Peadar Clancy
Encyclopedia
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...
(IRA) who served in 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...
garrison during 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...
and was second-in-command of the Dublin Brigade, IRA during the 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...
. Along with Dick McKee
Dick McKee
Richard “Dick” McKee was a prominent member of the Irish Republican Army . He was also friend to some senior members in the republican movement, including Éamon de Valera, Austin Stack and Michael Collins...
and Conor Clune
Conor Clune
Conor Clune was one of three men along with Dick McKee and Peadar Clancy killed in controversial circumstances in Dublin Castle on Bloody Sunday, 1920, a day that also saw the killing of a network of British spies by the "Squad" unit of the Irish Republican Army and the killing of 14 people in...
, he was murdered by his captors in Dublin Castle
Dublin Castle
Dublin Castle off Dame Street, Dublin, Ireland, was until 1922 the fortified seat of British rule in Ireland, and is now a major Irish government complex. Most of it dates from the 18th century, though a castle has stood on the site since the days of King John, the first Lord of Ireland...
on Sunday, 21 November 1920, a day known as Bloody Sunday
Bloody Sunday (1920)
Bloody Sunday was a day of violence in Dublin on 21 November 1920, during the Irish War of Independence. In total, 31 people were killed – fourteen British, fourteen Irish civilians and three republican prisoners....
that also saw the killing of a network of British spies by the "Squad" unit of 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...
and the killing of 14 people in Croke Park
Croke Park
Croke Park in Dublin is the principal stadium and headquarters of the Gaelic Athletic Association , Ireland's biggest sporting organisation...
by British forces
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...
.
Early life
Clancy was one of seven sons and six daughters born to James and Mary Clancy (née Keane), of Carrowreagh East, Cranny, County ClareCounty 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...
in 1888. The Clancy home had been the meeting place for local Fenians
Irish Republican Brotherhood
The Irish Republican Brotherhood was a secret oath-bound fraternal organisation dedicated to the establishment of an "independent democratic republic" in Ireland during the second half of the 19th century and the start of the 20th century...
since the 1860s. Though the Fenians had been instrumental in reawakening Irish culture through the Gaelic League, drama and the Gaelic Athletic Association
Gaelic Athletic Association
The Gaelic Athletic Association is an amateur Irish and international cultural and sporting organisation focused primarily on promoting Gaelic games, which include the traditional Irish sports of hurling, camogie, Gaelic football, handball and rounders...
, this form of "advanced nationalism" was not popular at this time. From a young age Clancy was a keen Gaelic Leaguer and was engrossed by national activities. Educated at the local national school, which was close to his family home, at sixteen he became apprenticed in the drapery business of Dan Moloney, in Kildysart
Kildysart
Kildysart, officially Killadysert , is a village in County Clare, Ireland. It is on the north bank of the Shannon Estuary on the R473 coastal route between Ennis and Kilrush. Recently re-branded as 'The Fisherman's Haven' it is famed for the excellent fishing resources nearby.-Facilities:Although...
. On completing his apprenticeship he went to Newcastle West
Newcastle West
Newcastle West is a town in west County Limerick, Ireland. The town is the largest town in the county, excluding Limerick city, and is sited on the River Arra which flows into the River Deel...
, County 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...
, where he was employed for a time before going to Youghal
Youghal
Youghal is a town in County Cork, Ireland. Sitting on the estuary of the River Blackwater, in the past it was militarily and economically important. Being built on the edge of a steep riverbank, the town has a distinctive long and narrow layout...
, 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...
, where he worked for a Mr. O’Shaughnessy. He spent three years in Youghal, and in 1913 he went to work for Harkin's General Drapery, at 70A New Street in Dublin. He eventually became a partner with Tom Hunter
Thomas Hunter (Irish politician)
Thomas Hunter an Irish republican and politician. He was a member of the Irish Republican Brotherhood , Sinn Féin, the Irish Volunteers and the Irish Republican Army ....
in a drapery business called The Republican Outfitters, which was located in Talbot Street
Talbot Street
Talbot Street is a city-centre street located on Dublin's Northside and is one of the principal shopping streets of Dublin, running from Connolly station and the IFSC at Amiens Street in the east to Marlborough Street in the west. The street is named after Charles Chetwynd, 3rd Earl of Talbot,...
