Bloody Friday is the name given to the bombings by the
Provisional Irish Republican ArmyThe Provisional Irish Republican Army is an Irish republican paramilitary organisation which sought to remove Northern Ireland from the United Kingdom and bring about a united Ireland by force of arms and political persuasion...
's (IRA)
Belfast BrigadeThe Belfast Brigade of the Provisional IRA was the largest of the organisation's command areas, based in the city of Belfast. Founded in 1969, along with the formation of the Provisional IRA, it was historically organised into three battalions; the First Battalion based in the...
in and around
BelfastBelfast is the capital of and the largest city in Northern Ireland, a constituent country of the United Kingdom. It is the seat of devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly. It is the largest urban area in the province of Ulster, and the second largest city on the island of...
,
Northern IrelandNorthern Ireland is a part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and it is situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
on 21 July, 1972, which killed nine people including two soldiers, and injured 130 civilians.
The bombings were part of a concerted bombing campaign carried out by the IRA against economic, military and political targets in
Northern IrelandNorthern Ireland is a part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and it is situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
. The group carried out a total of 1,300 bombings in 1972. Following the failure of secret talks in London between the British government and the IRA in 1972
A total of 22 bombs were planted and, in the resulting explosions, nine people were killed and a further 130 civilians injured.
Bloody Friday is the name given to the bombings by the
Provisional Irish Republican ArmyThe Provisional Irish Republican Army is an Irish republican paramilitary organisation which sought to remove Northern Ireland from the United Kingdom and bring about a united Ireland by force of arms and political persuasion...
's (IRA)
Belfast BrigadeThe Belfast Brigade of the Provisional IRA was the largest of the organisation's command areas, based in the city of Belfast. Founded in 1969, along with the formation of the Provisional IRA, it was historically organised into three battalions; the First Battalion based in the...
in and around
BelfastBelfast is the capital of and the largest city in Northern Ireland, a constituent country of the United Kingdom. It is the seat of devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly. It is the largest urban area in the province of Ulster, and the second largest city on the island of...
,
Northern IrelandNorthern Ireland is a part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and it is situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
on 21 July, 1972, which killed nine people including two soldiers, and injured 130 civilians.
The bombings were part of a concerted bombing campaign carried out by the IRA against economic, military and political targets in
Northern IrelandNorthern Ireland is a part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and it is situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
. The group carried out a total of 1,300 bombings in 1972. Following the failure of secret talks in London between the British government and the IRA in 1972
Overview
A total of 22 bombs were planted and, in the resulting explosions, nine people were killed and a further 130 civilians injured. Warnings were given by the IRA via the local media to the security forces before the bombs exploded with 30 minutes' warning given for the first bombing and around 70 minutes' warning for the last bomb. The IRA leader,
Sean MacStiofainSeán Mac Stíofáin was an Irish republican and first chief of staff of the Provisional IRA.-Childhood:Although he used the Gaelicised version of his name in later life, Mac Stíofáin was born an only child as John Edward Drayton Stephenson in Leytonstone, London in 1928...
, claimed that the warnings for the two bombs which claimed lives were deliberately disregarded by the British for strategic policy reasons. Along with some accurate warnings which were given by the IRA, two more hoax warnings were called in, which impeded the evacuation of the area. As a result, the
Royal Ulster ConstabularyThe Royal Ulster Constabulary GC was the name of the police force in Northern Ireland from 1922 to 2001. It was founded on 1 June 1922 out of the Royal Irish Constabulary , the Belfast Borough Police Force and the Londonderry Borough Police Force...
and
British ArmyThe British Army is the land armed forces branch of the British Armed Forces. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdoms of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England and Scotland and...
only effectively cleared a relatively small number of areas before the bombs went off. In addition, because of the large number of bombs in the confined area of Belfast city centre, people evacuated from the site of one bomb were accidentally moved into the vicinity of other bombs.
Thirty years after the killings the IRA issued a statement of apology.
