Thomas McMahon (Irish republican)

(Redirected from Thomas McMahon (IRA)) Irish republican For other people named Thomas McMahon, see Thomas McMahon (disambiguation).

Thomas McMahon
Born	1948 (age 75–76) Monaghan, County Monaghan, Ireland
Allegiance	Provisional Irish Republican Army
Years of service	1970–1990
Rank	Volunteer
Conflict	The Troubles

Thomas McMahon (born 1948) is a former volunteer in the South Armagh Brigade of the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA), and was one of the IRA's most experienced bomb-makers. McMahon was convicted of the murder of Lord Louis Mountbatten and three others off the coast of Mullaghmore, County Sligo, in the west of Ireland.

IRA activity

Main article: Assassination of Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma

McMahon planted a bomb in Shadow V, a 27 feet (8.2 m) fishing boat owned by Mountbatten at Mullaghmore, County Sligo, near Donegal Bay. Lord Mountbatten was killed on 27 August 1979 by the bomb blast along with three other people: Doreen Knatchbull (Mountbatten's elder daughter's mother-in-law); his grandson Nicholas Knatchbull; and a 15-year-old crewmember Paul Maxwell. McMahon was arrested by the Gardaí at a Garda checkpoint between Longford and Granard on suspicion of driving a stolen vehicle two hours before the bomb detonated. The IRA claimed responsibility for the bombing in a statement released immediately afterwards that said: "This operation is one of the discriminate ways we can bring to the attention of the English people the continuing occupation of our country."

McMahon was identified as a possible suspect in the assassination almost immediately. Garda senior forensic scientist Dr. James O'Donovan examined the clothes McMahon had been wearing at the time of his arrest and was able to uncover flecks of paint from Mountbatten's boat and traces of nitroglycerine. Based on these findings, McMahon was charged with murder in the Republic of Ireland. He was convicted on 23 November 1979 and sentenced to life imprisonment. After serving almost 20 years in prison, McMahon was released in 1998 under the terms of the Good Friday Agreement.

After prison

After his release, Toby Harnden in Bandit Country reported that McMahon was holding a tricolour in the first rank of the IRA colour party at a 1998 IRA meeting in Cullyhanna. However, according to a BBC report, McMahon has said that he had left the IRA in 1990.

He has twice refused to meet Paul Maxwell's father, John, who has sought him out to explain the reasons for his son's death. In an interview for The Telegraph in 2009, Maxwell stated that he had "made two approaches to McMahon, the first through a priest, who warned me in advance that he thought there wouldn't be any positive response. And there wasn't. I have some reservations about meeting him, obviously – it might work out in such a way that I would regret having made the contact. On the other hand, if we met and I could even begin to understand his motivation. If we could meet on some kind of a human level, a man to man level, it could help me come to terms with it. But that might be very optimistic. McMahon knows the door is open at this end."

His wife has stated, "Tommy never talks about Mountbatten, only the boys who died. He does have genuine remorse. Oh God yes."

As of 2009, McMahon was living with his wife in a hillside bungalow in Lisanisk, Carrickmacross, County Monaghan. He has two grown sons. He helped with Martin McGuinness's presidential campaign in 2011, erecting posters for McGuinness around Carrickmacross, and also canvassed for Sinn Féin's Matt Carthy in the 2014 European Parliament elections.

References

^ Alderson, Andrew; Johnston, Kathryn (9 August 2009). "Killer of Lord Mountbatten enjoys freedom, 30 years on from IRA murder". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 16 November 2020.
^ Harnden, Toby (8 August 1998). "Republican trained by Libyans". BBC News. Archived from the original on 20 September 2003. Retrieved 26 January 2007.
^ "1979: IRA bomb kills Lord Mountbatten" (On This Day: 27 August). BBC. 27 August 1979.
"1979: IRA member sentenced for Mountbatten's assassination" (This Day in History: 1979 November 23). History Channel. Retrieved 26 January 2007.
Harnden, Toby (1 August 2000). Bandit Country - The IRA and South Armagh. London: Hodder & Stoughton. ISBN 0-340-71736-X.
^ "Queen forced to put aside IRA murder of Lord Mountbatten to meet McGuinness". Daily Telegraph. 27 June 2012. Retrieved 5 September 2014.
"Cowardly Mountbatten murderer campaigns for Sinn Fein– Independent.ie". Irish Independent. 22 May 2014. Archived from the original on 22 May 2014. Retrieved 23 October 2022.