. According to Dan Breen
Dan Breen
Daniel "Dan" Breen was a volunteer in the Irish Republican Army during the Irish War of Independence and the Irish Civil War. In later years, he was a Fianna Fáil politician.-Background:...
, it was one of the best-known meeting places in Dublin for the IRA, and was so closely watched that it was never advisable to remain there for long.
Easter Rising
On coming to Dublin, Clancy joined the Irish VolunteersIrish 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"...
at their inception, becoming a Volunteer in "CO" company, 1st Battalion, Dublin Brigade. During the 1916 Easter Rising he served in 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...
garrison, alongside Dick McKee
Dick McKee
Richard “Dick” McKee was a prominent member of the Irish Republican Army . He was also friend to some senior members in the republican movement, including Éamon de Valera, Austin Stack and Michael Collins...
. Clancy was to distinguish himself in combat, when, with a group of Volunteers, he repelled an infantry attack at Church Street Bridge and forced an enemy retreat towards the Phoenix Park
Phoenix Park
Phoenix Park is an urban park in Dublin, Ireland, lying 2–4 km west of the city centre, north of the River Liffey. Its 16 km perimeter wall encloses , one of the largest walled city parks in Europe. It includes large areas of grassland and tree-lined avenues, and since the seventeenth...
on Easter Monday. Shortly afterwards, Clancy personally burnt out a sniper from a house, and during the course of the Rising single-handedly captured Lord Dunsany and Colonel Lindsay. Lord Dunsay, though wounded by Clancy, said of the Republicans after his release: "Although in different uniforms, we are all Irishmen and you are all gentlemen." For the "courage, leadership and intelligence" shown during this period, he was promoted to Lieutenant by Captain Frank Fahy
Frank Fahy
Francis Patrick Fahy was an Irish teacher, barrister, and politician. He served for nearly 35 years as a Teachta Dála , first for Sinn Féin and later as a member of Fianna Fáil, before becoming Ceann Comhairle for over 19 years.- Early life :Fahy was born in Kilchreest, County Galway, a son of...
. After the Rising he was court-marshaled and sentenced to death for his part in the rebellion; but his sentence was commuted to penal servitude for 10 years. He remained in English jails until June 1917, and upon his return to Dublin he helped to re-organise the Volunteers.
Sinn Féin
After his release from prison he was selected as the Sinn FéinSinn Féin
Sinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...
candidate in the East Clare
East Clare (UK Parliament constituency)
East Clare was a UK Parliament constituency in Ireland, returning one Member of Parliament 1885–1922.Prior to the United Kingdom general election, 1885 the area was part of the Clare constituency...
by-election, but his candidature was not ratified by IRA General Head Quarters (GHQ) and 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...
was chosen at a second convention in Ennis. Clancy, in a letter to his brother M. J, who lived in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, wrote about the divide in Irish society over the war and the split in the Volunteers, which he believed had resulted from the position adopted by John Redmond
John Redmond
John Edward Redmond was an Irish nationalist politician, barrister, MP in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and leader of the Irish Parliamentary Party from 1900 to 1918...
, the leader of the Irish Parliamentary Party
Irish Parliamentary Party
The Irish Parliamentary Party was formed in 1882 by Charles Stewart Parnell, the leader of the Nationalist Party, replacing the Home Rule League, as official parliamentary party for Irish nationalist Members of Parliament elected to the House of Commons at...
