Tag Archives: Civil War

A civil war has erupted in West Clare over the treatment of road verges and hedging, with half of the population insisting that they are cut and the other half determined that they be left alone. A number of councillors urged the local Clare County Council to increase the level of hedge cutting at this week’s first meeting of the newly elected West Clare Municipal District. However, councillor were warned that any attempt to cut hedging outside of the legal season would lead to a barrage of emails from constituents who would labelling the local authority as “environmental vandals”. It is currently illegal to cut or destroy hedges in Ireland between March 1 and August 31, to protect vulnerable nature such as nesting birds. However, exceptions are allowed in areas where the safety of motorists is in question. A spokesperson from Clare County Council also said that the ultimate responsibility for maintaining the hedges lay with the landowners and that …

Historian Dr Tomás Mac Conmara examines the story of IRA Volunteer Murt Moloney, shot dead by Free State forces 100 years ago this weekend. ‘I was standing with my hands up when a bullet struck me. There were two soldiers standing in front of me, about 9 or 10 yards away’ The final words of Murt Moloney as he was being removed to Ennistymon infirmary, recounted by Dr D.J. Keane, who attended him on that journey. Moloney had been shot by a member of a Free State military unit, who had come to arrest both him and his brother Tomás in the final month of the Irish Civil War. While Dr Keane claimed that Murt did not name his killer, this would be disputed by Murt’s father, who was also by his son’s side and listened with the intensity only such occasions can encourage. Murt Moloney was born on 12th December 1901 to Martin and Bridget Moloney (nee Clune) in …

A FASCINATING historical collection including what is believed to be Michael Collins’ ‘Missing Money Case’ has been unveiled for the first time. The Clare Champion has been shown very rare historical artefacts by a local farmer in an East Clare location that would be regarded as a collector’s dream. The family, who are steeped in IRA connections, provided safe houses for IRA volunteers during the War of Independence, which were used by Michael Collins on at least one occasion to collect money from East Clare IRA Brigade officer in charge, Michael Brennan. During the War of Independence, Collins was Director of Intelligence of the Irish Republican Army (IRA) and a government minister of the self-declared Irish Republic. He was then Chairman of the Provisional Government of the Irish Free State from January 1922 and commander-in-chief of the National Army from July until he was shot and killed in an ambush at Béal na Bláth by anti-Treaty forces on August 22, …

A UNIQUE exhibition on the Irish Civil War of 1922-23 entitled ‘An Alchemy of the Civil War’ is now on at the Clare Museum. Artist Marie Connole has created a series of watercolours to represent various incidents from around County Clare. She worked with historian Brian Spring to develop the visual timeline of events from 100 years ago. The influence of 16th century alchemical illustrations is the starting point for these fact-based images. Alchemists sought to transform certain materials through chemical experimentation. They believed base metals such as lead could be “perfected” into gold. Connole uses this experimental process as a metaphor for understanding the Irish Civil War. During the War of Independence many Irish men and women sought the Utopian ideal of an Independent Gaelic island nation. However their methods, actions and ideas for achieving this shared ideal were markedly different. The repercussions from the Civil War that followed persist to this day. Connole’s symbolic paintings blend trauma, history …

The strength of The Clare Champion’s roots in the very fabric of the county’s history was emphasised at an event celebrating the completion of an innovative project. The Clare Roots Society has been working in conjunction with The Champion, collecting and recording biographical notices for the years 1903 to 1934. As a result of the hard work of dedicated volunteers, the project is now complete, resulting in about 7,000 biographical notices being collated. The information has been donated to Clare Library and the online version is now live on the library’s website. To celebrate the completion of the project, a function was held recently at The Old Ground Hotel. Editor of The Clare Champion, Austin Hobbs told those gathered that the newspaper was delighted to be involved with the project. He said the newspaper has played an important part in people’s lives over the years in Clare. “We have seen evidence of this in the amount of letters, and these days …