Irish Bulletin
Encyclopedia
The Irish Bulletin was the official gazette
of the government of the Irish Republic
. It was produced by the Department of Propaganda
during the Irish War of Independence
. and its offices were originally located at No. 6 Harcourt Street, Dublin. The paper's first editor was Desmond FitzGerald
, until his arrest and replacement by Robert Erskine Childers
. The Bulletin appeared in weekly editions from 11 November 1919 to 11 July 1921.
proposed the establishment of a daily paper by the Dáil
for the purpose of publicity. His suggestion was not implemented until November, when 'Desmond Fitzgerald decided that some form of printed counter-propaganda was vital to republican aims and to take advantage of the success of Sinn Féin and the increasing international interest in Ireland'. Fitzgerald succeeded Laurence Ginnell
in the Ministry following the latter's arrest in April 1919, though he did not take up the position until July. At a Cabinet meeting held on 7 November, there was agreement that there should be "A scheme for daily news bulletin to foreign correspondents, weekly lists of atrocities; entertainment of friendly journalists approved, and £500 voted for expenses under Mr. Griffith's personal supervision." Four days later the Irish Bulletin made its début, in a run consisting of just thirty copies. Five issues of the bulletin were issued each week for the next two years, despite efforts by the British authorities to suppress it.
and Robert Brennan
. Brennan, as Sinn Féin's Director of Publicity since April 1918, had played a leading role in that party's success in the 1918 General Election.
Following Fitzgerald's arrest in 1921, Erskine Childers was appointed 'Director of Propaganda'
taking charge of publicity and thus becoming the paper's new editor.
On 9 May 1921, both Childers and Gallagher were arrested and taken to Dublin Castle
. Following the intervention of 'Andy' Cope
, both were released that night and 'went on the run'. The hasty release of the two led to speculation between Art O'Brien and Michael Collins
that there was a rift developing between the British military authorities and the civil administration. Despite the arrests, the Bulletin 'continued to appear on schedule'.
Alan J. Ellis, a journalist with the Cork Examiner
made occasional contributions to the paper.
Kathleen McKenna-Napoli was 'a key force behind the daily news-sheet.
, which were reported in detail. The Bulletin was more graphic in its coverage of violence than was usual for its time. An example was its reporting on the deaths of two prominent Sinn Féin leaders, Henry and Patrick Loughnane, from Shanaglish, Gort
, County Galway
. The men had been handed over by the Royal Irish Constabulary
to local members of the Auxiliary Division
.
MP
on receiving some of the counterfeit papers through the post, asked in the House that those responsible 'not (to) waste their money in sending me any more of their forgeries.' The initial efforts of the forgers, Captains Hugh Pollard
and William Darling were of poor quality and easily identified as counterfeit.
Gazette
A gazette is a public journal, a newspaper of record, or simply a newspaper.In English- and French-speaking countries, newspaper publishers have applied the name Gazette since the 17th century; today, numerous weekly and daily newspapers bear the name The Gazette.Gazette is a loanword from the...
of the government of the Irish Republic
Irish Republic
The Irish Republic was a revolutionary state that declared its independence from Great Britain in January 1919. It established a legislature , a government , a court system and a police force...
. It was produced by the Department of Propaganda
Minister for Publicity (Ireland)
The Minister for Publicity was the name of a government department in the Government of the Irish Republic, the self-declared state which was established in 1919 by Dáil Éireann, the parliamentary assembly made up of the majority of Irish MPs elected in the 1918 general election.-History:In April...
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...
. and its offices were originally located at No. 6 Harcourt Street, Dublin. The paper's first editor was Desmond FitzGerald
Desmond FitzGerald (politician)
Desmond FitzGerald was an Irish revolutionary, poet, publicist and Cumann na nGaedheal politician.-Early life:...
