For other people named Liam Lynch see Liam Lynch

Liam Lynch

Liam Lynch may refer to:*Liam Lynch , general in the Irish Republican Army*Liam Lynch , musician, writer, and movie director...

Liam Lynch was an officer in the Irish Republican Army

Irish Republican Army

The Irish Republican Army was an Irish republican revolutionary military organisation. It was descended from the Irish Volunteers, an organisation established on 25 November 1913 that staged the Easter Rising in April 1916...

 during the Irish War of Independence

Irish War of Independence

The Irish War of Independence , Anglo-Irish War, Black and Tan War, or Tan War was a guerrilla war mounted by the Irish Republican Army against the British government and its forces in Ireland. It began in January 1919, following the Irish Republic's declaration of independence. Both sides agreed...

 and the commanding general of the anti-Treaty Irish Republican Army during the Irish Civil War

Irish Civil War

The Irish Civil War was a conflict that accompanied the establishment of the Irish Free State as an entity independent from the United Kingdom within the British Empire....

.

Early life

Lynch was born in the townland of Barnagurraha, Limerick

County Limerick

It is thought that humans had established themselves in the Lough Gur area of the county as early as 3000 BC, while megalithic remains found at Duntryleague date back further to 3500 BC...

, near Mitchelstown

Mitchelstown

Mitchelstown is a town in County Cork, Ireland with a population of approximately 3300. Mitchelstown is situated in the valley to the south of the Galtee Mountains close to the Mitchelstown Caves and is 28 km from Cahir, 50 km from Cork and 59 km from Limerick...

, Cork

County Cork

County Cork is a county in Ireland. It is located in the South-West Region and is also part of the province of Munster. It is named after the city of Cork . Cork County Council is the local authority for the county...

, to Jeremiah and Mary Kelly Lynch. During his first 12 years of schooling he attended Anglesboro

Anglesboro

Anglesboro or Anglesborough is a small village at the foot of the Galtee Mountains, in south-east County Limerick, Ireland. The nearest town is Mitchelstown in County Cork approximately 12 kilometres away....

 School.

In 1910, at the age of 17, he started an apprenticeship in O'Neill’s hardware trade in Mitchelstown, where he joined the Gaelic League and the Ancient Order of Hibernians

Ancient Order of Hibernians

The Ancient Order of Hibernians is an Irish Catholic fraternal organization. Members must be Catholic and either Irish born or of Irish descent. Its largest membership is now in the United States, where it was founded in New York City in 1836...

. Later he worked at Barry's Timber Merchants in Fermoy

Fermoy

Fermoy is a town in County Cork, Ireland. It is situated on the River Blackwater in the south of Ireland. Its population is some 5,800 inhabitants, environs included ....

. In the aftermath of the 1916 Easter Rising

Easter Rising

The Easter Rising was an insurrection staged in Ireland during Easter Week, 1916. The Rising was mounted by Irish republicans with the aims of ending British rule in Ireland and establishing the Irish Republic at a time when the British Empire was heavily engaged in the First World War...

, he witnessed the shooting and arrest of David and Richard Kent of Bawnard House by the Royal Irish Constabulary

Royal Irish Constabulary

The armed Royal Irish Constabulary was Ireland's major police force for most of the nineteenth and the early twentieth centuries. A separate civic police force, the unarmed Dublin Metropolitan Police controlled the capital, and the cities of Derry and Belfast, originally with their own police...

.

War of Independence

In Cork, Lynch re-organised the Irish Volunteers

Irish Volunteers

The Irish Volunteers was a military organisation established in 1913 by Irish nationalists. It was ostensibly formed in response to the formation of the Ulster Volunteers in 1912, and its declared primary aim was "to secure and maintain the rights and liberties common to the whole people of Ireland"...

 - the paramilitary organisation that became the Irish Republican Army

Irish Republican Army

The Irish Republican Army was an Irish republican revolutionary military organisation. It was descended from the Irish Volunteers, an organisation established on 25 November 1913 that staged the Easter Rising in April 1916...

 - in 1919, becoming commandant of the Cork No. 2 Brigade of the IRA during the guerrilla Anglo-Irish War. Lynch helped capture a senior British

British Army

The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...

 officer, General Cuthbert Lucas

Cuthbert Lucas

Major-General Cuthbert Henry Tindall Lucas CB CMG DSO was a British Army officer who commanded 4th Division.-Military career:...

, in June 1920, shooting a Colonel Danford in the incident. Lucas later escaped while being held by IRA men in County Clare

County Clare

-History:There was a Neolithic civilisation in the Clare area — the name of the peoples is unknown, but the Prehistoric peoples left evidence behind in the form of ancient dolmen; single-chamber megalithic tombs, usually consisting of three or more upright stones...

