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While Terence McSwiney
was on hunger strike an attempt was made to capture
Major-General Strickland and hold him hostage with a view to obtaining
MacSwiney's release. The men selected for the operation were Dan 'Sandow'
Donovan, Michael Kenny and the Grey brothers, James and Jeremiah, all of whom
were members of the Active Service Unit of the 1st Battalion, 1st. Cork
Brigade. Sean O'Hegarty, who took over from McSweeney as commander of the
brigade, headed the operation.
General
Strickland often travelled to England on military business.
On these occasions a touring car would take both the general and his aidede-camp
(ADC) from Victoria Barracks to Penrose Quay via Sidney Hill, Wellington Road, Patrick's Hill and MacCurtain Street. On arrival at the quay
he would board the passenger steamer the SS Bandon, which usually departed Cork at 5.30p.m. each evening.
Michael
Kenny was a member of the brigade intelligence squad and would be able to
recognise Strickland and the car in which he usually travelled. O'Hegarty's
plan was for Kenny to position himself near the junction of Wellington Road and Patrick's Hill and
act as a scout. The remainder of the attack party would wait at the
bottom of the hill. When Strickland's car reached the bottom of Patrick's Hill
the Grey brothers would jump onto the running board on the driver's side and
take over the vehicle at gunpoint. O'Hegarty and 'Sandow' Donovan would rush
the car from the opposite side and capture the general and any other officers
who might be with him. The general and his
fellow officers would then be bundled into two waiting cars and transferred to a
location in a remote part of the countryside outside Ballincollig
where they would be held.
The attempt
to capture Strickland would be made as his car slowed down at the bottom of
Patrick's Hill before turning on to MacCurtain Street. O'Hegarty and his men
took up their positions on the afternoon of Thursday 9 September. All would be
armed with revolvers. They remained in position for a number of days but there
was no sign of Strickland. By 24 September MacSwiney had been on hunger strike
for 42 days and his condition was weakening. O'Hegarty and his men had been in
position for two weeks and were getting anxious. Convinced that another day
would end without sight of their quarry O'Hegarty's men had relaxed somewhat.
However, at around 5.45 p.m. Michael Kenny caught
sight of Strickland's car making its way down Wellington Road. All the occupants were
dressed as civilians. The general's aide-de-camp sat in front next to the
driver. Strickland was in the back seated between another staff officer and
Captain Kelly, the divisional intelligence officer. Kenny tried to alert the
Grey brothers by means of a prearranged signal but failed
to attract their attention.
As the car
turned down Patrick's Hill, Kenny continued to signal but his efforts were in
vain. In desperation he drew his revolver and ran after the car, hoping to jump
onto the running board. The staff officer in the rear of the car alerted the
driver to the danger while drawing his revolver. As the car pulled away Kenny
and the officers in the rear of the car exchanged fire. The sound of gunfire
alerted O'Hegarty and his men and they drew their weapons. The Grey brothers
joined Kenny and opened fire towards the rear of the car while O'Hegarty and
'Sandow' Donovan fired at it from the side. As pedestrians scattered, a
close-quarter gunfight developed between O'Hegarty's squad and the occupants
of the car.
During this
exchange General Strickland was hit in the shoulder. The driver of the car was
badly wounded but succeeded in getting his vehicle on to MacCurtain Street. The windscreen and
side windows of the car were shattered. Bullets smashed into the windows of a
licensed premises on the corner of Bridge Street and other shops. One
civilian was wounded by stray gunfire. As the car made its way down MacCurtain Street it collided with a
pole but managed to stay on the road. The IRA chased the car half way down the
street, maintaining fire as they ran. When the car reached the end of MacCurtain Street, O'Hegarty called off
his men. The entire incident had lasted about two minutes and General
Strickland and his staff had a miraculous escape. Even had the plan succeeded,
it is unlikely that the British would have released MacSwiney. In that case,
the IRA would probably have executed Strickland and the other officer and
British reprisals against the people of Cork would undoubtedly
have been severe.
O'Hegarty considered the
operation a failure. Whatever hope was had of negotiating MacSwiney's release
from prison had disappeared. On the morning of 25
October 1920, after seventy four days without food, Terence MacSwiney died in
prison.
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