, until his arrest and replacement by Robert Erskine Childers
Robert Erskine Childers
Robert Erskine Childers DSC , universally known as Erskine Childers, was the author of the influential novel Riddle of the Sands and an Irish nationalist who smuggled guns to Ireland in his sailing yacht Asgard. He was executed by the authorities of the nascent Irish Free State during the Irish...
. The Bulletin appeared in weekly editions from 11 November 1919 to 11 July 1921.
Genesis
In April 1919, Terence MacSwineyTerence MacSwiney
Terence Joseph MacSwiney was an Irish playwright, author and politician. He was elected as Sinn Féin Lord Mayor of Cork during the Irish War of Independence in 1920. He was arrested by the British on charges of sedition and imprisoned in Brixton prison in England...
proposed the establishment of a daily paper by the Dáil
First Dáil
The First Dáil was Dáil Éireann as it convened from 1919–1921. In 1919 candidates who had been elected in the Westminster elections of 1918 refused to recognise the Parliament of the United Kingdom and instead assembled as a unicameral, revolutionary parliament called "Dáil Éireann"...
for the purpose of publicity. His suggestion was not implemented until November, when 'Desmond Fitzgerald decided that some form of printed counter-propaganda was vital to republican aims and to take advantage of the success of Sinn Féin and the increasing international interest in Ireland'. Fitzgerald succeeded Laurence Ginnell
Laurence Ginnell
Laurence Ginnell was an Irish nationalist politician, lawyer and Member of Parliament of the House of Commons of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland as member of the Irish Parliamentary Party for Westmeath North at the 1906 UK general election, from 1910 he sat as an Independent...
in the Ministry following the latter's arrest in April 1919, though he did not take up the position until July. At a Cabinet meeting held on 7 November, there was agreement that there should be "A scheme for daily news bulletin to foreign correspondents, weekly lists of atrocities; entertainment of friendly journalists approved, and £500 voted for expenses under Mr. Griffith's personal supervision." Four days later the Irish Bulletin made its début, in a run consisting of just thirty copies. Five issues of the bulletin were issued each week for the next two years, despite efforts by the British authorities to suppress it.
Personnel and contributors
In the early days, the paper was produced mainly by Frank GallagherFrank Gallagher (author)
Frank B. Gallagher was an Irish author and Volunteer.-Biography:A Cork native, initially London correspondent of William O'Brien's Cork Free Press, subsequently its final editor, though himself a separatist, personally admired O'Brien.The paper suffered closure in 1916 soon after the appointment...
and Robert Brennan
Robert Brennan (journalist)
Robert Brennan was an Irish writer, diplomat and a founder of The Irish Press newspaper. He took part in the 1916 Easter Rising and later became the Irish Free State's first minister to the United States.-Life:...
. Brennan, as Sinn Féin's Director of Publicity since April 1918, had played a leading role in that party's success in the 1918 General Election.
Following Fitzgerald's arrest in 1921, Erskine Childers was appointed 'Director of Propaganda'
Minister for Publicity (Ireland)
The Minister for Publicity was the name of a government department in the Government of the Irish Republic, the self-declared state which was established in 1919 by Dáil Éireann, the parliamentary assembly made up of the majority of Irish MPs elected in the 1918 general election.-History:In April...
taking charge of publicity and thus becoming the paper's new editor.
On 9 May 1921, both Childers and Gallagher were arrested and taken to Dublin Castle
Dublin Castle
Dublin Castle off Dame Street, Dublin, Ireland, was until 1922 the fortified seat of British rule in Ireland, and is now a major Irish government complex. Most of it dates from the 18th century, though a castle has stood on the site since the days of King John, the first Lord of Ireland...
. Following the intervention of 'Andy' Cope
Sir Alfred 'Andy' Cope
Sir Alfred ‘Andy’ Cope was a senior British civil servant.-Early life:Cope was raised in Lambeth , London, the eldest of eleven children born to Alfred and Margaret. By the age of fourteen he was employed as an office clerk and ten years later, in 1901, he was working for the Inland...
