Cairo Gang

[corisande]

Shane

Thanks for that lead, I will try the Publishers, but publishers are never quick or reliable in allowing one to contact authors. I have to send them a letter, which they will send on to him, and one has no idea if he ever gets it!

You would think that authors would have web site and one could get them through that, but as far as I can see Sean Sexton does not have a web site of his own :-(

[shanew147]

some details on a documentary made by RTE on Seán :

  http://www.tcd.ie/irishfilm/showfilm.php?fid=41120



Shane

[tommobecket]

I'm a complete 100% certified genealogy amateur who being new to the Rootschat forum remain constantly captivated and astonished by, a) the breadth of knowledge of the main contributors, b) the bountiful helpfulness of so many and c) the unlimited and fascinating links that I am always surprised by. I usually use the site to ask for help. I now feel suitably admonished and guilty enough to offer my minuscule and inevitably totally useless contribution.

Encouraged by contributers I have taken the liberty of contacting several primary sources. Something I would never have done before. And I have been amazed by the positive responses I have had from well known authors and academics and historians. I've been quite moved by this.

I guess I'd add to Corisandes initial question that contacting whatever original and primary sources that are known or guessed at and alluded to in this post may yield constructive results.

there, I feel a bit better now, still useless, but a bit better

Denis

[dublinbook1916]

15 British officers were killed in 8 locations
This I believe to be the Cairo Gang memebers!!

92 Lower Baggot Street,  Cpt W.E. Newbury
119 Lower Baggot Street,  Cpt George T. Baggally
28 Earlsfort Terrace,  Cpt John Fitzpatrick
117 Morehampton Road,  Cpt Donald L. McClean, T.H.Smith
22 Lower Mount Street,  Lt H. Angliss (Patrick McMahon), Auxilary Cadets Garner and Morris
38 Upper Mount Street,  Lt Peter Ames, Cpt George Bennett
28 Upper Pembrooke Road,  Maj Dowling, Cpt Leonard Price
Upper Sackville Street, Gresham Hotel,  Cpt Patrick McCormack, L.E. Wilde

This comes directly from my book Dublin in Rebellion, p. 250
http://www.lilliputpress.ie/author.html?author=Connell%2C+Joseph+E.A.

However, the book correctly lists W."E." Newbury as W."F." Newbury;  John "Fitzpatrick" as John "Fitzgerald"; Donald "McClean" as Donald "MacClean"; H. Angliss as H.R. Angliss (alias Patrick 'Paddy' McMahon); Maj Dowling as Maj C.M.G. Dowling; Patrick "McCormack" as Patrick "MacCormack".

In addition, Col. Hugh F. Montgomery is listed under 28 Pembroke Street.

I believe the book is correct and complete. If you have any questions, please contact me.

[corisande]

28 Earlsfort Terrace,  Cpt John Fitzpatrick 

I have done a lot of work to find out more about Fitzgerald (He was a neighbour of my grandparents - and his death spooked them)

My page on Fitzgerald

So little has been said or claimed about him afterward (unlike others where the men that fired the gun stood up to take the credit).

In the end I conclude that they made a mistake with Fitzgerald

[dublinbook1916]

BTW, the list, and the complete discussion from p. 249 ff, are of those British agents and Auxiliaries killed on Bloody Sunday.  I do not represent that they were all members of the Cairo Gang, nor that all the Cairo Gang was killed.

Moreover there were others that The Squad tried to kill on that day, and those raids were unsuccessful.

But I do believe the list in the book for Bloody Sunday is complete and correct.

[corisande]

OK, I have made some progress with this photo to the extent that I have found what appears to be a list of the names from the back of the photo linked to the numbers.

• 1. Major Dowling at 28 Pembroke St
• 2. Leonard Price at 28 Pembroke St
• 3.Lewis Maclean at 117 Morehampton Road
• 4.William Frederick Newberry at 92 Lower Baggot St
• 5. Lt Peter Ashmun Ames at 38 Upper Mount St
• 6. Capt George Bennett at 38 Upper Mount St
• 7. John Fitzgerald at 28 Earlsfort Terrace
• 8. Lt Angliss AKA McMahon at 22 Lower Mount St
• 9. Capt Geoffrey Thomas Bagally at 119 Baggott St
• 10.not named

This naming poses more questions than it answers. A number of men escaped death, through a variety of circumstances.

• Peel (barracaded himself in his room, and shots through the door missed him).
• Caldow (brother in law of MacLean, and survived his wounds, MacLean died),
• Captain Keenlyside (shot & wounded, but survived)
• Murray (wounded and survived) ,
• Col Jennings and Major Hardy (not in their rooms when assassins burst into their rooms),
• Major Carew( an intelligence officer on the hit list who had moved to an apartment over the road)

One would wonder that it was providential that the men who were killed just happen to be in the photo, and those who were on the list, but escaped, where not in the photo.

There is the temptation on the web to repeat rubbish, just because it it copied and pasted enough times.

I have no idea whether the list of names linked to numbers is correct. Can anyone verify it?

A the moment I still need convinced that this is a genuine photo

[shanew147]

I find it hard to believe that a group of agents, sent to to Dublin to carry out intelligence operations (presumably under-cover) would even meet together in a public place - let alone have their photo taken. Surely they would have been more sophisticated than that ?



Shane

[corisande]

If they were the spies, why on earth would they have had their photo taken together - asking for trouble. 

Shane

I agree entirely, and the above was one of my points when I first started this thread.

However the photo itself has reached iconic status and is published and republished in any book or article written about the Cairo Gang

As you probably realise, I am skeptical about the provenance of this photo, but as far as I can see anyone researching the Cairo Gang up till now has accepted the photo just because everyone else has.