Sologhead beg or Solohead beg (; , IPA: �sˠʊləxoːdʲˈvʲaɡPlacenames Database of Ireland
/ref> is a

townland A townland ( ga, baile fearainn; Ulster-Scots: ''toonlann'') is a small geographical division of land, historically and currently used in Ireland and in the Western Isles in Scotland, typically covering . The townland system is of Gaelic origi ...

and civil parish in

County Tipperary County Tipperary ( ga, Contae Thiobraid Árann) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Munster and the Southern Region. The county is named after the town of Tipperary, and was established in the early 13th century, shortly after th ...

, Ireland, lying northwest of

Tipperary town Tipperary Town (; ) is a town and a civil parish in County Tipperary, Ireland. Its population was 4,979 at the 2016 census. It is also an ecclesiastical parish in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cashel and Emly, and is in the historical baron ...

History

In 968, Soloheadbeg was the location for the

Battle of Sulcoit The Battle of Sulcoit was fought in the year 968 between the Gaelic Ireland, Irish of the Dál gCais, led by Brian Boru, and the Vikings of Limerick, led by Ivar of Limerick. It was a victory for the Dál gCais and marked the end of Norse expan ...

, where the Dalcassian King Mahon of Thomond and his brother Brian Ború defeated the viking

Ivar Ivar (Old Norse ''Ívarr'') is a Scandinavian masculine given name. Another variant of the name is Iver, which is more common in Norway. The Old Norse name has several possible etymologies. In North Germanic phonology, several of the elements c ...

, King of Limerick. In 1603, it was a stopping-point for

Donal Cam O'Sullivan Beare Donal Cam O'Sullivan Beare, Prince of Beare, 1st Count of Berehaven ( ga, Domhnall Cam Ó Súileabháin Bhéara) (1561–1618), was an Irish nobleman and soldier who was the last independent Chief of the Name of the O'Sullivan clan. He was thus ...

during his epic march from

Dunboy Castle Dunboy Castle () is a ruined 15th century castle on the Beara Peninsula in south-west Ireland near the town of Castletownbere. The castle's tower house and bawn were destroyed in the 1602 Siege of Dunboy, though its ruins remain open to the pu ...

in west Cork to O'Rourke's Castle in Leitrim. Soloheadbeg proclomation

Soloheadbeg Ambush

The

Soloheadbeg Ambush The Soloheadbeg ambush took place on 21 January 1919, when members of the Irish Volunteers (or Irish Republican Army, IRA) ambushed Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC) officers who were escorting a consignment of gelignite explosives at Soloheadbeg, ...

, said to be the first engagement of the

Irish War of Independence The Irish War of Independence () or Anglo-Irish War was a guerrilla war fought in Ireland from 1919 to 1921 between the Irish Republican Army (IRA, the army of the Irish Republic) and British forces: the British Army, along with the quasi-mil ...

, took place here on 21 January 1919. The event is commemorated by a monument at Solohead Cross, some 1.5 km northwest of

Limerick Junction Limerick Junction ( ga, Gabhal Luimnigh) is the interchange railway station for trains originating in , , , , and stations. The station opened on 3 July 1848. The station was highly noted for its layout which prior to 1967 required every tr ...

railway station, where a ceremony of remembrance is held each year on the anniversary of the ambush, which was led by Séumas Robinson,

Seán Treacy Seán Allis Treacy ( ga, Seán Ó Treasaigh; 14 February 1895 – 14 October 1920) was one of the leaders of the Third Tipperary Brigade of the IRA during the Irish War of Independence. He was one of a small group whose actions initiated tha ...

Dan Breen Daniel Breen (11 August 1894 – 27 December 1969) was a volunteer in the Irish Republican Army during the Irish War of Independence and the Irish Civil War. In later years he was a Fianna Fáil politician. Background Breen was born in Grang ...

and

Seán Hogan Seán Hogan (13 May 1901 – 24 December 1968) was one of the leaders of the 3rd Tipperary Brigade of the Irish Republican Army during the War of Independence. Early life Hogan was born on 13 May 1901, the elder child of Matthew Hogan of Green ...

of the Third Tipperary Brigade. Details of the monument and photos can be found a
Irish War Memorials
Accounts of this ambush can be found i
Ireland's Bureau of Military History
where various 'Witness Statements' are kept. Members of the 'Old IRA' made these reports in exchange for Irish Army pensions following Independence from the UK. There are numerous references but Number WS1658 gives a starting point. Those involved on the day of the operation were four officers of the 3rd Tipperary Brigade IRA; Seán Treacy, Dan Breen, Seán Hogan (then only 17) and Séumas Robinson. They were joined by five other Volunteers: Tadhg Crowe, Mick McCormack, Paddy O'Dwyer (Hollyford), Michael Ryan (Donohill) and Seán O'Meara (Tipperary) — the latter two being cycle scouts. The monument has a wall with eight surnames of Seán Treacy, Dan Breen, Seán Hogan, Séumas Robinson, Tadhg Crowe, Mick McCormack, Paddy O'Dwyer, Michael Ryan who were at the final site of the ambush that led to the death of two Royal Irish Constabulary members and the seizing of a cart of gelignite.

Notable people

Michael O'Dwyer Michael Francis O'Dwyer (28 April 1864 – 13 March 1940) was an Irish Indian Civil Service (ICS) officer and later the Lieutenant Governor of Punjab, British India, between 1913 and 1919. During O'Dwyer's tenure as Punjab's Lieutenant Gove ...

the senior Indian civil servant was a native of the parish. *

3rd Tipperary Brigade The 3rd Tipperary Brigade () was one of the most active of approximately 80 such units that constituted the IRA during the Irish War of Independence. The brigade was based in southern Tipperary and conducted its activities mainly in mid-Munster ...

officer during the

, died in a shoot-out with British soldiers in

Talbot Street, Dublin Talbot Street (; ) is a city-centre street located on Dublin's Northside, near to Dublin Connolly railway station. It was laid out in the 1840s and a number of 19th-century buildings still survive. The Irish Life Mall is on the street. Locati ...

in October 1920.

References

{{reflist Townlands of County Tipperary History of County Tipperary Civil parishes of Clanwilliam, County Tipperary