Bibliography

Mountbatten murder suspects on leaked list from Irish Independent, 4 January 2004

Provisional Irish Republican Army

General

Organisation

Actions

1970–1979	Battle of St Matthew's Falls Curfew 1970 Crossmaglen bombing Scottish soldiers' killings Red Lion bombing Balmoral showroom bombing Abercorn bombing Donegall Street bombing Battle at Springmartin Battle of Lenadoon Bloody Friday Claudy bombing Newry customs bombing Old Bailey bombing Honey Trap killings King's Cross & Euston bombings Coleraine bombings 1973 Westminster bombing M62 bombing Clogher attack Houses of Parliament bombing Tower of London bombing Guildford pub bombings Harrow School bombing Brooks's Club bombing Woolwich pub bombing British Airways bombing attempt Birmingham pub bombings London pillar box bombings Talbot Arms bombing Bristol bombing Telephone exchange bombings 1974 Oxford Street bombing Carlton Tower & Portman Hotel shootings Mountainview attack Bayardo Bar attack Forkhill attack Caterham Arms bombing Tullyvallen massacre London Hilton bombing Piccadilly bombing Trattoria Fiore bombing Scott's Oyster Bar bombing Walton's Restaurant bombing Drummuckavall ambush Balcombe Street siege Kingsmill massacre West Ham station attack Olympia bombing Store bar shooting Stag Inn attack Garryhinch ambush Jonesborough Gazelle downing La Mon restaurant bombing Crossmaglen ambush Warrenpoint ambush Brussels bombing Dungannon attack
1980–1989	Dunmurry train bombing Lough Foyle attacks Glasdrumman ambush 1981 Bessbrook attack Chelsea Barracks bombing Hyde Park & Regent's Park bombings Harrods bombing Royal Artillery Barracks bombing Brighton hotel bombing Ballygawley land mine attack Newry mortar attack Ballygawley attack Enniskillen mortar attack RUC Birches barracks attack Rheindahlen bombing Loughgall ambush Operation Flavius Corporals killings Lisburn bombing Aughanduff Lynx shootdown 1988 Netherlands attacks Glamorgan barracks bombing Inglis Barracks bombing Ballygawley bus bombing Jonesborough ambush Clive Barracks bombing Deal barracks bombing Mayobridge attack Derryard attack
1990–1991	Derrygorry Gazelle downing South Armagh sniper Downpatrick roadside bomb Operation Conservation 1990 Wembley bombing Carlton Club bombing London Stock Exchange bombing Honourable Artillery Company bombing Lichfield gun attack RFA Fort Victoria bombing Proxy bombings Downing Street mortar attack Paddington & Victoria station bombings Mullacreevie ambush Glenanne barracks bombing Coagh ambush Musgrave Park Hospital bombing Crumlin Road Prison bombing
1992–1997	Teebane bombing Clonoe ambush London Bridge bombing Staples Cnr bombing Baltic Exchange bombing Sussex Arms bombing Cloghoge attack Coalisland riots Forensic Science Laboratory bombing Stoke Newington Road bomb 1992 Manchester bombing Night of the Long Knives 1993 Harrods bombing Warrington bombings Cullaville occupation Camden bombing Bishopsgate bombing Finchley Road bombings Battle of Newry Road Shankill Road bombing 1993 Fivemiletown ambush Heathrow attacks Crossmaglen Lynx downing Drumcree conflict Docklands bombing Aldwych bus bombing 1996 Manchester bombing Hammersmith Bridge bombing Osnabrück mortar attack Thiepval barracks bombing Coalisland attack 1997 Northern Ireland riots

Personalities
(Volunteers)

Espionage and
Supergrasses

Eamon Collins
Denis Donaldson
Joseph Fenton
Kevin Fulton
Raymond Gilmour
Martin McGartland
Sean O'Callaghan
Freddie Scappaticci (allegedly "Stakeknife")

Associates

Derivatives

Prominent
killings

Categories: