Tuesday, April 04, 2006
Remembering the Rising - Dr James Ryan
Continuing United Irelander's new Remembering the Rising feature which highlights the Easter rebellion from the perspective of those who took part, today I will focus on Dr James Ryan's perspective of events prior to the Easter rebel's surrender. Dr Ryan had been treating James Connolly who had been wounded during the fighting.The following extract is taken from Easter 1916: The Irish Rebellion by Charles Townshend:
"The surviving Headquarters forces in Moore Street were at the end of their endurance, after a week with little sleep and inadequate food. Dr James Ryan, in charge of the medical unit, had lost his remaining supplies in Moore Lane, and had no more morphine for Connolly.
While he was changing Connolly's dressings about midday on Saturday, Connolly told him that Pearse had gone to arrange surrender terms. Looking out of the window, Ryan "saw a sight I shall never forget. Lying dead on the opposite footpath of Moore Street were three elderly men." They had left their houses as the fires approached, and been cut down by machine-gun fire.
"Seán MacDermott came over to the window and pointed to the three dead men and said something like, 'When Pearse saw that we decided we must surrender to save the lives of the citizens.'"
There you have it. Padraig Pearse - a class act as well as a proud patriot. To think that some vile revisionists dare to brand this man a "terrorist" when the British were the ones mowing down innocent Irish civilians!
With the amount of Irish innocents robbed of their lives thanks to British troops during the Rising - such as the over a dozen civilians bayoneted and shot dead by the South Staffordshire Regiment as they hid in cellars - perhaps the anti-Rising rabble should be calling their beloved British troops their favourite 'T' word...
Later this month we the Irish people should all endeavour to give thanks and pay homage to the brave Easter rebels who fought the good fight against the British oppressors back in the year 1916.
Today we have freedom because back then, they had courage. I thank Padraig Pearse and the others who fought against the foreign occupiers.
We will never forget their heroism.
# posted by United Irelander @ 12:51 AM 
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