BELFAST AND RISING MASTER:Layout 1 27/06/2017 13:46 Page 1 Belfast and The Rising Jimmy McDermot BELFAST AND RISING MASTER:Layout 1 27/06/2017 13:46 Page 2 BELFAST AND RISING MASTER:Layout 1 27/06/2017 13:46 Page 3 Belfast Republicans and the 1916 Rising 2016 marked the one hundredth but they failed to come to the assistance anniversary of the Easter Rising in Dublin. of the rebels in the capital. This failure Historians are in broad agreement that was keenly felt afterwards and for Belfast this Rising marked a sea change in Irish republicans, we get the sense of regret in Politics. Its military success was the Bureau of Military History (BMH) significant. It held key areas in Ireland’s statement of David McGuinness. He capital for five days. It involved around recalled how Belfast republicans were 1500 insurgents against the military reorganised in early 1917 after the might of the British Empire and it set in botched attempt at a rising in Coalisland. train a series of events which led to the successful Sinn Féin election of 1918, the “The first move to effect a reorganisation guerrilla war of 1919-22 and the was the notification by word of mouth for eventual setting up of a state in the 26 the volunteers to attend a meeting at counties which had limited self- premises opposite Forrester’s Hall in Mill government. Street. This meeting was most informal, no proper chairman; each man had However, the Easter Rising for the most apparently something to say and said it. part, was confined to Dublin. There were It was agreed that reorganisation would mobilisations in Coalisland, Cork, Kerry, commence and if sufficient men were Limerick, Mayo and various other places available from any of the old pre 1916 1 BELFAST AND RISING MASTER:Layout 1 27/06/2017 13:46 Page 4 companies, they should reform into that someway to explain why the latter figure company and appoint officers.” was accepted. He explained that while McGuinness showed a measured three groups went by train to Coalisland intelligence with great stress laid on on Easter Saturday, a further fourth accuracy. He had mobilised at Coalisland group arrived on the Easter Sunday by at Easter 1916 and was later a prominent which time a decision had been taken not Brigade Intelligence Officer and his to mobilise but to return to Belfast and statement strongly indicates this fourth group had been overlooked. disillusionment felt by the Belfast Presumably if the fourth group had volunteers after the Coalisland debacle. worked on night shifts or as barmen, they could not get away on the Saturday. With the release of the BMH statements From the start there had been problems and the fine work of the Treasonable with the mobilisation at Coalisland. Denis Felony Blog (TFB) we have at last a clear McCullough, who was the Chairman of picture of what happened at Coalisland. the Civilian Committee of the Belfast We now have the names and addresses of Volunteers, was not informed about the those who took part and they can be date of the Rising until the week before accessed through Google. A list of Easter. He explained in his BMH statement officers and volunteers was compiled by that although he had been president of the a group of veterans led by Peter Burns IRBsincelate1915,hewasnotpartofthe who had been a senior military Military Committee of the IRB which commander at Coalisland. This list planned the Rising and was not made identified the volunteers who were aware of the proposed date or detailed eligible for a pension for their service in plans of the Rising until the last moment. the 1916 period and was submitted to a Thomas Clarke and Sean McDermott were committee of the Belfast Brigade for key planners on the Military Committee checking. The list was compiled in 1936 and they proposed and seconded Denis but does not state how many, if any on McCullough as IRB president in 1915. the list took up the offer of a pension. Possibly they did so because Denis McCullough lived in Belfast and could not There are actually 156 names and easily hear of their plans. This may have addresses on the list, with 24 or more been because although they trusted Denis names than the 132 individuals who were McCullough personally they were fully previously believed to have mobilised. aware of the problems, which might Cahal McDowell’s BMH statement goes confront the Nationalist population of 2 BELFAST AND RISING MASTER:Layout 1 27/06/2017 13:46 Page 5 Belfast Republicans and the 1916 Rising Eoin MacNeill Denis McCullough Belfast should any leak of details about the contrast had formed the Ulster Volunteer proposed Rising reach the ears of the Force in early 1913 