Hugh Feeney
Encyclopedia
Hugh Feeney was a volunteer
of the Provisional Irish Republican Army
who, together with Dolours Price
and Marian Price
, organised the car bomb
ings of the Old Bailey
and Scotland Yard
on March 8, 1973. He and ten members of his 11-man active service unit
(ASU) were apprehended attempting to board a flight to Ireland shortly after the bombs were discovered.
for each of the four bombing charges against him which were to run concurrently. The other members of his group were sentenced to life imprisonment as well as an additional twenty years. Feeney and other members of the group were incarcerated in Brixton Prison, and participated in a 205 day hunger strike
with the goal of being transferred closer to their homes in Northern Ireland
. Feeney and the other hunger strikers were force-fed by British authorities for 167 days of their strike. In May of 1974, Feeney was one of a group of four prisoners whose transfer out of Brixton was demanded anonymously in exchange for the return of $19.2 million in stolen art. On 4 June 1974, the IRA kidnapped John Hely-Hutchinson, 7th Earl of Donoughmore
and his wife in an unsuccessful attempt to exchange them for the release of Feeney, the Prices, and Gerry Kelly
. The prisoners ended their hunger strike on 7 June 1974.
Feeney was transferred to Long Kesh prison soon after the hunger strike ended. During this period he, along with Brendan Hughes
, wrote IRA communiqué
s and articles for the Republican News
under the pen name "Brownie." Most material published under this pseudonym was, however, written by Gerry Adams
. After Adams's release, Feeney began writing under the pseudonym "Salon."
and deported
the next day for having illegally entered the United States
. Feeney was arrested in the offices of The Irish People, a republican
newspaper published in New York. The arrest was controversial because it involved an FBI agent posing as a journalism student in order to gain access to the paper's editorial offices, which was a violation of FBI policy at the time.
Volunteer (Irish republican)
Volunteer, often abbreviated Vol., is a term used by a number of Irish republican paramilitary organisations to describe their members. Among these have been the various forms of the Irish Republican Army and the Irish National Liberation Army...
of the Provisional Irish Republican Army
Provisional Irish Republican Army
The Provisional Irish Republican Army is an Irish republican paramilitary organisation whose aim was to remove Northern Ireland from the United Kingdom and bring about a socialist republic within a united Ireland by force of arms and political persuasion...
who, together with Dolours Price
Dolours Price
Dolours Price is a former volunteer of the Provisional Irish Republican Army . She is also a politicial activist and critic of Gerry Adams and the current leadership of Sinn Féin.-Early life:...
and Marian Price
Marian Price
Marian Price , also known by her married name as Marion McGlinchey, is an Irish republican militant, one of the so-called "Price sisters", who was jailed for her part in the IRA London bombing campaign of 1973. Price was part of a unit who placed four car bombs in London on 8 March 1973...
, organised the car bomb
Car bomb
A car bomb, or truck bomb also known as a Vehicle Borne Improvised Explosive Device , is an improvised explosive device placed in a car or other vehicle and then detonated. It is commonly used as a weapon of assassination, terrorism, or guerrilla warfare, to kill the occupants of the vehicle,...
ings of the Old Bailey
Old Bailey
The Central Criminal Court in England and Wales, commonly known as the Old Bailey from the street in which it stands, is a court building in central London, one of a number of buildings housing the Crown Court...
and Scotland Yard
Scotland Yard
Scotland Yard is a metonym for the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police Service of London, UK. It derives from the location of the original Metropolitan Police headquarters at 4 Whitehall Place, which had a rear entrance on a street called Great Scotland Yard. The Scotland Yard entrance became...
on March 8, 1973. He and ten members of his 11-man active service unit
Active Service Unit
An active service unit was a Provisional Irish Republican Army cell of five to eight members, tasked with carrying out armed attacks. In 2002 the IRA had about 1,000 active members of which about 300 were in active service units....
