Crossfire: The Battle of the Four Courts, 1916

by Paul O'Brien

In Dublin on Easter Monday 1916, Commandant Edward Daly, commanding the 1st Battalion of the Irish Volunteers, occupied the Four Courts and the surrounding area. Ensconced in a labyrinth of streets, alleyways, and tenement buildings, Daly and the Volunteers created a killing ground that would witness some of the fiercest fighting of the 1916 Rising. Surrounded and outgunned, the Volunteers held their position and were the last Battalion of the Rising to surrender. Confronted by such a determined foe, British military forces were forced to rethink their strategy in order to regain control of the second city of the Empire. Crossfire is the true story of one of the bloodiest engagements against Crown forces during the 1916 Rising. The book examines the battles that were fought in and around the Four Courts area of Dublin, and the atrocities that were uncovered on North King Street as the Rising came to an end. Delving deep into the archives and the testimony of those involved, Crossfire brings to life a desperate struggle between mismatched forces, one that forced rebels to learn new ways of fighting. This gripping military history book is in turn exciting and tragic, and it exposes the often forgotten stories of the 1916 Rising. (Series: 1916 In Focus - Vol. 1)

140 pages, Paperback

First published March 28, 2012