Kevin Barry Ambush

Church Street immediately after Kevin Barry's arrest, 20 September 1920

Bandsman F Noble, 2nd Duke of Wellington’s Regiment gave evidence from a wheelchair. He stated the lorry with the soldiers came from Collinstown in order to get bread for the camp from Monks Bakery in North King. The lorry arrived the bakery at about 11.30. In the lorry were

• Bandsman Private Frank Noble -was one of the unarmed men who got off the lorry to go into the bakery for the bread. Wounded in ankle
• Bandsman Private William Smith - was one of the unarmed men who got off the lorry to go into the bakery for the bread. Slightly wounded
• Sergeant Archer Bank - NCO in charge of the soldiers, and was one of the unarmed men who got off the lorry to go into the bakery for the bread
• Lorry Driver - unarmed
• Private Washington - died in the ambush
• Private Humphries - died in the ambush
• Private Whitehead - died in the ambush
• 3 other armed soldiers

When the lorry stopped at the entrance to the bakery, Private Noble, Private Smith and Sergeant Banks got out of the lorry. They went into go into the bakery yard to bring out the bread. But just then three young men came up behind them and shouted “Hands up!” More IRA men emerged from the bakery. When the soldiers of the escort did not comply, some of the IRA group opened fire at them while others who had taken positions inside the bakery premises then began to shoot at Sergeant Banks and his two companions.

The firing continued for some three minutes, the men in the lorry fired back. The attackers soon retreated, but Private Washington was lying dead in the lorry, while Privates Whitehead and Humphries, who since died, were wounded. Noble himself was wounded in the ankle. Private Humphries died at the King George V hospital on Tuesday night.

Kevin Barry, to be captured hiding under the British lorry with a loaded pistol in his hand. Barry as a prisoner was one of four known IRA casualties. Among the others, Bob O’Flanaghan was the most seriously injured, suffering a deep bullet wound to the scalp that required medical treat-ment, including stitching, and a period of two months for recuperation. The injuries to Sean O’Neill and Harry Murphy were only slight

The following soldiers died as a result of an IRA ambush on a party of soldiers collecting the days bread ration from a bakery. The attack took place on Church Street Dublin. One of the IRA men, Kevin Barry, was arrested and later executed for his part in the ambush. Barry was 18 years old when he was executed.

• 4603001 Private H Washington 2nd Bn. Duke of Wellington's (West Riding Regiment) died 20/09/1920 age 16
• 4603629 Private Marshall Whitehead 2nd Bn. Duke of Wellington's (West Riding Regiment) died 20/09/1920 age 20
• 460264 Private T Humphries, Duke of Wellington's (West Riding Regiment), died 21/09/1920 age 19

On 20 October, Major Reginald Ingram Marians OBE, Head of the Press Section of the General Staff, informed Basil Clarke, Head of Publicity, that Washington was “only 19 and that the other soldiers were of similar ages.”

Kevin Barry ws tried for the murder of Marshall Whitehead and was hanged.

British Soldiers died in Ireland