The Assassination of Michael Collins: What Happened at Béal na mBláth?

There was a question over the legality of the transfer since the charges to be alleged against him took place before the Irish Free State had come into official existence — this did not take place until 6th December, — and it was argued that extradition was not lawful. Nonetheless, Jock McPeake was charged before a military court in Cork with having deserted from the Irish Free State Army but when it was asserted in court that the offence was committed under the jurisdiction of a body which technically no longer existed viz, the Provisional Government, he was discharged.

On leaving the court he was re-arrested by the Gardai and charged with stealing a Rolls-Royce armoured-car and its contents. He was released from Portlaoise prison in July He returned to Scotland, changed his name by deed poll and does not again trouble Irish history. The above circumstances caused some suspicion to fall on McPeake in relation to the death of Collins.

During the ambush he fired two prepared belts of ammunition each of two hundred rounds, on Republican position B. While with the Republicans in the Ballyvourney area after his desertion he explained that the machine-gun had then jammed because the third belt was unevenly fitted by an inexperienced operator. By a remarkable coincidence the machine-gun finished up in the hands of a later-day I.

Local people remarked that the ferns and briars had been literally cut from the top of the fence under which the I. During the court proceedings no mention was made by the prosecution of any connection with Michael Collins and the vigour with which the case against McPeake was pressed seemed to have been caused by the formidable and dangerous nature of what he had stolen and not by any suspicion that he might have killed Collins.

Another unlikely subject of rumours was Collins friend and escort, Emmet Dalton. It was put about that he had perhaps shot Collins. This rumour was totally rejected by people who had been close to both Dalton and Collins and no circumstance had been adduced which could properly be held to lend credence to it. He was regarded as being totally loyal to Collins who had bought him to London with him during the Treaty negotiations.

Following the official establishment of the Irish Free State in December , he was appointed to the important post of Clerk of the Seanad by W. Cosgrave, President of the Executive Council. It is certain that he would not have received such an appointment had a shred of suspicion been attached to him by the government. Dalton, like many thousands of other Irishmen, had seen service in the British Army and this had made him a target of rumour.

The circumstances of the ambush itself further tend to belie the rumour. The accounts show that Collins was alone when he was killed and was hidden from the view of Dalton and the other members of the convoy at the time. He had run forward when he spotted some of the I. The bend is that which was removed in the subsequent road-works but which, at the time, would have precluded his being in the line of fire from any of the convoy party. The use of dum-dum bullets in warfare was outlawed by the Hague Conference on warfare in Republicans were sensitive to government propaganda regarding the use of such bullets and the Poblacht na hEireann War News of September 25 contained the news item: Government] report of September 17 on three Free State troops killed in Tipperary reads: Piggott, the Army chaplain did remark on it.

The Irish State Pathologist, Dr. Harbinson, in a R. Apparently the bullet drives both bone particles and an air pocket in front of it producing such a result. Some writers in recent years, on very limited evidence have identified the person who fired the fatal shot that caused his death, basing their conclusions on accounts given by Jim Kearney and Timmie Sullivan who spoke of the role as engineers in the action.

The Kearney account puts most of the fighting in the Ahalarick Bridge area — metres south of the monument.

Apart from the fact that the area is flat bogland, providing no cover for an ambush group, Meda Ryan is alone in putting the fighting in that area. Three Republican participants at position B told me that they engaged with the occupants of the Leyland Touring car and the armoured car. A Local story puts Griffin — the driver of the Brewery Dray as driving his horse from the Foley farmyard where he had remained since the dray was commandeered. Griffin it is said was only a very short distance from the main Beal na mBlath road when the Crossley tender passed by.

Meda Ryan also states that most of the Republicans were armed with Thompson machine-guns. All I can say about this is that I am not aware, nor have I seen suggestions to the effect elsewhere, that the attackers possessed even one machine-gun. Patrick Twohig in his book, The Dark Secret of Bealnablath, named seven men who, in his opinion, may have shot Collins. A third person — a native of Lismore — is said to have come upon the battle scene that evening, fired shots at the convoy and saw a man fall.

People who lived more than three miles from the battle scene have consistently held that the heavy firing could be distinctly heard that evening. On the other hand there is no tradition of any other stray groups of armed men passing through the locality that evening and since almost every house in the area was an I. Almost everyone involved at Beal-na-mBlath wished that they had never been there. The reason the I. Officers and men of the 3rd Brigade had arrived at Beal-na-mBlath from the fighting at Buttevant on the evening of 21st August. They did not even know that Michael Collins was in Cork, nor even in the South, until he was recognised in the military convoy which passed through on the morning of 22nd August.

Many of the men at Beal-na-mBlath had been close personal friends of Michael Collins and he had chaired the meeting at which the Brigade was founded. De Valera became aware of the mood of the men and remarked that it would be a great pity if Collins was killed because he might be succeeded by a weaker man.

