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| Bridgeport Times and Evening Farmer, 22-November 22-1920 |
100 years ago today, on 21-November-1920, Irish Republican Army soldiers assassinated several British undercover intelligence agents. Later in the day, the unionist Black and Tans attacked a crowd in a football stadium, massacring men, women and children. Still later in the day, three IRA men were arrested and taken to Dublin Castle where they were beaten and shot dead while "attempting to escape."
DUBLIN HAS A BLOODY SUNDAY
Many Dead as Black And
Tans Fire on Crowds At
Ball Game in Croke Park
Reprisals Succeed Killing of British Army Officers in
Gresham Hotel -- Police Had Armored Car and Machine Guns --
Several of Wounded Have Fatal Injuries.
(By EARLE C. REEVES, International News Service Staff Correspondent)
London. Nov. 22 -- More than thirty persons were killed, including
14 army officers and Black and Tan policemen, and 70 were wounded in
the terrific outbreak of assassination and reprisal violence which marked
"Bloody Sunday" at Dublin, according to a Dublin dispatch to the Evening
News today.
Later advices telling of further killings during the night Indicated that
the death list might exceed thirty.
A civilian was shot to death in Mount Joy Square at midnight while
on his way home.
Two corpses were picked up in Merrion street. A dead man was found
in a house near Croke Park. He is believed to have been killed at the
park and carried into the house.
A ministerial council was summoned during the morning to discuss the
latest Irish outbreak.
The situation Is more menacing than ever before and the Daily Mail
reports that the government is making hasty preparations to send heavy
troop reinforcements into Ireland. English officials express fears that
the campaign of assassination may spread from Ireland to England.
There was intense military activity at Dublin throughout the night.
Many arrests were made.
Fires broke out and there was much
shooting.
The curfew regulations at Dublin
have been tightened and all train
service has been suspended. The
mail service via Kingstown, has been
suspended also.
The disorders spread outside of
Dublin to Drangin, where a civilian
was killed in a clash between policemen
and Republicans. A number
of arrests were made.
Premier Lloyd-George, War Secretary
Winston Churchill and Sir Hammar
Greenwood. secretary for Ireland,
are keeping in constant touch
with Dublin Castle by telephone and
wireless.
"It is incumbent upon the government
to crush the Irish murder campaign
and martial law throughout
Ireland seems the only sure remedy,"
said the Morning Post.
The two main attacks on Sunday
occurred at the Gresham Hotel where
a number of army officers, who had
taken part in recent courts martial
of Sinn Feiners, were living; and at
Croke Park. Sniping broke out at
Croke Park during a football match
and Black and Tan policemen opened
fire upon the crowd.
The attack upon British army
officers at the Hotel Gresham was
carefully executed and after the shooting
most of the assailants immediately
disappeared. Nearly all of the
officers were in bed when the Sinn
Feiners broke into the hotel.
Official dispatches from Dublin Castle
say that the trouble at Croke Park
was precipitated by Sinn Fein lookouts
posted on the top of the fence
surrounding the Park. The lookouts
were said to have opened fire upon
the British soldiers and Black and
Tan policemen without warning.
There was only a narrow entrance to
the Park and panic broke out when
the men, women and children spectators
made a wild dash for the opening.
According to the Daily Herald's
Dublin correspondent, the shooting of
civilians by Black and Tan policemen
at Croke Park was a veritable massacre.
The Black and Tan policemen
broke down the barriers around the
park and opened fire indiscriminately
upon a crowd of women and children,"
said the Daily Herald despatch.
From other sources, it was learned
that the British soldiers and Black
and Tan policemen that invaded
Croke Park were accompanied by
armored cars bearing machine guns.
The officers explained that they were
looking for two men who had taken
part in the killing of army officers at
the Gresham hotel during the morning.
When the armed forces opened
fire upon the crowd, many men,
women and children were thrown to the
ground and trampled in the rush.
Eleven of the wounded were said to
have received fatal injuries.
Captain Crawford of the motor
repair depot of the army service corps.
who was living at- the Gresham hotel
with his wife, had a narrow escape.
His experience was thus described by
the Dublin correspondent of the Daily
Express:
"A band of men stopped a hall
porter and ordered him to show them
Captain Crawford's room. They found
the officer sitting beside his bed
reading a newspaper. The raiders
accused . him of being a Secret Service
agent and threatened to shoot him.
After menacing him with their pistols
for a while, the men departed, warning
Captain Crawford to leave Ireland
at once if he valued his life.
According to an official announcement
by Dublin Castle, there were
two different bands of men who
attacked army officers and British
officials. One consisted of 25 men; the
other of 12.
The official announcement said that
in addition to the officers killed, four
others were desperately wounded.
Dublin Castle said that the high
British military officials feared
reprisals and special precautions had
been taken to prevent them.
"The outbreak was a foul culmination
of murderous wickedness on both
sides," said the Daily Mail, commenting
upon the 'wholesale killings.
"Reprisals cannot succeed. They have
already brought chaos and shame to
England."
"Incalculable harm has been done
to the cause of Ireland," said the
Times.
Sir Hamar Greenwood, Chief Secretary for Ireland held a long conference with Premier Lloyd-George to
devise means of checking the terrific
growth of Irish violence.
Following the wave of assassination
and reprisal violence on Sunday,
Dublin was taken over by British
troops. The Dublin population spent
a night of terror. Street fighting
broke out between Sinn Fein
volunteers and Black and Tan policemen
and many were wounded on both
sides. Several Sinn Feiners were
captured. Troops surrounded Dublin
while policemen in the city made
numerous raids, arresting large
numbers of persons.
Threats of assassination have been
made against officials of the Irish
office. All of the officials are armed. A
triple guard of policemen surrounds
the Irish office.
In addition to the attack upon
British officers and officials in Dublin
on Sunday morning, when 14 were
killed and the reprisal attack by
Black and Tan policemen at Croke
Park Sunday afternoon, when many
civilians were killed and wounded,
Dublin Castle today reported
outbreaks in other parts of Ireland
where several persons were shot to
death.
A detachment of Black and Tans
were ambushed near Leat. One was
killed and the others were seriously
wounded.
Constable Kearney was dangerously
wounded at Dewry. Subsequently
Black and Tans raided the town.
The telegraph wires became silent
during the morning and at noon the
Irish office announced that no further
details had been received of Irish
outbreaks.
An earlier dispatch from Cork said
that British soldiers and Black and
Tans were making wholesale raids.
Sinn Fein leaders at Cork claim to
have information that the British
authorities plan to equip automobiles
with poison gas projectors for the
protection of military lorries from
ambuscades.
The body of an unidentified officer
was found near Cork early today.
Near Knappagh, a boy was killed
by shots which were said to have been
fired from a military lorry.
Raids continued at Dublin throughout
today. British soldiers occupied
Mansion House (the official residence
of the Lord Mayor of Dublin) and
several leading hotels. All non-resident
British officers were recalled to
the barracks at Dublin and other
Irish cities.
Advices received at 3:10 this afternoon,
put the number of dead in Ireland
since Saturday at 31.
Troops and Black and Tan police in
armored cars surrounded the Cork
city hall, Carnegie hall, the Corn
Exchange building and all the county
buildings at Cork. Search was made
for public documents, but it was
found that many of the official papers
had been removed by unknown persons
during the night.
