A Secret History of the IRA

by Ed Moloney

  Goulding, Cathal

  IRA chief of staff at the time of the split with the Provisionals in 1969. His left-wing politics were much admired by the young Gerry Adams.

  Haass, Richard

  President Bush’s ambassador to the Irish peace process.

  Hannaway, Alfie

  An uncle of Gerry Adams. He ran the IRAs youth wing, the Fianna na hEireann, and was a close friend of the Redemptorist priests of Clonard.

  Hannaway, Kevin

  Gerry Adams’s cousin. He was IRA quartermaster general when the Libyan arms deal was struck.

  Hannaway, Liam

  Gerry Adams’s uncle and an early Provisional IRA leader.

  Hartley, Tom

  An important member of Adams’s think tank who kited controversial ideas on behalf of the Sinn Fein leader.

  Haughey, Charles

  Leader of Fianna Fail and Irish prime minister from 1987 to 1992. He was the figure to whom Adams communicated a secret offer of an IRA cease-fire. His decision to talk to Adams via Father Reid made the peace process possible. He died in 2006.

  Hegarty, Frank

  Member of the IRA quartermaster’s department. He betrayed a consignment of Libyan-supplied weapons. His treachery prompted a bitter dispute between Martin McGuinness and Kevin McKenna over who had allowed Hegarty into the IRA.

  Hopkins, Adrian

  Captain of the Eksund. Wrongly of betraying the 1987 operation, he had successfully smuggled many tons of Libyan arms to the IRA in the previous two years.

  Howell, Ted

  Highly secretive chairman of Adams’s think tank, which effectively controlled and directed the negotiations leading to the 1994 and 1997 IRA cease-fires.

  Hughes, Brendan

  Former Belfast commander of the IRA. He led the first unsuccessful hunger strike of 1980. A close friend and ally of Adams, he broke with him over the peace process.

  Hume, John

  The brooding leader of the Social Democratic and Labour Party, the Provisionals’ principal opponents. He acted as Charles Haughey’s surrogate in secret talks with Adams, which eventually helped create the 1994 IRA cease-fire. He retired as SDLP leader in 2001.

  Johnston, Roy

  A computer scientist and left-wing activist. He worked along with, Trinity College, Dublin lecturer, Anthony Coughlan, and Cathal Goulding to move the IRA to the left in the 1960s

  Keenan, Brian

  Known in the IRA as “the Dog,” he had a hawkish image belied by his constant and unquestioning support for Adams. His duplicity assisted Adams in defeating a challenge from IRA dissidents after the 1994 cease-fire

  Kelly, Gerry

  From Ballymurphy, a participant in the first IRA bombing mission to London, organized by Belfast Brigade. After many years in jail in Britain and Ireland, he became IRA adjutantgeneral during the formative years of the peace process. His hard-line reputation helped win skeptics over to the Adams strategy

  Kennedy-Smith, Jean

  Sister of Senator Ted Kennedy. Her role in the Irish peace process reached a climax when in August 1994 she persuaded Clinton to give Joe Cahill a visa to visit the U.S. Subsequently Cahill’s vote in the Army Council guaranteed the cease-fire.

  King, Tom

  British secretary of state in 1985. He received secret correspondence from Adams and approved conversations via Father Reid, which led to a secret British offer of cease-fire terms to the IRA.

  Lampen, Diana and John

  English-born Quakers and members of the Derry Peace and Reconciliation Group. They secretly mediated between Martin McGuinness and senior British security commanders in a bid to de-escalate IRA violence in the city.

  Lowry, Bill

  Former head of RUC/PSNI Special Branch in Belfast. Alleged intelligence agencies assisted Adams’s peace strategy.

  Lynagh, Jim

  County Monaghan-born leader of the East Tyrone IRA Brigade. He was killed along with seven others in the Loughgall ambush of May 1987. He was plotting to break from the IRA at the time of his death.

