can hopefully nip this disgraceful proposal in the bud - please sign the petition against this folly and ask your friends, colleagues, workmates etc to do the same. We are up against political careerists who know the price of everything and the value of nothing. Let's try and educate them.
ON THIS DATE (13TH MAY) 101 YEARS AGO : "I THOUGHT I WAS A DEAD MAN. I HAD TO HOLD MY HEAD UP WITH BOTH HANDS...."
Seán Hogan (pictured, left), who was practically still in his teenage years when he was appointed as one of those in command of the 'Third Tipperary Brigade' of the IRA, a leadership group which became known by the British as 'The Big Four' - Dan Breen, Seán Treacy, Seamus Robinson and Seán Hogan.
Seán Hogan was born in Tipperary in 1901 and, at just 18 years of age, he took part in the Soloheadbeg ambush on the 21st of January in 1919, in which two Crown force personnel (James McDonnell and Patrick O'Connell) were killed as they drew their weapons. The British went all out to capture or execute those responsible and, on the 12th of May 1919, Seán Hogan was taken prisoner at a friends house, the Meagher's, at Annfield, in Tipperary, and taken to Thurles RIC barracks to be held overnight, and then transported to Cork. The following morning - the 13th May, 1919, 101 years ago on this date - Seán Hogan was taken by a four-man armed British military escort to Knocklong train station and the five men got on board a train ; Hogan, who was handcuffed, was put sitting between RIC Sergeant Wallace and Constable Enright, both of whom were armed with revolvers, and Constables Ring and Reilly, carrying shotguns, sat opposite the three men.
Seán Hogan (right), thought to be about 20 years young when this photograph was taken.
An IRA unit, led by Seán Treacy, Dan Breen, Seamus Robinson and Eamonn O'Brien, and including Ned Foley, Seán Lynch, John Joe O'Brien, Ned O'Brien and Jim Scanlon (all from the East Limerick Brigade IRA) located the compartment where Seán Hogan was being held against his will and Seán Treacy and Eamonn O'Brien drew their revolvers and walked through the train to the compartment ; on entering same, they loudly instructed all present to put their hands up and called for Seán Hogan to make his way to them. RIC Constable Enright placed his revolver against Hogan's neck, using him as a shield, but was shot dead as he did so, as both Treacy and O'Brien had fired at him (Eamonn O'Brien was to say later that they would not have shot Enright had he not attempted to attack Hogan) and Hogan, still handcuffed, took that opportunity to land a two-handed punch to the face of Constable Ring, who was sitting opposite him. Seán Treacy and RIC Sergeant Wallace were trading punches, as were Eamonn O'Brien and Constable Reilly, when one of the IRA men managed to take Reilly's shotgun from him and smashed him over the head with it. He collapsed in a heap on the carriage floor. Constable Ring, meanwhile, found himself on the platform, having exited the carriage through a window, and withdrew from the area.
Of such a deed, no living man has ever heard before
From out a guarded carriage mid a panic stricken throng
Seán Hogan, he was rescued at the station of Knocklong
When a guard of four policemen had their prisoner minded well
As the fatal train sped o’er the rails, conveying him to his cell
The prisoner then could scarce foretell, of hearts both brave and strong
That were planning for his rescue at the station of Knocklong
The shades of eve were falling fast when the train at last drew in
It was halted for an hour or so by a few courageous men
They sprang into the carriage and it did not take them long
'Hands up or die' was the rebel cry at the station of Knocklong
King George’s pampered hirelings, they shrivelled up with fear
And thought of how they placed in cells, full many a Volunteer
Now face to face with armed men, to escape, how they did long
But two of them met with traitors deaths at the station of Knocklong
From Sologhead to Limerick, such deeds as these were never seen
And devil a tear was ever shed for Wallace of Roskeen
They did old England's dirty work and did that work too long
But the renegades were numbered up at the station of Knocklong
Now rise up Mother Erin and always be of cheer
You’ll never die while at your side there stand such Volunteers
From Dingle Bay to Garryowen, the cheers will echo long
Of the rescue of Seán Hogan at the station of Knocklong.(From here.)
