Sack of Balbriggan
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The sack of Balbriggan took place on the night of 20 September 1920, during the Irish War of Independence. Auxiliary members of the Royal Irish Constabulary known as "Black and Tans" went on a rampage in the small town of Balbriggan, County Dublin, burning more than fifty homes and businesses, looting, and killing two local men. Many locals were left jobless and homeless. The attack was claimed to be revenge for the shooting of two police officers in Balbriggan by the Irish Republican Army (IRA). It was the first major 'reprisal' attack against an Irish town during the conflict. The sack of Balbriggan drew international attention, leading to heated debate in the British parliament and criticism of British government policy in Ireland.
In early 1920 the Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC), the British-controlled police force in Ireland, faced increased attacks from the Irish Republican Army (IRA) and boycotts from civilians. The RIC began recruiting reinforcements from Britain, mostly unemployed former soldiers who fought in the First World War. Nicknamed "Black and Tans", they soon gained a reputation for brutality. The Black and Tans were trained at Gormanston military camp near Balbriggan, a small town north of Dublin.[1]
On the evening of 20 September, Head Constable Peter Burke and his brother, Sergeant Michael (or William) Burke, stopped off in Balbriggan on their way to visit Gormanston camp. They drank in a public house with several Black and Tans. There was an altercation in the pub, and local police were called to restore order. After further rowdiness, an IRA unit arrived. Burke was shot dead by the IRA and his brother was badly wounded.[2] The Head Constable had been training British RIC recruits and was reportedly about to be promoted to District Inspector.[3] The shooting does not seem to have been planned.[4]
Sacking
At about 11 pm, trucks carrying 100–150 Black and Tans arrived in Balbriggan from Gormanston.[2][5] They began burning homes and businesses, smashing windows and firing in the streets.[6] Witnesses said the Black and Tans were cheering and laughing during the attack.[7] In all, 49 homes were destroyed or damaged,[4][8] twenty of them on Clonard Street.[6] Many townsfolk fled to the fields. The Dublin Evening Mail reported "men, women and children, some of them only scantily attired…fleeing to the country for refuge" and described how "a poor woman experienced great difficulty in getting her baby from its cot before her house was fired".[2]
Four pubs were looted and burnt down.[4][8] John Derham, a Sinn Féin town commissioner, was arrested and his pub was wrecked and burnt. He was punched in the face and clubbed with a rifle butt. His son Michael was beaten unconscious and left in the burning building.[9] Other businesses were also attacked. A hosiery factory, Deeds & Templar, was destroyed. It had employed 130 workers and a further 180 who did work for it from home.[6]
Two local men, dairyman Seán Gibbons and barber Seamus Lawless, were taken to the town's police barracks for questioning. They were beaten and bayoneted to death and their bodies dumped on Quay Street, near the barracks.[6][10] According to The Guardian, "one was the chairman and the other was the acting secretary" of the local IRA battalion.[11] A plaque on Quay Street in Balbriggan commemorates the men, and a remembrance ceremony is held there every year.[10]
Historian Tim Pat Coogan writes that the burnings were probably unauthorised.[12]