  Lynch, Jack

  The Irish prime minister at the start of the Troubles in 1969. He abandoned traditional republican confrontation with unionists for a gradualist and evolutionary approach to Irish re-unification. Joined the Army Council in 2005 after Adams, McGuiness and Ferris resigned.

  Lynch, Martin “Duckser”

  Former IRA director of intelligence from Belfast and an Adams ally. He was supposed to drive dissident leader Frank McGuinness to the 1996 Convention but missed the pickup.

  MacStiofain, Seanan

  An English-born convert to the cause, he was the Provisional IRA’s first chief of staff.

  Major, John

  British prime minister after Margaret Thatcher

  Mallon, Kevin

  IRA veteran from County Tyrone. His removal from the IRA’s upper reaches in the early 1980s helped Adams establish unchallenged control of the IRA.

  Mansergh, Martin

  Haughey’s Northern Ireland adviser. Trusted by Reid and Adams, he was kept on by Reynolds and then by Bertie Ahern because of his unrivalled knowledge of the peace process’s secrets.

  Mason, Roy

  Tough and abrasive British secretary of state in the late 1970s. He very nearly defeated the IRA with a combination of tough interrogation methods and the criminalizing of IRA prisoners.

  Mayhew, Sir Patrick

  British secretary of state at the time of the first IRA cease-fire of 1994.

  McArdle, Colette

  Gerry Adams’s wife. She came from an active republican background but her activism ceased after her marriage.

  McAteer, Aidan

  Son of a former IRA chief of staff and longtime Adams aide-de-campe. He often represented Adams’ interests in negotiations with the Irish government and loyalists.

  McCartney, Robert

  East Belfast man stabbed to death by IRA gang after a row in a bar. His sisters accused Sinn Fein and the IRA of covering up his murder and led campaign to have his killers charged. Invited to the White House in March 2005.

  McConville, Jean

  A low level British army agent who was also shot dead and secretly disappeared by “the unknowns” on the orders of the Belfast Brigade in December 1972. A Protestant who had married a Falls Road Catholic, she was a mother of ten small children when she was abducted from her apartment in the Divis Flats complex in December 1972. Her body was recovered in 2003.

  McDowell, Michael

  Irish justice minister, deputy prime minister (tanaiste) and Progressive Democrats leader. An acerbic critic of the Provisionals, he named Adams and McGuinness as IRA Army Council members after the Northern Bank robbery.

  McFarlane, Brendan “Bik”

  Commander of IRA prisoners during the 1981 hunger strikes.

  McGrane, Seamus

  County Louth-based Chairman of the IRA Executive that tried but failed to overthrow Adams in 1997.

  McGuinness, Frank

  IRA director of engineering and Executive member. A dissident leader, his absence from the 1996 Convention ensured Adams’s survival.

  McGuinness, Martin

  A former chief of staff from Derry he was chairman of the Army Council and the IRA’s Northern commander during many of the peace process years. A close colleague of Adams, he had a hard-line record that persuaded many IRA doubters to back the peace strategy.

  McKee, Billy

  The Provisional IRA’s first Belfast commander. He and Adams were bitter enemies.

  McKenna Kevin

  The longest serving IRA chief of staff, from 1982 until 1997. His credibility was undermined after the 1994 cease-fire, and eventually he lost the confidence of the rank and file and was replaced by “Slab” Murphy.

  McKevitt Micky

  IRA quartermaster general who masterminded the Libyan arms-smuggling operation. He led the revolt against the Adams strategy and when he lost went on to help form the Real IRA. He was sentenced to 20 years in jail in 200
3.

  McLaughlin, Mitchel

  A key member of the Adams think tank and an avid supporter of the peace process strategy, McLaughlin was despised by IRA members for his criticism of botched military operations.

  Mitchell, George

  Former U.S. Senate Democrat leader. He formulated the rules for IRA decommissioning and set out the six principles of nonviolence that precipitated a split in the IRA.

  Molloy, Eamon

  The IRA’s Belfast quartermaster in 1974. His treachery paved the way for the 1975 cease-fire which catapulted Adams into the republican leadership. He was shot dead and “disappeared.”

  Molyneaux, James

  Leader of the Ulster Unionist Party during the crucial years of the peace process.

  Monaghan, James

  IRA director of engineering, arrested in Colombia in August 2001 along with his deputy, Martin McAuley.

  Morley, David

  Newry-born IRA commander in the Long Kesh prison camp in the mid-1970s. He became the main target for Adams’s supporters in the camp’s Cage 11 who were opposed to the 1975 cease-fire.

  Morrison, Danny

  Key member of Adams’s think tank. An early editor of Republican News, Morrison became IRA publicity director and is famous for first using the “Armalite and ballot box” slogan.

  Mountbatten, Lord Louis

  The most celebrated of IRA victims, killed in an IRA bomb attack on his vacation boat in County Sligo in August 1979. His death, followed by the killing of 18 British soldiers in an expert ambush on the Border near Carlingford Lough later the same day, was viewed by IRA members as a vindication of Adams’ plan to revitalize the IRA.

  Mowlam, Mo

  Tony Blair’s secretary of state. She helped negotiate the 1997 cease-fire and the 1998 Good Friday Agreement. She died in 2005.

  Murphy, Tom “Slab”

  IRA chief of staff from 1997 on. A former Northern commander and director of IRA operations from South Armagh border, he helped organize the Libyan shipments. He was a wealthy cross-border businessman who had no time for politics, but his support for Adams proved to be crucial.

  Nelson, Brian

  Ulster Defence Association intelligence chief and British army agent. Information from him saved Adams from UDA assassination in 1998.

  ni Elias, Christin

  Mysterious supporter of the O Bradaigh–O Conaill faction and bitter adversary of Adams. She may have been targeted for assasination by the IRA in a sting operation.

  Oatley, Michael

  Senior officer in the British secret intelligence service (MI6). He dealt indirectly and directly with Army Council figures from the mid-1970s on.

  O Bradaigh, Ruairi

  Chief of staff of the IRA at the end of the 1956–62 campaign and later president of Sinn Fein. His political defeat at the hands of Adams cleared the way for the peace process.

  O Conaill, Daithi

  An IRA veteran from County Cork who had fought in the Border Campaign of 1956–62 and became one of Adams’s chief political opponents. He died in 1991.

  O Fiaich, Tomas

  The Crossmaglen-born primate of all Ireland was the first to give support to Alec Reid and secured approval for the enterprise in the Vatican.

  O’Hare, Gerry

  A native from West Belfast, whose removal as editor of the Dublin IRA paper An Phoblacht signaled the start of Adams’s campaign to capture the Provisional leadership.

  O’Neill, Terence

  Reforming but patrician unionist prime minister in Northern Ireland when the Troubles broke out in 1968–69.

  O’Rawe, Richard

  IRA prison public relations officer during 1981 hunger strike. His 2005 account of the protest alleged that a deal to end the protest was sabotaged so as to advance Sinn Fein’s electoral strategy.

  Paisley, Ian

  Protestant leader whose agitation paved the way for the birth and growth of the Provisional IRA. After the fall of David Trimble, he led unionist negotiations with the Provisionals about power-sharing.

  Pearse, Patrick

  A leader of the secret Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB) whose poetic oratory inspired the 1916 Rising.

  Powell, Jonathan

  Tony Blair’s chief of staff. He handled most of the minutiae of negotiations with Sinn Fein and the IRA.

  Price, Marion

  Along with her sister Dolours, she formed the core of the 1973 bombing team sent to London by the Belfast Brigade. Adams ignored evidence that an informer had betrayed the operation. Like Brendan Hughes, the two Price sisters eventually accused Adams of betraying the IRA’s struggle.

  Qaddafi, Muammar

  Libyan leader who supplied the IRA with weapons and cash from 1972 on.

  Reid, Alec

  The County Tipperary-born, West Belfast-based Redemptorist priest is the unsung hero of the Irish peace process. His secret diplomacy with Adams and the British and Irish governments laid the theological basis for the peace process.