:
Clancy took part in de Valera’s election campaign, and addressed a number of meetings throughout his native county
Counties of Ireland
The counties of Ireland are sub-national divisions used for the purposes of geographic demarcation and local government. Closely related to the county is the County corporate which covered towns or cities which were deemed to be important enough to be independent from their counties. A county...
in the summer of 1917. After the election, on 24 July 1917, Clancy again wrote to his brother on the outcome and the position the Republicans would adopt:
War of Independence
During the Irish War of Independence, Clancy became immersed in the underground movement and carried out a number of daring feats; these ensured his rise to become the second-in-command of the Dublin Brigade, IRA, with the rank of Vice-Brigadier. He was also attached to GHQ where he held the rank of Director of Munitions. His immediate superior was his Easter Week colleague Dick McKee.
Richard Mulcahy
Richard James Mulcahy was an Irish politician, army general and commander in chief, leader of Fine Gael and Cabinet Minister...
, was instrumental in the escape of leading Republican prisoners from Mountjoy Jail on 29 March 1919. Among those to escape were Piaras Beaslaí
Piaras Béaslaí
Piaras Béaslaí was a member of the Irish Republican Brotherhood, a member of Dáil Éireann and also an Irish author, playwright, biographer and translator....
, J. J. Walsh, Paddy Fleming and Thomas Malone. Clancy and Mulcahy were both in charge of those who were to help the escape plan from outside the prison, while 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...
and his intelligence squad were to look after the plans of escape within the prison. In all nineteen prisoners escaped. The escape was considered a major coup by Republicans and was a boost to morale.
The Squad, also known as the Twelve Apostles, was a counter-intelligence unit established in September 1919. This unit was to function as an urban flying column, which was to specialise in the killing of British intelligence agents and those police who were attentive in combating the IRA. At its inaugural meeting the IRA leadership was represented by Peadar Clancy, along with Dick McKee
Dick McKee
Richard “Dick” McKee was a prominent member of the Irish Republican Army . He was also friend to some senior members in the republican movement, including Éamon de Valera, Austin Stack and Michael Collins...
, Michael Collins and Mick McDonnell.
Clancy was also involved in the Republican breakout from Strangeways Prison in Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
, England on 25 October 1919. Michael Collins had taken a particular interest in the escape, and actually visited Austin Stack
Austin Stack
Austin Stack was an Irish revolutionary and politician.-Early life:Stack was born in Ballymullen, Tralee, County Kerry. He was educated at the Christian Brothers School in Tralee. At the age of fourteen he left school and became a clerk in a solicitor's office. A gifted Gaelic footballer, he...
in the prison to finalise the arrangements. In all six prisoners were to escape, among them Piaras Beaslaí who had again been arrested.
During the last three months of 1919, no less than twelve different ambushes were planned on the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland
Lord Lieutenant of Ireland
The Lord Lieutenant of Ireland was the British King's representative and head of the Irish executive during the Lordship of Ireland , the Kingdom of Ireland and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland...
, Lord French
John French, 1st Earl of Ypres
Field Marshal John Denton Pinkstone French, 1st Earl of Ypres, KP, GCB, OM, GCVO, KCMG, ADC, PC , known as The Viscount French between 1916 and 1922, was a British and Anglo-Irish officer...
. In most cases the target failed to show, or was either too late or too early to suit his would-be assassins' designs. On one occasion Peadar Clancy and Dan Breen
Dan Breen
Daniel "Dan" Breen was a volunteer in the Irish Republican Army during the Irish War of Independence and the Irish Civil War. In later years, he was a Fianna Fáil politician.-Background:...
waited for two hours outside the door of the practice of Dr. James Ashe, a specialist on Merrion Square
Merrion Square
Merrion Square is a Georgian square on the southside of Dublin city centre. It was laid out after 1762 and was largely complete by the beginning of the 19th century. It is considered one of the city's finest surviving squares...
whom French occasionally visited.
On 19 December 1919, the Squad assembled at Kelly’s, known locally as the Halfway House, on the Navan Road in Cabra
Cabra, Dublin
Cabra is a suburb on the northside of Dublin city in Ireland. It is approximately northwest of the city centre, in the administrative area of Dublin City Council. It was commonly known as Cabragh until the early 20th century.- Transport and access:...
