James Connolly

In the wall in Rockmount Street there are two murals.

Rockmount Street, Belfast, 2015

In the upper part of the wall, the mural is dedicated to the republican women. At the centre there is the image of Countess Markievicz, of whom I have already spoken here.

In the lower part of the wall, there is the image of James Connolly.

Connolly was a political thinker who came to Belfast as union organiser in 1911. He was living in Dublin when the republican revolutionary armed rising was decided, in 1916.

When the rebels surrendered, as commander of the Dublin Brigade he was brought before a British military tribunal and sentenced to death.

On the day of the sentence, the 12th of May 1916, he was so badly injured from the fighting that he was unable to stand before the firing squad at the  Kilmainham Gaol: he was carried to a prison courtyard on a stretcher, tied to a chair and then shot.

Connolly is also well remembered for his socialist and Marxist theories.

You can find more information on James Connolly in Wikipedia, and some of his quotes in wikiquotes.

In the video below, the song dedicated to Connolly makes feel a sadness that I am sure is only a drop of all the sadness that the Irish people felt at the moment of Connolly's death.

"A great crowd had gathered outside of Kilmainham
Their heads all uncovered they knelt to the ground
For inside that grim prison lay a brave Irish soldier
His life for his country about to lay down

He went to his death like a true son of Ireland
The firing party he bravely did face
Then the order rang out: "Present arms and fire"
James Connolly fell into a ready-made grave

The black flag was hoisted, the cruel deed was over
Gone was the man who loved Ireland so well
There was many a sad heart in Dublin that morning
When they murdered James Connolly, the Irish rebel

Many years have gone by since the Irish Rebellion
When the guns of Britannia they loudly did speak
And the bold l.R.A. they stood shoulder to shoulder
As the blood from their bodies flowed down Sackville Street

The Four Courts at Dublin, the English bombarded
The spirit of freedom they tried hard to quell
But above all the din rose the cry "No Surrender"
'Twas the voice of James Connolly, the Irish rebel

(lyric from http://www.kinglaoghaire.com/lyrics/663-james-connolly)