Chapter 3 (Page 312)
Write about a republican in the War of Independence.
My name is Dan Crowley and I am a member of the West Cork flying column. The leader of the flying column is Tom Barry. We use guerrilla warfare against the British. This means ambushing British convoys of lorries. Then we melt into the countryside and escape. This is easy as we know the local terrain. The British get frustrated when they cannot capture us and shoot innocent civilians or burn their houses and towns.
In the early stages of the War of Independence we used to return home and work after an ambush. But as the war got worse we became full-time fighters and formed flying columns. This meant that we were continually on the move. Life is hard as we have to sleep in barns or in the open air. Only for the support of the local population who give us food and shelter, we would have given up long ago.
In 1920 the Black and Tans (ex-British soldiers) and Auxiliaries (ex-British army officers) were sent to Ireland. They are much more ruthless than the RIC (police). As a result, they have become very unpopular and support for us has increased. Last November, we had a major victory against the Auxiliaries at Kilmichael. We ambushed them and killed 18 Auxiliaries. This was the first time that the Auxiliaries had been beaten in the war. However, we are running low in guns and ammunition. We are also homesick and hope that the talks in London will be successful.
