On This Day / September 29, 1970

Summary: On This Day – 30th September 1970, violence erupted on Belfast’s Shankill Road as fierce rioting broke out between Protestant crowds and the Army. Allegations of brutality forced the withdrawal of the King’s Regiment, replaced by paratroopers. Edited by historian Dr Éamon Phoenix.

Shankill Turns On Army

Comparative calm had been restored in the Shankill Road area of Belfast early today after a weekend of the most savage street rioting in the city for almost a year.

Military Police were withdrawn from the Shankill Road last night following allegations of brutality in dealing with crowds and the First Battalion of the King’s Regiment withdrew to their command post in Snugville Street, scene of some of the fiercest fighting between Protestant mobs and the Army and police.

They were replaced on patrol by the 1st Battalion Parachute Regiment but an Army spokesman said the paratroopers had not been ‘favourably received’ and had also been stoned.

Over the weekend one soldier had been shot in the leg, 32 policemen and 37 soldiers injured and 42 arrests made.

The figure for civilian casualties could not be ascertained but a big number suffered from the effects of CS gas used by the troops. Others were struck by rubber bullets fired by the Army.

At a meeting in the Ulster Hall last night, Mr Thomas Passmore, a prominent Orangeman who described himself as a Shankill Road man, said that the people on the Shankill were frustrated when they saw big new housing estates being built for Catholics who were supposed to be without homes and jobs.

Arms For North If Cabinet Decided

Arms and ammunition bought by Northern Defence Committees were to be imported from the continent into the Twenty-Six Counties and held in charge of Captain James Kelly at an unnamed monastery in County Cavan to be sent into the North if and when the Irish Government decided.

This was the allegation on the fifth day of the Dublin Arms Trial.

Colonel Michael Hefferon, Director of Army Intelligence until his retirement in April, told the jury that he understood the accused, Captain Kelly, was the link between the Northern Defence Committees and the Irish Government.

Captain Kelly told him his activities were supported by the former Defence Minister, Mr Jim Gibbons (now Agriculture Minister), and Mr Neil Blaney, former Minister. Other Cabinet Ministers were also sympathetic.

Colonel Hefferon said a direction to the Army Chief of Staff from Mr Gibbons to send 500 rifles to Dundalk Barracks was in order to have the arms sent closer to the border for distribution to non-Army personnel.

[Editor’s note: Last week the families of former taoiseach Charles Haughey, Captain Kelly, John Kelly and others charged with conspiracy in 1970 went on RTE to claim that the importation of arms for use in a ‘Doomsday’ situation in the north had been authorised by the Lynch cabinet despite official denials at the time.]

Further Reading:

List of other On This Day columns

Other resources: National Library of Ireland Irish News CAIN Archive