Conor McNamara – författare

This landmark new study of the life of Republican leader Liam Mellows gathers letters, speeches, articles and IRA documents from archives in Ireland, the UK and the United States together for the first time to form an insightful analysis of Mellows’ short but dramatic life. It examines his beliefs, fraught personal relationships, political betrayals and intrigue, and his struggle in the face of seemingly overwhelming odds.

Mellows was at the forefront of the Republican movement from its inception. After the Easter Rebellion, he spent four years as the representative of the IRA in the United States, but his time there was deeply unhappy: jailed in the infamous Tombs Prison while his comrades dithered over his bail, he was also branded an informer by the Mayor of New York.

Back in Ireland in 1920, Mellows was responsible for buying and distributing arms during the War of Independence. Bitterly opposed to the Anglo-Irish Treaty, he was a key opponent of Michael Collins, and his role in occupying the Four Courts in June 1922 was central to the outbreak of the Civil War. His execution by the Free State in December 1922 was one of the most divisive moments in the foundation of the state, and he remains an enigmatic icon for Irish republicans to this day.

This landmark new study of the life of Republican leader Liam Mellows gathers letters, speeches, articles and IRA documents from archives in Ireland, the UK and the United States together for the first time to form an insightful analysis of Mellows’ short but dramatic life. It examines his beliefs, fraught personal relationships, political betrayals and intrigue, and his struggle in the face of seemingly overwhelming odds.

Mellows was at the forefront of the Republican movement from its inception. After the Easter Rebellion, he spent four years as the representative of the IRA in the United States, but his time there was deeply unhappy: jailed in the infamous Tombs Prison while his comrades dithered over his bail, he was also branded an informer by the Mayor of New York.

Back in Ireland in 1920, Mellows was responsible for buying and distributing arms during the War of Independence. Bitterly opposed to the Anglo-Irish Treaty, he was a key opponent of Michael Collins, and his role in occupying the Four Courts in June 1922 was central to the outbreak of the Civil War. His execution by the Free State in December 1922 was one of the most divisive moments in the foundation of the state, and he remains an enigmatic icon for Irish republicans to this day.

Putting Ireland on trial, Jim Larkin’s verdict was damning and resolute. His words resound, shuddering towards the present day where class division and workers’ rights disputes make headlines with swelling frequency. In this pioneering collection, an exemplary list of contributors registers the radical momentum within Dublin in 1913, its effects internationally, and its paramount example in shaping political activism within Ireland to this day.

The narrative of the beleaguered yet dignified workers who stood up to the greed of their Irish masters is examined, revealing the truths that were too fraught with trauma, shame and political tension to remain within popular memory. Beyond the animosity and immediate impact of the industrial dispute are its enduring lessons through the First World War, the Easter Rising, and the birth of the Irish Free State; its legacy, real and adopted, instructs the surge of activism currently witnessed, but to what effect?

The Dublin Lockout, 1913 illuminates this pivotal class war in Irish history: inspiring, shocking, and the nearest thing Ireland had to a debate on the type of society that was wanted by its citizens.

Putting Ireland on trial, Jim Larkin’s verdict was damning and resolute. His words resound, shuddering towards the present day where class division and workers’ rights disputes make headlines with swelling frequency. In this pioneering collection, an exemplary list of contributors registers the radical momentum within Dublin in 1913, its effects internationally, and its paramount example in shaping political activism within Ireland to this day.

The narrative of the beleaguered yet dignified workers who stood up to the greed of their Irish masters is examined, revealing the truths that were too fraught with trauma, shame and political tension to remain within popular memory. Beyond the animosity and immediate impact of the industrial dispute are its enduring lessons through the First World War, the Easter Rising, and the birth of the Irish Free State; its legacy, real and adopted, instructs the surge of activism currently witnessed, but to what effect?

The Dublin Lockout, 1913 illuminates this pivotal class war in Irish history: inspiring, shocking, and the nearest thing Ireland had to a debate on the type of society that was wanted by its citizens.