Irish And The Crown Have Uneasy History

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31119, 23 July 1966, Page 12

Irish And The Crown Have Uneasy History

(Specially written for "The Press” bg

TERRY McGOVERNE)

■RELATIONS between some sections of the Irish community and the 11 British crown have always been a little strained and consequently the “incidents” which occur when the two meet are well publicised.

Someone recently threw a lump of concrete from a building at the car carrying the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh through the streets of Belfast The Queen was reported to have said afterwards: “It’s a strong car.”

One hundred years ago almost, her great-grand-uncle Prince Alfred, the Duke of Edinburgh, second son of Queen Victoria, was saved from assassination in Sydney by the strong pair of braces he was wearing.

The Prince was on the first Royal visit to Australia. At a picnic In Sydney an Irishman named Henry James O’Farrell shot the Duke in the back at close range but the bullet was deflected by the seam of his coat and the thick double part of a pair of india-rubber braces where they crossed and overlapped.

The tour of Australia was full of incident from the start and it was fears of further Irish-inspired violence which influenced the Duke’s entourage not to proceed to New Zealand. The Duke was 22 when he landed in Australia in December, 1868, as a naval officer in command of the steam frigate Galatea. Included in Melbourne’s £250,000 welcome was a public feast on the banks of the Yarra river that ended in riot. So many people assembled that the Duke was advised not to appear and about 100,000 uninformed citizens waited through a hot dusty afternoon before they stampeded angrily among the half-mile of tables loaded with 53 tons of meat, 70 tons of potatoes and waggon loads of pies, plum pudding, cheeses and buns. Wine Taken The Duke was to have turned on a fountain fed from a elevated vat containing 1000 gallons of colonial wine. In his absence the thirsty populace cut the pipes and got busy with buckets. Another • Melbourne riot was provoked by an Illumination of the Battle of the Boyne and a boy was killed and two men seriously injured. At Bendigo three boys were burned to death when a model of the Galatea caught fire and next day a specially built ballroom was burned down. When the Duke was asked to select some gold specimens as a souvenir it was reported that he responded “rather freely,” choosing about £lOOO worth.

At the picnic in Sydney 1182 bottles of wine and spirits and 798 bottles of beer were provided for 1554 men and women invited to attend a picnic. The place of the picnic was a spot known as Clontarf on the north shore of Middle Harbour about seven miles from Sydney. All general business was suspended and all leading Arms, Government offices and banks gave their staffs a holiday. Special Tent The Duke and his entourage arrived at Clontarf shortly before 2 p.m. and after being met by a reception committee repaired to a special tent for lunch. Later while strolling with the mayor, Sir William Manning, the Duke’s attention was called to a party of 300 blacks who had been collected for a corroboree, the largest number of aborigines ever seen in Sydney up to that time. A man was seen to detach himself from the following crowd and advance towards the Duke. When within less than 20 yards he quickened his pace but still without exciting suspicion. Many people thought he was someone known to the Duke and was going to speak to him. He walked quickly up till he came within arm’s length of the Duke and then took out a pistol and fired it at the middle of the Duke's back. The Duke at once fell forward on his hands and knees exclaiming: “Good God, I am shot; my back is broken.” At the sound of the shot Sir William Manning turned around and found the man with the gun covering him. Sir William Manning dropped on his knees to avoid a shot but the pistol failed to discharge. Another Hit A bystander rushed at the assassin from behind pinning his arms to his side. In the ensuing struggle, the assassin attempted to shoot the Duke again while he was lying on the ground. The pistol went off, missed the Duke but struck another man in the foot wounding him so badly that he fainted and had to be carried away by his friends. Meanwhile other bystanders ran to the aid of the Duke and with the help of two seamen lifted him to a tent As

they moved him, the Duke asked them to carry him as gently as possible. About seven doctors at the picnic attended the Duke and found that a bullet had penetrated his back about half an inch from the spine. The bullet had followed the path of a rib and had lodged in the flesh not far from the breastbone. At the same time, people outside not knowing who fired the shots began illtreating the man who had pinned the assassin and saved the life of the Duke. He was seriously bruised before the mistake was discovered. When the attention of the crowd, now a mob, was directed to O’Farrell there was a rush to get him with the accompanying cries of “Lynch him,” “String him up” and other “western” expressions. Mob’s Rage The police, who had already arrested O’Farrell, had great difficulty in preventing the mob from tearing their captive to pieces. Then the Chief Justice, Sir Alfred Stephen, summoned the crew of the Galatea and soldiers of the 50th Regiment who helped the police to get O’Farrell on board and cast off. By this time all O’Farrell’s clothing had been torn off and his eyes, face and body were badly bruised. Blood was flowing freely from numerous wounds. The mob tried to get O’Farrell again pleading with the captain of the ship' to return to shore to allow them to lynch the culprit But the captain, who actually wanted to accede to the demands of the crowd, was ordered to proceed to Sydney. Even then the prisoner’s life was in danger as some of the sailors had prepared a rope for his immediate execution. O’Farrell was taken to Darlinghurst prison. Meanwhile, a crowd had gathered around the Duke’s tent wanting to help or to find out how badly he had been injured. Woman Fainted At one stage the Duke’s attendants feared that he would suffocate for want of air. Many women fainted, others became hysterical and this helped to relieve the congestion around the Duke’s tent.

