By September 1922 the Irish civil war had raged for nearly three months in a summer that saw the deaths of some of the Irish Revolution’s most prominent l.
The aftermath of Selton - Eleven lives lost between March and April 1921
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In the immediate aftermath of the Selton Hill killings at Gorvagh on 11 March 1921 resulting in the loss of six prominent members of the IRA’s South Leitrim Brigade, IRA activity against crown forces in Leitrim came to a virtual halt. Not only had Selton resulted in the capture of a limited arms supply, but the deaths of six active column members was detrimental to any hope of increased military activity in the area. The death at Selton Hill of IRA GHQ organizer Sean Connolly who was specifically tasked with reorganizing and training the IRA in Leitrim in early 1921, coupled with the imprisonment of north Longford Brigade leader Sean Mac Eoin in March 1921 were major blows for republicans in the Leitrim and Longford region.
On the bright spring morning of Friday, March 4, 1921 a detachment of soldiers from the First Battalion of the Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Regiment, accompanied by a mixed force of RIC Auxiliaries, left Carrick-on-Shannon en-route to Gowel.
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