TIM HENNESSY (1890-1921) A SRAHARLA/KNOCKANEVIN MARTYR
What happened on May Day 1921 at Knockanevin-Sraharla sadly, changed the lives of four families forever. As we approach the centenary of the Sraharla Ambush (1921-2021), I will concentrate here now on how it affected one of the families that lost a loved one on that day.
In my youth, I often heard the comment that Ireland’s freedom was won by those who had least to lose- the people of little property. That statement was a massive over-simplification. The polar opposite was very often the case. People of high moral principle will always fight for freedom and justice for all, irrespective of what they themselves, might or might not lose, on a personal basis the Hennessy family of Ahabeg House, near Caherconlish was one such family.
MARGARET MARY HENNESSY (1852-1925), AHABEG HOUSE
Margaret Mary Hennessy (née Crowe from Doon), had been a widow for nearly two decades by the time the ‘War of Independence’ (1919-1921) had begun. She had been left with seven children to rear, three sons and four daughters. Her husband Michael had died in 1902, aged 63, leaving her to rear four girls- Mary, Angela, Sadie and Margaret and three boys, John, Michael and Tim. Alas! Mrs. Margaret Hennessy’s happiness with her seven children was soon to disappear as she experienced repeated tragedies throughout her life!
Yes! Her husband Michael, did indeed leave his wife with a fine place, a baronial residence and a fine farm, in a great location on the main Tipperary-Limerick road, five miles from the Limerick City. Michael had been a great worker all his life and was in a position to buy Ahabeg House, in the parish of Ballybricken, when the residing landlord, Major Richard De Ross Rose sold out in the 1880’s. That Ross Rose family was prominent in Limerick in the 17th century, one becoming an ‘Orange’ mayor. The family was also related to the Earls of Ross who dominated Birr. In fact, a similar interest in astronomy existed in both families. In Birr, the world’s largest telescope (until 1917) was built by the 3rd Earl of Ross (Parson family). Likewise, at Ahabeg House, the incumbent built an octagonal tower wing in order to observe the night sky. The remains of the tower still exist. The Ahabeg House telescope didn’t match the Birr telescope but it was surely Limerick’s early attempt to compete with Tipperary! The name Ahabeg comes from ‘Achadh Beag’ meaning ‘the small field’, after the townland.
In any case, by the 1880’s the ruling Ascendancy was on its knees, all over Ireland, trying to survive as financial pressures brought about by the Great Famine(1845-48) and the success of the Land League, resulted in the British government passing various Land Acts that, in the last quarter of the 19th century, left the ruling landlord class in ruins. The Ahabeg estate was sold and eventually divided up amongst the native Irish inhabitants who finally got their rightful lands back again! On the division, Michael Hennessy purchased 100 acres of the estate along with the actual main landlord’s residence.
Installed, as owners, the Hennessy family did not get carried away with themselves in this baronial residence. They never forgot their roots and remained as determined as ever to fight on until complete Irish freedom was achieved. The family desired that not just a few, but all Irish people, could proudly own their own homesteads, free from landlordism and British domination. It was that determination that led the Widow Margaret Hennessy’s young son, Tim Hennessy, the heir to his father’s estate, to join the IRB as a young man.
Tim’s father Michael had died on the 22 July 1902. His mother Margaret (1852-1925) was left to manage the farm and to rear the family as best she could. She was fortunate to have the assistance of an old family workman, Ned, who advised her and helped her throughout that whole difficult period until the very sad end!
MARGARET’S SON TIM JOINS
THE VOLUNTEERS
As her son Tim grew up, he became inspired by the selflessness of the men of 1916, and decided to make his contribution in the fight for his country’s freedom. He enlisted in the Mid-Limerick Brigade under Séan Carroll.
There he teamed up with other Volunteers who were to die, like himself, at Knockanevin. He joined in with James Horan from Inch St. Laurence and Patrick Casey from Ballybricken-Caherelly. He also met up with Paddy Starr who was from Nenagh but had joined the Mid-Limerick Brigade following the refusal of any Tipperary Brigade to take him on because of his youth.
These men represented a cross section of Irish life. The fight for Irish Freedom was not class based. In those four men who were to die at Knockanevin/Sraharla we have the whole spectrum of Irish society: a large farmer (Tim Hennessy); a medium sized farmer (James Horan - though originally the family had a 75 acre farm, but he worked at odd jobs); an artisan (shoemaker-Pat Starr) and a very small farmer cum labourer (Paddy Casey- worked in Ballybricken creamery, and who also worked as a travelling salesman, selling trees (nursery stock) as a cover for Volunteer activities. His body was not returned to family. It was burned with quicklime after hanging in Cork jail following a drumhead court-marshal.
Tim Hennessy’s story is sad because he did not become active in operations with the Mid-Limerick Brigade until the very last year of the ‘War’ in 1921. His family played a slightly different but perhaps more vital role. The Hennessy’s of Ahabeg House stored whatever weapons and ammunition that the brigade possessed. It was in their house that weapons were deposited for safe keeping. It was a most risky business as the penalty for such collaboration with the ‘enemy’ was every bit as severe as it was on active service volunteers who were captured. During that period Tim remained out of active service so as not to draw attention on the house where so many weapons were stored.
The Hennessy household lived through that whole period in constant fear and dread. The Hennessy’s knew that Ahabeg House, their home, would be burned to the ground by the military if anything was ever found there! However, Hennessy’s patriotism was such that they put their country before their own home and property!
Sadly, eventually an informer betrayed the family and Tim’s involvement. From then on, the house was constantly searched by the military seeking evidence. They arrived at all hours of the day or night. Little mercy was shown to the family who had to evacuate the female members as they feared rape. Fortunately, the Hennessy’s managed to conceal their weapons’ stockpile and ammunitions dump, during all that period without discovery being ever made even though the British came very close at times. The reason weapons could be stored there so successfully was because of the nature of the old baronial house which has a subterranean tunnel and secret passages which I recently investigated.
As no weapons were found, during any searches, the excuse to burn the house down was averted but the pressure on the family during that time eventually got to young Tim so much that he decided to leave home and go on active service with the MidLimerick Brigade. He was tired of witnessing his mother and family being harassed and to lessen the pressure he decided to leave his Ahabeg home.
When the RIC and or the ‘Tans’ carried out a search of any house at that time they were noted for stealing any food or drink that was in the house. Often their concentration on the food or drink reduced their efficacy in discovering hidden hauls of weapons. At that time the general daily pay for an ordinary infantry soldier was 2/-. Out of that 1s-3d was taken to cover rations, messing and laundry, leaving 9d. a day in the soldiers’ pocket or about 6 shillings a week.
Such routine searches at all hours of the day or night were especially terrifying for families held under suspicion. Tim felt that the family situation was becoming unbearable and had to be resolved once and for all. That called for active service away from the family home. Sadly, his very first active engagement was to be his last at Knockanevin, on the LimerickCork border!
TIM HENNESSY GOES ON
ACTIVE SERVICE
After Tim’s departure, in an era of hard manual labour, Tim’s mother Margaret, now had to hold the whole show together-to manage to run the farm, rear a family, and maintain a big rookery of an old house. She was lucky to have the help of Ned, the old faithful family workman. Initially, she managed well until matters outside of her control intervened. It’s hard to remain ‘strong’ when ‘death’ starts to lay its icy hands on your family!
Margaret, slaved for years to put two of her boys, John and Michael, through secondary school, unusual then, and they were both set on becoming priests. She slaved in vain! Having finished secondary school Michael and John followed each other on to the seminary. Both, unfortunately, within two years of each other, contacted T.B. while there and were sent home to recover.