When the Duke found that the people were very concerned for him he sent a message to them saying "he was not seriously hurt and would

be better presently.” This announcment was greeted with loud cheers. After an hour in the tent, the Duke was carried on a litter made from the bottom boards of a gig down to a steamer which had been brought alongside the jetty. As he passed the people kept a hushed silence. The Duke recuperated at Government House; speaking of the event later he said that when he heard the shot he did not feel that he had been struck but thought he had trodden on a Chinese cracker. Later the Colonial Secretary, Mr Henry Parkes, went to the prison to interview O’Farrell. Asked why he had shot the Duke, O'Farrell replied: “Come, come, it is not fair to ask me such, a question as that. The Prince will live, it’s only a side wound. I shall be hanged but the Prince will live.” No Secret It was ascertained that O’Farrell had been in Sydney for only a couple of months and that whenever he heard the Prince’s name mentioned he became extremely excited. On the way to the prison he made no secret of his intention to kill the Duke. He said to the police: “I have made a mess of it and all for no good. I don't care for death: I am sorry I missed my aim. I am a Fenian. God save Ireland. I have done my duty and can die for my country.” When news of the incident reached Sydney no-one at first would believe it, but when the truth became known the streets were filled with knots of people discussing the event.

It was widely regarded as a great calamity, each and everyone feeling that their adopted country was disgraced by the deed which had been perpetrated on its soil. Before long, news of the attempted assassination had been telegraphed to every town in New South Wales, and to the neighbouring states of Victoria, Queensland, and South Australia. Everywhere the news was received with one general outburst of indignation and horror and sympathy for the Duke. At Goulburn a special service was conducted and prayers said for the recovery of the Prince. Telegram Sent Next day telegrams were received from every town in Australia expressing sympathy for the Duke. The Legislative Assembly in Sydney pledged to stamp out the Fenian movement should it be found existing in the colony. The public supported these measures and arrangements were made for "indignation meetings” to demonstrate general horror at the event. The mayor of Sydney called a meeting at the pavilion and

20,000 people attended. It passed a resolution expressing regret, sorrow, indignation, devotion and loyalty in connexion with the crime. Similar meetings were held throughout New South Wales and addresses to the Duke poured in from all quarters. In the Government Gazette a reward of £lOOO was offered for information leading to the conviction of each of O’Farrell’s accomplices although there was no evidence at that stage that he had any. Next day the bullet was extracted from the Duke. Meanwhile a preliminary Magisterial inquiry was held at Darlinghurst in the presence of O’Farrell who admitted that the heads of the Fenian movement in Ireland had ordered the killing of the Duke. O’Farrell had been one of 10 who had vowed to shoot him. Drew Lots The 10 had drawn lots two months before the Duke arrived in Sydney. O’Farrell and the others had not regarded the killing as an assassination, but as retribution for the execution of three Irishmen at Manchester. O’Farrell said he had intended to do the shooting earlier but had postponed it on several occasions fearing that others might be shot. Many events arrange in the Duke’s honour were cancelled and the Government immediately passed a Treason-Felony Act which had recently been sent out from England but on which no action had been taken as it was considered totally unnecessary and uncalled for. The Government how added three clauses to the English act making it a felony to refuse to join in a toast to the Queen. A few days earlier, two prominent citizens had announced their intention to refuse to drink the Queen’s health at the St Patrick’s Day regatta. Insanity Plea Twelve days after the shooting, the Duke was on his feet again and resumed his public engagements. Everywhere he went he was cheered and people were glad he was not afraid to trust himself among them again. At his trial, O'Farrell pleaded insanity but witnesses called for his defence admitted that he had merely been labouring under delirium tremens and that the fits of madness occurred during bouts of hard drinking.

Prosecution witnesses described O’Farrell as a shrewd, intelligent and wellinformed man who never behaved irrationally. The jury after an hour’s retirement found O’Farrell guilty. He was hanged a month later confessing that he was not connected with any Fenian organisation in the state of New South Wales.