Reading Jail - Prison Record 1916

PRISON RECORD - READING PRISON
11 July 1916 - 24 December 1916

Langley was arrested on Monday May 8th 1916 at 4.30am.  The local RIC surrounded his house on Cloonthoo Road Tuam and brought both his mother and Langley to the barracks for questioning.  Margaret Langley was released, Liam was then transferred to Galway prison.  On Friday 12 May he was moved to Richmond Barracks, Dublin.  On June 1st he was marched up tehe quay in Dublin with fellow prisoners and loaded on cattle boats which were bound for England.  On June 2nd he arrived in Wakefield Prison, from there he was moved to Frongoch, North Wales.  On 11 July Liam Langley was moved to Reading Prison where he was interned under the Defence of the Realm Act |(DORA).  On Christmas Eve 1916 he was released from Reading.

Poem written in Reading Jail Dec 1916

Liam Langley was interned in Reading Jail from 11 July 1916 until 24 Dec 1916.  He was arrested in Tuam on Sunday 30th April 1916.  His route to Reading brought him through Tuam Barracks, Galway Prison, Richmond Barracks Dublin, Wakefield Prison, Frongoch North Wales and finally Reading.

The following poem was an entry in the Autograph Book of John Scollan a fellow internee.  The Autograph Book is held in the National Library of Ireland.

READING JAIL

22/XII/1916

Poem written in Reading Jail 1916

Oh, comrade dear, you’ve asked me here

To write a line for you:

This toast I’ll write, that when the fight

Will start, my comrades true

Will do or die, but never fly

Before a hireling band,

But will fight on, till breaks the dawn

Of Freedom o’er our land:

Here’s to the dear little Isle of Green,

And the men who would set her free;

Here’s to the day that will see her Queen,

Champion of Faith and Liberty.

And here’s to the downfall of England,

And the men who will strike the blow;

For long has she tried hard to crush us

To Hell! with vile Albion – our foe.

Liam T. Langley

Cptn I.R.A. & V.P. Na Fianna Eireann

Cloontho Road,

Tuam,

Co Glaway

Na Fianna Tuam Sluagh Visits Dublin c.1913

Sean O'Neill in his witness statement recounts a visit to Dublin of the Tuam Sluagh Na Fianna Éireann organised by Liam Langley (WS1219):

'Under the leadership of Liam Langley about twenty of us went to Dublin. When we reached the city and saw O'Connell's tower as we passed Glasnevin and the big buildings, it was an awe-inspiring sight. Our guide insisted that we must see the monuments. We saw a great bulky man with a cloak on him on an edifice in Sackville Street who we were informed  was "O'Connell, the Liberator". Burke and Father Matthew were here too and Oliver Goldsmith.  Parnell was impressive. His dignified demeanour and with his right hand extended seemed to greet us. The towering pinnacle of Nelson - the one-eyed English Admiral, was a challenge to all this, and we felt we could have blasted him out of the centre of the city!

It was only when we reached the home of, Countess Markievicz of Rathmines, that my mental equilibrium returned to normal. Here all of us from Tuam were entertained and put up for the night. And as that vivacious lady conversed with us, and principally with our leader Liam Langley, we felt we were in a sort of paradise.  I can recall one memorable remark, "I hope the day is not far distant when I shall see those Red Coats swept into the Liffey".

Liam Langley (top)
Con Colbert
1913

Indeed, before we met the Countess we saw scores of those red-coated soldiers sitting on the Liffey wall or hanging over O'Connell Bridge, or swaggering around, cane in hand, at street corners in their gaudy dress of Saxon red. Our Chief Scout - Madame – kept the Tuam Sluagh enthralled with her conversation and stories. I clearly remember the face of James Connolly there. He was pointed out to me by Liam Langley.

During our stay in Dublin we visited Fianna Headquarters. Here we met Con Colbert. To me Colbert was, what I might term, a keen, energetic sort of genius who meant business, business without frills.  Seán Heuston we also met, and with his genial smile he greeted us, and happiness radiated from his countenance when we entered the office. They were both in Fianna uniform.

We also  held a picnic on the Hill of Howth overlooking that beautiful bay.