. They planned to ambush Lord French, as he made his way from Ashtown railway station
Ashtown railway station
Ashtown is a commuter railway station serving Ashtown, Dublin 15 .It lies on the Dublin to Longford commuter railway route.. The station was opened by the Midland Great Western Railway in 1847 for race specials at the now demolished Phoenix Park Racecourse. It opened fully on 1 August 1902....
to the Phoenix Park
Phoenix Park
Phoenix Park is an urban park in Dublin, Ireland, lying 2–4 km west of the city centre, north of the River Liffey. Its 16 km perimeter wall encloses , one of the largest walled city parks in Europe. It includes large areas of grassland and tree-lined avenues, and since the seventeenth...
. The Lord Lieutenant escaped the ambush, but one of the Volunteers, Martin Savage
Martin Savage
Volunteer Martin Savage was an Officer in the Dublin Brigade of the Irish Republican Army, from Ballisodare, County Sligo....
, was killed.
The next morning, the Irish Independent published an article which described the attackers as "assassins" and included other such terms as "criminal folly", "outrage"' and "murder". Taking these terms as an insult to their dead comrade, it was decided to attack the paper. On the Sunday, at 9pm, between twenty and thirty Volunteers under Clancy entered the offices of the Independent. They informed the editor of their intentions and began to dismantle and smash the machinery. Despite this action, with the assistance of the other Dublin papers, the Independent was able to appear the next day, and the owners were awarded £16,000 pounds in compensation. According to Breen, neither the Independent or any other Dublin paper referred to the IRA as murderers or assassins again.
On the 5 February 1920, members of the Squad, under Clancy, led a raid on the navy and army canteen board garage. In the raid the Dublin Brigade got away with two Ford motor vans and a motorcycle, along with tools and motor parts. The vans would later be used by the Squad in a number of operations.
On 12 February Clancy
Clancy
Clancy is an Irish name coming from the Gaelic Mac Fhlannchaidh.-As a first name:* Clancy Barone, American football coach* Clancy Brown, U.S. actor* Clancy Chassay, English journalist* Clancy Cooper, U.S. actor* Clancy Eccles, Jamaican reggae singer...
again led a team of the Squad, this time in the attempted rescue of Robert Barton
Robert Barton
Robert Childers Barton was an Irish lawyer, soldier, statesman and farmer who participated in the negotiations leading up to the signature of the Anglo-Irish Treaty. His father was Charles William Barton and his mother was Agnes Childers. His wife was Rachel Warren of Boston, daughter of Fiske...
, who was to stand trial before a military tribunal. They planned to intercept the truck transporting the prisoner to Mountjoy Jail. The rescue went according to plan, but when they went to the back of the truck, Barton was not there. Barton had been taken to Marlborough (now McKee) Barracks instead, and he was sentenced the following week to three years and transferred to a prison in England.
Clancy, again in charge, commanded the daylight raid for weapons on the Kings Inns in Dublin, on 21 June 1920. His unit managed to capture a number of British soldiers and a large quantity of weapons and ammunition. Also with Clancy that day was a young Volunteer named Kevin Barry
Kevin Barry
Kevin Gerard Barry was the first Irish republican to be executed by the British since the leaders of the Easter Rising. Barry was sentenced to death for his part in an IRA operation which resulted in the deaths of three British soldiers.Barry's death is considered a watershed moment in the Irish...
who, at 18, was to become the first Volunteer to be executed since the Easter Rising. The haul included 25 rifles, 2 Lewis light machine guns
Lewis Gun
The Lewis Gun is a World War I–era light machine gun of American design that was perfected and widely used by the British Empire. It was first used in combat in World War I, and continued in service with a number of armed forces through to the end of the Korean War...
, as well as the ammunition. The 25 British soldiers were then released as the Volunteers withdrew from the area.
