The Insider
The Prison Diaries of Eamonn Boyce 1956-1962
Published on 11. April 2008
Book
Hardback
482 pages
978-1-84351-129-8 (ISBN)
Description
Treason Felony dates back to the Young Irelanders of 1848. In December 1954, for his part in an arms raid on Omagh army barracks, Dublin man Eamonn Boyce was convicted on three counts of this archaic offence and sentenced at the Belfast Winter Assizes to twelve years' imprisonment. Defying the strict rules of the prison, he maintained a journal from December 1956 to September 1962. Against the odds the manuscript has survived. Written in Irish, it is a reflective account of his daily lot (prison regime; IRA command structures; education; relations with his fellow prisoners and staff). It is an insider's perspective on the unfolding IRA campaign gleaned from newly arrived prisoners, secret correspondence with the IRA and the latest news reports on a smuggled and cleverly hidden transistor radio. Within the bleak confines of Crumlin Road prison he set down hopes, dreams and fears. The diary became an indispensable tool to keep human dignity alive
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
Dublin
Ireland
Dimensions
Height: 234 mm
Width: 156 mm
Weight
1000 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-84351-129-8 (9781843511298)
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Schweitzer Classification
Persons
ANNA BRYSON holds a Ph.D. in History from Trinity College, Dublin. She has overseen the translation of these diaries from their original Irish and, with the assistance of Boyce himself, has carefully unravelled their many codes and allusions. A substantial introduction sets the context in the history of the IRA in the 1950s, British penal history and the genre of prison diaries. Comprehensive biographical notes and cross-references make this a work of reference - while maintaining the personal narrative of Boyce's prison experience.