  Reiss, Mitchell

  Bush admistration ambassador to the peace process after 2003. He took a touch line with the Provos over decommissioning and recognition of policing.

  Reynolds, Albert

  Haughey’s successor as taoiseach. He enthusiastically backed the peace process when he learned of Haughey’s diplomacy with Adams.

  Sands, Bernadette

  Sister of the dead IRA hunger striker Bobby Sands and wife of the dissident leader Micky McKevitt.

  Sands, Bobby

  Leader of IRA prisoners in the Long Kesh/Maze prison. He was the first to die during the 1981 hunger strikes. An IRA icon, his election as MP for Fermanagh–South Tyrone paved the way, indirectly, for the peace process.

  Scappaticci, Freddie

  Former head of IRA’s internal “spycatcher” unit. Outed as a British army agent, codename “Steaknife”, in 2003.

  Spring, Dick

  Irish deputy prime minister, or tanaiste, during the Reynolds and John Bruton governments.

  Storey, Bobby

  IRA director of intelligence. Organized the 2004 Northern Bank raid and a spy ring inside British government offices in 2002. Close ally of Adams.

  Thatcher, Margaret

  An avowed and bitter enemy of the IRA, the former British prime minister nevertheless sanctioned secret talks with Adams in 1986–87.

  Tone, Wolfe

  The founder of modern Irish republicanism. He inspired the 1798 United Irishmen rebellion composed of Protestant radicals roused by the writings of Tom Paine and the French Revolution and the anti-Orange, Catholic Defender Movement, from which the Provisionals trace their origin.

  Trimble, David

  Ulster unionist leader who backed the Good Friday Agreement, gambling that Adams was making a huge compromise. His failure to secure transparent IRA decommissioning led to his political downfall. He quit as unionist leader in 2005 after losing his Westminster seat to a DUP candidate.

  Twomey, Seamus

  A former Belfast commander and chief of staff who was dominated by Adams.

  Walsh, Seanna

  Former IRA prisoner. Read out IRA Army Council statement of July 2005 announcing end to the armed campaign against Britain.

  Ward, Chris

  Northern Bank official kidnapped along with a colleague, Kevin McMullan. Forced to assist IRA robbery of the bank’s cash centre.

  Whitelaw, William

  The first British secretary of state for Northern Ireland after the imposition of direct rule from London. He met the IRA leadership, including Adams, during secret cease-fire talks in 1972.

  William of Orange

  A Protestant member of the Dutch royal family who came to Britain at the invitation of the London parliament to oppose the ambitions of Catholic King James II. His victory over the Stuart pretender in the siege of Derry and then at the Battle of the Boyne in 1690 led Irish Protestants to establish the Orange Order to perpetuate their ascendancy.

  Wright, Seamus

&n
bsp; An IRA double agent who worked for a secret arm of British military intelligence known as the MRF. His confession to the IRA made Adams’s name as a counterintelligence expert. Along with another IRA traitor, Kevin McKee, he was killed and secretly buried by “the unknowns.”

  Glossary of Terms and Abbreviations

  Abstentionism

  Traditional republican refusal to take seats in or recognize the legitimacy of the Dublin, London, and Belfast parliaments.

  AG

  Adjutant-general; deputy chief of staff of the IRA; in charge of internal discipline.

  AK-47

  Romanian-made version of the Kalashnikov automatic rifle smuggled in large numbers to the IRA from Libya in mid and late 1980s.

  Alliance Party

  Cross-community political party, middle-of-the-road and mostly middle-class.

  Apprentice Boys of Derry

  Protestant society dedicated to celebrating the Williamite victory over James II at the siege of Derry in 1688.

  AP-RN

  An Phoblacht–Republican News. Weekly newspaper of the Provisional republican movement. Result of a merger of Southern and Northern papers which signaled Adams takeover. Editorial policy effectively decided by IRA leadership.