Gerald Smyth
Encyclopedia
Lieutenant-Colonel Gerald Bryce Ferguson Smyth, DSO and Bar
, French and Belgian Croix de Guerre
(7 September 1885 - 17 July 1920) was a British Army
officer and police officer who was at the centre of an alleged mutiny in the ranks of the Royal Irish Constabulary
during the Irish War of Independence
. He was shot and killed by the Irish Republican Army
in Cork
in 1920.
, Punjab
, India
, the eldest son of George Smyth and Helen Ferguson Smyth. His father was the British High Commissioner in the Punjab and his mother was the daughter of Thomas Ferguson of Banbridge
, County Down
, Ireland
. Smyth had one brother, George Osbert Smyth, who also served as a British Army officer. Both served in the First World War and in Ireland during the War of Independence.
as a young man and volunteered at the outbreak of World War I even though he had been offered a position as Professor of Mathematics at Chatham. He was sent to France
where he was seriously injured on a number of occasions, including the loss of his left arm. He was mentioned in despatches seven times.
In June 1920 Colonel Smyth was sent to Ireland at the height of the War of Independence. He was seconded to the RIC of which he was appointed Divisional Commissioner for the province of Munster
.
One officer, Constable Jeremiah Mee, put his gun on the table and called Smyth a murderer. Smyth ordered his arrest but the RIC men present refused. He and 13 others resigned, most joining or assisting the Irish Republican Army
. Mee became a confidant and ally of Michael Collins
.
Gerald Smyth was buried in his native Banbridge
, County Down
on 20 July 1920. His funeral was followed by days of rioting and attacks on Roman Catholic homes in the area. One Protestant man was shot and killed and three Irish nationalists were convicted of firearms offences.
Smyth's brother, George Osbert Smyth, allegedly became a member of the Cairo Gang
, an elite group of British intelligence officers in Dublin sent specially to spy on and eliminate leading IRA figures, in order to avenge his brother's death. However, most of the other Cairo Gang members were shot dead one day in November 1920 on the orders of Michael Collins
. Osbert Smyth was killed in October 1920 while trying to arrest IRA suspects Dan Breen
and Sean Treacy
at a house in Drumcondra
.
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
, French and Belgian Croix de Guerre
Croix de guerre
The Croix de guerre is a military decoration of France. It was first created in 1915 and consists of a square-cross medal on two crossed swords, hanging from a ribbon with various degree pins. The decoration was awarded during World War I, again in World War II, and in other conflicts...
(7 September 1885 - 17 July 1920) was a British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
officer and police officer who was at the centre of an alleged mutiny in the ranks of the Royal Irish Constabulary
Royal Irish Constabulary
The armed Royal Irish Constabulary was Ireland's major police force for most of the nineteenth and the early twentieth centuries. A separate civic police force, the unarmed Dublin Metropolitan Police controlled the capital, and the cities of Derry and Belfast, originally with their own police...
during the Irish War of Independence
Irish War of Independence
The Irish War of Independence , Anglo-Irish War, Black and Tan War, or Tan War was a guerrilla war mounted by the Irish Republican Army against the British government and its forces in Ireland. It began in January 1919, following the Irish Republic's declaration of independence. Both sides agreed...
. He was shot and killed by the Irish Republican Army
Irish Republican Army
The Irish Republican Army was an Irish republican revolutionary military organisation. It was descended from the Irish Volunteers, an organisation established on 25 November 1913 that staged the Easter Rising in April 1916...
in Cork
Cork (city)
Cork is the second largest city in the Republic of Ireland and the island of Ireland's third most populous city. It is the principal city and administrative centre of County Cork and the largest city in the province of Munster. Cork has a population of 119,418, while the addition of the suburban...
in 1920.
Background
Gerald Smyth was born at Phoenix Lodge, DalhousieDalhousie
-Buildings:*Dalhousie Castle, a castle near Bonnyrigg, Scotland, until 2003, was the seat of the Earls of Dalhousie, the chieftains of Clan Ramsay*Dalhousie Obelisk, a monument in Empress Place, Singapore...
, Punjab
Punjab (British India)
Punjab was a province of British India, it was one of the last areas of the Indian subcontinent to fall under British rule. With the end of British rule in 1947 the province was split between West Punjab, which went to Pakistan, and East Punjab, which went to India...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, the eldest son of George Smyth and Helen Ferguson Smyth. His father was the British High Commissioner in the Punjab and his mother was the daughter of Thomas Ferguson of Banbridge
Banbridge
Banbridge is a town in County Down, Northern Ireland. It lies on the River Bann and the A1 road. It was named after a bridge built over the Bann in 1712. The town grew as a coaching stop on the road from Belfast to Dublin and thrived from Irish linen manufacturing...
, County Down
County Down
-Cities:*Belfast *Newry -Large towns:*Dundonald*Newtownards*Bangor-Medium towns:...
, Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
. Smyth had one brother, George Osbert Smyth, who also served as a British Army officer. Both served in the First World War and in Ireland during the War of Independence.
