Bandon Valley commemoration praised by President Higgins

It is crucial that Ireland commemorates all those impacted by the horrific events of 100 years ago, said President Michael D Higgins as he paid tribute to the Church of Ireland Bishop of Cork, Cloyne and Ross, Dr Paul Colton for this week remembering the killing of 13 Protestants in West Cork.

President Higgins wrote to Bishop Colton on Tuesday to say how pleased and impressed he was by his decision to undertake a number of pastoral visits to mark the centenaries of the Bandon Valley killings in which 13 Protestant men and boys were shot in the last week of April 1922.

The killings by unidentified armed men, which happened after the Truce but before the start of the Civil War, were condemned by both pro-Treaty and anti-Treaty leaders including President of Dáil Éireann, Arthur Griffith and leading anti-Treaty figure, Eamon De Valera.

Last week, Bishop Colton revealed in this month’s Cork, Cloyne and Ross Diocesan Magazine that he intends to mark the centenaries by making pastoral visits this week to the parishes most closely affected by the killings in Dunmanway and surrounding areas.

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He acknowledged that the events of the Bandon Valley have “been written about extensively and debated with different narratives, emotions and responses elicited. Why it happened and what the motives of people were, are elusive questions – what can we know with certainty at this remove?”

But Bishop Colton said that at another level, the facts were straightforward – Protestant men Thomas and Samuel Hornibrook, Herbert Woods, James Buttimer, David Gray, Francis Fitzmaurice, Robert Howe, John Chinnery, Robert Nagle, Alexander Gerald McKinley, John Buttimer, James Greenfield and John Bradfield were all shot as was IRA Commandant, Michael O’Neill from Timoleague.

“Two of those were 16 years of age and the oldest was 82. Twelve were members of the Church of Ireland in this diocese. Attempts were made on others’ lives and they had to escape, many never to return. We know that in the years that followed, many people from Cork, Cloyne and Ross felt insecure in this part of the world and left”.

Bishop Colton said he was not in a position to adjudicate on the historiography of the period but as the lead pastor in the diocese and, having consulted with the local clergy who had spoken to the descendants of those who died, he believed his primary duty in prayer and liturgy was to ensure those killed and the events were remembered appropriately as part of the Decade of Centenaries.

President Higgins said that he very much welcomed the work being done by the Church of Ireland in Cork through its Cork, Cloyne and Ross Centenaries Commemoration and Reconciliation Project which has already remembered those who died in World War I and the War of Independence.

Difficult aspects

And he acknowledged that there would be some difficult aspects to the commemoration process ahead, for both the State and Irish society as a whole, as the events of 1922 such as the Bandon Valley killings and the Civil War are commemorated.

“The point in our commemorative programme at which we have now arrived is one where we must confront, acknowledge and come to terms with difficult aspects of what were the informing elements of context of the independence struggle and what followed.

“As you have noted in your eloquent articulation of the purpose of your visits, 14 people were killed in that week one hundred years ago, including 12 members of the Church of Ireland Diocese.

“As part of a process of ethical remembrance, it is crucial that voice of all those without exception who were impacted by these horrific events are heard. In this context, your series of pastoral visits will play a key role and I am sure that both you and those you visit will benefit greatly from your shared experiences.”

President Higgins said he wished Bishop Colton well in this endeavour as “we continue to remember this period in our nation’s history and seek to do so ethically and with moral purpose, allowing for an inclusive reflection, open to all sides, including those who left our shores, those left below, and those who were left in a minority status, North or South, to suffer discrimination in any aspects of life.”