Pádraig Oliver McKearney (18 December 1954 – 8 May 1987) was a

Provisional Irish Republican Army The Irish Republican Army (IRA; ), also known as the Provisional Irish Republican Army, and informally as the Provos, was an Irish republican paramilitary organisation that sought to end British rule in Northern Ireland, facilitate Irish reu ...

(IRA) paramilitary. He was killed during a British Army ambush at Loughgall, County Armagh in May 1987, aged 32. He had 15 years of service as an IRA Volunteer when he was shot dead at

Loughgall Loughgall ( ; ) is a small village, townland (of 131 acres) and civil parish in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. It is in the historic baronies of Armagh and Oneilland West. It had a population of 282 people (116 households) in the 2011 Censu ...

, making him one of the most experienced IRA Volunteers ever killed by British forces.

Background

Pádraig McKearney was raised in

Moy, County Tyrone Moy () is a village and townland in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland about southeast of Dungannon and beside the smaller village of Charlemont. Charlemont is on the east bank of the River Blackwater and Moy on the west; the two are joined by ...

, in a staunchly Irish republican family. Both his grandfathers had fought in the

Irish Republican Army The Irish Republican Army (IRA) is a name used by various paramilitary organisations in Ireland throughout the 20th and 21st centuries. Organisations by this name have been dedicated to irredentism through Irish republicanism, the belief th ...

during the Irish War of Independence, his maternal grandfather in south County Roscommon and his paternal grandfather in east

County Tyrone County Tyrone (; ) is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the thirty-two traditional counties of Ireland. It is no longer used as an administrative division for local government but retai ...

. He was educated at local Catholic schools in Collegeland and Moy, and later went to

St Patrick's Academy, Dungannon Saint Patrick's Academy ( Irish: ''Acadamh Naomh Pádraig'') is a voluntary grammar school located in Dungannon, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It formed on 1 September 2003 when the two single-sex Saint Patrick's Academies, which coexisted ...

IRA career

He joined the

Provisional IRA The Irish Republican Army (IRA; ), also known as the Provisional Irish Republican Army, and informally as the Provos, was an Irish republicanism, Irish republican paramilitary organisation that sought to end British rule in Northern Ireland, fa ...

and was first arrested in 1972 on charges of blowing up the post office in Moy. He spent six weeks on remand, but was released due to insufficient evidence. In December 1973 he was arrested again and later sentenced to seven years for possession of a rifle. He was imprisoned in

Long Kesh Long may refer to: Measurement * Long, characteristic of something of great duration * Long, characteristic of something of great length * Longitude (abbreviation: long.), a geographic coordinate * Longa (music), note value in early music mens ...

and later in

Magilligan prison HMP Magilligan is a medium security prison run by the Northern Ireland Prison Service situated near Limavady, County Londonderry. It was first opened in May 1972 and comprised eight Nissen huts on the site of an army camp. The prison was di ...

. During this time, a younger brother, Seán, also an IRA paramilitary, was killed on 13 May 1974. He was released in 1977 but was sentenced to 14 years in August 1980 after being caught by the British Army with a loaded sten gun along with another IRA member Gerard O'Callaghan. That same year an older brother,

Tommy McKearney Tommy McKearney (born 1952) is a former Irish volunteer in the Provisional Irish Republican Army who took part in the 1980 hunger strike. Background McKearney was born in Lurgan in the north-east of County Armagh, but he was raised in The Moy ...

, who was sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of an off-duty

Ulster Defence Regiment The Ulster Defence Regiment (UDR) was an infantry regiment of the British Army established in 1970, with a comparatively short existence ending in 1992. Raised through public appeal, newspaper and television advertisements,Potter p25 their offi ...

soldier who worked as a postman in 1977, nearly died on

hunger strike A hunger strike is a method of non-violent resistance in which participants fast as an act of political protest, or to provoke a feeling of guilt in others, usually with the objective to achieve a specific goal, such as a policy change. Most ...

after refusing food for 53 days. Another brother, Kevin, and an uncle, Jack McKearney, were both murdered by Loyalist paramilitaries in revenge attacks upon the family. On 25 September 1983 McKearney took part in the

Maze Prison escape The Maze Prison escape (known to Irish republicans as the Great Escape) took place on 25 September 1983 in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. HM Prison Maze (also known as Long Kesh) was a maximum security prison considered to be one of the most e ...

along with 37 other prisoners. At the beginning of 1984 he rejoined IRA activity in his native East Tyrone with the

Provisional IRA East Tyrone Brigade The East Tyrone Brigade of the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA), also known as the Tyrone/Monaghan Brigade was one of the most active republican paramilitary groups in Northern Ireland during "the Troubles". It is believed to have drawn ...

. He advocated the commencement of the "third phase" of the armed struggle, the 'strategic defensive', in which the Royal Ulster Constabulary,

and

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 ...

would be denied all support in selected areas following repeated attacks on their bases. In 1985

Patrick Kelly Patrick or Paddy Kelly may refer to: Politicians * Patrick Kelly (Irish politician) (1875–1934), Irish soldier, farmer and politician, Teachta Dála (TD) for Clare 1927–1932 * Patrick Kelly (Canadian politician) (1846–1916), Prince Edward ...

became commander of the

and it was under his leadership that this strategy was pursued. Remote Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) bases were attacked and destroyed, and building contractors who tried to repair them were targeted and sometimes murdered, as occurred with the attack on the Ballygawley police station in December 1985, which killed two policemen, and The Birches police station in August 1986.

Death

McKearney was shot dead by the Special Air Service on 8 May 1987 during an IRA attack that he was taking part in upon

police station, which also claimed the lives of seven other IRA members. His body was buried at his hometown of Moy.

Footnotes

The "Third Phase" in Provisional IRA thinking represented an escalation of the conflict in Northern Ireland with the eventual aim of using more conventional warfare by taking and holding "liberated zones" along the border. Due to a number of factors, including the loss of experienced activists at Loughgall and the interception of 120 tonnes of Libyan weaponry aboard the ''Eksund'' ship, this strategy was never carried out. (See also: Provisional IRA arms importation and Provisional IRA campaign 1969-1997.)

References

Sources

*Ed Moloney, ''Secret History of the IRA'' *Derek Dunne, ''Out of the Maze'' *Peter Taylor, ''Provos The IRA and Sinn Féin''

External links

Padraig McKearney's biography

{{DEFAULTSORT:McKearney, Padraig 1954 births 1987 deaths Deaths by firearm in Northern Ireland Escapees from British detention Irish republicans People from County Tyrone People killed by security forces during The Troubles (Northern Ireland) People killed in United Kingdom intelligence operations Prisoners accorded Special Category Status Provisional Irish Republican Army members