On 11 October 1920, Seán Tracy and Dan Breen
Dan Breen
Daniel "Dan" Breen was a volunteer in the Irish Republican Army during the Irish War of Independence and the Irish Civil War. In later years, he was a Fianna Fáil politician.-Background:...
narrowly escaped capture while staying in a safe house in Fernside, a middle class area of Dublin. Professor Carlon, the owner of the house, was later to die as a result of the attack on the house, along with five British soldiers. Clancy and McKee became actively involved in the protection of both Breen and Tracy.
On 14 October 1920, the Squad, along with Dick McKee and Peadar Clancy, planned to assassinate Hamar Greenwood, and General Tudor
Henry Hugh Tudor
Lieutenant-General Sir Henry Hugh Tudor KCB, CMG was a British soldier who fought as a junior officer in the Second Boer War , and as a senior officer in the First World War , but is now remembered chiefly for his part in the Anglo-Irish War and the Palestine Police.-Early Career: India and South...
, two of the top British officers in Ireland. They met in the back of Clancy’s shop, "The Republican Outfitters", in Talbot Street
Talbot Street
Talbot Street is a city-centre street located on Dublin's Northside and is one of the principal shopping streets of Dublin, running from Connolly station and the IFSC at Amiens Street in the east to Marlborough Street in the west. The street is named after Charles Chetwynd, 3rd Earl of Talbot,...
. When they received intelligence that neither of the officers would be present at the intended event, the operation was called off. As some of the Squad was leaving they met Seán Tracy, and informed him of events. Tracy continued on towards the shop.
Tracy was in the process of planning the rescue of Dan Breen
Dan Breen
Daniel "Dan" Breen was a volunteer in the Irish Republican Army during the Irish War of Independence and the Irish Civil War. In later years, he was a Fianna Fáil politician.-Background:...
, who lay wounded in the Mater Hospital
Mater Misericordiae University Hospital, Dublin
The Mater Misericordiae University Hospital is a major teaching hospital, based at Eccles Street, Phibsboro, on the northside of Dublin, Ireland...
. They had learned that the hospital was to be raided, and wanted to get Breen out in time. According to Dan Breen
Dan Breen
Daniel "Dan" Breen was a volunteer in the Irish Republican Army during the Irish War of Independence and the Irish Civil War. In later years, he was a Fianna Fáil politician.-Background:...
, Tracy had been to intent on providing for his safety that he had neglected his own. Tracy had been followed to "The Republican Outfitters", and he had failed to notice.
The others had not moved much further when they heard the shots ring out. A raid on the shop had been planned, and Tracy had arrived just before the soldiers. Clancy was at Nelson's Pillar
Nelson's Pillar
The Nelson Pillar , known locally as Nelson's Pillar or simply The Pillar, was a large granite pillar topped by a statue of Horatio Nelson in the middle of O'Connell Street, Dublin...
when he saw the trucks filled with soldiers pass, he surmised that the shop was to be raided, but had no way of warning his comrades. Tracy, along with two civilians, was killed in the incident. McKee only narrowly avoided capture, by escaping on a bicycle during the confusion at the time of the shooting.
On 20 November, Clancy, along with members of the GHQ staff, met at 35 Lower Gardiner Street
Gardiner Street
Gardiner Street is in Dublin, Ireland and stretches from the River Liffey at its southern end via Mountjoy Square to Dorset Street at its northern end...
, Dublin. The meeting was called to discuss the final arrangements for what would be the route of the British secret service, with the elimination of the Cairo Gang
Cairo Gang
The Cairo Gang was a group of British Intelligence agents who were sent to Dublin during the Anglo-Irish War to conduct intelligence operations against prominent members of the Irish Republican Army...
. Cathal Brugha
Cathal Brugha
Cathal Brugha was an Irish revolutionary and politician, active in the Easter Rising, Irish War of Independence, and the Irish Civil War and was the first Ceann Comhairle of Dáil Éireann.-Background:...
felt there was insufficient evidence against some of those named, and there was to be no room for doubt. Collins stated that the operation must be done at exactly 9am. Collins remarked: "These whores, the British, have got to learn that Irishmen can turn up on time."