The Divisional Staff agreed, in accordance with general I. But it did not require the presence of the Commander-in-Chief of the Army to, in effect, act as a delivery man, in particular for such a relatively minor purpose. If a military purpose had been in prospect surely a much bigger and better organised expedition was called for. Refresh and try again. Open Preview See a Problem? Thanks for telling us about the problem. Return to Book Page. The Assassination of Michael Collins: This book offers a startling new perspective on one of history's most notorious unsolved mysteries: This is the first book on this famous "cold case" in decades; carrying on where John Feehan's landmark edition of left off.

It presents the most complete overview of the evidence ever published; as well as an itemized catalogue of the various witnesses' mutual contradictions and corroborations. Paperback , pages. Published November 15th by CreateSpace first published October 16th To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up. To ask other readers questions about The Assassination of Michael Collins , please sign up.

See 1 question about The Assassination of Michael Collins…. Lists with This Book. This book is not yet featured on Listopia. May 26, Valerie Crowley rated it it was amazing. I've read several books about Michael Collins. This was the first one to answer the nagging questions about his death that always bothered me.

The explanations offered in other biographies just did not make sense. It reads like a political thriller. I enjoyed it very much. Sep 27, J Aislynn d'Merricksson rated it really liked it. The book's description is what first caught my attention, and I decided to give it a read. I found the cover a bit chaotic though. T'were I considering a paperback version, that may have been a deterrent to even looking at the description on the back.

Book casts new light on the death of Collins: modern Ireland's unsolved mystery

I read the blurb and was interested before seeing the cover. That's a subjective point on my part, willingly admitted. I greatly enjoyed reading the book. I would offer a word of warning- this book follows a scholar's bent, and the language reflects that. If you are looking for something written more 'mainstream', this is probably not the book for you.

However, if you enjoy the scholarly books, this is a great read on a fascinating story. As I mentioned before, the story of Michael Collins was one mostly unfamiliar to me. Sigerson provides insights and information on the times, and the setting, of the events in question, giving a reader new to the story a proper context and from of reference.

I really liked the fact that the Kindle version I read had easy access to reference materials used by the author. I ended up adding a few more books to my 'to be read' pile. Criminal cases fascinate me. Sigerson lays out evidence, in context, to help try and make sense of this great mystery. He provides witness statements as well, but rather than forcing his own conclusion upon the events in questions, Sigerson instead follows the evidence.

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This is still a case unsolved, but the work Sigerson has put into it helps make things a bit clearer. The Assassination of Michael Collins is definitely a must read if you have interest into this period of Irish history, or any interest in Collin's himself.

As mentioned before, this was all new to me, and Sigerson's work engaged my interest in this fascinating man and his life. I have definite plans to pursue the books recommended by Sigerson, and ones used as resource materials. Dec 09, Rabid Readers Reviews rated it it was amazing.

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Sigerson, gave me a copy of this work of non-fiction in exchange for my review. The focus of this nonfiction work is the death of this enigmatic historical figure, but Sigerson wisely realizes that to achieve a wider audience she must preface the story with an introduction to its main character.

My D The author, S.



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My Dad upon finishing this deeply researched piece of non-fiction called me. Thankfully for this reader and my father, Sigerson lays out the political climate and historical backdrop of the time in a way that is easy to follow.



The notes section at the end of the book features a list of references to aid those of us not so familiar with the personality or the case. In the Kindle edition, it was easy to click back and forth and this extra gem fleshed out the case while reading. If you are not familiar with Collins, his life or his death, you will have the information to enjoy this work of nonfiction at hand and may even want to look further into the life of this influential, historical figure. There are no answers, but there are bigger questions raised and ideas put forth to question what likely generations of Irish schoolchildren have learned as a fact.

Dec 10, S. This book takes up where previous studies left off, regarding Michael Collins controversial death in A must-read for fans of Collins, Irish history buffs, and anyone interested in the fate of modern revolutionaries-turned-statesmen. Feb 18, Matthew rated it really liked it. Fascinating read, but horrid formatting.

I think I am convinced that the thesis has merit, but the formatting with random white space, line breaks, and chapter headings buried in text, really undermine the ability to take the research seriously. Using all previous research, especially those that recount first hand accounts, as well as newly released documents, Sigerson sets out to ask the tough questions about the death of Michael Collins. The conclusion that it was some level of collusion betwe Fascinating read, but horrid formatting. The conclusion that it was some level of collusion between DeValera and the British government seems not only plausible but likely.

It certainly beggars belief that this was never investigated if the perpetuators were otherwise. I think what is most compelling is the questions raised even if you don't accept the conclusion you have to admit the questions need to be answered in some fashion. The lack of asking is itself an interesting piece of data in this saga. While a lover of history, anthropology, and criminalistics, the story of Michael Collins was one I was only vaguely acquainted with before reading Sigerson's The Assassination of Michael Collins. I read the blurb and was interested before seeing th While a lover of history, anthropology, and criminalistics, the story of Michael Collins was one I was only vaguely acquainted with before reading Sigerson's The Assassination of Michael Collins.

This is a fascinating book.