The Cratloe Ambush - historical comemmoration this Sunday .

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Padraig Og O Ruairc
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The Cratloe Ambush - historical comemmoration this Sunday .

Post by Padraig Og O Ruairc » Wed Apr 11, 2012 2:36 pm

The Cratloe Ambush occurred on 13th January 1921, during the War of
Independence, when the I.R.A.’s East Clare Brigade ambushed a patrol
of R.I.C. and ‘Black and Tans’ traveling from Ennis to Limerick. The
republicans under the command of Michael Brennan from Meelick, who
later became Chief of Staff of the Irish Army, selected an ambush at
Cratloemoyle, Cratloe. Their objective was to attack a lorry of ‘Black
and Tans’ that was expected to travel from Limerick. However the
ambushers were taken by surprise when a lorry of R.I.C. and ‘Black and
Tans’ came from Ennis instead. The I.R.A. opened fire on the lorry as
it approached the ambush site killing R.I.C. Sergeant Stephen Carty. A
second member of the R.I.C. / ‘Black and Tan’ patrol Sergeant Jeremiah
Curtin was fatally wounded in the attack. Several ‘Black and Tans’
travelling in the lorry who escaped were severely wounded.

On Sunday 15th April a new memorial will be unveiled in Cratloe
marking the site of the Cratloe Ambush. The ceremonies will begin with
a commemorative Mass, 12.00 noon at Meelick Church in memory of those
from Meelick & Cratloe who took part in the War of Independence. This
will be followed by a wreath laying ceremony at the Republican Plot in
Meelick Churchyard. At 1.30 p.m. ceremonies will commence at the site
of the Cratloe Ambush which occurred where the ball-bearing factory
now stands near at Cratloemoyle, Cratloe - just a short distance from
the Radisson Hotel on the Limerick to Ennis Road. Ample parking will
be available and those attending are encouraged to obey the directions
of stewards on the day. In addition to the unveiling of a new monument
marking the site of the ambush, a commemorative booklet about the
ambush and its participants will also be for sale.

The event has been organised by Meelick & Cratloe War of Independence
Commemoration, a non-political group that was formed in 2010 by local
historians, relatives of those involved in the struggle for Irish
independence and other interested parties. The Meelick - Cratloe area
has a unique heritage relating to the War of Independence. During that
conflict three fatal ambushes occurred in the district, and eight
people were killed in the area. The Committee’s aim is to increase
public awareness of, and interest in Meelick and Cratloe’s important
role in the struggle for Irish independence between 1916 and 1921.
Last year the Committee unveiled a marking the site of the Meelick
Ambush. This was the first of a series annual of public events that
the Committee has planned in the hope of having every historical site
relating to the 1916 -1921 period in Meelick and Cratloe marked by the
centenary of the Easter Rising in 2016.

Further details are available from Cathal Crowe, Meelick, Co. Clare,
0871368882 or Tom Toomey, Castleconnell, Co. Limerick 0863114867.

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