, both were released that night and 'went on the run'. The hasty release of the two led to speculation between Art O'Brien and 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...
that there was a rift developing between the British military authorities and the civil administration. Despite the arrests, the Bulletin 'continued to appear on schedule'.
Alan J. Ellis, a journalist with the Cork Examiner
Irish Examiner
The Irish Examiner, formerly The Cork Examiner and then The Examiner, is an Irish national daily newspaper which primarily circulates in the Munster region surrounding its base in Cork, though it is available throughout the country...
made occasional contributions to the paper.
Kathleen McKenna-Napoli was 'a key force behind the daily news-sheet.
Content
In the early days, the Bulletin consisted mainly of lists of raids by the security forces and the arrests of suspects. In order to stimulate interest, this was expanded in 1921 at the behest of the Irish President in his direction to Childers to give more detailed accounts of events. Extracts from foreign publications, particularly sympathetic English papers, were frequently included. A regular feature was accounts from the Dáil CourtsDáil Courts
During the Irish War of Independence, the Dáil Courts were the judicial branch of government of the short-lived Irish Republic. They were formally established by a decree of the First Dáil Éireann on 29 June 1920, replacing more limited Arbitration Courts that had been authorised a year earlier...
, which were reported in detail. The Bulletin was more graphic in its coverage of violence than was usual for its time. An example was its reporting on the deaths of two prominent Sinn Féin leaders, Henry and Patrick Loughnane, from Shanaglish, Gort
Gort
Gort is a town in south County Galway in the west of Ireland. An Gort is the official Irish name for the town, as defined by the Placenames Commission. In spoken Irish, however, the town is known by its traditional name Gort Inse Guaire. It lies just north of the border with County Clare on the...
, County Galway
County Galway
County Galway is a county in Ireland. It is located in the West Region and is also part of the province of Connacht. It is named after the city of Galway. Galway County Council is the local authority for the county. There are several strongly Irish-speaking areas in the west of the county...
. The men had been handed over by 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...
to local members of the Auxiliary Division
Auxiliary Division
The Auxiliary Division of the Royal Irish Constabulary , generally known as the Auxiliaries or Auxies, was a paramilitary organization within the Royal Irish Constabulary during the Irish War of Independence....
.
On Dec 6th, the bodies were found in a pond. The skulls were battered in and the flesh was hanging loose on both bodies.The two men were evidently tied by the neck to a motor lorry and dragged after it until they were dead. Before the bodies were hidden in a pond an effort was made to burn them.
Counterfeit edition
On the night of 26-27 March 1921, the offices of the Irish Bulletin were discovered by the British authorities. Captured typewriters and duplicators were used to fabricate bogus issues of the paper. These were distributed to the usual subscribers using lists found at the office. Lord Henry Cavendish-BentinckLord Henry Cavendish-Bentinck
Lord Henry Cavendish-Bentinck , known as Henry Cavendish-Bentinck until 1880, was a British Conservative politician....
MP
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
on receiving some of the counterfeit papers through the post, asked in the House that those responsible 'not (to) waste their money in sending me any more of their forgeries.' The initial efforts of the forgers, Captains Hugh Pollard
Hugh Pollard (Major)
Major Hugh Bertie Campbell Pollard was an author, firearms expert, and a British SOE officer. He is chiefly known for his intelligence work during the Irish War of Independence and for the events of July 1936, when he and his SOE colleague Cecil Bebb flew General Francisco Franco from the Canary...
and William Darling were of poor quality and easily identified as counterfeit.
Sources
- The Origin and Organisation of British Propaganda in Ireland in 1920, Brian P Murphy, Aubane Historical Society and Spinwatch (2006), ISBN 1 903497 24 8
- The Paper Wall: Newspapers and Propaganda in Ireland 1919-1921, Ian Kenneally, The Collins Press (Cork 2008), ISBN 9781905172580
- The four glorious years Frank Gallagher Irish Press, (1953) reprinted Blackwater press, (2005) ISBN 9781841317847