On This Day / October 30, 1921

Summary: On This Day – 30th October 1921, a Belfast wedding party faced mob violence outside St Matthew’s Church, while a Ballykinlar internee received a British Army war decoration. Edited by Éamon Phoenix.

Wedding party attacked | On This Day – 30th October 1921

A CHARACTERISTIC piece of hooliganism was witnessed on the Newtownards Road opposite St Matthew’s Church yesterday.

For some months past the front gates of the church have had to be kept closed owing to repeated attacks on members of the congregation entering or leaving at this point.

Arrangement had been made for the solemnising of a wedding in the church at eleven o’clock and the party, consisting of the occupants of four taxi-cabs, proceeded up the Newtownards Road to the front entrance.

While the taxi-cabs were waiting outside a number of youngsters commenced to throw stones.

The stone-throwers were reinforced in a few minutes by a mob of disreputable men and women who surrounded the cars and made us of typical obscenities.

The plight of the wedding party was distressing in the extreme…As the first three cars left, he fourth car came in for the full violence of the hooligans.

All the windows and the windscreen were smashed and the occupants were compelled to leave the car and rush into the church ground.

During the wedding ceremony, the mob stood against the railings and indulged in the singing of party songs and in stoning the sacred edifice.

Internee decorated for service in Great War

AN amusing situation was created in Number Two Camp at Ballykinlar a few days ago when one of the thousands of young Irishmen interned without charge was solemnly presented with the Mons Star.

The recipient served in the British Army throughout the war.

Barbed wire and bayonets are apparently no barrier when the British Government are determined to reward perilous service.

One of the British officers in charge of the Camp carried out the ceremony of decorating the internee.

Death of Belfast printer

MR Patrick J Malone, a well-known member of the printing trade, has died following an operation.

The late Mr Malone was a native of Leeson Street, Belfast and served his apprenticeship to the printing trade in the office of the old Ulster Examiner.

(Éamon Phoenix editor’s note: While large numbers of Unionist ex-soldiers from ‘Carson’s Army’ were enrolled in the Ulster Specials after the war, a significant number of Nationalist soldiers, north and south, joined the IRA.

These included General Tom Barry, the Co Cork IRA guerrilla leader, and Major Thomas Morris – a Redmond Volunteer – who took charge of the 2nd Northern IRA Division in Tyrone in 1921.)

On This Day – 30th October 1921

Further Reading on Irish History:

List of other On This Day columns

Other resources: National Library of Ireland Irish News CAIN Archive

About Eamon Phoenix

About the Eamon Phoenix Foundation