Edentubber martyrs
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On 11 November 1957 during the Border Campaign a landmine exploded prematurely in Edentubber, County Louth, Ireland. Five republicans were killed and are today known by republicans as the Edentubber Martyrs.[1] According to Tim Pat Coogan it was the “single biggest disaster of the whole campaign”[2]
Four IRA men were preparing a landmine in a cottage on the side of a hill overlooking the border. The cottage was owned by fifty five year old civilian, Michael Watters, who had allowed them to use his cottage for their operation. Oliver Craven, Paul Smith, George Keegan and Patrick Parle were the four IRA members.
A timing mechanism likely malfunctioned and all five were killed instantly. It was the biggest loss to the IRA since the Irish civil war.[3] Garda Síochána found three Thompson sub-machine guns and magazines at the scene.[4]
Prior to the explosion IRA members Sean O'Hagan and Robert Kehoe visited the cottage and told Paul Smith that they thought that the alarm clocks shouldn't be used, but their concerns were dismissed. They said that as they left Paddy Pearle was singing “Erin my own lovely land”.[5]
Memorial and commemoration
They are commemorated annually by Sinn Féin[6] and Republican Sinn Féin.[7]
In March 2010 a granite monument was erected on a small patch of grass near the river Slaney on Irish street in Enniscorthy, County Wexford. Fine Gael TD and party chief whip, Paul Kehoe, said he was “unhappy” and “hugely concerned”. He said he had gotten “many calls” from those living close to the site “who have huge concerns and were disappointed they were not consulted”.[8]
See also
References
- ^ English, Richard (4 September 2008). "Armed Struggle: The History of the IRA". Pan Macmillan – via Google Books.
- ^ Coogan, Tim Pat (5 January 2002). "The IRA". Palgrave Macmillan. Retrieved 21 August 2017.
- ^ Anderson, Brendan; Cahill, Joe (14 September 2012). "Joe Cahill: A Life in the IRA". O'Brien Press. Retrieved 21 August 2017.
- ^ "The Edentubber Martyrs - An Phoblacht". www.anphoblacht.com.
- ^ Saoirse Éireann (10 January 2015). "The Edentubber Martyrs" – via YouTube.
- ^ http://www.sinnfein.ie/contents/32154
- ^ number1admin (6 November 2016). "Edentubber Martyrs & Mayo Martyrs Commemorated".
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ https://www.irishtimes.com/news/memorial-for-ira-bombers-splits-opinion-in-enniscorthy-1.633276
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