Tag Archives: war of independence

Revolutionary Remembrance: “My Civil War” And “A Lost Son”

Posted on December 14, 2012 by

(Note: The two hyperlinks in this article will expire a few weeks after publication). Over the last few weeks, RTE has aired two documentaries about the Irish Civil War. The first was My Civil War, a look at the descendents … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Ireland, Reviews, Revolutionary Remembrance, TV/Movies, War | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Guerilla Days In Ireland (The Play)

Posted on September 6, 2012 by

Director Neil Pearson has come up with a compelling enough adaptation of Tom Barry’s biography for the stage. The story of Barry, a British soldier turned flying column leader during the Irish War of Independence, the men he led and … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Ireland, Reviews, War | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

The RAND COIN Scoresheet And The Irish Civil War

Posted on April 19, 2012 by

The Civil War was a very different conflict to that fought between the IRA and the British. It was a successful COIN campaign, a very rare thing. What does the RAND scoresheet have to say about it? Good Factors 1. … Continue reading →

Posted in Counter Insurgency (COIN), History, Ireland, War | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The RAND COIN Scorecard And The Irish War Of Independence

Posted on April 11, 2012 by

The RAND think tank, last year, came up with a “scorecard” method of reviewing counter-insurgency campaigns. The scorecard ranks a COIN campaign in terms of “good” and “bad” practices that take place by the actual COIN force and the insurgents … Continue reading →

Posted in Afghanistan, Counter Insurgency (COIN), History, Iraq, Ireland, Irish Defence Forces, Politics, War | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Defining the Irish Revolutionary Period

Posted on March 29, 2012 by

Those who read this blog will often hear me talk about the “Irish revolutionary period”. As is typical, I often write those words without actually explaining what they are, ignorant of readers outside of Ireland who may not quite know … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Ireland, Politics, War | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

The Irish Volunteers Commemorative Organisation

Posted on March 7, 2012 by

Last weekend I had the pleasure of attending an exhibition organised by the Irish Volunteers Commemorative Organisation, held in the Pery’s hotel, Limerick. Photos of said event here. The exhibition included a lecture from noted local Limerick historian Thomas Toomey … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Ireland, Limerick, War | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

The War Of Independence Paradox

Posted on February 14, 2012 by

“The Civil War Paradox” from the Small Wars Journal, courtesy of Yale PhD student Lionel Beehner. Interesting stuff on the definitions of “rebellion”, “insurgency”, “protest” “civil war” and “revolution”, the relationship between those terms, all centred around the continuing debate … Continue reading →

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The British Victory In The Irish War Of Independence

Posted on November 29, 2011 by

A former teacher had the following, interesting, assessment of the Irish War of Independence. The traditional nationalist viewpoint of the conflict sees it as a victory for the IRA, who forced a strained British military and political machine to call … Continue reading →

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Ireland And Iraq: When COIN Works And When It Cant

Posted on June 1, 2011 by

The Irish Civil War is a conflict that is widely ignored in military circles, outside of the Irish Army, which has always seemed strange to me. The Irish Civil War is that rarest of things: an example of a successful … Continue reading →

Posted in Counter Insurgency (COIN), History, Iraq, Ireland, Middle East, Xtranormal Videos | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment