Guilty but Insane:: J. C. Bowen-Colthurst - Villain or Victim?

Captain J.C. Bowen-Colthurst, originally from Cork, served with the British Army in the Boer War, in Tibet and in the Great War. Having been wounded, he returned to Ireland and was caught up in the 1916 rebellion where he was responsible for the deaths of six unarmed civilians, including the pacifist Francis Sheehy Skeffington. The resulting outrage was one of the key factors in turning the tide of Irish public opinion towards independence. Having been tried for murder, he was deemed 'guilt...