At night we attended a concert in the Mansion House. And here I saw for the first time a man smartly dressed in Volunteer uniform. For no other purpose, I presume, than to show himself or, more precisely, his uniform he stepped out smartly before the footlights and got a thunderous applause. His uniform was, I think, of dark green material made up in the fashion of an American or Canadian outfit. A pair of green puttees and Sam Browne belt completed his attire. The Volunteer Officer (or Private) was, I think, Pierce Beasley.'

Barney Mellows, Gary Holohan, Sean Heuston, Liam Langley
1915 Na Fianna Ard Fheis

Liam Mellows Escape 1916 & Fianna/Volunteers Council 1920

Na Fianna and Volunteers Composite Council 1920

As the War of Independence escalated it was recognised that a common military policy would be of benefit to both the Volunteers (now the official army of the Republic) and Na Fianna. Negotiations between the Department of Defence and Fianna Headquarters Staff  resulted in an agreement between the two groups in December 1920.

As a result of this agreement a Composite Council was set up comprising three G.H.Q. Officers of the Fianna - Barney Mellows, Adjutant-General, Garry Holohan, Q.M.G.  0/C. Brigade and Liam Langley, Director of Organisation; and three G.H.Q. Officers of the Irish Volunteers -  Dermot O’Hegarty, Gearóid O’Sullivan, and Bob Price. The function of the Composite Council was to ensure smooth co-operation between the Volunteers and Na Fianna. The meetings of the composite council were presided over by the Minister for Defence, Cathal Brugha, or someone nominated by him. The council at once addressed itself to the situation in the capital and instructed that Na Fianna’s Dublin Brigade be re-organised into five Battalions corresponding to the structure of the Volunteers in the city.

It also discussed in detail the practical implications of the partnership, agreeing procedures which were circulated to all companies by Fianna’s Adjutant General, Barney Mellows.   Within a month of the companies receiving Mellows’ memorandum the British had captured documents of Collins that referred to the Council decisions and were aware of the imminent ‘linking up’ of the two organisations.

Account of Composite Council typed and signed by Liam Langley

Witness statements Joseph Reynolds WS 0191 and Gearoid Ua h-Uallachain WS0336, 

John Watts, A Case Study of a Political Youth Organisation Na Fianna Éireann, University of Glasgow.

FIANNA May 1926 Mellows Commemoration Number

The Fianna was a magazine issued by Na Fianna Éireann.  After a four year lapse a copy was issued in May 1926 in an attempt to resurrect the publication. This was a 'Mellows Commemoration Number'. At this time Liam Langley was on the Central Executive of the organisation, Constance de Markievicz was the Chief Scout.  Included in this issue is an article on Page 2 by  Constance de Markievicz regarding Liam Mellows, there is also a poem dedicated to Mellows written by de Markievicz on Page 3.  Below are images of the issue, the articles and poem.

                                                                       

Cover

Extract from Fianna May 1928 - Article and Poem written by Constance de Markievicz honouring Liam Mellows:

Liam Mellows Graveside Oration by Liam Langley 1928

Liam Langley Chief Scout Na Fianna Éireann

Liam Langley and Liam Mellows were firm friends.  Mellows often stayed in the Langley home in Tuam prior to 1916.  Mellows was executed in Mountjoy Jail Dec 8th 1922 along with Joe McKelvey, Rory O'Connor and Richard Barrett.  Liam Langley was interned with Mellows in Mountjoy Jail at the time. He was devastated at the loss of his comrades and in particular Liam Mellows.  The bodies of the four comrades were released to their families in late 1924. Liam Langley, then Chief Scout Fianna Éireann seen in the photographs below giving an oration at the graveside of Liam Mellows in Castletown, Co. Wicklow, the occasion was the Annual Liam Mellows Pilgrimmage 1928.

