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In Fermoy, Ireland |
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Hebron, Lower Mounttown, Dunlaoghaire, Dublin I joined the Volunteers as a boy when the local company was re-organised in Fermoy in July 1917. It was a small company of about fifty men and youths, consisting of all the members of the Sinn Fein Club which had already been in existence for a short time. Shortly after the re-organisation an election of officers was held, and Liam Donn was elected Company Captain, Larry Condon 1st Lieutenant, Liam Lynch 2nd Lieutenant and I, George Power, was appointed Company Adjutant. Weekly parades were held, and simple foot drill was practiced. In conjunction with the Sinn Fein Club, the local villages were visited occasionally on Sundays and joint parades took place with the company of the particular village visited. At this time, no arms were available, but, in spite of this, the Volunteers were enthusiastic and serious. Drilling and parades went on until the conscription crisis arrived in 1918. Meanwhile the ranks of our company had swelled to about 100 men. As the crisis developed, an effort was made to collect arms by raids on the houses of the Loyalists, etc., and about a dozen shotguns were collected and half a dozen revolvers of various calibres. A quantity of gelignite was also got and some progress was made in the making of canister bombs. At the height of the crisis, I went on the run with the other officers of the company, and Liam Lynch arrived in the area from Dublin and was very helpful in organizing the collection of arms, etc. A train which was suspected of carrying ammunition between Mallow and Fermoy was held up and some .505 ammunition was obtained. The conscription crisis passed and on 9th September 1918, all the companies adjacent to Fermoy were grouped into a battalion and known as the Fermoy Battalion. It consisted of Fermoy, Kilworth, Araglen, Rathcormack, Watergrasshill, Glenville and Ballynoe companies. Martin O'Keefe, Ballynoe was appointed O/C. Mick Fitzgerald, who later died on a hunger-strike in Cork was Vice-Commandant. Liam Lynch was Adjutant and was Quartermaster. Liam Lynch was the driving force in organising the battalion and in helping to develop the backward companies. Battalion Council meetings were held weekly, and at least one of the companies was visited by a battalion officer each Sunday. 1919
At this time all Cork consisted of one brigade, but in December, 1918 it was decided to
organise the city and county into three brigades, to be known as Cork I, II, and III.
Accordingly a meeting of the battalion staffs of Fermoy, Castletownroche, Mallow,
Millstreet, Newmarket, Kanturk and Charleville was held at Fermoy on 6th January, 1919.
The meeting was presided over by Tomas MacCurtain. Lynch was unanimously elected
Brigade O/C, Dan Hegarty of Mallow as Vice-Commandant, N. Murphy of Lombardstown as
Adjutant and I, George Power, was elected QuarterMaster. Shortly afterwards, I
exchanged positions with the brigade adjutant and I also carried on the duties of Intelligence
Officer.
The area of the Brigade was from the Cork-Waterford border on the east, to the Kerry border at
Rathmore on the west and from Milford in the north to near Donoughmore in the south.
At this time the strength of the brigade would be about 2,500 men and the armament
would be roughly a dozen rifles, two dozen revolvers and about 200 shotguns. The
British strength consisted of the elements of two Infantry brigades with the headquarters
of one brigade at Fermoy and the other at Ballyvonare.
Fermoy was our Brigade headquarters which was not an ideal arrangement, as Fermoy was
situated at the extreme eastern end of the area. Organisation of the brigade, however,
proceeded under difficulties for the ensuing nine months, as Sundays only were available
for visiting battalions. Brigade Council meetings were held monthly in Mallow, and a
brigade staff officer visited battalions also once each month.
The first important operation of the Brigade was initiated by the Fermoy battalion, when
permission of the brigade was sought to capture Araglin Police Barracks. Plans were
submitted to the brigade, and on a Sunday late in March, Liam Lynch and I made an inspection
of the locality surrounding the barracks. Plans were approved for this attack, and on
4th April, 1919 the barracks was rushed by a small party of picked Volunteers from the
Fermoy battalion led by Mick Fitzgerald. Six rifles, a few revolvers, ammunition and
grenades were captured and the barracks destroyed.
In July of the same year, Lynch and I discussed the possibility of attacking and
disarming a party of British soldiers in Fermoy. G.H.Q. was approached for approval
and after some correspondence, permission was secured, on the understanding that the
casualities to either side should be avoided.
Finally, it was decided to attack a church party of soldiers who went to the Wesleyan Church on each Sunday for Service. This
church was situated at the extreme eastern end of the town about half a mile from the
New Barracks. (There were two Military Barracks in Fermoy, known as the old and the new
barracks; also an aerodrome.)
On Sunday, 7th September, 1919, thirty Volunteers, armed with six revolvers, the remainder having
short thick clubs, mobilised; Also two motor cars were employed to cut off the party
from the rear and to remove captured rifles. I was in charge of one of the cars and Liam
Lynch was in charge of the other. Larry Condon was in charge of the main attacking party,
consisting of himself and five Volunteers, including Mick Fitzgerald and J. Fanning,
O/C of the Fermoy Company.
Scouts signaled the approach of the church party and, at a pre-arranged signal,
the six Volunteers proceeded on the footpath in the direction from which the soldiers were
coming. The church party was rushed and eighteen rifles captured after a short struggle. The
casualties were one British soldier killed and six wounded. Liam Lynch was the only
casualty in the Volunteers, receiving a flesh wound in the shoulder.
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