. Lynch was captured, together with the other officers of the Cork No. 2 Brigade, in a British raid on Cork City Hall in August 1920. Terence McSwiney, Lord Mayor

Lord Mayor

The Lord Mayor is the title of the Mayor of a major city, with special recognition.-Commonwealth of Nations:* In Australia it is a political position. Australian cities with Lord Mayors: Adelaide, Brisbane, Darwin, Hobart, Melbourne, Newcastle, Parramatta, Perth, Sydney, and Wollongong...

 of Cork, was among those captured - he later died on hunger strike

Hunger strike

A hunger strike is a method of non-violent resistance or pressure in which participants fast as an act of political protest, or to provoke feelings of guilt in others, usually with the objective to achieve a specific goal, such as a policy change. Most hunger strikers will take liquids but not...

 in protest at his detention. Lynch, however, gave a false name and was released three days later. In the meantime, the British had assassinated two other innocent men named Lynch, whom they had confused with him.

In September 1920, Lynch, along with Ernie O'Malley

Ernie O'Malley

Ernie O'Malley was an Irish Republican Army officer during the Irish War of Independence and a commander of the anti-treaty IRA during the Irish Civil War. O'Malley wrote three books, On Another Man's Wound, The Singing Flame, and Raids and Rallies. The first describes his early life and role in...

, commanded a force that took the British Army barracks at Mallow

Mallow, County Cork

Mallow is the "Crossroads of Munster" and the administrative capital of north County Cork, in Ireland. The Northern Divisional Offices of Cork County Council are located in the town....

. The arms in the barracks were seized and the building partially burnt. Before the end of 1920, Lynch's brigade had successfully ambushed British troops on two other occasions. Lynch's guerrilla campaign continued into early 1921, with some successes such as the ambush and killing of 13 British soldiers near Millstreet

Millstreet

Millstreet is a town in north County Cork, Ireland with a population of approximately 1,500. It is located at the foot of Clara Mountain. The town's Catholic church is dedicated to St. Patrick. Since October 1985, the town has been twinned with Pommerit-le-Vicomte in Brittany, France...

. On the other hand reverses also occurred, such as the loss of 8 Volunteers killed, 2 more executed and 8 captured at a failed ambush at Mourne Abbey

Mourne Abbey

Mourneabbey is a small parish just south of Mallow, County Cork, Ireland, on the main Mallow-Cork Road and Rail Line. The population of the parish is about 1,000 people. There are two churches and schools in the area, Analeentha and Burnfort.-History:The Abbey was built c. 1199 by the Knights...

.

In April 1921, the Irish Republican Army

Irish Republican Army

The Irish Republican Army was an Irish republican revolutionary military organisation. It was descended from the Irish Volunteers, an organisation established on 25 November 1913 that staged the Easter Rising in April 1916...

 was re-organised into divisions based on regions. Lynch's reputation was such that he was made commander of the 1st Southern Division. From April 1921 until the Truce that ended the war in July 1921, Lynch's command was put under increasing pressure by the deployment of more British troops into the area and the British use of small mobile units to counter IRA guerrilla tactics. Lynch was no longer in command of the Cork No. 2 Brigade as he had to travel in secret to each of the nine IRA Brigades in Munster

Munster

Munster is one of the Provinces of Ireland situated in the south of Ireland. In Ancient Ireland, it was one of the fifths ruled by a "king of over-kings" . Following the Norman invasion of Ireland, the ancient kingdoms were shired into a number of counties for administrative and judicial purposes...

. By the time of the Truce, the IRA under Liam Lynch were increasingly hard pressed and short of arms and ammunition. Lynch therefore welcomed the Truce as a respite; however, he expected the war to continue after it ended.

The Treaty

The war formally ended with the signing of the Anglo-Irish Treaty

Anglo-Irish Treaty

The Anglo-Irish Treaty , officially called the Articles of Agreement for a Treaty Between Great Britain and Ireland, was a treaty between the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and representatives of the secessionist Irish Republic that concluded the Irish War of...

 between the Irish negotiating team and the British government in December 1921.

Lynch was opposed to the Anglo-Irish Treaty

Anglo-Irish Treaty

The Anglo-Irish Treaty , officially called the Articles of Agreement for a Treaty Between Great Britain and Ireland, was a treaty between the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and representatives of the secessionist Irish Republic that concluded the Irish War of...