Arrest and interrogation
In the confusion, Conor Clune
Conor Clune
Conor Clune was one of three men along with Dick McKee and Peadar Clancy killed in controversial circumstances in Dublin Castle on Bloody Sunday, 1920, a day that also saw the killing of a network of British spies by the "Squad" unit of the Irish Republican Army and the killing of 14 people in...
had been overlooked and remained in the hotel. The hotel was then raided a few minutes later. Clune was the only one arrested as he was not registered as a guest. This, according to Seán Kavanagh a member of the Squad, would ultimately cost him his life. Clancy and McKee were also arrested in the early hours of the morning in another part of the city, though the Cairo Gang
Cairo Gang
The Cairo Gang was a group of British Intelligence agents who were sent to Dublin during the Anglo-Irish War to conduct intelligence operations against prominent members of the Irish Republican Army...
assassination plan was already in motion, for the next day.
They were captured in Sean Fitzpatrick’s of Gloucester Street and brought to Dublin Castle
Dublin Castle
Dublin Castle off Dame Street, Dublin, Ireland, was until 1922 the fortified seat of British rule in Ireland, and is now a major Irish government complex. Most of it dates from the 18th century, though a castle has stood on the site since the days of King John, the first Lord of Ireland...
. It was later discovered they were betrayed to the British authorities by an ex-British Army serviceman, variously described as “a ne’er do well”, "a drunken bousey" and "a tout". The Squad, led by Bill Stapleton, later killed the spy in a pub near the Five Lamps in Dublin.
Upon their arrest, the three men were taken to the old detective office in the Exchange Court. According to T. Ryle Dwyer, the room was being used as a kind of guardroom, and was furnished with some beds, tables and some stores, which included a box of hand grenades.
Brigadier General Ormonde Winter
Ormonde Winter
Brigadier-General Sir Ormonde de l'Épée Winter KBE CB CMG DSO was a British Army officer and author who after service in World War I was responsible for intelligence operations in Ireland during the Anglo-Irish War...
head of the British Secret Service in Ireland and two Auxiliary Division
Auxiliary Division
The Auxiliary Division of the Royal Irish Constabulary , generally known as the Auxiliaries or Auxies, was a paramilitary organization within the Royal Irish Constabulary during the Irish War of Independence....
officers, Captain Hardy and Captain King, were the British personnel who interrogated Clancy, McKee and Connor Clune.
Death and inquest
According to T. Ryle Dwyer, the prisoners "supposedly" got hold of hand grenades and threw them. One of the sentries testified that he and a colleague heard a noise behind them and noticed that two of the prisoners had thrown the grenades at them. They dived for cover behind some mattresses, but the grenades did not detonate. One of the prisoners was also said to have got hold of a rifle according to one of the guards, which he levelled and fired at the guard commander as he entered the room, but missed. The prisoner then turned the rifle and fired another shot at another guard. The guard said he then fired at the prisoner, and the prisoner dropped, and that the guard commander also fired at the prisoner.The guard commander said, on hearing a noise, he entered the room, and "the prisoner McKee fired at me", and that McKee then turned and fired at the sentry. The guard commander also claimed to have dropped McKee. He then said he saw Clancy with a shovel, and that Clancy was attempting to strike another guard. One of the guards (who had dived behind the mattresses) then fired at Clancy and he fell. A fourth witness was to tell much the same story.
According to Sean O'Mahony, they were tortured in the guardroom in order to extort from them the names of the Volunteers who had earlier that morning shot the fourteen members of the Cairo Gang
Cairo Gang
The Cairo Gang was a group of British Intelligence agents who were sent to Dublin during the Anglo-Irish War to conduct intelligence operations against prominent members of the Irish Republican Army...
. Refusing to talk, they were "subsequently murdered" on the evening of 21 November 1920.
David Neligan
David Neligan , known by his soubriquet "The Spy in the Castle", was an important figure involved in the Irish War of Independence 1919-1921, and subsequently became Director of Intelligence for the Irish Army after the Irish Civil War -Early life:David Neligan was born at Templeglantine, Limerick,...
was adamant that they had not been bayoneted.
