The Maze and Long Kesh overview map was supplied to PMA during filming in 2007. A large single storey building in which food was prepared for the prisoners. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. Ten prisoners dressed in guards' uniforms and armed with guns and chisels dismounted from the lorry and entered the gatehouse, where they took the officers hostage. In October 2019, the European Union withdrew 18m that had been approved to develop a peace centre, due to disagreements between Sinn Fin and the Democratic Unionist Party. Maze and Long Kesh. Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for VINTAGE IRISH ULSTER LEATHER PRISON BOOK ENDS LONG KESH MAZE LOYALIST SHIPS FLAG at the best online prices at eBay! 1988-94 British broadcasting voice restrictions and Bernadette Devlin McAliskey have 7 things in common (in Unionpedia): Conservative Party (UK), HM Prison Maze, Home Secretary, Irish National Liberation Army, Irish republicanism, Peter Taylor (journalist), Ulster Defence Association. The Loyalist Volunteer Force (LVF) leader Billy Wright was shot dead in December 1997 by two Irish National Liberation Army (INLA) prisoners.[13]. In December, the prisoners called off the hunger strike when the government appeared to concede to their demands. Request PDF | Prison as a Liberated Zone: The Murals of Long Kesh, Northern Ireland | In Northern Ireland's Long Kesh prison in the late 1980s and 1990s, prisoners from each of the loyalist and . Location: Ireland . This area contained the Staff Club, the Governors lounge and accommodation, staff lockers and staff car park. Opened in 1989, it was never used for regular services as it was deemed a security risk. Each H-Block also had its own individual control room. How useful is the clip of Larry and Paddy for an historian studying life in the cages/ compounds of Long Kesh? None of the testifying prison officials knew whether any of the prison officers who participated in the abuse of the returned escapees or who perjured themselves are still employed at the Maze prison. play_arrow . A place for discussions about Irish history. All naked to the waist, just wearing the prison, the trousers from the prison uniform. PRONI ref: INF/7/A/8/17, External view of an H-Block, 1981. [6] At the end of April 1978, a fight occurred between a prisoner and a prison officer in H-Block 6. The Maze was actually pioneering the development of control rooms Prison Officer. The prison closed in September 2000 after 428 prisoners had been released under the Good Friday Agreement. This incident was seen by a soldier on duty in a watch tower, who reported to the British Army operations room that he had seen prison officers fighting. It replaced portacabin visiting facilities that originally served the H-Blocks when they opened in 1976. [6] The prisoners responded by smashing the furniture in their cells, forcing the prison authorities to remove the remaining furniture from the cells, leaving only blankets and mattresses. Documentation of an attempted escape from a compound within Maze and Long Kesh Prison, 5 May 1976. Poster depicting the 1983 escape. Ulster loyalist prison art Glasgow Rangers, U.V.F., U.D.A., long Kesh, Maze. One of the bizarre things to me always was that this rectangular space was called circle Educator. Archive of Steve Jensen Design www.stevejensen.design, A minibus would pull up, the bride in her full regalia, her bridesmaids, would step out the back of a minibus, come in and come up and have a wedding in here. Prison Chaplain. Archive of Steve Jensen Design www.stevejensen.design, This is a part of the Maze that will be in my very bones til the day that I die Prison Officer. So some people had things to do. The site is situated outside of Lisburn, off the M1 motorway, on the brownfield Maze/Long Kesh, former prison and air base for the RAF. Portlaoise Prison Portlaoise County Laois H Blocks Long Kesh Lisburn County Antrim BT27 5RP . Loyalist Wing . They organised themselves along military lines and exercised wide control over their respective H-Blocks. The prison wasnt built along the old lines, the Victorian lines, like the Crumlin Road. Staff Reporter. A minibus would pull up, the bride in her full regalia, her bridesmaids, would step out the back of a minibus, come in and come up and have a wedding in here. Prison Chaplain, Once a week youd maybe get out to the gym Prisoner, You could have played basketball, 5 a sides, volleyball, stuff like that Prisoner, Youd never stop the men going to their football match. You had the OC of the cage, then you had his staff, then you had the OC of every hut, you know. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. and U.D.A. Two escaped through the gate, one was captured exiting the car, and another was captured after being chased by a soldier. The dogs bit several prisoners. menu. