Free Derry (Irish: Saor Dhoire) was a self-declared autonomous Irish nationalist area of Derry, Northern Ireland, that existed between 1969 and 1972, during the Troubles. It emerged during the Northern Ireland civil rights movement, which sought to end discrimination against the Irish Catholic/nationalist minority by the Protestant/unionist government. The civil rights movement highlighted the sectarianism and police brutality of the overwhelmingly Protestant police force, the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC). The area, which included the mainly-Catholic Bogside and Creggan neighbourhoods, was first secured by community activists on 5 January 1969 following an incursion into the Bogside by RUC officers. Residents built barricades and carried clubs and similar arms to prevent the RUC from entering.
Its name was taken from a sign painted on a gable wall at the end of a housing terrace. A local activist, long believed to be John "Caker" Casey, but who might have been Liam Hillen, painted "You are now entering Free Derry".
For six days the area was a no-go area, after which the residents took down the barricades and RUC patrols resumed.
When the British Home Secretary, Jim Callaghan, visited Derry in August 1969, the "Free Derry" wall was painted white and the "You are now entering Free Derry" sign was professionally re-painted in black lettering.
-Wikipedia
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According to the highly knowledgeable Nic Barfield:
"The photo shows a British solder in Derry probably in the summer/early autumn of 1969.
"Unfortunately the cap badge isn't sufficiently sharp for me to be able to identify the regiment but the soldier's relaxed attitude, 1960s issue uniform and lack of flak jacket all make me think this must have been very early in the Troubles. The civilian girls' (background) light summer clothes suggest maybe as early as August 1969 when British soldiers were first deployed in the city after the excesses of the RUC and the Bogside Riots led to the creation of 'Free Derry'. I don't think any British soldier would have stood around having his snapshot taken a few years later...
Glad to be able to shed a little more light on this shots, even though they speak of events which cast a sad and shameful shadow on the history of the United Kingdom and the Irish people."
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According to the highly knowledgeable Nic Barfield:
"The photograph was probably taken in the summer or early August of 1969 in Derry. It shows a relaxed British soldier standing on the City Walls, possibly with buildings on Bank Place behind him.
Unfortunately the cap badge isn't sufficiently sharp for me to be able to identify the regiment but the soldier's relaxed attitude, 1960s issue uniform and lack of flak jacket all make me think this must have been very early in the Troubles. I don't think any British soldier would have stood around having his snapshot taken a few years later...
Glad to be able to shed a little more light on this shots, even though they speak of events which cast a sad and shameful shadow on the history of the United Kingdom and the Irish people."
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According to the highly knowledgeable Nic Barfield:
"This photograph is of a British soldier standing in front of No. 13 Magazine Street, Derry, which was the premises of R Neely Undertaker in the 1960s and 1970s (you can see the floral arrangements in the window). The buildings are still there, albeit heavily done over and now offices and a craft market.
Unfortunately the cap badge isn't sufficiently sharp for me to be able to identify the regiment but the soldier's relaxed attitude, 1960s issue uniform and lack of flak jacket all make me think this must have been very early in the Troubles. The civilian girls' (background) light summer clothes suggest maybe as early as August 1969 when British soldiers were first deployed in the city after the excesses of the RUC and the Bogside Riots led to the creation of 'Free Derry'. I don't think any British soldier would have stood around having his snapshot taken a few years later...
Glad to be able to shed a little more light on this shots, even though they speak of events which cast a sad and shameful shadow on the history of the United Kingdom and the Irish people."
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British troops arrived in Northern Ireland on 14 August 1969, while the Battle of the Bogside was raging in Derry. Intense rioting had broken out following the Apprentice Boys parade in Derry two days earlier and the conflict had spread across Northern Ireland.
On 13 August 1969, Taoiseach Jack Lynch intervened in a broadcast to the nation. Lynch was highly critical of the Stormont government, stating that the RUC was no longer an impartial police force. He called for the UN to intervene and announced that the Irish army would establish field hospitals near the border. Unionists were angered by Lynch’s speech; Northern Ireland Prime Minister Chichester-Clark commented that it was inflammatory. As the rioting continued, Chichester-Clark requested the support of the British army. On 14 August 1969, British soldiers were deployed in Derry and were on the streets of Belfast the following day.in Derry and were on the streets of Belfast the following day.
-RTE
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