, on the grounds that it disestablished the Irish Republic

Irish Republic

The Irish Republic was a revolutionary state that declared its independence from Great Britain in January 1919. It established a legislature , a government , a court system and a police force...

 proclaimed in 1916 in favour of Dominion status for Ireland within the British Empire

British Empire

The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...

. He became Chief of Staff in March 1922 of the IRA, much of which was also against the Treaty. Lynch, however, did not want a split in the republican movement and hoped to reach a compromise with those who supported the Treaty ("Free Staters") by the publication of a republican constitution for the new Irish Free State

Irish Free State

The Irish Free State was the state established as a Dominion on 6 December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty, signed by the British government and Irish representatives exactly twelve months beforehand...

. But the British would not accept this, as the Treaty had only just been signed and ratified, leading to a bitter split in Irish ranks and ultimately civil war.

Civil War

Although Lynch opposed the seizure of the Four Courts

Four Courts

The Four Courts in Dublin is the Republic of Ireland's main courts building. The Four Courts are the location of the Supreme Court, the High Court and the Dublin Circuit Court. The building until 2010 also formerly was the location for the Central Criminal Court.-Gandon's Building:Work based on...

 in Dublin by a group of hardline republicans, he joined its garrison in June 1922 when it was attacked by the newly formed Free State Irish Army

Irish Army

The Irish Army, officially named simply the Army is the main branch of the Defence Forces of Ireland. Approximately 8,500 men and women serve in the Irish Army, divided into three infantry Brigades...

. This marked the beginning of the Irish Civil War

Irish Civil War

The Irish Civil War was a conflict that accompanied the establishment of the Irish Free State as an entity independent from the United Kingdom within the British Empire....

. Lynch was arrested by the Free State forces but was allowed to leave Dublin, on the understanding that he would try and halt the fighting. Instead, he quickly began organising resistance elsewhere.

With the capture of Joe McKelvey

Joe McKelvey

Joe McKelvey was an Irish Republican Army officer who was executed during the Irish Civil War. He participated in the anti-Treaty IRA's repudiation of the authority of the Dáil in March 1922 and was elected to the IRA Army Executive...

 at the Four Courts

Four Courts

The Four Courts in Dublin is the Republic of Ireland's main courts building. The Four Courts are the location of the Supreme Court, the High Court and the Dublin Circuit Court. The building until 2010 also formerly was the location for the Central Criminal Court.-Gandon's Building:Work based on...

, Liam Lynch resumed the position of Chief-of-Staff of the Anti-Treaty Irish Republican Army forces (also called the "Irregulars"), which McKelvey had temporarily taken over. Lynch, who was most familiar with the south, planned to establish a 'Munster Republic

Munster Republic

The Munster Republic was an informal and affectionate term used by Irish republicans to refer to the territory they held in the province of Munster at the start of the Irish Civil War...

' which he believed would frustrate the creation of the Free State. The 'Munster Republic' would be defended by the 'Limerick-Waterford Line'. This consisted of, moving from east to west, the city of Waterford

Waterford

Waterford is a city in the South-East Region of Ireland. It is the oldest city in the country and fifth largest by population. Waterford City Council is the local government authority for the city and its immediate hinterland...

, the towns of Carrick-on-Suir

Carrick-on-Suir

Carrick-on-Suir is a town in South Tipperary in Ireland. As the name – meaning "the rock of the Suir" – suggests, the town is situated on the River Suir. The of the town gives the population as 5,906 and shows that it has grown by 5.7% since 2002...

, Clonmel

Clonmel

Clonmel is the county town of South Tipperary in Ireland. It is the largest town in the county. While the borough had a population of 15,482 in 2006, another 17,008 people were in the rural hinterland. The town is noted in Irish history for its resistance to the Cromwellian army which sacked both...

, Fethard

Fethard

-Constituencies:*Fethard *Fethard...

, Cashel, Golden

Golden, County Tipperary

Golden is a village in South Tipperary in Ireland. The village is situated on the River Suir. It is located between the towns of Cashel and Tipperary on the N74 road. In older times the village was known as Goldenbridge...

, and Tipperary

Tipperary

Tipperary is a town and a civil parish in South Tipperary in Ireland. Its population was 4,415 at the 2006 census. It is also an ecclesiastical parish in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cashel and Emly, and is in the historical barony of Clanwilliam....

, ending in the city of Limerick

Limerick

Limerick is the third largest city in the Republic of Ireland, and the principal city of County Limerick and Ireland's Mid-West Region. It is the fifth most populous city in all of Ireland. When taking the extra-municipal suburbs into account, Limerick is the third largest conurbation in the...

, where Lynch established his headquarters. In July, he led its defence but it fell to Free State troops on 20 July 1922.

