Kilkenny: In Times of Revolution, 1900–1923

Description

Veteran IRA leader Ernie O’Malley criticised Kilkenny as being ‘slack’ during the War of Independence, but Kilkenny was truly at the forefront of the struggle for Irish freedom. No Kilkenny inhabitant escaped the revolutionary era untouched, especially during the turbulence of 1916 and the Civil War.

Kilkenny has been overlooked in accounts of this period, and this book rectifies that neglect with superb use of previously unseen archival material: aimed at both the general reader and anyone with an interest in Kilkenny and the Irish Revolution, the main personalities and events in the broader national context are illuminated by the key events and personalities of the county.

All major battles and altercations are impartially examined, along with the record of Kilkenny fatalities during the War of Independence, listing for the first time all those from Kilkenny – combatants and civilians – killed during the Truce and the Civil War, revealing an even more deadly conflict than anyone has previously believed.

Table of Contents

Foreword ~ Diarmaid Ferriter

1. Calm before the Storm (1900–1915)
2. Kilkenny 1916: The Fight that Never Was
3. By-Elections and the ‘Big flu’:  Brewing up a Storm (1917–18)
4. War of Independence Part 1 (January 1919–December 1920)
5. War of Independence Part 2:  Martial Law (January–July 1921)
6. War of Independence: Civilian Fatalities and Analysis
7. Kilkenny’s Political and Civil Counter-State (1919–1921)
8. A Truce; in every which way but Loose (July 1921–March 1922)
9. Civil War in all but name; the Battle of Kilkenny (April–June 1922)
10. Civil War officially: A Summer of Discontent (June–August 1922)
11. Civil War: Executions and the Return to Guerrilla Fighting (September–December 1922)
12. The Close of Civil War and its Aftermath (January–September 1923)
13. Civil War: Civilian Fatalities and Analysis
14. Everyday Life in County Kilkenny in Times of Trouble (1919–1923)

Conclusion

About the Author

Eoin Swithin Walsh is from Mooncoin, Co. Kilkenny, and has a Master’s degree in Modern Irish History from UCD supervised by Diarmaid Ferriter. He has worked with the 1916 Rebellion and Michael Collins walking tours of Dublin, and currently works in the civil service in a governmental role.