Military service
A Woolwich graduate, Gerald Smyth was commissioned into the Royal EngineersRoyal Engineers
The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually just called the Royal Engineers , and commonly known as the Sappers, is one of the corps of the British Army....
as a young man and volunteered at the outbreak of World War I even though he had been offered a position as Professor of Mathematics at Chatham. He was sent to France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
where he was seriously injured on a number of occasions, including the loss of his left arm. He was mentioned in despatches seven times.
In June 1920 Colonel Smyth was sent to Ireland at the height of the War of Independence. He was seconded to the RIC of which he was appointed Divisional Commissioner for the province of Munster
Munster
Munster is one of the Provinces of Ireland situated in the south of Ireland. In Ancient Ireland, it was one of the fifths ruled by a "king of over-kings" . Following the Norman invasion of Ireland, the ancient kingdoms were shired into a number of counties for administrative and judicial purposes...
.
Listowel
On 19 June 1920 Smyth made a speech to the ranks of the Listowel RIC in which was reported to have said, “Police and military will patrol the country roads at least five nights a week. They are not to confine themselves to the main roads but make across the country, lie in ambush, take cover behind fences near roads, and when civilians are seen approaching shout: 'Hands up!' Should the order be not obeyed, shoot, and shoot with effect. If the persons approaching carry their hands in their pockets or are in any way suspicious looking, shoot them down. You may make mistakes occasionally and innocent persons may be shot, but that cannot be helped and you are bound to get the right persons sometimes. The more you shoot the better I will like you; and I assure you that no policeman will get into trouble for shooting any man and I will guarantee that your names will not be given at the inquest.”One officer, Constable Jeremiah Mee, put his gun on the table and called Smyth a murderer. Smyth ordered his arrest but the RIC men present refused. He and 13 others resigned, most joining or assisting the Irish Republican Army
Irish Republican Army
The Irish Republican Army was an Irish republican revolutionary military organisation. It was descended from the Irish Volunteers, an organisation established on 25 November 1913 that staged the Easter Rising in April 1916...
. Mee became a confidant and ally of Michael Collins
Michael Collins (Irish leader)
Michael "Mick" Collins was an Irish revolutionary leader, Minister for Finance and Teachta Dála for Cork South in the First Dáil of 1919, Director of Intelligence for the IRA, and member of the Irish delegation during the Anglo-Irish Treaty negotiations. Subsequently, he was both Chairman of the...
.
Death
Smyth's order marked him for attention from the IRA. He subsequently returned to Cork where he was staying at the Cork & County Club, an establishment club with accommodations. On the evening of 17 July 1920 he was in the smoking room of the club when a six man IRA team led by Dan "Sandow" O'Donovan entered and said to him, "Colonel, were not your orders to shoot on sight? Well you are in sight now, so prepare." Smyth jumped up as he was being fired upon. Though having two bullets in the head, one through the heart and two through the chest, he managed to reach the passage where he dropped dead. He was 34 years old.Gerald Smyth was buried in his native Banbridge
Banbridge
Banbridge is a town in County Down, Northern Ireland. It lies on the River Bann and the A1 road. It was named after a bridge built over the Bann in 1712. The town grew as a coaching stop on the road from Belfast to Dublin and thrived from Irish linen manufacturing...
, County Down
County Down
-Cities:*Belfast *Newry -Large towns:*Dundonald*Newtownards*Bangor-Medium towns:...
on 20 July 1920. His funeral was followed by days of rioting and attacks on Roman Catholic homes in the area. One Protestant man was shot and killed and three Irish nationalists were convicted of firearms offences.
Smyth's brother, George Osbert Smyth, allegedly became a member of the Cairo Gang
Cairo Gang
The Cairo Gang was a group of British Intelligence agents who were sent to Dublin during the Anglo-Irish War to conduct intelligence operations against prominent members of the Irish Republican Army...
, an elite group of British intelligence officers in Dublin sent specially to spy on and eliminate leading IRA figures, in order to avenge his brother's death. However, most of the other Cairo Gang members were shot dead one day in November 1920 on the orders of Michael Collins
Michael Collins (Irish leader)
Michael "Mick" Collins was an Irish revolutionary leader, Minister for Finance and Teachta Dála for Cork South in the First Dáil of 1919, Director of Intelligence for the IRA, and member of the Irish delegation during the Anglo-Irish Treaty negotiations. Subsequently, he was both Chairman of the...
. Osbert Smyth was killed in October 1920 while trying to arrest IRA suspects Dan Breen
Dan Breen
Daniel "Dan" Breen was a volunteer in the Irish Republican Army during the Irish War of Independence and the Irish Civil War. In later years, he was a Fianna Fáil politician.-Background:...
and Sean Treacy
Seán Treacy (Irish Republican)
Seán Treacy was one of the leaders of the Third Tipperary Brigade of the Irish Republican Army during the Irish War of Independence. He helped to start the conflict in 1919 and was killed in a shootout with British troops in Talbot Street, Dublin during an aborted British Secret Service...
at a house in Drumcondra
Drumcondra
Drumcondra is the name of several places:* Drumcondra, Dublin, Ireland, a residential area on the Northside of Dublin.** Drumcondra railway station** Drumcondra F.C., former football club...
.