, Ireland Mac Eoin came to prominence in the
Irish War of Independence as leader of a
flying column of the
Irish Republican Army (IRA). In November 1920, he led the Longford Brigade in an attack against British forces in Granard when they were carrying out a reprisal attack, forcing them to retreat to their barracks. On 31 October,
Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC) district-inspector Philip Kelleher was shot dead in Granard, and the
Auxiliary Division proceeded to set fire to parts of the town. The next day, Mac Eoin
held the village of Ballinalee situated on the Longford Road between Longford and Granard. They defended their position against superior forces, forcing them to retreat and abandon their ammunition. In a separate attack on 8 November, Mac Eoin led his men against the RIC at Ballinalee which killed an eighteen-year-old constable and wounded three others. The small RIC garrison allegedly sang "
God Save the King" as they took up positions to return fire. On the afternoon of 7 January 1921, a joint RIC-
British Army patrol consisting of eleven policemen and nine soldiers arrived on the street outside the home of Anne Martin in Kilshruley, where MacEoin was staying. Mac Eoin's own testimony at his trial (which was not contested by any parties present) states that: The RIC officer Mac Eoin killed was district-inspector Thomas McGrath; he also wounded a police constable as well. On 2 February 1921, the Longford Brigade ambushed an Auxiliary Division detachment at Clonfin using a mine. Two lorries were involved, the first blown up, the second strafed by rapid rifle fire. District-inspector Worthington Craven was hit by two bullets and killed. District Inspector Taylor was shot in the chest and stomach. Four auxiliaries and a driver were killed and eight wounded. The IRA volunteers captured 18 rifles, 20 revolvers and a
Lewis gun. At the
Clonfin Ambush, Mac Eoin ordered his men to care for wounded prisoners of war at the expense of captured weaponry. This earned him both praise and criticism, but became a big propaganda boost for the IRA's efforts, especially in the
United States. He was admired by many within the IRA for leading practically the only effective column in the midlands. In July 1920, he was among the majority of commanders who were prepared to sign the Agreement recognizing the Volunteers as the Army of the Republic. The Oath of Allegiance was "for the purpose of ratifying under the Agreement under which the Volunteers came under the control of the Dail". Mac Eoin was captured at
Mullingar railway station in March 1921, imprisoned and sentenced to death for the murder of McGrath. His second-in-command was from North Roscommon. Sean Connolly had a colourful career as head of Leitrim brigade. Mac Eoin wrote the following letter to his friend (and classmate at Moyne Latin School) Father Jim Sheridan, a combatant in the Old IRA and a 'flying column' member, who had been ordained and sent to
Milwaukee to study theology: According to
Oliver St. John Gogarty,
Charles Bewley wrote Mac Eoin's death-sentence speech.
Michael Collins organised a rescue attempt. Six IRA members, led by
Paddy Daly and
Emmet Dalton, captured an
armoured car and, wearing
British Army uniforms, gained access to
Mountjoy Prison. However, Mac Eoin was not in the part of the jail they believed, and after a gunfight broke out, the party retreated. He was eventually released from prison — along with all other members of the Dáil, after Collins threatened to break off treaty negotiations with the British government unless he were freed. It was rumoured that Sean Mac Eoin was to be the best man at Collins' wedding. ==Treaty and the Civil War==