An Irish Civil War Dugout: Tormore Cave, County Sligo

Combining archaeology, local and military histories, community recollections, and landscape studies, this groundbreaking study, the first excavation of a Civil War site in Ireland, facilitates a wider discussion of the role of dugouts in guerrilla warfare and offers a unique view on the Irish revolutionary period at a regional and national scale.

A brutal Civil War erupted across Ireland in June 1922. The IRA, in opposition to the development of a pro-Treaty government, returned to the familiar guerrilla tactics of the War of Independence. Hundreds of dugouts constructed in rural settings were key to the IRA campaign. These secret places offered safe shelter to men on the run, while also allowing for supplies and arms to be stored and prisoners held. Tormore Cave, high in the mountains of County Sligo, in the northwest of Ireland, was one such dugout. Over 30 Republican men sought refuge there for six weeks in September and October 1922. Like most dugouts, Tormore Cave was never mentioned in historical accounts or documentary sources, but its significance was remembered locally. Archaeological excavations conducted on the centenary of its occupation revealed the extensive modifications that had transformed this natural limestone cave into a habitable military dugout, a crucial refuge for combatants whose comrades had been executed or arrested by Government forces. The historical artefacts and environmental material recovered during the excavations, combined with detailed archaeological surveys and analyses, provide a fascinating insight into the conditions endured by those billeted there. The lives of the men and women directly associated with the cave dugout are explored, including an in-depth study of IRA General Officer Commanding Billy Pilkington – a key figure during the Irish revolutionary period who has, until now, been largely overlooked. An Irish Civil War Dugout: Tormore Cave, County Sligo adopts a multidisciplinary approach, the first of its kind in an Irish context, combining archaeology, local and military histories, family memories, community recollections, and landscape studies. This groundbreaking study – the first archaeological excavation of a Civil War site in Ireland, facilitates a wider discussion of the role of dugouts in guerrilla warfare. By focussing in detail on one site at a local level, this book provides a unique and valuable contribution to the Irish revolutionary period on a regional and national scale.

Foreword – Michael MacDonagh

List of contributors

Acknowledgements

Glossary

Abbreviations

Note on terminology

Timeline of principal events

Introduction

Chapter 1: A Civil War dugout: archaeology, history, memory

Chapter 2: Landscape setting of Tormore Cave

History

Chapter 3: Sligo in 1921-1923 and the historical context of the ‘Glencar hideout’

Chapter 4: Dugouts: an essential component of guerrilla warfare

Archaeology

Chapter 5: Civil War modifications, built structures and features in Tormore Cave

Chapter 6: Things left behind: artefacts found in Tormore Cave

Chapter 7: Day to day life in the Tormore Cave dugout

People & Memory

Chapter 8: General Officer Commanding Billy Pilkington

Chapter 9: The men on the hills: the IRA billeted in Tormore Cave

Chapter 10: Support infrastructure: civilian women, Cumann na mBan and Protestant families

Chapter 11: Aftermath and legacies

Looking Forward

Chapter 12: Towards an archaeology of the Irish Civil War

References and sources

Appendices

Appendix 1: Archaeological context register

Appendix 2: Archaeological finds register

Appendix 3: Archaeological ecofact register

Appendix 4: Photogrammetry, cave survey and laser scanning – Robert Mulraney, James Bonsall and Liamóg Roche

Appendix 5: Geomorphological and geological setting, and mortar analysis – John G. Kelly

Appendix 6: Prehistoric lithics – Cian Hogan

Appendix 7: Pottery and glass – Clare McCutcheon

Appendix 8: Mammal bones – Fiona Beglane

Appendix 9: Fish and bird bones – Sheila Hamilton-Dyer

Appendix 10: Radiocarbon dates – T. Rowan McLaughlin

Appendix 11: Conservation of metal artefacts – Susannah Kelly

Appendix 12: Forensic analyses – John P. Cassella

Appendix 13: Weather conditions in September 1922 – James Bonsall

Appendix 14: Project outputs and public outreach 

Marion Dowd is a Lecturer of Archaeology at Atlantic Technological University Sligo. Her research focuses on the archaeology of Irish caves, from earliest prehistory through to recent times. More recently, she has begun to explore the relationship between folklore and archaeology. Robert Mulraney is an archaeologist, ecologist and speleologist. He has a special interest in cave explorton, mapping and photography and endevaours to detail the historical events, stories and folklore that develop around the underground and other liminal places. James Bonsall is an archaeologist who specialises in geophysical surveys, remote sensing and geographical information systems (GIS). He is the director of Fourth Dimension Prospection Ltd. He applies his skills to research conflict archaeology and the efficacy of geophysical techniques in Ireland.

• By (author) Marion Dowd
• By (author) Robert Mulraney
• By (author) James Bonsall

"'This is an important book with broad appeal, and will prove particularly valuable to all those interested in the archaeology of 20th century irregular conflict.' - Damian Shiels (2025): Current Archaeology 419"
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'This is an important book with broad appeal, and will prove particularly valuable to all those interested in the archaeology of 20th century irregular conflict.' – Damian Shiels (2025): Current Archaeology 419

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