Kevin Barry | |
|---|---|
 Kevin Barry in the rugby jersey of Belvedere College, Dublin | |
| Born | Kevin Gerard Barry 20 January 1902 Fleet Street, Dublin, Ireland |
| Died | 1 November 1920 (aged 18) |
| Cause of death | Execution by hanging |
| Nationality | Irish |
| Occupation | Medical student |
| Known for | Executed Irish Republican Army volunteer |
| Military career | |
| Allegiance |  Irish
Republican Army (IRA) |
| Service | North Dublin |
| Years of service | 1917–1920 |
| Battles / wars | Irish War of Independence |
Kevin Gerard Barry (20 January 1902 – 1 November 1920) was an Irish Republican Army (IRA) soldier and medical student who was executed by the British Government during the Irish War of Independence.[1] He was sentenced to death for his part in an attack upon a British Army supply lorry which resulted in the deaths of three British soldiers.[2]
His execution inflamed nationalist public opinion in Ireland, largely because of his age. The timing of the execution, only seven days after the death by hunger strike of Terence MacSwiney, the republican Lord Mayor of Cork, brought public opinion to a fever-pitch. His pending death sentence attracted international attention, and attempts were made by U.S. and Vatican officials to secure a reprieve. His execution and MacSwiney's death precipitated an escalation in violence as the Irish War of Independence entered its bloodiest phase, and Barry became an Irish republican martyr.[3][4]
- ^ McConville, Séan (2005). Irish Political Prisoners, 1848–1922: Theatres of War. London: Routledge. ISBN 978-0-415-37866-6.
- ^ Curtis, Liz (1995). The Cause of Ireland: From the United Irishmen to Partition. Belfast: Beyond the Pale Publications. ISBN 978-0-9514229-6-0.
- ^ Golway, Terry (2001). For the Cause of Liberty. New York: Simon & Schuster. ISBN 978-0-684-85556-1.
- ^ Jackson, Alvin (1999). Ireland 1798–1998. Blackwell Publishing. ISBN 978-0-631-19541-2.