Caterham Arms pub bombing
Part of the Troubles
The Caterham Arms in 2009
LocationCaterham, Surrey, England
Coordinates51°17′18″N 0°05′54″W / 51.2882°N 0.0983°W / 51.2882; -0.0983
Date27 August 1975
21:20 (GMT)
Attack type
Time bomb
Deaths0
Injured33
PerpetratorProvisional Irish Republican Army

On 27 August 1975 a Provisional Irish Republican Army bomb exploded without warning at the Caterham Arms public house in Caterham, Surrey, England. There were no fatalities, but 33 people were injured, some severely, including three off-duty soldiers who lost limbs.

Background

In February 1975, the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) agreed to a ceasefire with the British government. The last IRA attack in England was in January 1975 when they planted seven time bombs in London.[1][2]

The bombing

The IRA planted a time bomb in the Caterham Arms[3] public house[4] in Caterham, Surrey,[5] leaving a 7 lb (3.2 kg) bomb in a duffel bag under a seat. There was no warning and the bomb exploded at 9:20pm, injuring 23 civilians and 10 off-duty soldiers. The pub was used by members of the Welsh Guards who were based at the barracks nearby.[6] Some of the injuries were very serious,[7][8] with at least three soldiers losing limbs, including a male soldier, who lost both legs and one arm,[9] as well as two other soldiers who lost a leg each.[10][11]

Aftermath

This attack marked the start of a renewed bombing campaign in England[12] and the end of the truce with the British government in England, in Ireland the truce was also starting to break with the South Armagh Brigade no longer recognizing the cease fire, having killed four British soldiers in July in a landmine attack in Forkhill, officially the truce lasted until January 1976.[13][14]

The next day on 28 August 1975, the IRA detonated a bomb in Oxford Street, Central London, injuring several people,[15] & the following day on the 29 August the IRA planted a booby-trap bomb in the doorway of a K-Shoes shop, British Army bomb-disposal officer Roger Goad was killed while attempting to defuse the bomb.[16]

See also

References

  1. ^ McGladdery, Gary (2006). The Provisional IRA in England: The Bombing Campaign, 1973-1997. Irish Academic Press. ISBN 978-0-7165-3373-3.
  2. ^ Steven P. Moysey, The Road to Balcombe Street - The IRA Reign of Terror in London: Second Edition pg.160-161 (ISBN 978-0-7890-2913-3)
  3. ^ Wharton, Ken (19 July 2013). Wasted Years, Wasted Lives Volume 1: The British Army in Northern Ireland 1975-77. Helion and Company. ISBN 978-1-909384-55-2.
  4. ^ Shaw, Paul S. (6 January 2019). A Military Chefs Journey. Paul Shaw Publications. ISBN 978-1-5272-4308-8.
  5. ^ Bijl, Nicholas van der (19 October 2009). Operation Banner: The British Army in Northern Ireland, 1969 – 2007. Pen and Sword. ISBN 978-1-78159-926-6.
  6. ^ Retallack, John (20 February 1981). The Welsh Guards. Pen and Sword. ISBN 978-1-4738-2069-2.
  7. ^ Brain, Timothy (18 March 2010). A History of Policing in England and Wales from 1974: A Turbulent Journey. OUP Oxford. ISBN 978-0-19-921866-0.
  8. ^ Oates, Jonathan (22 April 2009). Attack on London: Disaster, Riot and War. Pen and Sword. ISBN 978-1-84563-056-0.
  9. ^ Meagher, Kevin (27 April 2021). What a Bloody Awful Country: Northern Ireland's Century of Division. Biteback Publishing. ISBN 978-1-78590-667-1.
  10. ^ "Hansard, Written Answers, 2 November 1976".
  11. ^ Moysey, Steve (9 October 2019). The Road to Balcombe Street: The IRA Reign of Terror in London. ISBN 9781136748585.
  12. ^ Wilson, Ray (20 August 2015). Special Branch: A History: 1883-2006. Biteback Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84954-963-9.
  13. ^ Harnden, Toby (1 August 2000). Bandit Country: The IRA & South Armagh (Paperback ed.). Hodder & Stoughton. pp. 342–343. ISBN 978-0340717370.
  14. ^ "CAIN: PRONI Public Records on CAIN Web". ulst.ac.uk.
  15. ^ "CAIN: PRONI Public Records on CAIN Web". ulst.ac.uk.
  16. ^ Moysey, Steve (2013). The Road to Balcombe Street : the IRA Reign of Terror in London. Hoboken: Taylor and Francis. p. 93. ISBN 978-1-317-85607-8. OCLC 869091705.
Categories