Sequence of events - 21 July 1972
The accounts of the events that appeared in the first editions of local and national newspapers were, naturally enough, somewhat confused about the details of the events of the day. The timetable compiled by CAIN below is approximate and given in
BST/ISTWestern European Summer Time is a summer daylight saving time scheme, 1 hour ahead of Coordinated Universal Time. It is used in the following places:* the Canary Islands* the Faroe Islands* Ireland* the Crown dependencies* the Madeira islands...
(GMT+1). The details are based on a number of secondary reports and accounts.
2:10 p.m. Smithfield Bus Station
The first bomb detonates. The bomb had been placed in a car in an enclosed yard at the Smithfield Bus Station. Extensive damage was done to the surrounding area.
2:16 p.m. (Brookvale Hotel, Brookvale Avenue, north Belfast)
A bomb (estimated at 50 pounds (23 kg) of explosive) exploded at the Brookvale Hotel, in Brookvale Avenue, north Belfast. The bomb was contained in a suitcase and was planted by three men armed with sub-machine guns. The area had been cleared and no injuries occurred.
2:23 p.m. (LMS Railway Station, York Road)
A suitcase bomb left on the platform explodes, doing extensive damage to the interior of the Railway Station, and blowing the roof off of the Station.
2:45 p.m. (Crumlin Road, Belfast)
Two bombs (both estimated at 50 pounds (23 kg) of explosive) exploded at the Star Garage on the Crumlin Road. There were no serious injuries in the explosions.
2:48 p.m. (Oxford Street Bus Depot, Oxford Street, Belfast)
A car bomb exploded outside the
UlsterbusUlsterbus is a public transport operator in Northern Ireland and operates bus services outside Belfast. It is part of Translink , which also includes Northern Ireland Railways, Metro Belfast and Flexibus.-Services:Ulsterbus is responsible for most of the province-wide bus...
depot in Oxford Street. This explosion resulted in the greatest loss of life and the greatest number of casualties, of any of the bombs on the day. The area was being cleared but was still crowded when the bomb, in a Volkswagen estate car, exploded. Two
British soldiersThe British Army is the land armed forces branch of the British Armed Forces. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdoms of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England and Scotland and...
, Stephen Cooper (19) and Philip Price (27) were close to the car bomb and died instantly. Also killed in the blast were: William Crothers (15), William Irvine (18); Thomas Killops (39) and John Gibson (45). All four were Protestant civilians who worked for the Ulsterbus company.
2:50 p.m. (Ulster Bank, Limestone Road, north Belfast)
The car bomb (estimated at 50 pounds (23 kg) of explosive) exploded outside the branch of the
Ulster BankUlster Bank is a large commercial bank, one of the Big Four in both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. Its main base is in Belfast, in Northern Ireland, and it maintains a large sector of the financial services in both the UK and the Republic of Ireland as well as having operations on...
on the Limestone Road, north Belfast. The site of this bomb was a few hundred yards from the first bomb. This area had not been cleared. There were several injuries in this blast.
2:52 p.m. (Botanic Railway Station, Botanic Avenue, Belfast)
A car bomb (estimated at 50 pounds (23 kg) of explosive) exploded outside the railway station in Botanic Avenue. There was considerable damage to property but no serious injuries.
2:55 p.m. (Queen Elizabeth Bridge, Belfast)
A car bomb (estimated at 160 pounds (73 kg) of explosive) exploded without warning on the Queen Elizabeth Bridge. There were no serious injuries in this explosion. There was some damage to the structure of the bridge.
2:57 p.m. (Liverpool Bar, Donegall Quay, Belfast)
A bomb (estimated at 50 pounds (23 kg) of explosive) exploded in the Liverpool Bar in Donegall Quay.
2.57 p.m. (Ormeau Avenue, Belfast)
A car bomb (estimated at 50 pounds (23 kg) of explosive) exploded in Ormeau Avenue. Those in the area did not receive a warning. However, there were no serious injuries.
3:02 p.m. (Agnes Street, Belfast)
A car bomb (estimated at 30 pounds (14 kg) of explosive) exploded outside a group of Protestant houses in Agnes Street. Those in the area did not receive a warning but there were no serious injuries.
3:02 p.m. (Bellevue, north Belfast)
A bomb (estimated at 30 pounds (14 kg) of explosive) exploded on the bridge over the M2 motorway at Bellevue in north Belfast. There were no serious injuries in this explosion.
