Rachel Evans
The Irish Republican Army (IRA) was a pro-Catholic organization that aimed to unite Ireland and sought to remove the British from Northern Ireland. The IRA initially focused on defending Catholic areas, but it later launched an offensive campaign that included guerrilla tactics and bombings. While the IRA claimed to be defending Catholics from loyalist attacks, there is debate about the extent to which they successfully prevented violence against Catholics. The IRA's armed campaign resulted in the deaths of approximately 1,800 people, including the killing of some 400 Catholics and a similar number of Protestants. The deadliest attack by the IRA was the Kingsmill Massacre in 1976, where they killed 10 Protestant civilians.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Total number of people killed by the IRA | 1,800 |
| Number of Catholics killed by the IRA | 400 |
| Number of Protestants killed by the IRA | 400 |
| Number of Protestants killed in the Kingsmill Massacre | 10 |
| Number of Catholics killed in the Whitecross Massacre | 15 |
| Number of Catholics killed in the McGurk's Bar bombing | 15 |
| Number of Catholics killed on "Bloody Sunday" | 13 |
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What You'll Learn
The IRA killed around 400 Catholics
The Irish Republican Army (IRA) is a group with a long history and has taken on many forms. The IRA wanted a united Ireland and for Northern Ireland to join the rest of Ireland, and they did not like the British being in Northern Ireland. They were also pro-Catholic and defended Catholics during a time of unrest when it was Catholics vs. Protestants.
The IRA's armed campaign, primarily in Northern Ireland but also in England and mainland Europe, killed over 1,700 people. The IRA killed around 400 Catholics and a similar number of Protestant civilians. The IRA's approach to "defending" the Catholic community from loyalist attack took the form of attacks on Protestant civilian targets. The worst instance of this was the "Kingsmill Massacre" in January 1976 when the IRA stopped a bus carrying Protestant mill workers, lined them up against a ditch, and shot dead 10 men.
The IRA's campaign was deemed by some Protestants in the rural border areas of counties Fermanagh and Tyrone, where the number of security forces killed was high, as ethnic cleansing. The IRA denied responsibility for sectarian attacks, and its members used cover names such as the "Republican Action Force" to claim responsibility for the Kingsmill massacre. They stated that their attacks on Protestants were retaliation for attacks on Catholics. Many in the IRA opposed these sectarian attacks, but others deemed them effective in preventing similar attacks on Catholics.
The IRA's role as a defender of Catholics has been disputed. There is no history or evidence to support the claim that the Provisional IRA prevented serious loyalist violence against Catholics. The IRA devoted almost its entire effort to a covert war against the police and the British army in the North, killing only a small number of loyalists, less than 30. The IRA itself killed around 400 Catholics, a number much higher than the number of loyalists they killed.
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The IRA's role as a defender of Catholics is disputed
The Irish Republican Army (IRA) is a group with a long history and has taken on many forms since its beliefs first emerged in the 1700s. The IRA's role as a defender of Catholics is disputed, with some arguing that the group's violence against Protestants was in retaliation for attacks on Catholics. The IRA itself denied responsibility for sectarian attacks, often using cover names to claim responsibility, such as the 1976 Kingsmill massacre, where ten Protestant civilians were killed.
The IRA's initial focus was on defending Catholic areas, particularly during the Troubles, which began in the late 1960s when Catholics in Northern Ireland campaigned for civil rights against discrimination in voting, housing, and employment by the dominant Protestant government. The Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC), a mostly Protestant police force, failed to prevent violence against demonstrators, leading to escalating attacks by both sides. Units of the IRA were organised to defend Catholic communities, but they were poorly armed and unable to effectively protect these areas from Protestant attacks.
The IRA's armed campaign resulted in the deaths of over 1,700 people, including approximately 400 Catholics and a similar number of Protestants. While the IRA claimed to be defending Catholics, their efforts were largely directed at a covert war against the police and the British Army in the North. The IRA killed less than 30 loyalists, indicating that their primary target was not the prevention of attacks on Catholics.
Furthermore, the IRA's approach to "defending" the Catholic community in the 1970s often took the form of attacks on Protestant civilian targets. One of the worst instances was the Kingsmill massacre, where ten Protestant mill workers were shot dead. The IRA also engaged in a cycle of retaliation and counter-retaliation with loyalist groups, such as the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF), leading to bombings and killings on both sides.
While some may argue that the IRA defended Catholics, the evidence suggests that their role was disputed and their actions resulted in significant violence against civilians, regardless of their religious affiliation.
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The IRA's killing of 13 Catholic protesters on Bloody Sunday
On January 30, 1972, thousands of Roman Catholic civil rights supporters held a demonstration in Londonderry (Derry), Northern Ireland. The protest turned violent when British paratroopers opened fire on the protesters, killing 13 and injuring 14, one of whom later died from their injuries. This incident became known as "Bloody Sunday".
