The Royal Irish Constabulary: A History and Personal Memoir
Thomas Fennell provides a fascinating account, written in old age, of life in the Royal Irish Constabulary in the last quarter of the nineteenth century -- the turbulent years of the Land War -- and during the Irish War of Independence. Fennell paints a lively picture of the daily activities of a highly regimented force, constantly under hierarchical scrutiny locally and from Dublin Castle. He is acutely aware of the ambivalent position of the RIC drawn largely from the sons of tenant and...
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Thomas Fennell provides a fascinating account, written in old age, of life in the Royal Irish Constabulary in the last quarter of the nineteenth century -- the turbulent years of the Land War -- and during the Irish War of Independence. Fennell paints a lively picture of the daily activities of a highly regimented force, constantly under hierarchical scrutiny locally and from Dublin Castle. He is acutely aware of the ambivalent position of the RIC drawn largely from the sons of tenant and small farmers yet supporting the Ascendancy and the landowning class. Fennell was a nationalist yet retained a loyalty to and pride in the force. He contrasts the sympathetic attitude of the general population to the police during the Land War with the more hostile response after 1916. He is critical of the assertions of several post-Independence writers that the RIC was engaged in espionage on behalf of the State. Fennell makes two very pertinent points: that the RIC provided no advance warning of the Rising of 1916 and that such spying as occurred was on behalf of Collins, echoing the experience of Michael Davitt during the Land War.
Introduction1Organisation and Recruiting32Strength and Distribution of the Force143Officers214Men315Discipline396Inspections447Promotion498Favourable Records589Correspondence6410Bigotry6911The Administration of the Law7812The Land War8913How Service Affected the Men9914Disciplinary Restraint11315A Few Reflections11716A Retrospect of Seventy Years12517The Parnell Commission14118Emigration14319Gains versus Odds14820A Few Words More15121Addendum153App. 1Police Record176App. 2Obituaries178