and were not only Security Forces or the UVF. highly motivated but also armed. Members of the Military Committee of In 1916 Belfast had a population of theIRBsuchasJamesConnollyandSean around 350,000 but less than a quarter McDermott had lived in the northern of them were Nationalists. Most of these capital and were fully aware of the awful Nationalists were keen supporters of the price the minority community in Belfast Irish Parliamentary Party (IPP) and large could pay in the event of an unsuccessful numbers of them had joined the British rising in Belfast or its environs. Connolly Army in part to strengthen John himself had addressed the Belfast Redmond’s demand for Home Rule. John Volunteers some months before the Redmond was the leader of the IPP at this Rising hinting that a rising was imminent time and Joe Devlin was his very able but stressed that no action whatsoever assistant in Belfast. Essentially the should be taken in Belfast itself. Nationalists of Belfast were Home Rulers rather than Republicans. Those Irish Denis McCullough as a native of Belfast volunteers in the city who had remained was fully aware of the consequences of a with Eoin McNeill were few in number if Rising and this in no doubt had a strong highly motivated. The Unionists by influence on his thinking on Easter 3 BELFAST AND RISING MASTER:Layout 1 29/06/2017 09:54 Page 6 Sunday 1916. McCullough had been told was chairperson of the military the date of the Rising by a member of the committee with Herbert Moore Pim as IRB, Alf Cotton. His response was to rush vice chair. Sam Heron was secretary and to Dublin where he contacted Tom Clarke Thomas Wilson was treasurer. It says who confirmed that the volunteers were much of the non-sectarian nature of to mobilise on the Easter Sunday. The volunteers of the period that two of these fact that McCullough was given details on four men were protestant. The military what to do so late in the planning also element of the volunteers was well goes someway to explain the chaos officered. Their commandant was Peter which ensued when the volunteers Burns who had military experience from gathered at Coalisland that Sunday to his experience as a Sergeant Major in the link up with the Tyrone volunteers. British Army. The quartermaster was Cahal McDowell and the two captains The orders were that both Belfast and were Rory Haskins and Sean Kelly. Tyrone volunteers were joined together and Further to this, there were around 150 either march or cycle the 200 miles from dedicated volunteers from Belfast. Dungannon to Galway, and there they would link up with Liam Mellows and his Denis McCullough was forced to mobilise command. During this extraordinary these volunteers at short notice. He took journey, the volunteers were ordered not to £100 from his own bank and sent Archie fire a shot. Doctor Patrick McCartan who Heron to get what supplies he could from was in charge of the Tyrone volunteers the Ulster volunteer stores. A meeting showed no enthusiasm for the IRB’smilitary was called of the section leaders at a Falls committees planned for the North. He Road shop and they were told about the wrote later “long before Easter I had no mobilisation at Coalisland. Following heart in it as it came, and I could not inspire this, the volunteers themselves were others with courage when I had none called in. They were given money to buy myself”. His view was probably driven by asinglerailtickettogotoDungannonon practicality rather than fear. In any event the Saturday before Easter to mobilise on the Tyrone volunteers themselves were to Easter Sunday. Each volunteer was prove reluctant to obey orders, which they instructed to take two days rations. Peter considered to be on the fantastic. Burns, whom Denis McCullough noted in his BMH statement as being very keen on In Belfast Denis McCullough had a small action arranged for the rifles, but able group to work with. He himself ammunition and small arms belonging to 4 BELFAST AND RISING MASTER:Layout 1 27/06/2017 13:46 Page 7 Belfast Republicans and the 1916 Rising the volunteers to be lifted from the probably correct in his estimation that Stewarts’ house at Hannahstown and 120 to 130 volunteers had travelled to brought separately to Coalisland. Coalisland on the Saturday, they would be further supplemented by more men In the mid-1940s BMH statements by on the Easter Sunday which accounts for some Belfast volunteers who had the figure of 156 names of Belfast mobilised at Coalisland in 1916 were volunteers compiled by Peter Burns and taken and a guarantee was taken that the others in 1936. statements would not be released in their lifetime.