Webley revolver, Frank Flood, 1921

Webley revolver, Frank Flood, 1921

This Webley service revolver belonged to Frank Flood, who joined the Republican movement in the aftermath of the 1916 Rising. Flood was an engineering student in UCD, and a friend of Kevin Barry, serving with him in H Company, 1^st Battalion Dublin Brigade of the IRA and participating in the ambush in which Barry was captured. Flood was part of the Active Service Unit (ASU) which carried out an ambush on a lorry of Black and Tans in Lower Drumcondra, which led to his capture. On 14^th March 1921 Flood, along with five other IRA Volunteers, was executed in Mountjoy Jail aged 19. The executions on this day instigated public protests, with up to 40,000 people gathering outside Mountjoy Jail, and the Labour movement calling a half day general strike, closing business and bringing all public transport to a halt.