At the same time, the government of Northern Ireland responded to the growing…. Colonel Wilford disobeyed this order, which meant there was no separation between rioters and peaceful marchers. [111] After Bloody Sunday many Catholics turned on the British army, seeing it no longer as their protector but as their enemy. The same day, irate crowds burned down the British embassy on Merrion Square in Dublin. Two civilians were killed and at least four others wounded. Bloody Sunday remembrance plaque at Croke Park Bloody Sunday (Irish: Domhnach na Fola) was a day of violence in Dublin on 21 November 1920, during the Irish War of Independence. Major Michael Steele: With MacLellan in the operations room and in charge of passing on the orders of the day. The first ambulances arrived at 4:28 pm. Thirteen people were shot and killed, with another man later dying of his wounds. Lord Saville declined to comment on the Widgery report and made the point that the Saville Inquiry was a judicial inquiry into Bloody Sunday, not the Widgery Tribunal. Bloody Sunday, 1920 - killing & dying in the Irish revolution | The Century Ireland project is an online historical newspaper that tells the story of the events of Irish life a century ago [6][7][8] The Saville Inquiry, chaired by Lord Saville of Newdigate, was established in 1998 to reinvestigate the incident. Among the evidence presented to the tribunal were the results of paraffin tests, used to identify lead residues from firing weapons, and that nail bombs had been found on the body of one of those killed. A unit of the British Army's Ulster Defence Regiment refused to carry out duties until 1 Para was withdrawn from the Shankill. [45] This fatality, Jackie Duddy, was running alongside a priest, Father Edward Daly, when he was shot in the back. With rival paramilitary organisations appearing in both the nationalist/republican and unionist/loyalist communities (such as the Ulster Defence Association (UDA), Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF), etc. [131], The events of the day have been dramatised in two 2002 television films, Bloody Sunday (starring James Nesbitt) and Sunday by Jimmy McGovern. Brigadier MacLellan had ordered that only one company of paratroopers be sent through the barriers, on foot, and that they should not chase people down Rossville Street. The Saville Report agreed that this is an "accurate description of what happened". There is no doubt, there is nothing equivocal, there are no ambiguities. [19] Both the Official IRA and Provisional IRA had established no-go areas for the British Army and Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) in Derry through the use of barricades. [122], Paul McCartney (who is of Irish descent)[123] recorded the first song in response only two days after the incident. [1] It was the highest number of people killed in a single shooting incident during the conflict and is considered the worst mass shooting in Northern Irish history. [22] Due to rioting and damage to shops caused by incendiary devices, an estimated total of £4 million worth of damage had been caused to local businesses. [20] A further six soldiers had been killed in Derry by mid-December 1971. There were many claims of paratroopers beating people, clubbing them with rifle butts, firing rubber bullets at them from close range, making threats to kill, and hurling abuse. [86], Evidence given by Martin McGuinness, a senior member of Sinn Féin and later the deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland, to the inquiry stated that he was second-in-command of the Provisional IRA Derry Brigade and was present at the march. I never want to call into question the behaviour of our soldiers and our army, who I believe to be the finest in the world. He in turn gave orders to Major Ted Loden, who commanded the company who launched the arrest operation. The soldiers opened fire, killing one civilian and wounding six others. Bloody Sunday precipitated an upsurge in support for the Irish Republican Army (IRA), which advocated violence against the United Kingdom to force it to withdraw from Northern Ireland. These gun-happy louts must be removed from the streets". Many witnesses intended to boycott the tribunal as they lacked faith in Widgery's impartiality, but were eventually persuaded to take part. [2], Another group of people fled into the car park of Glenfada Park, which was also a courtyard-like area surrounded by flats. Ordered to arrest as many demonstrators as possible, the army proceeded to confront the marchers, and violence erupted. [40], At 4:07 pm, the paratroopers were ordered to go through the barriers and arrest rioters. He will also be charged with four attempted murders. [49] More than 100 rounds were fired by the soldiers. [72] He declared: This Sunday became known as Bloody Sunday and bloody it was. There were people at the barricade and some were throwing stones at the soldiers, but none were near enough to hit them. – Bloody Sunday Inquiry", "Bloody Sunday: March that led to deadly clashes", "Report of the Bloody Sunday Inquiry, Volume III, Chapter 44: Conclusions on the treatment of those arrested in Sector 2", Report of the Bloody Sunday Inquiry, Volume V, Chapter 70, Report of the Bloody