The Fenian dynamite campaign (also known as the Fenian bombing campaign) was a campaign of political violence orchestrated by Irish republican paramilitary groups in Great Britain from 1881 to 1885. It involved attacks using explosives such as dynamite on British government and civilian targets and was carried out by the Irish Republican Brotherhood, United Irishmen of America and Clan na Gael with the ultimate aim of ending British rule in Ireland. Infrastructure was attacked along with government (including military and police) targets as part of the campaign, which killed 4 people, including a young boy, and wounded 86. The campaign met with widespread backlash in Britain and a mixed response in Ireland, and led to the establishment of the Special Irish Branch by the Metropolitan Police to counter the campaign. By 1885, the campaign petered out, though Irish republicans would continue to carry out attacks in Great Britain well into the 20th century.
Timeline of the campaign
1881
14 Jan 1881: A bomb exploded at a military barracks in Salford, Lancashire.[1] A young boy was killed[2]
16 Mar 1881: A bomb was found and defused in the Mansion House, London.[1]
5 May 1881: Bomb explodes at Chester Barracks, Chester.[3]
16 May 1881: Bomb attack at Liverpool police barracks.
30 June 1881: Disguised explosives found aboard SS Malta at Liverpool.[3]
2 July 1881: Disguised explosives found aboard SS Bavaria in Liverpool.[3]
1882
12 May 1882: A bomb exploded at the Mansion House, London.[1]
1883
20 January 1883: In Glasgow, bombs exploded at Tradeston Gasworks, Possil Road Bridge and Buchanan Street Station. About a dozen people were injured.[1][3]
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]
29 March 1883: Fenians Denis Deasy, Timothy Featherstone and Patsy Flanagan are arrested while police in County Cork raid the homes and businesses of associates of Deasy and Flanagan.[3]
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; Henry Burton and James E. Gilbert, were sentenced to penal servitude for life as a result.[1][5]
^ abcdefghijklPorter, Bernard. The origins of the vigilant state: the London Metropolitan Police Special Branch before the First World War. Boydell & Brewer, 1991. Pp.27-28
