#OnThisDay 1922 Anti-Treaty forces under Michael Kilroy launch a surprise attack on Free State troops during a prayer service in Ballina, Mayo. Kilroy’s men capture 100 rifles, 20,000 rounds of ammunition & loot £25,000 worth of goods from local shops. Kilroy will later admit drunkenness was the cause of the looting. Two civilians were killed in the fight, one being a teenage girl Constance (Connie) Tynan from Tullamore who was visiting her aunt on Bridge Street. Malachy Geraghty was the other deceased, shot through the mouth as he looked for cover. A young boy’s sheepdog was also hit from stray bullets fired by the IRA’s Ballinalee armoured car.
#Ireland #History
The Irish at War 