Fenian dynamite campaign

Fenian dynamite campaign
Fenian dynamite campaign
Type	bombing campaign
Location	Great Britain
Planned by	Jeremiah O'Donovan Rossa; Alexander Sullivan
Target	government, military, police and infrastructure
Date	1881–1885
Executed by	Irish Republican Brotherhood; United Irishmen of America; Clan na Gael
Outcome	(1) British government establish Special Branch in 1883. (2) O'Donovan Rossa inspires Easter Rising leaders of 1916.

The Fenian dynamite campaign (or Fenian bombing campaign) took place in Great Britain from 1881 to 1885 by the Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB), nicknamed the "Fenians", on infrastructure and government, military and police targets.

Timeline of the campaign

14 Jan 1881: A bomb exploded at a military barracks in Salford, Greater Manchester.^[1]
15 Mar 1881: A bomb was found and defused in the Mansion House, London.^[1]
1881: Bombs exploded at a military barracks in Chester and at Hatton Garden police station in Liverpool. Another bomb was planted at Liverpool Town Hall,^[1] but a police officer moved it away from the building before it exploded.
12 May 1882: A bomb exploded at the Mansion House, London.^[1]

January 1883: In Glasgow, bombs exploded at a gasworks, a coaling shed and a canal viaduct. About a dozen people were injured.^[1]
15 Mar 1883: In London, bombs exploded at government buildings at Whitehall and at the offices of The Times newspaper. There were no injuries.^[1]
30 Oct 1883: Two bombs exploded in the London Underground, at Paddington (Praed Street) station (injuring 70 people) and Westminster Bridge station.^[1]

25 Feb 1884: A bomb exploded in the left-luggage room of Victoria station, London. The building was empty at the time and no-one was injured. Other bombs were defused at Charing Cross station, Ludgate Hill station and Paddington station.^[1]
30 May 1884: Three bombs exploded in London: at the headquarters of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and the Metropolitan Police Service's Special Irish Branch; in the basement of the Carlton Club, a gentlemen's club for members of the Conservative Party; and outside the home of Conservative MP Sir Watkin Williams-Wynn. Ten people were injured. A fourth bomb was planted at the foot of Nelson's Column but failed to explode.^[1]^[2]
13 Dec 1884: Three IRB members, who were planting a bomb on London Bridge, were killed when their bomb prematurely exploded. One of the men was William Mackey Lomasney.^[1]

02 Jan 1885: A bomb exploded at Gower Street station, London.^[1]
24 Jan 1885: Three bombs exploded in London, in the House of Commons chamber, in Westminster Hall and in the Banqueting Room of the Tower of London. Two police officers and four civilians were injured. Two men were sentenced to penal servitude for life as a result.^[1]^[3]

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l Porter, Bernard. The origins of the vigilant state: the London Metropolitan Police Special Branch before the First World War. Boydell & Brewer, 1991. Pp.27-28
^ London Metropolital Police Service - History - The Fenians
^ London Metropolitan Police Service - History - Timeline 1870-1889