Thomas McElwee
Encyclopedia
Thomas McElwee was an Irish republican
hunger strike
r and a volunteer
in the Provisional Irish Republican Army
(IRA).
. McElwee then trained as a car mechanic at Magherafelt
Technical College and Ballymena
Training Centre.
At the age of 14, McElwee joined Fianna Éireann
, he then joined the South Derry Independent Republican Unit
and subsequently joined the IRA after the SDIRU was disbanded.
, who was killed when one of the bombs they had planted destroyed her shop, the Alley Katz Boutique. On conviction for her murder, McElwee was sentenced to life imprisonment in September 1977. On appeal his conviction was reduced to manslaughter
and the sentence reduced to 20 years.
. He joined the 1981 Irish hunger strike
and died on 8 August 1981 at the age of 23 after 62 days of hunger-strike. His eight sisters served as his pallbearers.
He was a cousin of fellow hunger striker Francis Hughes
, and also a cousin of Father Oliver Crilly, a Catholic
priest
who attempted to mediate during the strike.
He is commemorated on the Irish Martyrs Memorial at Waverley Cemetery
in Sydney, Australia.
In 2009 McElwee was honoured by Republican Sinn Féin who named their Waterford city cumann after him.
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...
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...
r and a volunteer
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...
in 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...
(IRA).
Early life
McElwee was the sixth child in a family of twelve born to James and Alice McElwee. He was educated at primary level at St. Mary's Primary School, Bellaghy and at secondary level at St. Mary's, Clady, PortglenonePortglenone
Portglenone is a village in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It lies 8.5 miles west of Ballymena. It had a population of 2,900 in the 2001 Census...
. McElwee then trained as a car mechanic at Magherafelt
Magherafelt
Magherafelt is a small town in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It had a population of 8,372 people recorded in the 2001 Census. It is the biggest town in the south of County Londonderry and is the social, economic and political hub of the area...
Technical College and Ballymena
Ballymena
Ballymena is a large town in County Antrim, Northern Ireland and the seat of Ballymena Borough Council. Ballymena had a population of 28,717 people in the 2001 Census....
Training Centre.
At the age of 14, McElwee joined Fianna Éireann
Fianna Éireann
The name Fianna Éireann , also written Fianna na hÉireann and Na Fianna Éireann , has been used by various Irish republican youth movements throughout the 20th and 21st centuries...
, he then joined the South Derry Independent Republican Unit
South Derry Independent Republican Unit
The South Derry Independent Republican Unit was an Irish republican guerrilla unit which operated during the Troubles in Northern Ireland.It operated from c. 1973–1978 and included members such as Dominic McGlinchey, Francis Hughes, Thomas McElwee, Joe Sheridan and Ian Milne...
and subsequently joined the IRA after the SDIRU was disbanded.
Paramilitary activity
In December 1976, McElwee was arrested for a firebomb attack in the town of Ballymena in which he was nearly blinded. After his recovery he was charged with murder for the death of Yvonne Dunlop a 26 year old ProtestantProtestantism
Protestantism is one of the three major groupings within Christianity. It is a movement that began in Germany in the early 16th century as a reaction against medieval Roman Catholic doctrines and practices, especially in regards to salvation, justification, and ecclesiology.The doctrines of the...
, who was killed when one of the bombs they had planted destroyed her shop, the Alley Katz Boutique. On conviction for her murder, McElwee was sentenced to life imprisonment in September 1977. On appeal his conviction was reduced to manslaughter
Manslaughter
Manslaughter is a legal term for the killing of a human being, in a manner considered by law as less culpable than murder. The distinction between murder and manslaughter is said to have first been made by the Ancient Athenian lawmaker Dracon in the 7th century BC.The law generally differentiates...
and the sentence reduced to 20 years.
Hunger strike
In prison he became involved in the blanket protestBlanket protest
The blanket protest was part of a five year protest during the Troubles by Provisional Irish Republican Army and Irish National Liberation Army prisoners held in the Maze prison in Northern Ireland. The republican prisoners' status as political prisoners, known as Special Category Status, had...
. He joined the 1981 Irish hunger strike
1981 Irish hunger strike
The 1981 Irish hunger strike was the culmination of a five-year protest during The Troubles by Irish republican prisoners in Northern Ireland. The protest began as the blanket protest in 1976, when the British government withdrew Special Category Status for convicted paramilitary prisoners...
and died on 8 August 1981 at the age of 23 after 62 days of hunger-strike. His eight sisters served as his pallbearers.
He was a cousin of fellow hunger striker Francis Hughes
Francis Hughes
Francis Hughes was an Irish volunteer in the Provisional Irish Republican Army . Hughes was the most wanted man in Northern Ireland until his arrest following a shoot-out with the Special Air Service in which an SAS soldier was killed...
, and also a cousin of Father Oliver Crilly, a Catholic
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
priest
Priest
A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
who attempted to mediate during the strike.
Waverley Cemetery
The Waverley Cemetery opened in 1877 and is a cemetery located on top of the cliffs at Bronte in the eastern suburbs of Sydney. It is noted for its largely intact Victorian and Edwardian monuments. The cemetery contains the graves of many significant Australians including the poet Henry Lawson and...
in Sydney, Australia.
In 2009 McElwee was honoured by Republican Sinn Féin who named their Waterford city cumann after him.
Media
- Thomas McElwee is the main subject of the song "Farewell to Bellaghy", which also mention his cousin Francis Hughes,other members of the South Derry Independent Republican UnitSouth Derry Independent Republican UnitThe South Derry Independent Republican Unit was an Irish republican guerrilla unit which operated during the Troubles in Northern Ireland.It operated from c. 1973–1978 and included members such as Dominic McGlinchey, Francis Hughes, Thomas McElwee, Joe Sheridan and Ian Milne...
and deceased volunteersVolunteer (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 South Derry Brigade Óglaigh na hÉireann. - He is also the subject of the CrucifucksCrucifucksThe Crucifucks were a Lansing, Michigan-based punk band formed in 1981. Throughout their career, the band had a revolving-door line-up, the only constant member being lyricist and frontman Doc Corbin Dart. They were noted for their anarchist political agitation...
' song "The Story of Thomas McElwee".