Clonmult Ambush 90th anniversary commemoration this month

FEBRUARY 20th marks the 90th anniversary of the Clonmult Ambush. On that day, the 4th battalion of the First Cork Brigade IRA, under the command of acting O/C Captain Jack O’Connell, was ambushed by British forces. As a result of the ambush, 12 Volunteers lay dead, four were wounded and four were captured, two of whom were later executed.
The East Cork Column was under the command of Commandant Diarmuid O’Hurley who was not present at the time of the ambush but was later killed by British forces near Midleton on the May 28th  1921. The column was based around Midleton, Cobh and Youghal and had been quite effective at carrying out operations.
In January 1921, the column occupied a disused farmhouse near the village of Clonmult seven miles north of Midleton for training, a base from which to carry out operations and living quarters for the men.
The first operation to be carried out from here was to be an ambush of a British military train at Cobh on February 222nd.
On the afternoon of the ambush, two Volunteers, John Joe Joyce and Michael Desmond, went to fill their water bottles. When they spotted soldiers from the Hampshire Regiment surrounding the house they immediately engaged the enemy and fought their way back to the house but both later died from their wounds. The decision was made to try and hold out as long as possible while others tried to escape to bring back reinforcements. The attempt was led by Captain Jack O’Connell, who managed to escape.
He contacted Volunteers and sent them to Conna, six miles away, to get reinforcements from the North-East Column. Michael Hallahan, Richard Hegarty and James Ahern died in the escape attempt. Jeremiah O’Leary made it back to the house but was badly wounded.
British reinforcements arrived in the form of Black and Tans and RIC. They proceeded to set fire to the thatched house. Volunteers Galvin and O’Leary were both shot as they made an opening in the gable of the house. A decision to surrender was made before leaving the house and the Volunteers destroyed their rifles.
As they emerged from the house with their hands up, Joseph Morrissey, James Galvin, Donal Dennehy, Liam Aherne, Jeremiah Aherne, Christopher Sullivan and David Desmond were all shot by the Black and Tans. The intervention of a British military officer stopped the shooting and the remaining eight Volunteers were later tried by court-martial and sentenced to death. Two of these sentences were carried out. Maurice Moore and Paddy O’Sullivan were executed on the May 5th 1921; the other sentences were commuted. The life of Captain Higgins, recovering from wounds, was spared due to the truce.
An ex-serviceman confessed to informing the British of the whereabouts of the column. After being captured and tried by the IRA, a number of other suspected spies were tried and executed after the ambush.
The 90th anniversary of the Conmult Ambush will be remembered in Midleton on February 20th at 2pm.