Terence MacSwiney: The Hunger Strike that Rocked an Empire
Dave Hannigan
Four days earlier, British troops had stormed the City Hall in Cork and arrested MacSwiney on charges of possessing an RIC cipher and documents likely to cause disaffection to his Majesty. He immediately began a hunger strike that sparked riots on the streets of Barcelona, caused workers to down tools on the New York waterfront, and prompted mass demonstrations from Buenos Aires to Boston.
Enthralled by MacSwiney breaking all previous records for a prisoner going without food, the international press afforded the case so much coverage that Ireland’s War of Independence was suddenly parachuted onto the world stage, and King George V was considering over-ruling Prime Minister Lloyd George and enduring a constitutional crisis.
As his wife, brothers and sisters kept daily vigil around his bed in Brixton Prison, watching his strength ebb away hour by hour, MacSwiney’s fast had Michael Collins preparing reprisal assassinations, Ho Chi Minh waxing lyrical about the Corkman’s bravery, and rumours abounding that he was being secretly fed via the communion wafer being given to him each day by his chaplain.
Using newly-released archive material, Dave Hannigan has pieced together a gripping, dramatic, and poignant account of one man’s courageous stand against the might of an empire.
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About Dave Hannigan
Reviews for Terence MacSwiney: The Hunger Strike that Rocked an Empire
Westmeath Independent 'Hannigan’s account of a family desperately seeking to find a way to protect their imprisoned loved one is a heart rending one ... a compelling poignant page turner'
The Irish Story 'This compressed time frame gives the book the qualities of a novel, it is a real page-turner and the reader will find it hard to put down thanks in no small way to the author’s journalistic style. As the drama unfolds the shadow of MacSwiney’s inevitable
The Irish Story 'Hannigan, by choosing to write solely about the hunger strike and the events that transpired worldwide as a result, has written a powerful fast-paced book. This is a story that inspired a tremendous national and international reaction at the time and as
The Irish Story 'Cork-born journalist Dave Hannigan has produced a very fine book ... a full and compelling account of a man who was selflessly devoted to an ideal
Sunday Business Post 'a compelling exploration of a modern media moment'
Irish Times 'absorbing and often unsettling detail'
Irish Times 'Hannigan has an acute eye for detail and for the richness of information and misinformation in newspaper sources'
Irish Times 'a gripping read ... goes far in explaining the fascination with MacSwiney then and still'
Irish Times 'a vivid and compelling account of one of the most momentous episodes in Ireland’s struggle for self-determination'
Evening Echo 'gripping'
Evening Echo 'if the excerpt ... is anything to go by, it should be a rollicking read'
Southern Star