• HOME
  • Media
  • About Michael
  • The Books
  • What People are Saying
  • News & Events
  • Contact
2012
11.23

Lord Louis Mountbatten is assassinated – 1979

Category: This date in criminal history, What happened on this date in British Royal history / Tag: Irish Republican Army, Lord Louis Mountbatten, Lord Louis Mountbatten is assassinated 1979, Thomas McMahon, what happened on this date in Britidh royal history, what happened on this date in criminal history / Add Comment

On November 23, 1979, Thomas McMahon, a member of the Irish Republican Army (IRA), is sentenced to life imprisonment for preparing and planting the bomb that killed Lord Louis Mountbatten and three others. On August 27, 1979, Lord Mountbatten was killed when McMahon and other IRA terrorists detonated a 50-pound bomb hidden on his fishing vessel Shadow V. Mountbatten, a World War II hero, elder statesman, and second cousin of Queen Elizabeth II, was spending the day with his family in Donegal Bay off Ireland’s northwest coast when the bomb exploded. Three others were killed in the attack, including Mountbatten’s 14-year-old grandson, Nicholas. Later that day, an IRA bombing attack on land killed 18 British paratroopers in County Down, Northern Ireland. The assassination of Mountbatten was the first blow struck against the British royal family by the IRA during its long terrorist campaign to drive the British out of Northern Ireland and unite it with the Republic of Ireland to the south. The attack hardened the hearts of many Britons against the IRA and convinced Margaret Thatcher’s government to take a hard-line stance against the terrorist organization. The IRA immediately claimed responsibility for the Mountbatten attack, saying it detonated the bomb by remote control from the coast. It also took responsibility for the same-day bombing attack against British troops in County Down, which claimed 18 lives. IRA member Thomas McMahon was later arrested and convicted for his role in the Mountbatten bombing. He was a leader of the IRA’s notorious South Armagh Brigade, which killed more than 100 British soldiers. He was one of the first IRA members to be sent to Libya to study detonators and timing devices and was an expert in explosives. Authorities believe the Mountbatten assassination was the work of many people, but McMahon was the only individual convicted. Sentenced to life in prison, he was released in 1998, along with other IRA and Unionist terrorists, under a controversial provision of the Good Friday Agreement, Northern Ireland’s peace deal. McMahon claimed he had turned his back on the IRA and was becoming a carpenter.

Comments are closed.

  • California's Deadly Women

    Murder and Mayhem in the Golden State 1850–1950


      Buy from Amazon
      Buy from Schiffer

      • California Crime

        In the Company of Evil Thirty Years of California Crime, 1950-1980


          Buy from Amazon
          Buy from Schiffer

        • America's Literary Legends

          America's Literary Legends: The Lives & Burial Places of 50 Great Writers


            Buy from Amazon
            Buy from Schiffer

          • Short Story

            Once in a Blue Moon

              Buy from Amazon

            • Literary Legends

              The Lives & Burial Places of 50 Great Writers

                Buy from Amazon
                Buy from Barnes and Noble
                Buy from Schiffer

            • Great Britain's Royal Tombs

              A Guide to the Lives and Burial Places of British Monarchs

                Buy from Amazon
                Buy from Barnes and Noble
                Buy from Schiffer

            • Murder and Mayhem

              52 Crimes that Shocked Early Califonia

                Buy from Amazon
                Buy from Barnes and Noble
                Buy from Schiffer

            • Fade to Black

                 

                Buy from Amazon
                Buy from Barnes and Noble
                Buy from Schiffer Books

            • Final Resting Places


                 

                Buy from Amazon
                Buy from Barnes and Noble
                Buy from Schiffer Books

            • Reviews and Testimonials

              "This is an enjoyable read offering more then the interesting anecdotes and history so well described by Michael Barry, but an opportunity for loyal fans to pay their respects to those they love and admire. Thank you Michael for your gift and I hope others enjoy it as much as I have."

              -Celeste Holm, winner of the Best Supporting Actress Oscar in 1948

              Read More

            • Newsletter Sign-Up

              Sign up for our newsletter to receive updates and information about upcoming events.

MichaelThomasBarry ©2009. All rights reserved.                                                                                      Created by SmartAuthorSites.com ... Websites for Authors