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"Belfast Brigade" is an Irish folk song to the tune of the "Battle Hymn of the Republic".
| | This article needs additional citations for verification .(February 2010) |
"Belfast Brigade" is an Irish folk song to the tune of the "Battle Hymn of the Republic".
The song is about the Belfast Brigade of the Irish Republican Army (IRA), and in particular the 1st, or West Belfast battalion, during the Irish War of Independence in the 1920s. Reference is made to James Craig, 1st Viscount Craigavon, the first Prime Minister of Northern Ireland who is accused of sending the 'Specials' or Ulster Special Constabulary, to 'shoot the people down'. This is a reference to the large number of Catholics who were killed by the Special Constabulary in the conflict. In Christy Moore's version the lyrics in this verse are "the Black and Tans from London came to shoot the people down" [1]
Reference is also made to Seaforde Street in the Short Strand area of east Belfast, which was often the scene of armed encounters between the IRA, British forces and loyalist gunmen. Alternative versions of the song contain a reference to the Falls Road area instead of Seaforde Street. Other lyrics specific to the 1920s are references to armoured cars and Crossley Tenders armoured trucks which were used by the Northern Ireland Security forces at the time. The British use of such heavy weaponry is contrasted with the poor arms possessed by the IRA, who are nevertheless, 'ready to defend ourselves no matter where we go'. The Song Includes the original war cry of the Belfast Brigade, "No surrender! Is the war cry of the Belfast Brigade."
In some versions of the song, there is an allusion to the politics of the Irish Civil War of 1922-1923, 'We're out for our Republic and to hell with your Free State'. The Belfast Brigade in fact largely supported Michael Collins during the civil war, although many of them changed their opinion when it became clear that the Partition of Ireland would be permanent. In other versions of the song, this internal Republican disagreement is not mentioned, the words being changed to, 'Orangemen may live in dread'.
During the Spanish Civil War (1936–1939), the Connolly Column, an Irish volunteer unit of the 15th International Brigade, sang the song while fighting against Francisco Franco's nationalists.
In the 1970s, with the onset of The Troubles, another version of the song emerged about the Provisional IRA Belfast Brigade. The lyrics were changed to 'the British Army came to Belfast to shoot the people down...'
The Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) was the police force in Northern Ireland from 1922 to 2001. It was founded on 1 June 1922 as a successor to the Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC) following the partition of Ireland. At its peak the force had around 8,500 officers, with a further 4,500 who were members of the RUC Reserve.
The Irish War of Independence or Anglo-Irish War was a guerrilla war fought in Ireland from 1919 to 1921 between the Irish Republican Army and British forces: the British Army, along with the quasi-military Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC) and its paramilitary forces the Auxiliaries and Ulster Special Constabulary (USC). It was part of the Irish revolutionary period.
The Ulster Special Constabulary was a quasi-military reserve special constable police force in what would later become Northern Ireland. It was set up in October 1920, shortly before the partition of Ireland. The USC was an armed corps, organised partially on military lines and called out in times of emergency, such as war or insurgency. It performed this role most notably in the early 1920s during the Irish War of Independence and the 1956–1962 IRA Border Campaign.
In the music of Ireland, Irish rebel songs are folk songs which are primarily about the various rebellions against British Crown rule. Songs about prior rebellions are a popular topic of choice among musicians which supported Irish nationalism and republicanism.
Events from the year 1920 in Ireland.
"The Patriot Game" is an Irish ballad with lyrics by Dominic Behan and a melody from the traditional tune "One Morning in May", first released in 1958.
The South Armagh Brigade of the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) operated during the Troubles in south County Armagh. It was organised into two battalions, one around Jonesborough and another around Crossmaglen. By the 1990s, the South Armagh Brigade was thought to consist of about 40 members, roughly half of them living south of the border. It has allegedly been commanded since the 1970s by Thomas 'Slab' Murphy who is also alleged to be a member of the IRA's Army Council. Compared to other brigades, the South Armagh IRA was seen as an 'independent republic' within the republican movement, retaining a battalion organizational structure and not adopting the cell structure the rest of the IRA was forced to adopt after repeated intelligence failures.
This is a timeline of the Irish War of Independence of 1919–21. The Irish War of Independence was a guerrilla conflict and most of the fighting was conducted on a small scale by the standards of conventional warfare.
Antoine Mac Giolla Bhrighde, English Tony or Anthony MacBride, was a Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) volunteer from Desertmartin, County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. He was shot dead by the British Army in 1984 whilst engaged in an attack on the Royal Ulster Constabulary.
Joseph McKelvey was an Irish Republican Army officer who was executed during the Irish Civil War without trial or court martial. He participated in the Anti-Treaty IRA's repudiation of the authority of the Dáil Éireann, the civil government of the Irish Republic declared in 1919 in March 1922, and was elected to the IRA Army Council as Deputy Chief of Staff. In April 1922, he helped command the occupation of the Four Courts in defiance of the new Irish Free State. This action helped to spark the civil war, between pro- and anti-treaty factions. McKelvey was among the most hardline of the republican side and, briefly in June 1922, became IRA Chief of Staff.