Liam Langley Chief Scout Na Fianna Éireann giving the oration

In his oration Langley describes when they were told of the executions in Mountjoy Jail December 8th 1922:

'On the morning of December 8th myself along with other prisoners of war were awaiting the arrival of their guards in their respective divisions of the prison.  We were looking forward to the usual meeting of Liam and our comrades in the prison chapel.  Little did we know what the volley we heard earlier signified.  We were soon enlightened, for in a few minutes it was announced from the Altar that "four of our comrades had just been sent before God".  And when the names were read out, there was a deathlike silence. It was some time before the full purport of the announcement was realised.  It was then that strong men sobbed and little boys with clenched fists vowed vengeance.  Men like him would never be forgotten, those who devoted their lives to their's country's service and remained faithful to the last.  Liam's life may be summed up in his motto: "out to fight, not to run away".  He had given his life for the love of the land that bore him'. (Liam Langley Na Fianna Éireann Chief Scout 1928)

Irish Independent 31 May 1928
This is an extract from the full article written by
Liam Langley
(Newspaper Cutting Eamon Murphy - History of Na Fianna Éireann)

Full details of the article written by Langley can be read below:

The Rising in Galway 1916 - Interview on RTE's Féach

An interview Volunteer Sean Concannon, Claregalway broadcast on RTE in 1970. It was on the prgoramme Féach and is concerned with activities in Galway during Easter Week 1916.

Na Fianna Éireann: The Lost Boys of the Irish Revolution

In May 1915 Sinead Callanan won the All-Island Schools History Competition.  Her essay explored the historically important role played by Na Fianna during the period 1912 - 22. It looked at the role played by Bulmer Hobson and Countess Markievicz in their formation and at how Na Fianna were structured and the types of activities in which they engaged. It also explores the relationship between the Fianna and the Irish Volunteers and the role played by the organisation during the 1916 rising and Civil War.
The Irish Examiner published her essay as part of their Centenary Commerations

The full project can be found on the Scoilnet website

Na Fianna Éireann: The Lost Boys of the Irish Revolution

Monday, March 21, 2016

Sinéad Callanan, a student of Castletroy College in Limerick, was a prizewinner in the all-island Decade of Centenaries schools essay competition for this study of Na Fianna Éireann

When men come to write the history of the freeing of Ireland, they shall have to record that the boys of Na Fianna Éireann stood in the battle gap until the Volunteers armed …

So said Patrick Pearse in To the Boys of Ireland. Why, then, does it seem that he was mistaken?

Na Fianna, or the Irish National Boy Scouts, played a vital role in the events of 1912 to 1922, yet have been largely overlooked in most modern accounts of this time. Pearse goes further still, asserting that ‘if the Fianna had not been founded in 1909, the Volunteers of 1913 would never have arisen’.

He was speaking at the beginning of 1914, barely four years into the Fianna’s existence, and before many of the major events of the Irish Revolution. The Fianna was instrumental in the formation and success of the Irish Volunteers, and the arming of the Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB), but they are rarely praised or even mentioned anymore.

Fianna Éireann Ard Fheis 1915 Mansion House
Liam Langaley seated fourth from left next to Sean Heuston

The Typewriter

Liam was a proficient typist.  He transcribed many articles from newspapers and pamphlets.  He also wrote a numbers of articles, poems and a play.  This is the typewriter he used for many years, it is held with Liam's papers.  Liam also learned Pitman shorthand, some of his notes are in shorthand and are thus quite difficult to transcribe.

REMOVAL OF BANNER FROM GPO APPEALING FOR RECRUITS FOR THE BRITISH NAVY

Extract from Statement Gearoid Ua h-Uallachain (Gary Holohan) Fianna Éireann Dublin Brigade.

Liam Langley, along with a group of Na Fianna members, was involved in the removal of  a British Navy recruiting banner from the columns of the GPO around 1918 (date uncertain). This story was often recounted at home by Liam to his family.  He added that the following day a large crowd gathered to look a the burnt banner.  Liam and the group cycled back into O'Connell Street to survey the outcome of their actions.

The following is Holohan's account of the incident:  "There is just one incident that comes to mind which took place after 1916. As if to add insult to injury, the British authorities erected a large scroll or banner of bunting across the top of the columns or the G.P.O. on which was painted 'An appeal for recruits for His Brittanic Majesty's Navy'. This was too much for us, so we organised a party of the Fianna. There were about twenty of us, including Liam Langley, Hugo MacNeill and Thee Fitzgerald. We met with bicycles at George's Pocket. We had a supply of twine with lead weights attached, and several sods of turf soaked in paraffin oil. We cycled into O'Connell Street at about half-past eleven, held up the policeman on duty at the point of a revolver, threw the lead weights over the banner, hauled up the burning sods of turf and the whole thing was in ashes in a few minutes. It was never replaced."