Lynch retreated further south and set up his new headquarters at Fermoy

Fermoy

Fermoy is a town in County Cork, Ireland. It is situated on the River Blackwater in the south of Ireland. Its population is some 5,800 inhabitants, environs included ....

. The 'Munster Republic

Munster Republic

The Munster Republic was an informal and affectionate term used by Irish republicans to refer to the territory they held in the province of Munster at the start of the Irish Civil War...

’ fell in August 1922, when Free State troops landed by sea in Cork and Kerry. Cork City was taken on 8 August and Lynch abandoned Fermoy

Fermoy

Fermoy is a town in County Cork, Ireland. It is situated on the River Blackwater in the south of Ireland. Its population is some 5,800 inhabitants, environs included ....

 the next day. The Anti-Treaty forces then dispersed and pursued guerrilla tactics

Guerrilla Phase of the Irish Civil War

The Guerrilla Phase of the Irish Civil War began in August 1922, when the forces of the Irish Free State took all the fixed positions previously held by the Anti-Treaty or Republican forces....

. In the process of this assault, his opponent Michael Collins

Michael Collins (Irish leader)

Michael "Mick" Collins was an Irish revolutionary leader, Minister for Finance and Teachta Dála for Cork South in the First Dáil of 1919, Director of Intelligence for the IRA, and member of the Irish delegation during the Anglo-Irish Treaty negotiations. Subsequently, he was both Chairman of the...

 was killed in Cork on 22 August.

Lynch contributed to the growing bitterness of the war by issuing what were known as the "orders of frightfulness" against the Provisional government on 30 November 1922. This General Order sanctioned the killing of Free State TDs (members of Parliament) and Senators, as well as certain judges and newspaper editors in reprisal for the Free State's killing of captured republicans

Executions during the Irish Civil War

The executions during the Irish Civil War took place during the guerrilla phase of the Irish Civil War . This phase of the war was bitter, and both sides, the government forces of the Irish Free State and the anti-Treaty Irish Republican Army insurgents, used executions and terror in what...

. The first republican prisoners to be executed were four IRA men captured with arms in 14 November 1922, followed by the execution of republican leader Erskine Childers

Robert Erskine Childers

Robert Erskine Childers DSC , universally known as Erskine Childers, was the author of the influential novel Riddle of the Sands and an Irish nationalist who smuggled guns to Ireland in his sailing yacht Asgard. He was executed by the authorities of the nascent Irish Free State during the Irish...

 on November 17. Lynch then issued his orders, which were acted upon by IRA men, who killed TD

Teachta Dála

A Teachta Dála , usually abbreviated as TD in English, is a member of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas . It is the equivalent of terms such as "Member of Parliament" or "deputy" used in other states. The official translation of the term is "Deputy to the Dáil", though a more literal...

 Sean Hales

Sean Hales

Sean Hales was an Irish political activist in the early 20th century. Hales was born in Ballinadee, County Cork, where he and his brothers Tom, Donal and Robert were involved in the Irish Republican Army during the Irish War of Independence.At the 1921 elections Hales was elected to the Second...

 and wounded another TD outside the Dáil. In reprisal, the Free State immediately shot four republican leaders, Rory O'Connor

Rory O'Connor (Irish republican)

Rory O'Connor was an Irish republican activist. He is best remembered for his role in the Irish Civil War 1922-1923, which led to his execution.-Background:...

, Liam Mellows

Liam Mellows

Liam Mellows was an Irish Republican and Sinn Féin politician. Born in England, Mellows grew up in County Wexford in Ireland. He was active with the Irish Republican Brotherhood and Irish Volunteers, and participated in the Easter Rising in County Galway, and the War of Independence...

, Dick Barrett

Richard Barrett (Irish Republican)

Richard Barrett was a prominent Irish Republican Army volunteer who was executed during the Irish Civil War in 1922.-War of Independence:...

 and Joe McKelvey

Joe McKelvey

Joe McKelvey was an Irish Republican Army officer who was executed during the Irish Civil War. He participated in the anti-Treaty IRA's repudiation of the authority of the Dáil in March 1922 and was elected to the IRA Army Executive...

. This led to a cycle of atrocities on both sides, including the Free State official execution of 77 republican prisoners and "unofficial" killing of roughly 150 other captured republicans. Lynch's men for their part launched a concerted campaign against the homes of Free State members of parliament. Among the acts they carried out were the burning of the house of TD James McGarry

James McGarry

James McGarry is an Irish sportsperson. He plays hurling with his local club Bennettsbridge and was a member of the Kilkenny senior inter-county team from 1999 to 2008.-Club:...