Sunday Inquiry, Volume VI, Chapter 102, "Bloody Sunday: the shooting lasted an hour, the inquiry took 12 years", Report of the Bloody Sunday Inquiry, Volume VII, Chapter 122, Report of the Bloody Sunday Inquiry, Volume V, Chapter 86, "Bloody Sunday: Soldier F faces murder charges", Report of the Bloody Sunday Inquiry – Volume VI: Events in Glenfada Park North and Abbey Park, "Superb new look for Museum of Free Derrya", "Bloody Sunday helped reconcile Southern nationalists to partition", 1972: British embassy in Dublin destroyed, "Bloody Sunday: the ghosts that won't lie down", "McGuinness: there was no need for Bloody Sunday inquiry", "I was proud to lead the Paras on Bloody Sunday...don't dare say sorry for me, Mr Blair", "BLOODY SUNDAY INQUIRY – Col Wilford: Don't blame my soldiers", "Rumours of plan to clear Bogside are 'nonsense, "Saville Bloody Sunday inquiry delayed until after poll", "Bloody Sunday Inquiry: victims were all unarmed and killed without justification, says Bloody Sunday report", "Bloody Sunday report states those killed were innocent", "Report of The Bloody Sunday Inquiry – Volume I – Chapter 3", "BBC NEWS – UK – N Ireland – Major gives Bloody Sunday evidence", "BBC News – Britain's propaganda war during the Troubles", "BBC News – Bloody Sunday: PM David Cameron's full statement", "Bloody Sunday: Former British soldier released on bail", "Bloody Sunday trial will test limits of justice in Northern Ireland", "Prosecutors explain Bloody Sunday murder charges against 'Soldier F, "Why Soldier F will be charged over Bloody Sunday but other soldiers will not be", "Bloody Sunday: No further charges against former soldiers", "Bloody Sunday Victims Deserve Better Than This", "David Cameron condemns Bloody Sunday killings and makes apology", "Britons and Northern Irish Welcome PM's Apology for Bloody Sunday", "Bloody Sunday killings 'unjustified and unjustifiable, "Sack soldier for Bloody Sunday slurs, urges brother of victim", "Army condemns 'irresponsible, disrespectful' use of its flags", "Parachute Regiment flags flown in Derry as plans are laid to target concert", "Poems of Bloody Sunday: Thomas Kinsella, Seamus Deane", "Bloody Sunday: Scenes from the Saville Inquiry", UTV Coverage: Bloody Sunday & The Saville Report, Programme of events commemorating Bloody Sunday – 2008, History – Bloody Sunday – Events of the Day, "Bogsiders insist that soldiers shot first", "Shootings 'triggered decades of violence'", Britain Acknowledges "Bloody Sunday" Killings Were Unjustified and Apologizes to Victims' Families, Bombings of King's Cross and Euston stations, Carlton Tower and Portman Hotel shootings, Belfast, Crumlin, Killyleagh & Coleraine attacks, Ceasefires of the Provisional IRA, UVF, UDA and RHC, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Bloody_Sunday_(1972)&oldid=1005771322, January 1972 events in the United Kingdom, Massacres committed by the United Kingdom, Military actions and engagements during the Troubles (Northern Ireland), Articles with dead external links from August 2019, Articles with permanently dead external links, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles with peacock terms from January 2021, Wikipedia articles needing page number citations from January 2021, Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. When some protesters threw stones and tried to go around the barbed wire, paratroopers drove them back by firing rubber bullets at close range and making baton charges. In Croke Park, the Dublin and Tipperary football teams lined out for a great challenge match. [43] The soldiers fired on the people at the barricade, killing six and wounding a seventh. Bloody Sunday, demonstration in Londonderry, Northern Ireland, on Sunday, January 30, 1972, by Roman Catholic civil rights supporters that turned violent when British paratroopers opened fire, killing 13 and injuring 14 others (one of the injured later died). [102], The Public Prosecution Service for Northern Ireland (PPS) announced in March 2019 that there was enough evidence to prosecute "Soldier F" for the murders of James Wray and William McKinney, both of whom were shot in the back. The single, entitled "Give Ireland Back to the Irish", expressed his views on the matter. This paper is an investigation into the events of that day. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. [103][104][105] The Saville Inquiry concluded, based on the evidence, that "Soldier F" also killed Michael Kelly, Patrick Doherty and Barney McGuigan, but evidence from the inquiry was inadmissible to the prosecution and "the only evidence capable of identifying the soldier who fired the relevant shots came from Soldier F's co-accused, Soldier G, who is deceased". Bloody Sunday came to be regarded as one of the most significant events of the Troubles, because many civilians were killed by forces of the state, in full view of the public and the press. Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree.... Get a Britannica Premium subscription and gain access to exclusive content. "Bloody Sunday" refers to the March 7, 1965, civil rights march that was supposed to go from Selma to the capitol in Montgomery to protest the shooting death of activist Jimmie Lee Jackson. The city of Derry in Northern Ireland was experiencing a rise in violence and unrest in the years leading up to Bloody Sunday, with a violent uptick after internment without trial was introduced in 1971. [12] Following this, police began a murder investigation into the killings. Although there were many IRA men—both Official and Provisional—at the protest, it is claimed they were all unarmed, apparently because it was anticipated that the paratroopers would attempt to "draw them out". Having witnessed the events firsthand, she was infuriated that the Speaker of the House of Commons, Selwyn Lloyd, consistently denied her the chance to speak in Parliament about the shootings, although parliamentary convention decreed that any MP witnessing an incident under discussion would be granted an opportunity to speak about it in Parliament. The paratroopers, on foot and in armoured vehicles, chased people down Rossville Street and into the Bogside. "30 January 1972" deals specifically with the events of Bloody Sunday. The Derry coroner, however, was unequivocal, calling the deaths “unadulterated murder,” and nationalists campaigned for more than two decades for the government to establish a new inquiry. [95] Saville stated that the civilians had not been warned by the British soldiers that they intended to shoot. The incident remained a source of controversy for decades, with competing accounts of the events. The inquiry report accepted that Steele could not believe other than that a separation had been achieved between rioters and marchers, because both groups were in different areas. The 13 people killed on Bloody Sunday were shot dead by members of the 1st battalion (1 Para) of the British Army’s Parachute Regiment in the space of … This is a non-partisan introduction to the events on the day, for those who want to know more about what happened. [47], The soldiers went through the car park and out the other side. [135], In October 2010, T with the Maggies released the song "Domhnach na Fola" (Irish for "Bloody Sunday"), written by Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh and Tríona Ní Dhomhnaill on their debut album. Never in question was the fact that after less than 30 minutes of shooting, 13 marchers lay dead. It’s been 49 years to the day since the events of Bloody Sunday and many questions are still unanswered. The authorities decided to allow it to proceed in the Catholic areas of the city, but to stop it from reaching Guildhall Square, as planned by the organisers. [108], Harold Wilson, then the Leader of the Opposition in the House of Commons, reiterated his belief that a united Ireland was the only possible solution to Northern Ireland's Troubles. In an attempt to address nationalist grievances, electoral boundaries were redrawn more fairly, efforts were made to rectify discrimination in housing and public employment, and the B Specials were decommissioned. The casualties are listed in the order in which they were killed. [38] The soldiers claimed Donaghy was holding a black cylindrical object,[39] but the Saville Inquiry concluded that all of those shot were unarmed. [5] On 10 August, Bombardier Paul Challenor became the first soldier to be killed by the Provisional IRA in Derry, when he was shot by a sniper on the Creggan estate. [124], The 1972 John Lennon album Some Time in New York City features a song entitled "Sunday Bloody Sunday", inspired by the incident, as well as the song "The Luck of the Irish", which dealt more with the Irish conflict in general. [n 2], Most witnesses to the event disputed the report's conclusions and regarded it as a whitewash, the slogan "Widgery washes whiter" – a play on the contemporary advertisement for Daz soap powder – emblazoned on walls in Derry, crystallized the views of many nationalists about the report.[82]. Later identified as a member of the Official IRA, this man was also photographed in the act of drawing his weapon, but was apparently not seen or targeted by the soldiers. [91], The inquiry was expected to report in late 2009 but was delayed until after the general election on 6 May 2010. Saturday 21 November marks 100 years since Bloody Sunday - an event in 1920 that took place in Dublin during the Irish War of Independence. [11] On publication of the report, the British prime minister David Cameron made a formal apology on behalf of the United Kingdom. In Harper's book (The Passions of Great Fortune), his comment on the song ends "…there must always be some hope that the children of 'Bloody Sunday', on both sides, can grow into some wisdom". The march had been organised by the Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association (NICRA). [23], On 22 January 1972, a week before Bloody Sunday, an anti-internment march was held at Magilligan strand, near Derry. [97] Ultimately the Saville Inquiry was inconclusive on Martin McGuinness's role, due to a lack of certainty over his movements, concluding that while he was "engaged in paramilitary activity" during Bloody Sunday, and had probably been armed with a Thompson submachine gun, there was insufficient evidence to make any finding other than they were "sure that he did not engage in any activity that provided any of the soldiers with any justification for opening fire".[98].