Was Liam Mellows a good leader in battle?

bobbyss

Liam Mellows. There's a statue of him in Galway and a hurling club named after him. Looking at his involvement in 1916 Rising in Galway he always seemed to be on the retreat. Outnumbered. Not enough arms, even though he was seen as a good organiser. I don't think he even took over any RIC barracks at the time. Eventually his men left him and dispersed.

Given this contribution of Easter Week, how should Mellows be remembered?

Ascendant

There's a bridge named after him in city centre, close to the Four Courts, which is odd considering how his main contribution was helping to provoke a civil war that saw much of it in ruins.

As for the Finglas statue, as far as I know he had no connection with the area - the family house was at Mountshannon Road in Kilmainham, and one of his favourite safe-houses in Dublin during the WoI was 131 Morehampton Road - both in city centre and nowhere near Finglas.

As for Easter Week, the only thing was so badly botched that it's seems unfair to single Mellows out, who had to make do with what he had. What was supposed to be a grand, nation-wide affair turned out to be limited to Dublin and a few other places like Galway.

That Mellows kept the Galway Volunteers together for as long as Friday night/Saturday night is impressive enough, even if his insistence that they continue on in the face of hopeless odds, and essentially commit mass suicide, was a red flag that the guy wasn't exactly stable.

I dunno, bit of a mixed bag overall, when you consider the man and revolutionary that was Liam Mellows.

bobbyss

Ascendant wrote: »

There's a bridge named after him in city centre, close to the Four Courts, which is odd considering how his main contribution was helping to provoke a civil war that saw much of it in ruins.

As for the Finglas statue, as far as I know he had no connection with the area - the family house was at Mountshannon Road in Kilmainham, and one of his favourite safe-houses in Dublin during the WoI was 131 Morehampton Road - both in city centre and nowhere near Finglas.

As for Easter Week, the only thing was so badly botched that it's seems unfair to single Mellows out, who had to make do with what he had. What was supposed to be a grand, nation-wide affair turned out to be limited to Dublin and a few other places like Galway.

That Mellows kept the Galway Volunteers together for as long as Friday night/Saturday night is impressive enough, even if his insistence that they continue on in the face of hopeless odds, and essentially commit mass suicide, was a red flag that the guy wasn't exactly stable.

I dunno, bit of a mixed bag overall, when you consider the man and revolutionary that was Liam Mellows.

I had no idea there was a statue in Finglas to him. You certainly would wonder why. You certainly would wonder how he became a leading military figure and sent west to be in charge of hundreds of men at such a young age.

Ascendant

bobbyss wrote: »

I had no idea there was a statue in Finglas to him. You certainly would wonder why.

Not a great statue, either - the thin face is alright, since all the photos show him looking quite gaunt, but the coat is way too baggy, like he's hunching over.

Dunno what's supposed to be in his hand - a microphone? A scroll?

Ascendant

bobbyss wrote: »

You certainly would wonder how he became a leading military figure and sent west to be in charge of hundreds of men at such a young age.

Probably for want of anyone else - the Rising was at its heart a conspiracy, even to the point of deceiving its own participants, and knowing who to trust, and who'd carry out orders without too many questions, was more important than having people who were actually competent.

Whether as leaders like Pearse or operatives like Mellows, they were nearly all young, inexperienced in war and even naive. Pearse surrendered in part because he was shocked at the deaths of civilians but, really, WTF do you expect when you stage a rebellion in the middle of a city???

Randy Archer

bobbyss wrote: »

I had no idea there was a statue in Finglas to him. You certainly would wonder why. You certainly would wonder how he became a leading military figure and sent west to be in charge of hundreds of men at such a young age.

It tells you want a joke the Volunteers were back then.Thank goodness the Brits were preoccupied elsewhere

A lot of battalion commanders were completely unsuited As military men never mind commanders or captains. Some decisions were based solely on a persons good standing or being the top man of the GAA club eg Dan O’Rourke in Roscommon, future GAA President

That’s why little to no action occurred in many areas in the West .The leaders had businesses or their family had businesses in the towns and they feared retaliation

Mellows a good leader ? Clearly not. Bit like Brugha , a brave bull willing to die but clueless in terms of strategy etc. Galway hid under the bed during the Tan War. Contrast their record to what happened in the county during the Civil War ? Yikes

It’s a small wonder the Dublin and Munster IRA actually achieved what they did

bobbyss

Never saw that statue before. His face looks a little hollowed (he starved a lot in America I believe) though he was young. His jacket verges on the comical. I must google it. I am thinking of the Ronaldo statue on Madiera as well.

Ascendant

bobbyss wrote: »

Never saw that statue before. His face looks a little hollowed (he starved a lot in America I believe) though he was young. His jacket verges on the comical. I must google it. I am thinking of the Ronaldo statue on Madiera as well.

It tries, but doesn't quiiiiiite catch the intense look Mellows always seems to have in photos.




I mean, seriously, was he trying to burn a hole through the camera??

Edgware

He's buried in Castletown cemetery in Co. Wexford. During the Treaty debates he told Sean Moylan" there will be many more deaths before a Republic is achieved"
He was executed without trial as a retaliation, one of the most controversial executions of the Civil War.