Blog Archives - Page 5 of 8 - Paper Trail (Legacy Archive Research)

Secret British MoD Files Record MRF’s Failure to Protect Freds

Podcast, Archive Find, Blog, Media, Publication, Research / By Ciarán MacAirt

Archive Release: Secret British Ministry of Defence files records the failure of the Military Reaction Force to protect its Freds. Secret British Ministry of Defence (MoD) files discovered by the charity, Paper Trail, document the British state’s failure to protect its own soldiers and agents (or “Freds”) in its covert, extra-legal military unit, the Military […]

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Casual Collusion and a Tale of Two City Estates

Archive Find, Blog, Media, Research / By Ciarán MacAirt

Collusion between state forces and paramilitaries can take many forms. Rarely do we see such casual collusion evidenced in inky black and white, though; and, here, it went to the top. Two incidents. The same British Army Regiment. Just over 24 hours apart and a just a few of hundred yards away from each other.

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Earliest Recorded MRF Shooting (Thus Far)

Archive Find, Blog, Podcast, Research / By Ciarán MacAirt

Paper Trail is releasing the earliest recorded shooting by Britain’s Military Reaction Force MRF. The MRF shooting is the earliest recorded that we have discovered – this, of course, does not mean that it was the first MRF shooting. It means that, at the moment, it is the earliest recorded shooting that researchers like ourselves

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Britain’s Military Reaction Force and Operation Everson

Research, Archive Find, Blog, Media / By Ciarán MacAirt

Paper Trail has linked Britain’s Military Reaction Force (MRF) to multiple murders and attempted murders of civilians in Belfast in 1972. Secret British military documents prove that the MRF was indeed guilty of a catalogue of murders and attempted murders of unarmed civilians – including teenagers – in Belfast between May and September 1972. The

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Military Reaction Force Telephone Number in 1972

Blog / By Ciarán MacAirt

If the police wanted to discover if the British Army’s Military Reaction Force had shot another civilian, all it had to do was telephone Palace Barracks 3534. If only we knew back then…

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Black and Tans: A Historical Brief for a British Minister in 1972

Media, Blog, Podcast, Publication, Research / By Ciarán MacAirt

In May 1972, the British Minister of State for Northern Ireland requested a short note on the origins of the Black and Tans and the B Specials. Lord Windlesham requested the historical brief regarding the Black and Tans and B Specials “at a time when the Royal Ulster Constabulary is under strength and there is

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The Soldiers’ Truce, Christmas Day 1914

Research, Archive Find, Blog / By Ciarán MacAirt

Remembering the Soldiers’ Truce on the Western Front 105 years ago, Christmas Day 1914. The festive miracle continued throughout Christmas Day and is recorded in the War Diary of the 1st Battalion Royal Irish Rifles. “At dawn 25th, the Germans shouted out ‘Merry Xmas’ from their trenches and danced and sang in front of their

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The Soldiers’ Truce, Christmas Eve 1914

Research, Archive Find, Blog / By Ciarán MacAirt

Remembering the Soldiers’ Truce on the Western Front 105 years ago, Christmas 1914. Peace broke out 105 years ago along certain sections of the Western Front when troops on both sides of the trenches put down their weapons and sang Christmas hymns during a Soldiers’ Truce. Thanks to the great work of the National Archives,

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British Information Policy and Propaganda 1971

Research, Archive Find, Blog / By Ciarán MacAirt

Read about British Information Policy and Propaganda in the North of Ireland 1971 in these short papers. In July 1971, Clifford Hill was seconded by Britain’s covert propaganda unit, Information Research Department, to the Northern Ireland Office to promote British information policy and propaganda. In Stormont circles, he was known as “Cliff the Spy”. His

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Jean Smyth-Campbell Murder: Independent Investigation Ordered

Podcast, Blog, Media, Research / By Ciarán MacAirt

The Chief Constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland has ordered an independent investigation into the murder of Jean Smyth-Campbell. Jean Smyth-Campbell was a single mother who was shot dead in an unprovoked attack in June 1972. The Royal Ulster Constabulary told her family that she was murdered by the local members of the

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