3:12 p.m. (Eastwood's Garage, Donegall Road, Belfast)
A car bomb (estimated at 150 pounds (68 kg) of explosive) destroyed Eastwood's Garage on Donegall Road. There were no serious injuries in the explosion.
3:15 p.m. (Stewartstown Road, Belfast)
A bomb, thought to have been abandoned on the Stewartstown Road, exploded but caused no serious injuries.
3:15 p.m. (Cavehill Road, north Belfast)
A car bomb (estimated at 50 pounds (23 kg) of explosive) exploded outside a row of single storey shops near the top of the Cavehill Road, north Belfast. Those caught in the blast had no warning of the bomb. The shops were in a religiously-mixed residential area. Two women and a man died in this blast. Mrs Margaret O'Hare (37), a Catholic mother of seven children, died in her car. Her 11-year-old daughter was with her in her car and was badly injured. Miss Brigid Murray (65), a Catholic, was also killed as was Stephen Parker (14), a Protestant teenager. In addition there were a number of serious injuries.
Reactions and consequences
Speaking in the Commons on 24 July, Home Secretary of the time William Whitelaw called the bombings "appallingly bloodthirsty". He also drew attention to the Catholic victims, and mentioned the revulsion in the
Republic of IrelandIreland is a country in north-western Europe. The modern sovereign state occupies about five-sixths of the island of Ireland, which was partitioned on 3 May 1921. It is a parliamentary democracy and a republic...
as elsewhere. Leader of the Opposition
Harold WilsonJames Harold Wilson, Baron Wilson of Rievaulx, KG, OBE, FRS, PC was a British Labour Party politician; one of the most prominent British politicians of the latter half of the 20th century, he served two terms as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, firstly from 1964 to 1970, and again from 1974...
described the events as "a shocking crime against an already innocent population". The
Irish Times wrote "The chief injury is not to the British Army, to the Establishment or to big business but to the plain people of Belfast and Ireland. Anyone who supports violence from any side after yesterday's events is sick with the same affliction as those who did the deed." Television images of fire-fighters shovelling body parts into plastic bags at the Oxford Street bus station were the most shocking of the day.
479 people died in the Troubles in 1972, more than in any other year of the conflict. Ten days after the bombings the British Army launched
Operation MotormanOperation Motorman was an operation carried out by the British Army in Northern Ireland during the Troubles. The operation started at 4:00am 31 July 1972 to retake the no-go areas established in Derry and Belfast in the aftermath of internment the previous year...
, to retake IRA controlled republican areas in Belfast and Derry. There were several revenge attacks by
loyalistsUlster loyalism is a militant unionist ideology held mostly by Protestants in Northern Ireland. Some individuals claim that Ulster loyalists are working-class unionists willing to use violence in order to achieve their aims...
. Bloody Friday itself was seen by some as a reprisal attack for
Bloody SundayBloody Sunday —sometimes called the Bogside Massacre—was an incident in Derry, Northern Ireland, on 30 January 1972. Twenty-seven civil rights protesters were shot by members of the 1st Battalion of the British Parachute Regiment during a Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association march in the...
in Derry six months earlier.
Provisional IRA statement of apology
On 16 July 2002, the Provisional IRA issued a statement of apology to
An PhoblachtAn Phoblacht is the official newspaper of Sinn Féin in Ireland. It is published once a week, and according to its website sells an average of up to 15,000 copies every week and was the first Irish paper to provide an edition online and currently having in excess of 100,000 website hits per...
, which read:
Sunday 21 July marks the 30th anniversary of an IRA operation in Belfast in 1972 which resulted in nine people being killed and many more injured.
While it was not our intention to injure or kill non-combatants, the reality is that on this and on a number of other occasions, that was the consequence of our actions.
It is therefore appropriate on the anniversary of this tragic event, that we address all of the deaths and injuries of non-combatants caused by us.
We offer our sincere apologies and condolences to their families.
...
External links
- http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/northern_ireland/2132219.stm
- http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/2132188.stm
- http://cain.ulst.ac.uk/events/bfriday/dead.htm
- http://cain.ulst.ac.uk/events/bfriday/nio/nio72.htm
See also