'SINN FÉIN POST-ELECTION STATEMENT...'
From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, June, 1955.
"The results, gratifying as they are, must strengthen the determination of our people to continue the effort to establish and maintain the sovereign independence of the Irish nation.
In this spirit, Sinn Féin will pursue the course it has set itself and, in pursuing that course, we seek no quarrel with Irishmen and any quarrel that may eventuate will certainly not be the responsibility of the Sinn Féin organisation. We wish to thank very sincerely all those people, whoever they may be, who helped the Six-County election campaign in any way. We could not have hoped for anything like the success it has achieved without their fine support ;
Who fears to rally to Sinn Féin,
or nationhood deny,
heed not what hostile Press proclaims,
with "splinter party!" cries.
For duty to your country calls
to you, from shore to shore,
that freedom for all Ireland be
for Sinn Féin to restore.
Who fears to march on with Sinn Féin,
upholding Ireland's right,
as did the men of '98,
united side by side.
They gave their all for country's cause,
against the common foe -
in tribute to their memory
united, stand once more! (by Micheal O h-Aonghusa.)
(END of 'Sinn Féin Post-Election Statement' ; NEXT - 'American Items Of Interest', from the same source.)
ON THIS DATE (13TH MAY) 168 YEARS AGO : 'LADIES LAND LEAGUE' FOUNDER BORN.
Anna Catherine Parnell, pictured, was born 'Catherine Maria Anna Mercer Parnell' on the 13th May, 1852 - 168 years ago, on this date - at Avondale House in Rathdrum, County Wicklow. She was the tenth of eleven children of John Henry Parnell, a landlord, and Delia Tudor Stewart Parnell, an Irish-American woman (the daughter of Admiral Charles Stewart of the US Navy).
Anna and one of her sisters, Fanny, worked with their brother, Charles (Stewart Parnell) in agitating for better conditions for tenants and, on the 31st January in 1881, the two sisters officially launched a 'Ladies Land League' which, at its full strength, consisted of about five hundred branches and didn't always see eye-to-eye with its 'parent' organisation, the 'Irish National Land League'.
In its short existence, it provided assistance to about 3,000 people who had been evicted from their rented land holdings to assist and/or take over land agitation issues, as it seemed certain that the 'parent' body was going to be outlawed by the British and, sure enough, the British Prime Minister, William Ewart Gladstone, introduced and enforced a 'Crimes Act' that same year, 1881 (better known as the 'Coercion/Protection of Person and Property Act') which made it illegal to assemble in relation to certain issues and an offence to conspire against the payment of rents 'owed' which, ironically, was a piece of legislation condemned by the same catholic church which condemned the 'Irish National Land League' because that Act introduced permanent legislation and did not have to be renewed on each political term.
And that same church also condemned the 'Ladies Land League' to the extent that Archbishop McCabe of Dublin instructed priests loyal to him "..not to tolerate in your societies (diocese) the woman who so far disavows her birthright of modesty as to parade herself before the public gaze in a character so unworthy of a Child of Mary..." - the best that can be said about that is that that church's 'consistency' hasn't changed much over the years, and that it wasn't only a religious institution which made an issue out of women being politicised - 'In the year in which the Ladies' Land League was formed, Ireland was first mentioned in the 15 January 1881 issue of the 'Englishwoman's Review'. Tellingly, this was a report headed 'Women Landowners in Ireland' (and) there was also a small report of a 'Catholic Charitable Association' being formed 'by a number of Irish ladies for aiding the families
of poor or evicted tenants'.
