‘Stakeknife’

179 Ben Dunne KidnappingIn October 1981 the IRA kidnapped the supermarket millionaire, Ben Dunne, who was held for six days before being released. Mystery surrounds this event as it was never established if the ransom was paid, but allegations suggest that the Irish Taoiseach, Charles Haughey, intervened in his released fora financial sum. It isContinue reading “‘Stakeknife’”

53 Sinn Fein Split at Dublin

Similar to the schism between the Old and Provisional IRA by the close of 1969, its political wing, Sinn Fein, found itself freeing itself from the Southern leadership at their Ard Fheis (partyconference) after a decision was voted on – and passed – to abandon their long held, and firmly entrenched stance on ‘abstentionism’ (i.e.Continue reading “53 Sinn Fein Split at Dublin”

1974 – Two General Elections

On the 9th December 1973, the Sunningdale Agreement wassigned. It was an attempt by the British Government, the IrishGovernment and the Northern Irish Government to provide analternative approach to government in Northern Ireland thatwould also integrate Unionist, SDLP and other political partiesinto a power-sharing Executive. The result was significantopposition from Unionists – an escalation inContinue reading “1974 – Two General Elections”

#1 The Campaign for Social Justice

The Campaign for Social Justice was established in 1964 by Patricia and Dr Conn McCluskey. The husband and wife were based in County Tyrone and were the founding fathers of the Civil Rights movement in Northern Ireland, as a response to the discrimination against the Nationalist Catholic communi￾ties in areas such as housing and employment.

#260 Good Friday Agreement

After over 30 years of sectarian violence and political disagreements and stalemates, the Good Friday Agreement, facilitated by the U.S. senator George Mitchell, was signed on the 10th April 1998 by Prime Minister Tony Blair (UK Government), Taoiseach, Bertie Ahern, (Irish Government) and representatives from the eight main political parties in Northern Ireland. The agreementContinue reading “#260 Good Friday Agreement”

#199 The Brighton Bombing

The 1983 General Election saw Margaret Thatcher’s Conservative party maintain power after a landslide win at the polls, and which witnessed the Labour experience its worst electoral performance in its history. In Northern Ireland, despite the widening of electoral boundaries from 12 to 17 seats, the Nationalist parties lost Fermanagh & South Tyrone, holding onlyContinue reading “#199 The Brighton Bombing”

90 Secret Talks: London

Friday 7th July 1972. London. Gerry Adams had been released from detention in order to attend the meeting, along with Martin McGuiness, Séamus Twomey, Seán MacStiofáin, Dáithí Ó Conaill, Ivor Bell, all of whom were flown to London. The meeting took place at the Chelsea home of Mr Paul Channon, then Minister of State forContinue reading “90 Secret Talks: London”

13 1966 The Times: John Bull’s Political Slum

The Sunday Times, on the 3rd July 1966, coinciding with a royal visit to Northern Ireland, published the article ‘John Bull’s Political Slum’, criticising Britain’s failure to intervene in thegerrymandering of the political architecture of Northern Ire￾land, and the high levels of unemployment in Catholic communities. This was against the backdrop of three recent killingsContinue reading “13 1966 The Times: John Bull’s Political Slum”

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