Reginald William Dunne (June 1898 – 10 August 1922) was Battalion Commandant of the London Battalion,

IRA Ira or IRA may refer to: *Ira (name), a Hebrew, Sanskrit, Russian or Finnish language personal name *Ira (surname), a rare Estonian and some other language family name *Iran, UNDP code IRA Law *Indian Reorganization Act of 1934, US, on status of ...

and one of two men hanged for the murder of

Field Marshal Field marshal (or field-marshal, abbreviated as FM) is the most senior military rank, ordinarily senior to the general officer ranks. Usually, it is the highest rank in an army and as such few persons are appointed to it. It is considered as ...

Sir Henry Wilson Field Marshal Sir Henry Hughes Wilson, 1st Baronet, (5 May 1864 – 22 June 1922) was one of the most senior British Army staff officers of the First World War and was briefly an Irish unionist politician. Wilson served as Commandant of the St ...

. Dunne, the only child of Robert and Mary Dunne, was born (as his mother had been) in

Woolwich Woolwich () is a district in southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. The district's location on the River Thames led to its status as an important naval, military and industrial area; a role that was maintained throu ...

. He attended

St Ignatius' College St Ignatius' College is a Catholic voluntary aided secondary school for boys aged 11–18 in Enfield, London, England, founded by the Society of Jesus. It was formerly a grammar school, only accepting boys who had passed the Eleven plus exam. ...

Tottenham Tottenham () is a town in North London, England, within the London Borough of Haringey. It is located in the ceremonial county of Greater London. Tottenham is centred north-northeast of Charing Cross, bordering Edmonton to the north, Waltham ...

North London North London is the northern part of London, England, north of the River Thames. It extends from Clerkenwell and Finsbury, on the edge of the City of London financial district, to Greater London's boundary with Hertfordshire. The term ''nort ...

. His father had been a British soldier and Reginald served as a

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

private in the

Irish Guards The Irish Guards (IG), is one of the Foot Guards regiments of the British Army and is part of the Guards Division. Together with the Royal Irish Regiment, it is one of the two Irish infantry regiments in the British Army. The regiment has parti ...

who fought in the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. On 22 June 1922, Dunne and

Joseph O'Sullivan Joseph O'Sullivan (25 January 1897 – 10 August 1922), along with fellow Irish Republican Army (IRA) (London Battalion) volunteer Reginald Dunne, shot dead Field Marshal Sir Henry Wilson outside Wilson's home at 36 Eaton Place, Belgravia, ...

killed Field Marshal

in London. Dunne managed to escape, but O'Sullivan, who had lost a leg in the First World War was captured by an angry crowd. Dunne returned to try to help O'Sullivan. He was also captured after shooting and wounding two police officers and a passerby. On trial, Dunne addressed the jury about how in the recent Great War he had been "fighting for the principles for which this country he UKstood. Those principles I found as an Irishman were not applied to my own country..."Jeffery 2006, p. 284. Dunne wrote a speech which he was prevented from making from the dock (reprinted in the ''

Irish Independent The ''Irish Independent'' is an Irish daily newspaper and online publication which is owned by Independent News & Media (INM), a subsidiary of Mediahuis. The newspaper version often includes glossy magazines. Traditionally a broadsheet new ...

'', 21 July 1922). In it, he blamed Wilson for the "Orange Terror", as the Military Adviser to the Belfast Government who had raised the Ulster Special Constables. and went on to say:

We took our part in supporting the aspirations of our fellow-countrymen in the same way as we took our part in supporting the nations of the world who fought for the rights of small nationalities... The same principles for which we shed our blood on the battle-field of Europe led us to commit the act we are charged with. ... You can condemn us to death today, but you cannot deprive us of the belief that what we have done was necessary to preserve the lives and the happiness of our countrymen in Ireland. You may, by your verdict, find us guilty, but we will go to the scaffold justified by the verdict of our own consciences.

He was found guilty after three minutes. He was sentenced to death by Mr Justice Shearman. Despite a petition of 45,000 signatures, and a plea for clemency from many prominent figures at the time, including playwright

George Bernard Shaw George Bernard Shaw (26 July 1856 – 2 November 1950), known at his insistence simply as Bernard Shaw, was an Irish playwright, critic, polemicist and political activist. His influence on Western theatre, culture and politics extended from ...

, both men were hanged for Wilson's murder at

Wandsworth Prison HM Prison Wandsworth is a Prison security categories in the United Kingdom, Category B men's prison at Wandsworth in the London Borough of Wandsworth, South West (London sub region), South West London, England. It is operated by His Majesty's Pri ...

on 10 August 1922 and buried within the prison grounds. In mid August 1929 Irish Republicans in London unveiled a plaque commemorating Dunne and O'Sullivan. In 1967, Dunne and O'Sullivan were reburied in

Deans Grange Cemetery Deans Grange Cemetery (; also spelled ''Deansgrange'') is situated in the suburban area of Deansgrange in the Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown part of the former County Dublin, Ireland. Since it first opened in 1865, over 150,000 people have been burie ...

, Ireland.

References

Sources

* ''Field Marshal Sir Henry Wilson: A Political Soldier'', Keith Jeffery, Oxford University Press, 2006, * ''Who's Who in the Irish War of Independence and Civil War 1916-1923'', O'Farrell, Padraic, The Lilliput Press, Dublin, 1997, {{DEFAULTSORT:Dunne, Reginald 1922 deaths Irish Guards soldiers British Army personnel of World War I Irish Republican Army (1922–1969) members Irish nationalist assassins Executed assassins Executed Irish people 20th-century executions by England and Wales People educated at St Ignatius' College, Enfield Irish people convicted of murder Burials at Deans Grange Cemetery People executed by England and Wales by hanging 1898 births