The Hillville Ambush - 31 October 1920

On 31 October 1920, the Callinafercy and Listry companies of the IRA ambushed and killed two Black and Tans, Constables Caseley and Evans, at Hillville near Killorglin, as the War of Independence intensified in Kerry. Vicious reprisals were unleashed against the civilians of Milltown and Killorglin over the following 24 hours. Historian Owen O'Shea tells the story of the ambush and its dramatic consequences.
The incident at Hillville and a second IRA ambush the following night at Kilderry Wood near Milltown represented an escalation in IRA activity in mid-Kerry but also in the brutality of reprisals for which the Black and Tans became renowned. The incidents reinvigorated the local IRA and, over the coming months, attacks against the Crown Forces continued with increased intensity and ferocity.
My book on the Ballymacandy Ambush of June 1921 will be published by Merrion Press in 2021.