Friday, 29 April 2016

Poem ~ The Rise Of Ireland: White Flags Raised - Saturday, 29 April 1916


Impression sketch of Pearse and Nurse O'Farrell surrender to the British. Taken from a still of TV production 'Insurrection' 1966 [online] See original image at: <http://www.anphoblacht.com/contents/25819> [Accessed: 29 April 2016]

Saturday 29 April - Cracks of Surrender

i
Saturday began as Friday ended -
Staffordshires make
Dawn charge of Reilly's fort to be
Cut down under fire
From various directions  - snipers
Remain on eager watch;
A silent Moore street is death trap.

Plans are unfolded by McLoughlin.
A diversion fight
Was to allow others to make run
For the Four Courts -
Terrace houses have become
A front line fortress
As a plan is asked of a charge.

Exhausted the ranks are split
Many are willing
Still to go on, as others lack any
Such ability - with
Early hours of daylight situations
At each holdout
Despite hardships, are standing firm.

Civilians, nothing to do with either
Side continue to get
Court in crossfire - a girl is mistakenly
Shot - while a family
Holding a white flag are gunned down;
Any kind of movement
Real or imagined was being shot at.

Staffordshire’s make chase of rebels
Fleeing Reilly's Fort -
Which is stopped from being taken
From a gun position
Mounted in a bakery - mid day and
A nurse from rebel HQ
Carrying a white flag is nearly shot.

The Nurse reaches British barricade.
About pockets of attack
And counter attacks, while injured
And dead cover streets,
The dire situation had driven out
Nurse Elizabeth Farrell
And Patrick Pearse in change of heart.

ii
The two stand before General Lowe.
Under cover, terms
Of surrender began to be discussed.
Mid afternoon finds
Nurse Farrell return to Moore Street
HQ to pass on orders -
Leader Connolly emerges on a stretcher.

The wounded leader is very carefully
Carried over barricade -
Acceptance of the rebel leaders bravery 
Is silently respected.
Hours shift on and Nurse Farrell plays
A further part, while
Delivering surrender order to Ned Daly.

With volunteers together in Four
Courts, Daly informs
Them of surrender - their surprise
Prompts arguments,
That they could hold out much longer.
Bridewell roof snipers
Are given word - initially they refuse.

Further orders are given - the men
Reluctantly put down
Their arms - 7p.m. passes, Sackville
Street complies
To finally give selves up; McLoughlin
Whose order to rebels
To deposit arms, markedly enrages
General Lowe, who
Had said leave arms on Moore Street.

Pockets of defiance still existed
About the city while
Treatment of exhausted prisoners
Held by infantry varied
From indifference, while some
Handle them roughly;
Others were considerate captors.

by Jamie Mann.

Source: File: The Irish Times: An Easter Rising timeline: Saturday April 29, 1916. Online. Available at: <http://www.irishtimes.com/culture/books/an-easter-rising-timeline-saturday-april-29th-1916-1.2192252> [Accessed 29 April 2016]

Source: File: Easter Rising 1916: Six days of armed struggle that changed Irish and British history. Online. Available at: <http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-35873316> [Accessed 29 April 2016]

Source: File: Easter Rising From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Online. Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Easter_Rising> [Accessed 29 April 2016]

Source: File: Easter Rising. Online. Available at: <http://www.history.com/topics/british-history/easter-rising> [Accessed 29 April 2016]

Source: File: The 1916 Easter Rising. Online. Available at: <http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/ireland-1845-to-1922/the-1916-easter-rising/> [Accessed 29 April 2016]

Source: File: The Battle for the South Dublin Union 1916 by Paul O'Brien Author, Irish Military Historian. Online. Available at: <http://www.paulobrienauthor.ie/436-2/> [Accessed 29 April 2016]

Mann, J., 2016. 100 years Ago - Poems by Jamie Mann. [letter] (Personal communication, 29 April 2016). 


#WW1 #WW1centenary #GreatWar #WW1poem #GreatWar #WW1centenary #worldwarone #worldwaroneremembered #WW1Ireland

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