The addition of the phrase "It is distinctly understood that the society shall take no part whatever in political agitation.." reveals the disapproval felt by the journal for those engaged in that agitation *. The formation of the Ladies' Land League was then noted : 'In anticipation of Government action against local branches of the Irish National Land League, arrangements are being made for the establishment of a Ladies' Land League throughout Ireland. Such a movement has already been organised in America, where Mrs Parnell, the mother of the Member for Cork, is the President, and Miss Fanny Parnell and Mr John Stewart, the sister and brother of Mr Parnell, MP, are acting as organisers. The Irish movement will be led by the wives of the local leaders of the existing league, and will devote themselves to the collection of funds...' ** (from here).
* / ** - That periodical was assembled and edited by, and for, middle-class women of the day (late 19th/early 20th century) and, while it did cover and promote economic independence for women, occupation outside of the home for women, the need for better educational facilities for women to enable and encourage women to seek employment in 'the male professions' ie politics and medicine, it was truly of its day in that it was felt to be a bridge-too-far to call for women to take to the streets for the right to be more than 'just' fund-raisers. In short, the authors were, in effect, confining themselves to be further confined.
In October 1881, Westminster proscribed the 'Irish National Land League' and imprisoned its leadership, but the gap was ably filled by the 'Ladies Land League' until it was acrimoniously dissolved on the 10th August 1882, 19 months after it was formed. Anna's brother, Charles, died in 1891 and, somewhat disillusioned with the political society that she lived in, she moved to the south of England and went by the name 'Cerisa Palmer'. On the 20th September in 1911, when she was living in Ilfracombe in Devon, England, at 59 years of age, she went for her usual daily swim but got into difficulties. Her plight was noticed from the shore but she was dead by the time help arrived. She was buried quietly in the churchyard of Holy Trinity Church in Ilfracombe, in the presence of just a handful of strangers.
FIT TO PRACTISE...?
As social work in Ireland reaches a landmark, Phil MacGiolla Bháin argues that the profession is flawed beyond salvation. From 'Magill' magazine, July 2002.
The current child protection system is largely premised on the 'fact' that children are, ordinarily, at risk from the nearest available male, usually the father. The fact - yes, fact - that children are now and always have been statistically more at risk from the mother is ignored.
If social work were a profession like law, medicine or teaching, then there would be a thriving private practice. Social work's professional services are only in demand from the State and from organisations that carry out operations on behalf of the State. The idea of a private individual soliciting the services of a social worker to provide a service to them is, quite frankly, bizarre, disordered and mad.
It was stated in 'The Irish Social Worker' last year (Vol.19, No. 2-3) that the health board-run child protection system was falling to pieces ; social workers are apparently voting with their feet and leaving in droves. This is excellent news. The system cannot be patched and covered up - it must be put permanently and verifiably beyond use. The structure is unsound and it cannot be repaired or renovated. It must be knocked down and a new one built from the ground up. (END of 'Fit To Practise?' NEXT - 'Kicking Against The Pricks', from the same source.)
'EITHNE NIC SUIBHNE'.
From 'The United Irishman' newspaper, November 1954.
The Republican Movement has lost a very good friend and a constant enthusiastic worker in the death of Miss Annie McSwiney (Eithne Nic Suibhne, pictured). In particular, this newspaper has lost a real helper, regular contributor, one of our very first subscribers and a constant critic whose criticism was always constructive, vigorous always, sometimes almost sharp, but inspired with the desire to help us, to guide us, the better to serve the Cause she loved so well.
In some accounts published in the press after her death the impression is conveyed that she had ceased to take any active part in political or national affairs for many years. That this impression is false can be easily shown, but no better proof is required than to quote from a letter written by her on the 14th October, the day before she died, to the Secretary of this newspaper and received here at the same time as the news of her death was being announced.
The main purpose of the letter was to acknowledge receipt of copies, sending of annual subscriptions for friends and giving names of others who would take the newspaper, and some instances of her active help and co-operation. The letter continues - "I was wishing I could contact you (by phone) and ask if you would get some striking demonstration (organised) to show these 13 nations of the (World) Ploughing Organisation that their insolence (in insisting that the two puppet States in Ireland be treated as separate countries)...all these people come to our land and one after another they insult us and no one ever says a word. No wonder the insults are on the increase..." (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!
