In March 1921 the City and County of Limerick were under martial law. In the City a strict nightly curfew was enforced by the RIC, the Black & Tans, the Auxiliaries and the British Army. People left their homes at their peril. And for Republicans their homes were not safe, especially on the night of 6th and 7th March when a British murder gang stalked the streets. Free article

A programme of events has been launched today to commemorate the 40th Anniversary of the 1981 hunger strike. Free article

March 1st marks the 40th anniversary of the beginning of the 1981 hunger strikes. An Phoblacht will be opening our archives which house a unique repository of articles and photographs from the hunger strike period. In the coming weeks we will be profiling these pieces along with new insights into this critical period in the history of republican struggle. Free article

One hundred years ago, the spring of 1921 saw an escalation of the war in Ireland as the British regime carried out widespread ‘reprisal’ attacks on civilians and used military courts to sentence prisoners to death. Free article

A proud Republican woman, a mother, a wife, a sister and a true friend and comrade. Deirdre Whelan remembers her sister Martina Shanahan who died on February 21st Free article

Ciaran Quinn writes on Brexit, sausages and the policy of absurd. Free article

Book review ‘Rebel Aghada 1798-1923 - the Untold Story of an East Cork Parish’ by Billy Fitzpatrick. Free article

Writing in his latest blog, Declan Kearney said Sinn Féin is absolutely committed to progressive public policy and legislation, a rights-based, multi-racial and multi-cultural Ireland. Free article

In the fight for freedom 1919-1921 no County matched Cork for the level and intensity of armed resistance to British rule. It was there that some of the fiercest fighting took place. The IRA’s three Cork brigades inflicted heavy casualties on the crown forces but also suffered serious setbacks themselves, notably on 15 February 1921 at Mourne Abbey and Upton Station and worst of all five days later at Clonmult. Free article

Proinsias (Frank) Stagg, IRA Volunteer from Co. Mayo, died on hunger strike in Wakefield Prison, England on 12th February 1976, 45 years ago today. These are extracts from some of his prison letters as published in ‘Irish Voices from English Jails’ by the Prisoners Aid Committee, London 1979. Free article