(ASU) were apprehended attempting to board a flight to Ireland shortly after the bombs were discovered.
Arrest, conviction, and imprisonment
Feeney was convicted on November 14, 1973 and sentenced to life imprisonmentLife imprisonment
Life imprisonment is a sentence of imprisonment for a serious crime under which the convicted person is to remain in jail for the rest of his or her life...
for each of the four bombing charges against him which were to run concurrently. The other members of his group were sentenced to life imprisonment as well as an additional twenty years. Feeney and other members of the group were incarcerated in Brixton Prison, and participated in a 205 day hunger strike
Hunger strike
A hunger strike is a method of non-violent resistance or pressure in which participants fast as an act of political protest, or to provoke feelings of guilt in others, usually with the objective to achieve a specific goal, such as a policy change. Most hunger strikers will take liquids but not...
with the goal of being transferred closer to their homes in Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
. Feeney and the other hunger strikers were force-fed by British authorities for 167 days of their strike. In May of 1974, Feeney was one of a group of four prisoners whose transfer out of Brixton was demanded anonymously in exchange for the return of $19.2 million in stolen art. On 4 June 1974, the IRA kidnapped John Hely-Hutchinson, 7th Earl of Donoughmore
John Hely-Hutchinson, 7th Earl of Donoughmore
John Michael Henry Hely-Hutchinson, 7th Earl of Donoughmore , known until 1848 by his courtesy title Viscount Suirdale, was a British politician who later sat as a hereditary peer in the House of Lords....
and his wife in an unsuccessful attempt to exchange them for the release of Feeney, the Prices, and Gerry Kelly
Gerry Kelly
Gerard "Gerry" Kelly is an Irish republican politician and former Provisional Irish Republican Army volunteer who played a leading role in the negotiations that led to the Good Friday Agreement on 10 April 1998...
. The prisoners ended their hunger strike on 7 June 1974.
Feeney was transferred to Long Kesh prison soon after the hunger strike ended. During this period he, along with Brendan Hughes
Brendan Hughes
Brendan Hughes , also known as "The Dark", was an Irish republican and former Officer Commanding of the Belfast Brigade of the Provisional Irish Republican Army...
, wrote IRA communiqué
Communique
A communiqué is a brief report or statement released by a public agency.Communiqué may also refer to:* Communiqué , a rock band* Communiqué , 1979* Communiqué , 1987...
s and articles for the Republican News
Republican News
Republican News was a longstanding newspaper/magazine published by Sinn Féin. Following the split in physical force Irish republicanism in the late 1960s between the Officials and the Provisionals Republican News was a longstanding newspaper/magazine published by Sinn Féin. Following the split in...
under the pen name "Brownie." Most material published under this pseudonym was, however, written by Gerry Adams
Gerry Adams
Gerry Adams is an Irish republican politician and Teachta Dála for the constituency of Louth. From 1983 to 1992 and from 1997 to 2011, he was an abstentionist Westminster Member of Parliament for Belfast West. He is the president of Sinn Féin, the second largest political party in Northern...
. After Adams's release, Feeney began writing under the pseudonym "Salon."
Release and later deportation
Feeney was released from custody in 1990. On 20 May 1991, Feeney was arrested in New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
and deported
Deportation
Deportation means the expulsion of a person or group of people from a place or country. Today it often refers to the expulsion of foreign nationals whereas the expulsion of nationals is called banishment, exile, or penal transportation...
the next day for having illegally entered the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Feeney was arrested in the offices of The Irish People, a republican
Irish Republicanism
Irish republicanism is an ideology based on the belief that all of Ireland should be an independent republic.In 1801, under the Act of Union, the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Ireland merged to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland...
newspaper published in New York. The arrest was controversial because it involved an FBI agent posing as a journalism student in order to gain access to the paper's editorial offices, which was a violation of FBI policy at the time.
Further reading
- Clutterbuck, Richard. Kidnap and Ransom. Boston: Faber & Faber, 1978.