THE TRAGIC DEATH OF KEVIN BARRY
There are few deaths associated with the Irish fight for independence as poignant or as tragic as that of Kevin Barry who was hanged when just 18 years old.
Born in 1902 in Dublin he grew up both in the capital city and in County Carlow. He enrolled in Belvedere College in the very heart of Dublin in 1916 and joined the Irish Volunteers, a nationalist organisation. In 1919 he enrolled in Dublin University to study medicine. The Michael Collins led War of Independence was developing and Barry, as Section Commander, played his part in various raids around Dublin city.
On September 20th 1920 he took part in one such raid that was to have the gravest of personal consequences. The raid developed into a full-blown gun-battle on the streets during which three British soldiers were killed. This was of huge significance as the dead soldiers were the first British military deaths in Ireland since the 1916 Easter Rising that had changed Irish history forever. Barry hid under a truck as the British searched for him but was discovered when a passer-by, concerned for his safety underneath the huge vehicle, inadvertently warned the soldiers of his whereabouts.
Reports of his torture in Mountjoy Jail soon circulated but Barry refused to name his comrades and was given a death sentence that was widely believed would be commuted to a prison term. It was believed that the British authorities would not dare to execute an eighteen year-old.
As the deadline for his execution approached the situation became more and more desperate. A planned rescue by Michael Collins came to nothing when reinforcements from Dublin Castle were ordered to the prison because of the large crowds that had gathered outside. It was reported that Barry had requested to be shot by firing squad rather than be hanged, which he viewed as a death not befitting a soldier.
The hangman, Ellis, had to be brought into the country from England, as no-one in Ireland could be found for the job. The calmness and bravery the young Barry showed in the hours leading up to his execution has become the stuff of legends. Despite protestations from clerics and politicians alike he was hanged in Mountjoy Jail on November 1st, 1920.
Some lessons are never learned. After the 1916 Easter Rising the British authorities had badly misjudged the situation, executing the leaders, Pearse and Connolly among them, creating instant martyrs, turning public opinion in favour of the rebels. Had they simply imprisoned the leaders of 1916 it is possible that the huge upsurge in support for Irish nationalism would not have taken place, and certainly not as quickly as it did.
By executing a man of such tender years, a teenager as Kevin Barry was in 1920, the British again handed the Irish Republican Army a huge propaganda victory, albeit at a terrible cost. Young recruits flocked to join the IRA in the War of Independence, which in turn led to the Treaty, the Partition of Ireland, the Civil War, Independence and all that has occurred since.
It was reported that Michael Collins bitterly regretted not being able to save the young volunteer.
~~
The famous song 'Kevin Barry' was penned shortly
after his death and is still revived in ballad
sessions in Ireland to this very day:
1. In Mountjoy jail one Monday morning
High upon the gallows tree,
Kevin Barry gave his young life
For the cause of liberty.
But a lad of eighteen summers,
Still there's no one can deny,
As he walked to death that morning,
He proudly held his head on high.
2. Just before he faced the hangman,
In his dreary prison cell,
The Black and Tans tortured Barry,
Just because he wouldn't tell.
The names of his brave comrades,
And other things they wished to know.
'Turn informer and we'll free you'
Kevin Barry answered, 'No'.
3. 'Shoot me like a soldier.
Do not hang me like a dog,
For I fought to free old Ireland
On that still September morn.
'All around the little bakery
Where we fought them hand to hand,
Shoot me like a brave soldier,
For I fought for Ireland.'
4. 'Kevin Barry, do not leave us,
On the scaffold you must die!'
Cried his broken-hearted mother
As she bade her son good-bye.
Kevin turned to her in silence
Saying, 'Mother, do not weep,
For it's all for dear old Ireland
And it's all for freedom's sake.'
5. Calmly standing to attention
While he bade his last farewell
To his broken hearted mother
Whose grief no one can tell.
For the cause he proudly cherished
This sad parting had to be
Then to death walked softly smiling
That old Ireland might be free.
6. Another martyr for old Ireland,
Another murder for the crown,
Whose brutal laws to crush the Irish,
Could not keep their spirit down.
Lads like Barry are no cowards.
From the foe they will not fly.
Lads like Barry will free Ireland,
For her sake they'll live and die.
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