William Reid was a member of the Belfast Brigade of the Provisional Irish Republican Army. Reid killed the first soldier of the British Army in the Troubles and was later himself killed as he attempted another ambush of British Army personnel.
During 12–16 August 1969, there was an outbreak of political and sectarian violence throughout Northern Ireland, which is often seen as the beginning of the thirty-year conflict known as the Troubles. There had been sporadic violence throughout the year arising out of the Northern Ireland civil rights campaign, which demanded an end to discrimination against Catholics and Irish nationalists. Civil rights marches had been attacked by Protestant loyalists, and protesters often clashed with the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC), the overwhelmingly Protestant police force.
The Belfast Brigade of the Irish Republican Army (IRA) was formed in March 1921 during the Irish War of Independence, when the IRA was re-organised by its leadership in Dublin. Joe McKelvey was appointed commander of the Third Northern Division, responsible for Belfast and the surrounding area. There were three battalions within the Brigade, the 1st in West Belfast, the 2nd in North Belfast and the Third in East Belfast. Most of the Brigade's attacks on Crown forces were carried out by an Active Service Unit within the 1st battalion, led by Roger McCorley. McCorley and Seamus Woods were leaders of a very active IRA Active Service Unit in Belfast which targeted the Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC) - Auxiliaries and Black and Tans.
Roger McCorley was an Irish republican activist.
The McMahon killings or the McMahon murders occurred on 24 March 1922 when six Catholic civilians were shot dead at the home of the McMahon family in Belfast, Northern Ireland. A group of police officers broke into their house at night and shot all eight males inside, in an apparent sectarian attack. The victims were businessman Owen McMahon, four of his sons, and one of his employees. Two others were shot but survived, and a female family member was assaulted. The survivors said most of the gunmen wore police uniform and it is suspected they were members of the Ulster Special Constabulary (USC). It is believed to have been a reprisal for the Irish Republican Army's (IRA) killing of two policemen on May Street, Belfast the day before.
The Arnon Street killings, also referred to as the Arnon Street murders or the Arnon Street massacre, took place on 1 April 1922 in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Six Catholic civilian men and boys, three in Arnon Street, were shot or beaten to death by men who broke into their homes. It is believed that policemen carried out the attack, members of either the Ulster Special Constabulary (USC) or Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC), in retaliation for the killing of an RIC officer by the Irish Republican Army (IRA).
Bloody Sunday or Belfast's Bloody Sunday was a day of violence in Belfast, Northern Ireland on 10 July 1921, during the Irish War of Independence. The violence erupted one day before a truce began, which ended the war in most of Ireland. With the truce nearing, police launched a raid against republicans, but were ambushed by the Irish Republican Army (IRA) and an officer was killed. In retaliation, Protestant loyalists attacked Catholic enclaves in west Belfast, burning homes and businesses. This sparked rioting and gun battles between Protestants and Catholics, including paramilitaries. There were also gun battles between republicans/nationalists and the police, and some police patrols fired indiscriminately at Catholic civilians. Seventeen people were killed or fatally wounded on 10 July, and a further three were killed or fatally wounded before the truce began at noon on 11 July. At least 100 people were wounded. About 200 houses were destroyed or badly damaged, most of them Catholic homes, leaving 1,000 people homeless. See: The Troubles in Northern Ireland (1920–1922).
The Battle of Lenadoon was a series of gun battles fought over a six day period from 9–14 July 1972 between the Provisional IRA and the British Army. It started on Thursday, 9 July 1972 in and around the Lenadoon Avenue area and spread to other places in Belfast. Loyalist paramilitaries and the Official Irish Republican Army were involved in some of the incidents. 28 people in total were killed in Belfast according to the CAIN: Sutton Index of Deaths. The violence ended a two-week truce between the forces of the British Government and the IRA.
Throughout the protracted conflict in Northern Ireland (1960s-1998), the Provisional IRA developed a series of improvised mortars to attack British Army and Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) security bases. The organisation also purchased both light and heavy machine guns in order to hamper the British Army supply of border bases by helicopter. The IRA fitted vehicles, specially vans and trucks, with both types of weapons. Vans, trucks and tractors were modified to transport concealed improvised mortars to a launch area near the intended target and fire them, while light and heavy trucks were employed as firing platforms mounting machine guns, particularly M60s and DShKs. Improvised armoured vehicles and heavy equipment were also used to penetrate the perimeter of fortified security bases. The IRA vehicles were often disguised as belonging to civilian companies or even government agencies.
The Troubles of the 1920s was a period of conflict in what is now Northern Ireland from June 1920 until June 1922, during and after the Irish War of Independence and the partition of Ireland. It was mainly a communal conflict between Protestant unionists, who wanted to remain part of the United Kingdom, and Catholic Irish nationalists, who backed Irish independence. During this period, more than 500 people were killed in Belfast alone, 500 interned and 23,000 people were made homeless in the city, while approximately 50,000 people fled the north of Ireland due to intimidation. Most of the victims were Nationalists (73%) with civilians being far more likely to be killed compared to the military, police or paramilitaries.
