Limerick Killings
Introduction from Chronology
During the night of 6th to 7th March, George
Clancy, Lord Mayor of Limerick and Michael O'Callaghan, ex-Lord Mayor of
Limerick are shot dead in their homes.
Also, during the night of 6th
to 7th March, Joseph (James) O’Donoghue is arrested by the RIC in
Limerick. Next day, his dead body found in Jonesborough Av.
More Detail
Leeson (quoting Richard Bennet)
claims that these killings were carried out by two Auxiliaries – George Nathan
and William Harrison - who were based in Dublin and part of “The Dublin Castle
Murder Gang”. These killings could have
been in retaliation for the killing of RIC Sgt Maguire on March 6th – see
Mar-06-21/1. Both Auxiliaries had been based in Killaloe, Co. Clare when four
IRA men had been killed by Crown Forces on Killaloe Bridge – See Nov-17-20/1.
O’Farrell says that it was assumed that these
killings were carried out by the Cairo Gang. He says that the Cairo Gang, when
they failed to find the Bishop Fogarty of Killaloe at home, took O’Donoghue
instead. However, he gives the date of the putative drowning of Bishop
Fogarty as 3rd December 1920.
Kathleen (Cáit)
O’Callaghan, widow of Michael, wrote “one man’s hand is fouled by pay for such
deeds” but “blacker criminals planned these assassinations and they sit in high
places”.