Talk:Michael Barrett (Fenian)

Aftermath of the explosion

The section Aftermath of the explosion started "After the explosion he advocated the suspension of the Habeas Corpus Act" with no explanation of who "he" was. Having checked the page history it appears that it was Disraeli, so I've modified the paragraph accordingly. Rojomoke (talk) 20:23, 17 September 2009 (UTC)

Biased

Reading this article, one cannot help but feel that it is pretty weighted toward the Fenian movement.

• "Barrett was alleged to have laid the charge " - in the lead, no less. Actually, considering he was found guilty, he did lay the charge. If there is any doubt, mention should be made of this.
• "Months earlier, Barrett had been arrested in Glasgow for illegally discharging a firearm and allegedly false evidence was used to implicate him in the Clerkenwell prison explosion which occurred the previous December" - who alleged that this information was false?
• "In court, he produced witnesses who testified that he had been in Scotland on the date of the incident" - which witnesses, and why were these witnesses discounted?
• "The main case against him rested on the evidence of Patrick Mullany (a Dubliner who had given false testimony before and whose price was a free passage to Australia)" - that's pretty contentious. It most certainly needs an inline citation.
• "The jury was out for two hours and in spite of the lack of corroboration pronounced Barrett guilty." - why is it important to mention 'in spite of' here, in this sentence? If there are doubts about the case, list them separately. Don't pass judgement on a jury in this fashion.
• "One of the trial lawyers, Montague Williams, wrote:" - who did Williams represent?
• "“...delivered a most remarkable speech, criticising with great acuteness the evidence against him, protesting that he had been condemned on insufficient grounds, and eloquently asserting his innocence”. - only one statement? There must have been more than one newspaper reporting this case. Was this a view held generally?
• "Following the sentence, many people, including a number of Radical MPs, pressed for clemency" - how many is 'many'?
• "Barrett was executed outside the walls of Newgate Prison on 26 May 1868 before a crowd of two thousand who booed, jeered and sang Rule Britannia and Champagne Charlie as his body dropped." - was the crowd's behaviour unusual?
• "Prior to its transfer to the City of London Cemetery, Michael Barrett’s remains lay for thirty–five years in a lime grave inside the walls of Newgate Prison. When the prison was demolished in 1903 it was taken to its present resting place. Today the grave is a place of Irish pilgrimage and is marked by a small plaque." - that isn't very encyclopaedic. It reads to me more like some kind of 'honour the cherished memory' essay.
• "Thousands of special constables were enrolled to aid the police and at Scotland Yard a special secret service department was established to meet the Fenian threat" - what was the threat?
• "Although a number of people were arrested and brought to trial, Michael Barrett was the only one to receive the death sentence." - what were the others arrested on, and what were the results of their trials?
• "Within days of the explosion, the Liberal leader, William Ewart Gladstone, then in opposition, announced his concern about Irish grievances and said that it was the duty of the British people to remove them" - did the prime minister say anything in response to this?

Parrot of Doom 21:11, 8 November 2009 (UTC)

Ancient comment I know, but still relevant.

I just had my edits to the article reverted because being dispassionately factual might hurt some precious feelings. The sheer amount of hardcore full woody-mast bias in Ireland-related articles is simultaneously shocking and darkly comical. This is supposed to be an encyclopaedia, not a Sinn Fein yearbook. TheCurrencyGuy (talk) 14:09, 1 November 2022 (UTC)

Fitting that you claim this. Barrett was already dead for decades before Sinn Fein came in to being. Alas, you criticism cuts no wood at all, just POV. The Banner talk 20:54, 1 November 2022 (UTC)

In what way am I being "POV" beyond rejecting politically motivated sanitisation of a historical person? I would similarly describe a Loyalist bomber tried, convicted and sentenced as a criminal. TheCurrencyGuy (talk) 01:50, 2 November 2022 (UTC)

You came with a claim that made no sense, as Sinn Fein did not have any ties with Barrett as he was already dead for decades. You are unfair labelling Barret and the editors active here. The Banner talk 10:10, 2 November 2022 (UTC)

Accuracy

The article claims that "Richard O’Sullivan-Burke, a senior Fenian arms agent ... planned the 'prison-van escape' in Manchester", but all reliable sources, including the man himself, say that it was O'Meagher Condon who organised the escape. --Malleus Fatuorum 20:48, 24 March 2010 (UTC)