‘The most notorious trouble spot along the entire border’: exploring the dynamics of political violence in an Irish border town, 1971–1974

ABSTRACT

Levels of violence on the Irish border escalated significantly during the years 1971–1974. Frequently, the British government alleged that the IRA was using the territory of the Republic of Ireland as a base from which to launch attacks. This paper will examine the southern border town of Lifford, which featured prominently in British complaints. Despite the significance of border violence, there has been a tendency for research on the Northern Ireland Troubles to focus on the urban centres. Evidence presented shows that the IRA was extremely active in the Lifford area. The Irish security forces were ill-equipped to deal with the threat and there are allegations that low-level collusion occurred. The Irish government was under diplomatic pressure to act with regard to the situation for some time. The IRA eventually over-escalated its campaign, engaging in military activity south of the border, prompting a significant security response from the Irish state and a subsequent decline in violence. It is concluded that failings by the Irish security forces were due to a range of factors including sympathy for northern nationalists, lack of resources, organisational weakness, and a fear of acting in case violence spread to the Republic of Ireland.

KEYWORDS:

• Irish border
• Provisional IRA
• Irish Army
• an Garda Síochána
• RUC
• British Army
• troubles

Acknowledgements

This article evolved from a paper presented at University College, Dublin’s ‘Decades of Centenaries’ conference on ‘Partitions and Borders’ in May 2018 and I would like to thank Dr Conor Mulvagh for involving me in that event. I am extremely grateful for the constructive feedback received from the anonymous peer reviewers, the editors of Irish Political Studies and Dr Brian Hanley, who read an early draft of the article.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes on contributor

Patrick Mulroe is a Secondary School Teacher in Monaghan. He completed a PhD in Irish Politics at the University of Ulster. He authored Bombs, Bullets and the Border: Policing Ireland’s Frontier: Irish Security Policy 1969–1978 (Irish Academic Press, 2017).

Notes

1 National Archives, Dublin (NA), (IRL) 2004/21/637, ‘Policing Common Law Enforcement Area’, circa 1974. All archival references are recorded in endnote format to add to the fluidity of the text.

2 Two government Ministers were sacked by Taoiseach Jack Lynch in May 1970 because they were suspected of conspiring with elements in the Irish Army and paramilitaries to import arms to aid northern nationalists. There was an unsuccessful prosecution of these Ministers and persistent rumours associating the government more generally with the importation scheme. For full account see O’Brien (2000).

3 National Archives, Kew, London, (NA) (UK) FCO 33/1468, ‘Letter from John Peck to UK representative in Belfast dated May 27, 1971’, in ‘Co-operation about control of explosives and firearms’.

4 ‘Spiking’ involved the British Army installing a metal barrier usually with protruding spikes to close a road; ‘cratering’ involved the British Army demolishing a border bridge or crossing, usually with explosives.

5 NA (IRL) 2002/8/484, ‘News Release, December 15, 1971’.

6 See the victims in this book numbered 153,195, 244, 245, 267, and 285.

7 See the victims in this book numbered 238, 262, 267, 268, 290, 341, 361, 474, 605, 658, 675, 676, 794, and 798.

8 NA (UK) FCO 87/198, ‘Cross Border IRA activity by ASUs’, 1972.

9 NA (UK) CJ4/812, ‘Telegram 50 from UK Embassy in Dublin’, February 12, 1974.

10 NA (UK) FCO 87/198, ‘Activities by the IRA after Motorman’, 1972.

11 Ibid.

12 NA (IRL) 2002/252, ‘Telegram dated December 15, 1971’.

13 NA (UK) FCO 87/122, ‘RUC Subdivision N report on Garda Síochána and Irish Army’.

14 NA (UK) FCO 87/247, ‘Terrorist activity in Clady/Cloughfin area March 29, 1973’ in ‘Co-operation on border security’.

15 Ibid.

16 NA (UK) FCO 87/375, ‘Report on Lifford’, December 1973.

17 NA (UK) FCO 87/247, ‘FCO Telegram from Galsworthy number 212’, April 16, 1973.

18 NA (UK) CJ4/810‘Border Incidents in Clady/Strabane’, December 1973.

19 NA (UK) CJ4 812, ‘Border Security’, November 8, 1973.

20 NA (UK) FCO 87/375, ‘Report on Lifford’, December 1973.

21 NA (IRL) 2005/4/954, ‘Minutes of meeting with Northern executive’, 1 February 1974.

22 Ibid.

23 See also NA (UK) FCO 87/374, ‘This morning’s incident at Lifford/Strabane’, February 22, 1974.

24 Ibid.

25 Ibid.

26 NA (UK) CJ4/812, ‘Cooperation with the South’, February 1974.

27 NA (UK) CJ4/812, ‘Cooperation with South further to minutes of February 11, 1974’, February 15, 1974.

28 NA (UK) FCO 87/374, ‘Meeting with Major General O’Carroll’, February 28, 1974.

29 NA (UK) FCO 87/371, ‘Meeting with Edmund Garvey’, February 18, 1974.

30 NA (UK) CJ4/2244, ‘Cross-border cooperation by PWJ Buxton’, 19 June 1978.

31 NA (IRL) 2010/19/1687, ‘Border Incidents the 2% figure and after’.

32 NA (UK) FCO 87/934, ‘Contacts and Communication with the South’, September 3, 1979.

33 NA (UK) FCO 87/295, ‘John Born to GW Harding’, December 6, 1974.