Bloody Sunday was a significant event during the Troubles, a period marked by conflict and political violence in Northern Ireland. The Troubles began in the late 1960s when Catholics in Northern Ireland, facing discrimination in voting, housing, and employment, launched a civil rights campaign. In response to violent opposition from extremists and a largely Protestant police force, the Irish Republican Army (IRA) organised units to defend Catholic communities.
Bloody Sunday fuelled Catholic and Irish nationalist hostility towards the British Army, and support for the IRA surged, particularly among young nationalists attracted to armed republican groups. The IRA's armed campaign, primarily in Northern Ireland but also extending to England and mainland Europe, resulted in the deaths of over 1,700 people.
The IRA officially disarmed in September 2005, adhering to the terms of the 1998 Good Friday peace agreement. This disarmament marked an important step towards ending decades of politically motivated violence in the region.
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The IRA's retaliation to the UVF's killing of 15 Catholics at McGurk's Bar
The Troubles in Northern Ireland saw a violent conflict between the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) and the Irish Republican Army (IRA). The UVF, a Protestant paramilitary group, was formed in 1966 with the stated goal of combating Irish republicanism and maintaining Northern Ireland's status as a part of the United Kingdom. The IRA, on the other hand, initially focused on defending Catholic areas but later launched offensive campaigns targeting the British Army, Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC), and civilian contractors.
On December 4, 1971, the UVF bombed McGurk's Bar, a Catholic-owned pub in Belfast. This attack, known as the McGurk's Bar bombing, resulted in the deaths of fifteen Catholic civilians and injured seventeen others. It was the deadliest single incident in Belfast during the Troubles and the second-highest death toll caused by a UVF attack.
In retaliation for the McGurk's Bar bombing and other UVF attacks on Catholics, the IRA engaged in a series of retaliatory attacks. The IRA's response to the McGurk's Bar bombing specifically was a no-warning bomb detonated outside Moffat's furniture store on the Shankill Road. This bombing killed two adults and two infants.
The IRA's armed campaign resulted in the deaths of over 1,700 people, including civilians and members of the security forces. While the IRA denied responsibility for sectarian attacks, many viewed their campaign as ethnic cleansing. The IRA's actions were often justified as retaliation for attacks on Catholics, and they targeted Protestant civilians in response to UVF attacks on Catholics. This cycle of "tit-for-tat" violence continued throughout the Troubles, with both sides engaging in attacks on pubs and other targets in each other's territories.
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The IRA's killing of 10 Protestants in the Kingsmill Massacre
The Kingsmill Massacre, which took place on January 5, 1976, was one of the deadliest mass shootings during the Troubles. A minibus carrying 11 workers from the Glenanne textile factory was attacked, and 10 Protestant men were shot dead. The only Catholic on the bus was ordered to run away. Alan Black, one of the Protestant men, survived despite being shot 18 times.
The attack is believed to have been carried out by the IRA in retaliation for the murder of two Republican families the previous night. The South Armagh Republican Action Force initially claimed responsibility for the attack, but a 2011 report by the Historical Enquiries Team (HET) concluded that the Provisional IRA was responsible for the "purely sectarian" and "calculated slaughter" of the 10 Protestants. The HET report stated that the men were targeted because they were Protestants and that the attack was planned.
The Kingsmill Massacre was the culmination of a series of tit-for-tat killings in the area during the mid-1970s. There was a rise in sectarian killings during the truce that lasted from February 1975 to February 1976. Protestant paramilitaries stepped up their attacks on Catholics, murdering 120 in 1975. Some IRA units focused on countering these loyalist attacks. The internal disarray within the IRA during the truce period led some members to engage in retaliatory killings, sometimes without authorisation from higher-ups.
The IRA denied responsibility for the Kingsmill Massacre and other sectarian attacks, often using cover names such as the "Republican Action Force" to claim responsibility. However, double agents within the IRA and ballistic evidence have implicated the organisation in the massacre. The British Military Intelligence assessment was that the attack was carried out by local IRA members acting outside the normal command structure. The IRA Army Council reprimanded the South Armagh Brigade six weeks before the massacre for carrying out sectarian killings.
The Kingsmill Massacre had a significant impact on the conflict in Northern Ireland. Following the massacre, the British government declared County Armagh a "Special Emergency Area" and deployed additional troops and police to the region. This was the first time that the presence of the Special Air Service (SAS) in Northern Ireland was officially acknowledged. The massacre also forced many Protestant civilians who had been supportive of paramilitary groups to withdraw their support.
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Frequently asked questions
The IRA killed approximately 400 Catholics.
The IRA claimed to be the defender of the Catholic nationalist community, but there is no evidence to support this claim. The IRA killed a small number of loyalists, fewer than 30, and failed to prevent loyalists from killing 800 Catholic civilians.
The IRA's bombing campaigns killed many civilians. The deadliest attack was the McGurk's Bar bombing, which killed 15 Catholics. The IRA also killed two adults and two infants in a bombing outside Moffat's furniture store.
