Father James O'Callaghan
Liam de Róiste
Liam de Róiste was a Sinn Féin T.D for the Cork City Constituency. He was elected as an M.P in 1918, but in January 1919, he and other members of Sinn Féin refused to recognise the Parliament of the United Kingdom and Sinn Féin MPs instead assembled in the Mansion House in Dublin and declared it as the parliament of Dáil Éireann (however de Róiste was not able to attend).
De Róiste was an Irish language enthusiast, and was a prominent member of the Cork branch of the Gaelic League and the Cork Young Ireland Society, a founder member of the Celtic Literary Society alongside Terence MacSwiney and Tomás MacCurtain, as well as a founder member of Coláiste na Mumhan in Ballingeary.
His Death
On Saturday, May 14th 1921, as the parliamentary election was being held, 7 members of the R.I.C were patrolling the Blackpool area. Suddenly, two civilians appeared and hurled bombs at them. Shots were fired, but the two rebels escaped. Four policemen fell seriously wounded and a Catholic priest named Fr. O’Flynn said the last rites for them.
This event started a “Reign of Terror” in the city as large forces of military and police poured onto the streets. The residents were terrified at the sound of machine gunfire, and hurried home well before curfew. At 10 pm, a military lorry arrived on Patrick Street and soldiers poured out and began to raid houses. One man was shot while in bed by a group of loyalist vigilantes.
