Balcombe Street Siege

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The Balcombe Street Siege was an incident involving members of the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) and London's Metropolitan Police Service lasting from December 6 to December 12, 1975.

1 Background
2 The siege
3 Trial
4 See also
5 References

[edit] Background

It started as a running gun battle through London as the Metropolitan Police pursued Hugh Doherty, Martin O'Connell, Eddie Butler and Harry Duggan through the streets after they had attacked Scotts Restaurant in Mayfair for the second time. The attack was the latest in a campaign of bombings and shootings throughout the British capital that lasted for more than a year, resulting in the deaths of numerous people and included the killing of Guinness Book of Records co-founder, TV personality and political activist Ross McWhirter, who had offered a £50,000 reward to anyone willing to inform the security forces of IRA activity.^[1]

[edit] The siege

The four men ended up in a flat at 22b Balcombe Street in Marylebone, taking its two residents, John and Sheila Matthews, hostage. The men declared that they were members of the Provisional IRA and demanded a plane to fly both them and their hostages to Ireland. Scotland Yard refused, creating a six-day standoff between the men and the police. Peter Imbert, later Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, was chief negotiator with the gang members.^[2]

The men surrendered after several days of negotiations with the Metropolitan Police during which time SAS teams had been deployed and the suspects came to the realisation that they would not be granted their demand for a plane to Dublin. The suspects and the hostages were unharmed. The whole ordeal was watched by millions on television.^[2]

[edit] Trial

The four became known as the Balcombe Street Gang. Martin O'Connell, Edward Butler, Harry Duggan and Hugh Doherty (brother of Pat Doherty) were found guilty at their Old Bailey trial in 1977 of seven murders, conspiring to cause explosions, and falsely imprisoning the couple during the siege. Each was given multiple life sentences and they were later subjected each to a whole life tariff, the only IRA prisoners to do so. After serving 23 years in UK jails, the four men were transferred to the high security wing of Portlaoise Prison, 50 miles west of Dublin. However, they were released in 1999 as part of the Good Friday Agreement.^[1]^[2]

During their trial they instructed their lawyers to "draw attention to the fact that four totally innocent people were serving massive sentences" for three bombings in Woolwich and Guildford.^[3] Despite claims to the police that they were responsible ^[3] they were never charged with these offences, and the Guildford Four and Maguire Seven, all wrongfully convicted, remained in prison for years afterwards. One died in jail, and the rest were eventually released after it emerged that police had beaten confessions^{[citation needed]} out of them and suppressed information that would have proved their innocence.