#OnThisDay 1945 The first atomic bomb was dropped over the city of Hiroshima killing over 70,000 people & injuring more. Galway born nun Julia Canny, a former Japanese POW was in the convent, survived the blast & helped other survivors as best she could.
#OnThisDay 1887 Company Sergeant Major Robert Hill Hanna was born in Kilkeel, Down. Hanna was awarded the Victoria Cross for actions at the Battle of Hill 70 in 1917. Hanna & his men attacked a fortified position that day & he personally killed four gunners.
#OnThisDay 1943 The 38th (Irish) Brigade cross the Simeto River having just captured the town of Centuripe in Sicily in the face of heavy German resistance. Casualties were heavy but the 38th had crossed the river by 9pm.
#OnThisDay 1922 The IRA’s ‘Bridges Job’ plot was foiled when an IRA intelligence officer was captured by the Free State Army. This plan involved blowing all the bridges around Dublin city in a bid to isolate it form the rest of the country.
#OnThisDay 1864 At the Battle of Mobile Bay, the Union Army & Navy launched an attack on two Confederate forts to stop blockade runners. In the fighting, 14 Irish men in the navy were awarded the Medal of Honor. Roughly 20% of the Union Navy were Irishmen.
One of the fourteen Irish men to receive the MOH was Richard Dunphy, a coal heaver on USS Hartford (in picture). Dunphy lost both arms above the elbow from a shrapnel wound. He struggled with everyday tasks for the rest of his life &later had an alcohol addiction & became abusive to his wife.
The Irish at War 