T/Const Denis O'Loughlin QSA

1872 Jun 29. Born Tralee, Kerry son of Thomas Loughlin

1891 Feb 26. His record He enlists with Munsters. He previously served As Loughlin rather than O'Loughlin but it is right service no from MIC

1893 Feb 1. Transfers to R Irish Fusiliers

1899 Oct 23. Departed for South Africa

1900 Jul 26 Admitted to hospital in Kimberley with Ague for 43 days

1902 Aug 24 Returns to UK

1902 Oct/Dec Marries in Tralee

1903 Aug 25. Leaves army at termination of engagement

1911 census living in 23 Broguemakers, Tralee

1915 Jun 13 He re-enlists with Munsters

1915 Dec 17 Lands in France

1916 Feb 19. Returns to UK

1919 Feb 13. Transfers to R Irish Fusiliers

1919 Mar 15 To Reserves

1921 Jan 21. joined RIC no 78430, ADRIC no (644 ) in V & D Division.

1921 Feb 7 . Attached to H Coy as a driver

1921 Apr 21. Shot and killed in a public house Knightly's Bar in Main St, Tralee. The IRA shot two men as part of a vicious round of tit for tat killings by both sides following the murder of District Inspector MacKinnon. The IRA executed a Black and Tan Constable, Cornelius P Meade from Sussex. He was captured and then executed at Ballyseedy and his body buried in a bog at Ballyfinane. His body was only recovered 29 Sep 1926. The inquest record is here

Loughlin was the second of the IRA executions. He was said to have worked as a cook. Dan Keating, Jimmy O’Connor and Percy Hanafin were suspected of the killing, and were forced to go on the run.

IRA Witness Statement Shortly afterwards another order was received by me from the Brigade 0/C to execute another ex-British service man named Denis O'Loughlin. O'Loughlin had a short time previously joined the Tans. I conveyed the order to the Battalion Flying Column who carried out the order. O'Loughlin was executed in the public house of a man named Knightly in Castle St. ,Tralee. Knightly's public house was later burned down by the military as an official reprisal.

An Irishman called Patrick Bell died from gunshots wounds 45 minutes after O'Loughlin's death. Bell was shot at 23.00 and O'Loughlin had been shot at 22.15. The two shooting do not appear to be connected. Bell was shot by an Army sentry who was alone on duty. He may have been jumpy as he must have known about O'Loughlin's death less than an hour earlier within a few yards of where he was on duty

I have transcribed the British Sentry's hand drawn map for the Inquest onto the OS map. On sees the proximity of the events

The inquiry ascertained the following

• He was married with 4 children under 9. He lived in 22 Brogue Lane, Rock St, Tralee with his family. He was 47
• He had served in Egypian Campaign and Boer War, as well as WW1
• He visited a number of pubs in Tralee together with another ADRIC driver J H Jeffrey. Their 3rd stop was Knightlys.
• They had been there some time, and shortly after 22.00, 3 men and a woman entered
• The group ordered drinks and one of the men put his hand in his pocket as if to get the money to pay, but instead produced a revolver and shot O'Loughlan once in the centre of the forehead
• O'Loughlin died of this wound

1921 Apr 29. What appears to have been an official reprisal, with the Crown Forces throwing an grenade into Knightlys and putting the pub out of action. (The Kerryman newspaper had been put out of action on Apr 16 by bombing, so could not report this event). There was a claim for damages Sat May 7th for £8,000 . And Knightly's Pub is believed to have reopened “ in better condition “ on Aug 21

1921 Jun 08.O'Loughlin's widow gets £1800 compensation for his death.

ADRIC