, resulting in the death of his seven year old son and the murder of Free state minister Kevin O'Higgins

Kevin O'Higgins

Kevin Christopher O'Higgins was an Irish politician who served as Vice-President of the Executive Council and Minister for Justice. He was part of early nationalist Sinn Féin, before going on to become a prominent member of Cumann na nGaedheal. O'Higgins initiated the An Garda Síochána police force...

 elderly father and burning of his family home at Stradbally in early 1923.

Lynch was heavily criticised by some republicans, notably Ernie O'Malley, for his failure to co-ordinate their war effort and for letting the conflict peter out into inconclusive guerrilla warfare. Lynch made unsuccessful efforts to import mountain artillery from Germany in order to turn the tide of the war. In March 1923, the Anti-Treaty IRA Army Executive met in a remote location in the Nire Valley. Several members of the executive proposed ending the civil war but Lynch opposed them. Lynch narrowly carried a vote to continue the war.

Death

On 10 April 1923 Free State

Irish Free State

The Irish Free State was the state established as a Dominion on 6 December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty, signed by the British government and Irish representatives exactly twelve months beforehand...

 soldiers were seen approaching the mountain. Liam was carrying important papers that he knew must not fall into enemy hands, so he and his six comrades retreated up the Knockmealdown Mountains

Knockmealdown Mountains

The Knockmealdown Mountains are a mountain range located on the border of counties South Tipperary and Waterford in Ireland, running east and west between the two counties. The highest peak of the range is Knockmealdown, situated in County Waterford...

.

They ran into a column of 50 Free state soldiers approaching from the opposite side. Lynch was hit by rifle fire from the road at the foot of the hill. Knowing the value of the papers they carried, he ordered his men to leave him behind. When the enemy finally came across Lynch they initially believed him to be Éamon de Valera

Éamon de Valera

Éamon de Valera was one of the dominant political figures in twentieth century Ireland, serving as head of government of the Irish Free State and head of government and head of state of Ireland...

 but he reportedly informed them - "I am Liam Lynch, Chief-of-Staff of the Irish Republican Army. Get me a priest and doctor, I'm dying." He was carried on an improvised stretcher manufactured from guns to "Nugents" pub in Newcastle at the foot of the mountains. He was later brought to the hospital in Clonmel

Clonmel

Clonmel is the county town of South Tipperary in Ireland. It is the largest town in the county. While the borough had a population of 15,482 in 2006, another 17,008 people were in the rural hinterland. The town is noted in Irish history for its resistance to the Cromwellian army which sacked both...

 and died that evening at 8p.m.

Liam Lynch was laid to rest two days later at Kilcrumper Cemetery, near Fermoy

Fermoy

Fermoy is a town in County Cork, Ireland. It is situated on the River Blackwater in the south of Ireland. Its population is some 5,800 inhabitants, environs included ....

, County Cork

County Cork

County Cork is a county in Ireland. It is located in the South-West Region and is also part of the province of Munster. It is named after the city of Cork . Cork County Council is the local authority for the county...

. Many historians see his death as the effective end of the Civil War, as the new IRA chief of staff Frank Aiken

Frank Aiken

Frank Aiken was a commander of the Irish Republican Army and later an Irish politician. A founding-member of Fianna Fáil, Aiken was first elected to Dáil Éireann in 1923 and at each subsequent election until 1973...

 declared a ceasefire on 30 April and on 24 May ordered IRA Volunteers to dump their arms and return to their homes.

Coincidentally the Good Friday Agreement was signed on the 75th anniversary of his death.

On 7 April 1935, a 60 feet (18.3 m) round tower

Round tower

Round tower may refer to:Types of tower:* Irish round tower, a type of early mediaeval stone tower* Broch, a type of Iron Age drystone structure found in Scotland* Round-tower church, a type of church found mainly in England...

 monument was erected on the spot where Lynch is thought to have fallen.

Legacy

The Irish Defence Forces

Irish Defence Forces

The armed forces of Ireland, known as the Defence Forces encompass the Army, Naval Service, Air Corps and Reserve Defence Force.The current Supreme Commander of the Irish Defence forces is His Excellency Michael D Higgins in his role as President of Ireland...

 barracks at Kilworth

Kilworth

Kilworth is a village in north County Cork. It is also one half of the parish of "Kilworth and Araglin" in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Cloyne.-Loation and access:...

 County Cork is named Camp Ó Liongsigh after Liam Lynch

Sources

• Michael Hopkinson, Green against Green, the Irish Civil War
• Paul V Walsh, The Irish Civil War 1922-23 - A Study of the Conventional Phase
• Meda Ryan, The Real Chief, Liam Lynch