Dr. Conor McNamara Knihy

This landmark study of the life of republican leader Liam Mellows brings together letters, speeches, political writings and captured IRA documents to explore his short but dramatic life. Mellows was at the forefront of the republican movement in Ireland from its inception. Following the Easter Rising, he spent four years as the IRA's representative in New York, attempted to import arms into Ireland, was jailed, and - worst of all - branded an informer by the Mayor of New York. Arriving back in Ireland in 1920, Mellows was responsible for the importation of arms for the republican forces during the Independence struggle. Bitterly opposed to the Anglo-Irish Treaty, he became an implacable opponent of Michael Collins, and his role in helping form the anti-Treaty IRA in 1922 contributed to the outbreak of the Civil War. Mellows' execution in December 1922 was among the most divisive acts of the new Irish state, and he remains an enigmatic icon for Irish republicans. Liam Mellows, Soldier of the Irish Republic, examines his beliefs, his fraught personal relationships and political betrayals, and sheds new light on his struggle in the face of seemingly overwhelming odds.

The Easter Rebellion 1916 was one of the first comprehensively documented political rebellions in the 20th century. A generation of revolutionaries left iconic photographs, manuscripts, personal notebooks, letters and political cartoons. This material is gathered together in a riveting exploration of this violent and tragic event.

"The people generally are out for a Republic and they propose to get it."-County Inspector RIC, West Galway, July 1920 *** The period 1913-22 witnessed extraordinary upheaval in Irish society. The Easter Rising of 1916 facilitated the emergence of new revolutionary forces and the eruption of guerrilla warfare. In Galway and elsewhere in the west, the new realities wrought by World War One saw the emergence of a younger generation of impatient revolutionaries. In 1916, Liam Mellows led his Irish Volunteers in a Rising in east Galway, and up to 650 rebels took up defensive positions at Moyode Castle. From the western shores of Connemara to market towns such as Athenry, Tuam, and Galway, local communities were subject to unprecedented use of terror by the Crown Forces. Meanwhile, conflict over land, an enduring grievance of the poor, threatened to overwhelm parts of Galway with sustained land seizures and cattle drives by the rural population. War and Revolution in the West of Ireland: Galway, 1913-1922 provides fascinating insights into the revolutionary activities of the ordinary men and women who participated in the struggle for independence. In this compelling new account, Galway historian Conor McNamara unravels the complex web of identity and allegiance that characterised the west of Ireland, exploring the enduring legacy of a remarkable and contested era. [Subject: Irish Studies, History, Military History]