heart wrenching book about man's inhumanity to man, This book details the trials and executions of the leaders of theRising, This book the companion to Sean Enright's previous work, The Trials of Civilians by Military Courts: Irelandis a fascinating and comprehensive study of the trials held during May, following Dublin's Easter Rising.
There weretrials conducted in the twoweek period of May,, During this period, of thedeath sentences handed out,were carried out, while nearly,men and women were deported to England.
It was not until the turn of this century that the Public Records Office released the trial records relating to the executed prisoners.
The book offers an unsentimental reappraisal of the trials and the trial regime, and includes previously unpublished trial records of men
such as Harry Boland, Desmond Fitzgerald, George Plunkett, and William Partridge as well as many of the foot soldiers who were sentenced to death.
The process of execution is also examined, bringing to light the dark occasions when executions were botched and covered up.
This is a powerful analysis of an uncomfortable moment in Irish history when the rule of law gave way to political imperatives.
It is seen through a variety of previously unpublished trial records and the systematic collating of accounts given by many prisoners.
The result is a fascinating insight into a little known aspect of theRebellion and its dramatic aftermath, including the reactions of the British government in dealing with the republican prisoners throughout the trials.
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