Destruction in Dublin, a mixed reaction to the arrival of British soldiers, a prisoner called Machine Gun Liz and a hostile atmosphere in Fermoy, some of the recollections of Private Shenton to the Rising.
Mr Shenton describes a tense feeling among the British soldiers who were sent to Dublin during Easter Week 1916. Although there was apparent support among the public for the troops they always felt on edge.
We were only allowed out after duty hours in twos and threes loaded rifle and fixed bayonets. And if we got into trouble shoot don't ask questions shoot.
Security was tight as a large group of prisoners were marched from the Phoenix Park to Mountjoy Prison under the guard of the British Army. Mr. Shenton was among the military escort guarding the prisoners and remembers an air of tension on the streets of Dublin. Civilians had been warned to stay indoors and away from windows.
No one was to appear at the windows. If you saw a curtain move or anybody at the window, shoot and keep marching. Because they were so afraid of guns being fired at the troops or even bombs thrown at us.
Among the large group of prisoners there was one in particular that stuck out,
I think there was a full battalion of troops. There might have been perhaps two hundred prisoners. And in the centre was Machine Gun Liz. She was very fat Irish woman in a bright green jumper. During the heavy fighting she was a crack machine gunner against the troops.
After the fighting in Dublin Mr Shenton and his colleagues were moved to Fermoy in county Cork where he remembers the atmosphere as being "very hot very treacherous" with the nearby town of Mitchelstown being out of bounds to British troops.
Mr Shenton was interviewed during the production of 'Ireland A Television History' on 26 June 1979.
| Title: | Ireland A Television History Private Shenton |
| Material Type: | Video |
| Clip Title: | "Shoot Don't Ask Questions Shoot" |
| Series Title: | Ireland A Television History |
| Information: | Ireland A Television History was a 13 part series written and presented by Robert Kee looking at the complexities of Irish history. The series chronicles Ireland's development from pre-Christian times to the 1980s, with a specific emphasis on the creation of the modern independent Republic and the roots of the Troubles. 'Ireland a Television History', a BBC production was broadcast on RTÉ and BBC at the same time. In an article for the RTÉ Guide, Kee was asked is the series aimed at a British audience? He replied, "No it's aimed at those (mainly in Britain) who are less familiar with the subject than they ought to be; and at those (in Ireland, North and South) who think they know but don't". |
| Local Keywords: | 1916, Easter Rising, Easter 1916, Rising, British Army, British Soldiers |
| Coverage: | Ireland |
| Genre: | Factual |
| Topic: | Wars and Conflict |
| Provider: | RTÉ |
| Contributor(s): | Robert Kee (Interviewer) |
| Publisher: | RTÉ |
| Production Year: | 1979 |
| Country of Production: | England |
| Original Identifier: | DX20/00915 |
| 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: | part/extract |
| Colour: | Colour |
| Sound: | Mono |
| Aspect Ratio: | 4:3 |
| Language: | English (eng) |
