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Week II

The general election of 1918 was also a plebiscite on the Easter Rising, two years previously. The Rising, and the destruction of the centre of Dublin, had been generally condemned. The Irish Parliamentary Party, under John Redmond, had been inching towards Home Rule; why bother with such violence? The belief was that the men and women of 1916 were brave, if foolhardy. Yet following the prolonged executions of the leaders, the massive round up of participants, and their imprisonment in Britain, a change of attitudes swept the country. This was perfectly illustrated in the election held on a bleak December day 1918. Sinn Féin had fielded candidates in every constituency. The campaign was vigorous and tough.

Despite Liam Mellows and his men answering the call to arms, and for five days to have caused mayhem in the Oranmore and Athenry areas, Galway was slow to realise that the Easter Rising 1916 was to be a permanent affair. The town was known as a ‘showneen town’, that is a town with a close allegiance to the British way of doing things. This was mainly because of the status of having a major army barracks on its doorstep. The army was an important purchaser of supplies from the town merchants; and many local people were soldiers, or had husbands or boyfriends who were in the army.

Liam Mellows are back in action this weekend when they face Carnmore (5pm) on Sunday in the first round of the relegation games.

The county senior hurling championship continues this weekend with all the round two games down for decision.

Castlegar and Kiltormer will renew acquaintance in the county hurling championship next Monday in Athenry at 6.30pm.

Liam Mellows, who suffered a disappointing 0-17 to 1-8 defeat to Turloughmore at Pearse Stadium last Sunday, were drawn against St Thomas in round two of the Salhtill Hotel Senior Hurling Championship.

It does not seem too long ago that Gort and captain Andy Coen claimed the county cup, but this weekend the 2012 chase for glory commences.

The Civil War in Galway came to an end because there was little appetite for further bloodshed in the face of ruthless determination by the Free State, or the pro-treatyites, to stamp out the anti-treaty forces. The Free State government warned that anyone carrying weapons other than the National Army, would be shot. Eleven Galway anti-treatyites were shot by firing squad. On January 20 1923 Martin Bourke, Stephen Joyce, Herbert Collins, Michael Walsh, and Thomas Hughes, all attached to the North Galway IRA Brigade, were arrested and executed in Athlone. On February 19 eighteen volunteers were arrested in Annaghdown, and brought to Galway gaol. It was given out that all were ‘well armed’. Even though it was expected that all, or a number of them, would be shot, nothing happened.

Anthony Cunningham, the new Galway senior hurling manager, has not been long in making his presence felt, as he and selectors Tom Helebert and Mattie Kenny have dropped one third of the team which started the All-Ireland quarter-final against Waterford this year in a massive clear-out.