Collins arranged for the collection of their bodies when they were released by the military. They were taken to a small chapel at Dublin's Pro-Cathedral
St Mary's Pro-Cathedral
St Mary's Church , known also as St Mary's Pro-Cathedral or simply the Pro-Cathedral, is a pro-cathedral and is the episcopal seat of the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Dublin and Primate of Ireland.-Status as "pro-cathedral":...
. According to Ernie O’Malley, Collins had the bodies of the men examined to ease the minds of their comrades. Piaras Beaslaí contends that the examination showed that McKee had been "savagely mistreated", and said a bayonet had punctured his liver. In addition, he had also suffered broken ribs.
The body of Peadar Clancy, according Daniel McCarthy, was bullet ridden; while Sean O'Mahony contends that McKee had been bayoneted in the liver, and had suffered from a number of broken ribs, abrasions to the face and many bullet wounds. Robert Kee
Robert Kee
Robert Kee CBE is a British broadcaster, journalist and writer, known for his historical works on World War II and Ireland....
, in his work The Green Flag, writes, "though their bodies were riddled with bullets, their faces did not bear the marks of torture and brutality as has often been asserted."
Conor Clune’s employer, the genealogist Edward MacLysaght
Edward MacLysaght
Edward MacLysaght was one of the foremost genealogists of twentieth century Ireland. His numerous books on Irish surnames built upon the work of Patrick Woulfe's Irish Names and Surnames and made him well known to all those researching their family past.-Early life:Edward was born in Flax Bourton...
, took charge of his body when the authorities released it. He then had the body medically examined. The examination proved that Clune had been shot thirteen times in the chest. This, Sean O'Mahony writes, was abundant evidence that the excuse put forward that he was trying to escape was a complete fabrication.
On 24 November 1920, The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
newspaper reported that three Irish Republican prisoners were shot while trying to escape military custody. Sworn affidavits by MacLysaght and evidence given by both British and Republican members "give the lie to the false official version", according to Daniel McCarthy, as the article was published even before the military inquiry had reported its findings.
As a result of these deaths in custody the British authorities held a military court of inquiry. Its report, issued on 3 December 1920, found that death was the result of: "Bullet wounds fired by members of the Auxiliary Division, 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...
, in self defence and in execution of their duty, i.e. in preventing the escape of the deceased party, who was in their lawful custody.
The American Commission for Evidence of Conditions in Ireland commented in 1920 that: "numerous cases had come before the commission where the reason alleged by the Crown forces for shooting civilians has been their connection with the Irish Republican Army and their attempts to escape after they have been made prisoner.
It stretches credibility somewhat, according to Sean O'Mahony, that the garrison of Dublin Castle found it impossible to prevent the escape of three unarmed prisoners from the guardroom without shooting them.
Collins was later provided with information on the Auxiliaries responsible (F Company) through Major Reynolds of F Company. Frank Thornton
Frank Thornton
Frank Thornton is an English actor who is best known for playing Captain Peacock in Are You Being Served? and its sequel Grace & Favour and as Truly in Last of the Summer Wine.-Early life:...
, one of Collins intelligence staff, was to receive information and photographs of the "murder gang", not only of F Company but or Q Company and a number of others also.
Brigadier-General Frank Crozier later resigned in disgust as leader of the Auxiliaries. This came after General Tudor, head of police operations, undermined Crozier’s efforts to discipline some of his men for their conduct. Among them was Captain William King, who was "particularly notorious", and believed by Republicans to have been involved in the deaths in the Castle. King was charged with the death of another two men who also had been killed while trying to escape. The Times newspaper at the time noted that "the postures suggest that the two men had been placed sided by side and with their backs to the wall before being shot". King along with two others were later acquitted.