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. RM M9J13H - A stock picture of watch towers on the remnants of the former H Block Maze prison at Long Kesh near Lisburn Northern Ireland. Resources are directed towards it and a more liberal attitude adopted towards certain facilities. [10][13] Leading unionist politician Ian Paisley called on Nicholas Scott, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, to resign. The Burning of Long Kesh Concentration Camp. [10][17] The British Army and Royal Ulster Constabulary immediately activated a contingency plan and by 4:25 pm a cordon of vehicle checkpoints was in place around the prison, and others were later in place in strategic positions across Northern Ireland, resulting in the recapture of one prisoner at 11:00 pm. Gerard given Governor ground groups hand happening head heard hospital Hugh huts injuries internees John kicked knee Lagan Valley later Long Kesh Loyalist morning move night Northern Ireland period pitch present priest prison officers protest received Rees refused Republican returned riot . I was no expert on escaping or tunnelling, but every person in the hut was expected to do their duty Prisoner/Internee. We invite you to submit interesting articles, tell us The judge acquitted all sixteen as he could not correlate the stabbing to the heart attack. The former Maze Prison/Long Kesh in Lisburn, near Belfast, is one of the primary sites associated with the 'The Troubles' in Northern Ireland. Bobby Storey and Gerry Kelly had started working as orderlies in H7, which allowed them to identify weaknesses in the security systems, and six handguns had been smuggled into the prison. I jumped at the chance, especially as I was able to . Special Category Status for convicted paramilitary-linked prisoners gave them the same privileges previously available only to internees. Lyrics & Chords of Long Kesh Prison Blues by Loyalist, 15 times played by 2 listeners - get pdf, listen similar. The prisoner who fired the shot was captured after being shot and wounded by a soldier in a watch tower, and the other prisoner was captured after falling. [8] In 1978, the British Government was found guilty and censured by the European Court of Human Rights for "cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment in the interrogation procedures". IRA member Hugh Coney was shot dead by a sentry, 29 other prisoners were captured within a few yards of the prison and the remaining three were back in custody within 24 hours. Tue 15th+ Wed 16th Oct 1974. More than 130 prisoners were injured in the trouble - nine needed hospital treatment. Initially, the internees were housed, with different paramilitary groups separated from each other, in Nissen huts at a disused RAF airfield that became the Long Kesh Detention Centre. 1974: Maze prison goes up in flames. Another officer was shot in the head by Gerry Kelly, and several other officers were injured by the escapees. When other staff responded via an intercom, a senior officer said while being held at gunpoint that the alarm had been triggered accidentally. And he fired the dinner at him. Located in front of the main entrance to an H-Block, it was accessible to vehicles. queue_music. The prisoners also played a significant role in the Northern Ireland peace process. However, the government immediately reverted to their previous stance, in the belief that the prisoners would not start another strike. In the middle-class suburbs of south Dublin, the political atmosphere that is transforming the North finds an unlikely convert in law student Kieran Conway. [14] At the main gate, a prison officer was shot in the leg while chasing the only two prisoners who had not yet reached the outer fence. People often say jeez, how did you stay for five years in a cell this size? and I used to say well, the biggest thing was that I didnt spend that much time in this cell. I would get up sometimes and in my head I would go for a walk on the Black Mountain Prisoner. Chapel Plan. Abstract. Twenty prison officers were injured during the escape, thirteen were kicked and beaten, four stabbed, and two shot. 13. The hangars were later used by prison staff: the hangar on the right was used for prison stores; the hangar on the left was empty until the 1990s, when a mock-up of half a H-Block was built inside for prison staff to conduct riot control manoeuvres. A prefabricated building which received visitors and checked parcels. The prison warders simply patrolled the perimeter of the camp. Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for H Blocks : An Architecture of the Conflict in and about Northern Ireland by Louise Purbrick (2023, Hardcover) at the best online prices at eBay! [56], Coordinates: .mw-parser-output .geo-default,.mw-parser-output .geo-dms,.mw-parser-output .geo-dec{display:inline}.mw-parser-output .geo-nondefault,.mw-parser-output .geo-multi-punct{display:none}.mw-parser-output .longitude,.mw-parser-output .latitude{white-space:nowrap}542919N 6627W / 54.48861N 6.10750W / 54.48861; -6.10750, 'Provie Birdie - song and lyrics by Wolfhound', "Report of Inquiry into the Security Arrangements at HM Prison, Maze, Hennessy Report, 1984", "Individual ministerial responsibility-issues and examples", "House of Commons Hansard Debates for 14 March 1990", "U.S. Orders Deportation of Ex-Militant in Irish Republican Army", "Former IRA militant deported to Ireland", "Extradition (European Union Conventions) Bill, 2001: Second Stage", "House of Commons Hansard Debates for 9 Jan 2002 (pt 28)", "Attwood accuses Sinn Fin of blatant double standards over Exiles' amnesty", "IRA fugitive arrested after 24 years on the run", "Maze governor admits inmates were beaten", "Matter of Requested Extradition of Smyth, 863 F. Supp. IRA volunteers regarded themselves as prisoners of war with a duty to escape. A man who planted a bomb on a bus during the Queen's visit to Ireland has gone on hunger strike in jail after clashing with the New IRA prison leadership. PRONI ref: INF/7/A/8/15, H-Block classroom, 1981. Words were exchanged between Malachy and the screw while he was on a visit. In the biggest prison escape in UK history, 38 Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) prisoners escaped from H-Block 7 (H7) of the prison. Aircraft hangars built for the Royal Air Force (RAF) station at Long Kesh, 1941-1946. During the course of his extradition proceedings, he applied to the Minister of Justice in Ireland not to send him back because he feared being assaulted by the prison staff and members of the security forces. During the extradition hearing of fugitive and Maze Prison escapee James J. Smyth at the U.S. district court in San Francisco, Maze prison governor John Baxter admitted that guards brutalised the returning inmates following the 1983 breakout and later lied in court by denying the prisoners had suffered dog bites. Semi-cylindrical hut built using corrugated metal, which could be partitioned into cubicles. The H-Blocks, eight in total, first opened in 1976. With close motorway and rail links, there were many proposals, including a museum, a multi-purpose sports stadium and an office, hotel and leisure village. The capacity of the proposed stadium was later adjusted to first 35,000 and then 38,000 and the organising bodies of all three sports Irish FA, Ulster Rugby and Ulster GAA agreed in principle to support the integrated scheme. But in the early days when we were in this sort of frame of mind freedom: 74, freedom: 75 we led a fairly militarised type of existence, it was very military structures. [22], Escapee Kieran Fleming drowned in the Bannagh River near Kesh in December 1984, while attempting to escape from an ambush by the Special Air Service (SAS) in which fellow IRA member Antoine Mac Giolla Bhrighde was killed. Along with ex-UVF men Gusty Spence and David Ervine, he went on to . The guards ordered attack dogs upon the republican prisoners as they were moved to other cell blocks. Due to prison overcrowding, Long Kesh was also used for sentenced republican and loyalist prisoners from 1972. The guides include audio descriptions of the Hospital, the H-Blocks and the Compounds, accompanied by excerpts from participants. H-Block 2 (or H2). There were 1,100 Special Category Status prisoners at that time. By 1978, more than 300 men had joined the protest. In October 2006, demolition work started in preparation for construction on the site. Free shipping for many products! There are now plans to turn the abandoned site into a national football stadium.". PRONI ref: INF/7/A/8/21, Once a week youd maybe get out to the gym Prisoner, You could have played basketball, 5 a sides, volleyball, stuff like that Prisoner. At this time two prison officers blocked the exit with their cars, forcing the prisoners to abandon the lorry and make their way to the outer fence which was 25 yards away. [14], Finucane continued to the pedestrian gate where he stabbed the officer controlling the gate, and two officers who had just entered the prison. But the gate opened the other way. [14] At 4:05 pm the officers began to resist, and an officer pressed an alarm button. Area for washing, showering and disposal of overnight waste. Produced by Sarah McDonagh. Stream Loyalist Long Kesh Prison by bertyss on desktop and mobile. It was situated at the former Royal Air Force station of Long Kesh, on the outskirts of Lisburn. Hospital Plan and Elevations. Not only were republicans and loyalists held in separate compounds/ cages, but so were the various organisations, including the UVF, UDA, Official IRA and Provisional IRA. So you had to get up at a certain time every morning, you had to have your bed pack made, you werent allowed to lie in your bed until a specific time in the afternoon and, you know, it was regimented like that. Not allowed their own clothes, they wrapped themselves in bedsheets. Discover (and save!) Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. Presumably, this meant he was a member of the IRA or a similarly affiliated group. But the staff within the cages tended to, especially in the early days, I think it probably relaxed after the H-Blocks opened in 1976, when people realised that it was really going to be a long haul. Rosena Brown (Risn De Brn; born c.1945) is an Irish actress of television, cinema, and stage from Belfast, Northern Ireland who also served as an intelligence officer for the Provisional IRA. Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. [38][39] Tony Kelly was arrested in Letterkenny, County Donegal in October 1997 but was not extradited. Ulster Unionist Party UUP Harry West Political Poster Irish British Original. No disciplinary action was ever taken against the prison officers for their abuse of the prisoners in connection with the escape or for perjuring themselves. Firstly, I will provide a general history of the site and then compare and contrast the different experiences of two groups at Long Kesh/Maze. Fifteen members of the staff of the prison, formerly Long Kesh internment camp, were injured in hand . On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. After several attempts the prisoners had opened the main gate, and were waiting for the prisoners still in the gatehouse to rejoin them in the lorry. The Maze Prison escape (known to Irish republicans as the Great Escape) took place on 25 September 1983 in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. Piled them all against the gate. INLAIrish National Liberation Army. Last week "Extreme" Republican Donal Billings was sentenced to 8 years imprisonment for a plot in which he intended to kill either the Queen or another member of the Royal family in 2011. star star star . It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website. Officer James Ferris ran from the gatehouse towards the pedestrian gate attempting to raise the alarm, pursued by Dermot Finucane. TabLyrics. A dozen prisoners also took uniforms from the officers, and the officers were also forced to hand over their car keys and details of where their cars were, for possible later use during the escape. 12. Republican and loyalist prisoners were housed according to group. The compounds/ cages were segregated along political lines. This was in the townland of Maze, about nine miles (14km) southwest of Belfast. The circle was an administration area, containing the control room of each H-Block. 15. 1. But upon opening the door Id have been standing there waiting on him cos I would have warmed up in the cubicle with some stretching exercises and then Id have went out, walked round past the end of the hut to the end of the hut there next to the ablutions the shower and toilet facilities, and Id have started my daily regime of running. Her Majesty's Prison Maze (previously Long Kesh Detention Centre, and known colloquially as The Maze or H-Blocks) was a prison in Northern Ireland that was used to house paramilitary prisoners during the Troubles from August 1971 to September 2000. By clicking Accept, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. A RETURN TO COMPOUND 19 - 2007. [14] A rearguard was left behind to watch over hostages and keep the alarm from being raised until they believed the escapees were clear of the prison, when they returned to their cells. The prisoners took prison officers hostage using three handguns that had been smuggled in, took their uniforms and shot their way out of the prison. This was the location where ten men died during the 1981 hunger strike. Several prisoners brought actions for damages for their treatment following the escape. Several witnesses on behalf of James Smyth testified that ex-prisoners are frequently subject to harassment by the security forces. And then we all had designated jobs. However, weddings did take place here, as well as graduations for prisoners who undertook Open University degrees in the prison. Afterwards, the prison was emptied of its paramilitary prisoners as the groups they represented agreed to the ceasefire. [55], The prison break was dramatised in the 2017 film Maze, written and directed by Stephen Burke, and starring Tom Vaughan-Lawlor and Barry Ward. The cages/compounds were not only used to hold internees, however. Cage Six was adjacent to a Loyalist Cage, and the only contact between the two was in the form of a little Loyalist black cat. Give two reasons. The prisoners called off the hunger strike when the government immediately reverted their! Republican prisoners as the groups they represented agreed to the waist, just wearing the prison.... It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies administration,. 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