"That Wall Was To Save Most Of Our Lives Later In The Week"
James Coughlan was a member of 'C' Company, 4th Battalion, Irish Volunteers. During the Easter Rising he fought under Éamonn Ceannt in the South Dublin Union. At 10 o'clock on the morning of Easter Monday, Coughlan received an order to mobilise at Emerald Square.
The South Dublin Union was a huge complex and was occupied in order to stop the British Army advancing into the city from Richmond Barracks, the Royal Hospital and Wellington Barracks.
The garrison in the South Dublin Union were engaged in battle soon after the complex was occupied and as the week went on they took part in some of the heaviest fighting to take place during the Rising.
Coughlan remembers his Commanding Officers, Ceannt and Cathal Brugha with the utmost respect but does state that he was also frustrated at times at their unwillingness to step back from danger. Ceannt he says was, 'inclined to lead by example'
I saw him with his tunic off and his shirt sleeves rolled up with hammer and nails and boards, commenced the building of a barricade in the porch. When finished was a virtual wall about six feet high...That wall was to save most of our lives later in the week.
The garrison were attacked from all sides by the British forces. The Volunteers in the Nurses Home and a dormitory nearby, as well as those in Marrowbone Lane Distillery, overlooking the South Dublin Union inflicted heavy casualties on the military. By Thursday British soldiers reached the Nurses Home and Coughlan describes what followed. Despite their efforts they could not get past Ceannt's barricade and began to attack the position with bombs. Cathal Brugha was seriously wounded. He ordered his men to leave the Nurses Home and go to Ceannt in the dormitory but as Coughlan says Brugha,
Had himself placed on the kitchen table near the back window...so that he could using his Mauser automatic contest any entry from the rear.
Some time passed before Ceannt realised the Nurses Home was not taken and ordered his men to reoccupy the building where to their amazement they found Brugha barely alive, having held back the British soldiers single handed.
Coughlan says that on Sunday 30 April the men were all called together in one room when Ceannt told them of the surrender order. The men were marched to the Ross Road and later brought to Richmond Barracks.
Coughlan remembers seeing the G Men coming to identify the leaders while they were all in the barracks Gymnasium. Éamonn Ceannt was executed on 8 May in Kilmainham Gaol.
After his arrest James Coughlan was deported to Knutsford Prison, England and later Frongoch Internment Camp, Wales. He rejoined his company after his release. During the War of Independence he became a member of the Munitions Department, GHQ IRA and transferred to 'C' Company 2nd Battalion, Dublin Brigade as he was too well known in his own locality. He took the pro-Treaty side during the Irish Civil War.
James Coughlan died in 1974, he was seventy-seven years old.
James Coughlan was interviewed for the RTÉ Television project 'Portraits 1916' on 16 January 1966.
Title: |
Portraits 1916 James Coughlan |
Clip Duration: |
00:31:40 |
Clip Title: |
"That Wall Was To Save Most Of Our Lives Later In The Week" |
Series Title: |
Portraits 1916 |
Information: |
Portraits 1916 is a collection of interviews made for television recording the personal memories of women and men who took part in the Easter Rising. In the early 1960s Telefís Éireann (RTÉ Television) began to record interviews with people who had taken part in the Easter Rising and the War of Independence. Individuals were interviewed under a working title of 'The Survivors'. The first of these interviews were organised by Jack White and recorded at the television studios in Donnybrook on 31 August 1964. Further recordings were organised by James Plunkett with the same working title of 'The Survivors' although none of these interviews were broadcast as full programmes. In 1965 meetings were held to discuss what Telefís Éireann should do to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Easter Rising. Veterans continued to be interviewed despite the fact that no decision had been made as to what type of programme, if any they could be used in. James Plunkett did not see 'The Survivors' recordings working as individual programmes. In April 1965 producer Aindras O Gallchoir took over the project continuing to organise recordings with the initial intention of using the interviews to create one programme. By September Aindras O Gallchoir decided to produce seven thirty minute documentaries on the leaders of the Rising but many more people needed to be interviewed. This new project had the working titles of 'Portraits 1916' and 'Seven Signatories'. With very little time over thirty people were interviewed for this series. The interviews took place mainly in studio between October 1965 and January 1966, with the exception of Kathleen Clarke and Leslie Bean de Barra. These interviews would eventually form the basis for the series 'On Behalf of the Provisional Government' which was first broadcast in 1966. The interviews recorded form an extensive record of the events and the people involved in the Easter Rising, and were never broadcast in their entirety. Presented here under the title of 'Portraits 1916' are the personal recollections of men and women who took part in or witnessed the events of the Easter Rising. |
Local Keywords: |
1916, Easter 1916, Easter Rising, Éamonn Ceannt, Cathal Brugha, South Dublin Union, 4th Battalion, Surrender |
Coverage: |
Ireland |
Topic: |
Wars and Conflict |
Contributor(s): |
Aindrias O Gallchoir (Producer) |
Publisher: |
RTÉ |
Production Year: |
1966 |
Country of Production: |
Ireland |
Original Identifier: |
94D00028 |
IPR Restrictions: |
Rights Reserved - Free Access |
Rights, Terms and Conditions: |
Copyright RTÉ. This material may not be replicated in any form or manner without the prior express permission of RTÉ. Any form of reproduction in print, television, video, multimedia, web site or other electronic media or any form of dissemination for commercial or non-commercial use must be licensed by the RTÉ Archives. If you wish to licence video or audio clips, still images or text, or would like further guidance please contact us. RTÉ Archives are committed to respecting the copyright of others and have attempted to source and credit the copyright owners of all material used here. RTÉ would like to hear from any copyright owners who are not properly identified here so that the necessary corrections can be made. If you feel your copyright has not been respected please contact us. |
Item Type: |
whole |
Colour: |
Black and White |
Sound: |
Mono |
Aspect Ratio: |
4:3 |
Language: |
English (eng) |