A book titled Death in the Castle: Three murders in Dublin Castle 1920, written by Sean O'Mahony, and published by 1916–1921 Club
1916–1921 Club
The 1916–1921 Club was founded in the 1940s. The motivation for the Club was to heal the divisions created by the Irish Civil War. Protagonists from both sides were invited to join. The Association of the Old Dublin Brigade, Óglaigh na hÉireann was also open to the surviving members of the War of...
records both the life and deaths of the three Republicans.
Burial
The bodies of McKee and Clancy were laid side by side at a requiem mass in the Pro-Cathedral. Both were dressed in their Volunteer uniforms and their tricolour-draped coffins bore their caps and belts. Michael Collins risked his security to be present at the service. According to Richard MulcahyRichard Mulcahy
Richard James Mulcahy was an Irish politician, army general and commander in chief, leader of Fine Gael and Cabinet Minister...
, Collins was distraught at their deaths, as they were "the two men who fully understood the inside of Collins’ work and his mind, and who were ever ready and able to link up their resources of the Dublin brigade to any work that Collins had in hand, and to do so promptly, effectively and sympathetically.
A photograph of Collins was actually published in the Evening Herald carrying one of the coffins out to the waiting hearse. Collins then went to their graveside, and was filmed stepping from the crowd to lay a wreath on the grave, on which he pinned a farewell note, which read: "In memory of two good friends ― Dick and Peadar ― two of Ireland's best soldiers."
Later Collins, through his intelligence network, discovered the name of Corporal James 'Shankers' Ryan of the Royal Military Police
Royal Military Police
The Royal Military Police is the corps of the British Army responsible for the policing of service personnel, and for providing a military police presence both in the UK, and whilst service personnel are deployed overseas on operations and exercises.Members of the RMP are generally known as...
, who was responsible for the arrest of the two Volunteers. He was killed by The Squad at Hynes' pub in Gloucester Place on 5 February of the same year.
Finglas
-See also:* List of towns and villages in Ireland* List of abbeys and priories in Ireland...
were also named after Clancy, McKee and Clune. In 1939 a commemorative plaque was erected on the external wall of the guardroom of Dublin Castle in Exchange Court next to City Hall. A commemorative bust of Clancy is also displayed on top of a plinth in the main square in Kildysart
Kildysart
Kildysart, officially Killadysert , is a village in County Clare, Ireland. It is on the north bank of the Shannon Estuary on the R473 coastal route between Ennis and Kilrush. Recently re-branded as 'The Fisherman's Haven' it is famed for the excellent fishing resources nearby.-Facilities:Although...
, Co. Clare.
Conor Clune’s body was brought home to Co. Clare for burial, his coffin was draped with the tricolour but when a British Officer objected to it, the presiding priest removed the national flag.
When Clancy was imprisoned in 1920, he participated a hunger strike with his fellow prisoners. It was here that Todd Andrews
Todd Andrews
Christopher Stephen "Todd" Andrews was an Irish political activist and public servant. He participated in the Irish War of Independence and Civil War as a political and military activist in the Irish Republican movement. Todd Andrews never ran for election and was never a government minister...
first met him. In his memoir, Dublin Made Me, Andrews described Clancy's personality: "I was overcome by the extraordinary impact which Clancy’s personality had on me. I had never heard or seen Clancy before nor indeed did I ever see him again but he left an indelible impression of the superman, a man whose commands I at least would have a compulsion to obey as if I had been hypnotised ... In the presence of Clancy I felt a mere puppet on a string."
Andrews also wrote in his book Man of No Property that "I have always believed that all individuals are, as human beings, equally important. My approach to them has been the same, high or low. Two only, among all the people I met, did I put in a class apart: they were Peadar Clancy and Gunnar Myrdal
Gunnar Myrdal
Karl Gunnar Myrdal was a Swedish Nobel Laureate economist, sociologist, and politician. In 1974, he received the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences with Friedrich Hayek for "their pioneering work in the theory of money and economic fluctuations and for their penetrating analysis of the...
.
Dan Breen, in his book My Fight for Irish Freedom, described both Clancy and McKee as "kindred spirits", who belonged to a small band of gunmen who would take any risk in the country’s cause.