#OnThisDay 1923 Five Free State Army deserters were executed by firing squad in Portobello Barracks, Dublin. They had aided the Anti-Treaty IRA in an ambush the previous December. They were the first National Army soldiers to be executed for Treachery.
#OnThisDay 1901 John Barry VC from Kilkenny died. While surrounded by Boers, Private Barry rendered his Maxim machine-gun useless to prevent it being turned on his own men, but was killed while doing so. For this he was awarded the Victoria Cross.
#OnThisDay 1945 Irish-American Major Thomas McGuire, one of the most decorated US fighter pilots, the second highest scoring US ace of WW2 & Medal of Honor recipient crashed his P-38 (Pudgy) in a dogfight & died over the Philippines.
#OnThisDay 1922 The Second Dáil ratified the Anglo-Irish Treaty by 64-57 thus creating the legal process for the formation of the Irish Free State & sowing the seeds for the Irish Civil War. De Valera resigned as President. Sinn Fein split.
#OnThisDay 1921 Sean MacEoin made a lucky escape from a house in Longford, surrounded by RIC & British troops. MacEoin walked out the front door, shot & killed the first man, D.I. McGrath, & then cleared himself a path by throwing a grenade at the others.
#OnThisDay 1878 John O’Neill passed away. O’Neill was born in Monaghan but emigrated to the US during the Famine. He fought in the US Civil War & in 1866 launched the Fenian invasion of Canada,winning the battle of Ridgeway & successfully evacuating afterwards. #Ireland #History
To,
Markievicz
Skinnider
Kearns
O’Malley
Hackett
Coyle
Wyse-Power
Gifford
Sweeney
O’Farrell
And all other amazing Irish women from history and the present,
Happy #NollaignamBan
