The Legendary ‘Lugs Branigan’ – Ireland’s Most Famed Garda: How One Man became Dublin’s Tough Justice Legend
()
Currently unavailable
Currently unavailable
About this ebook
Garda and guardian. Protector and punisher. This is ‘Lugs’ Branigan: the man, the legend.
The story of ‘Lugs’ Branigan is a tale that is long overdue. It is a story of extraordinary courage and compassion, a story of heroism and altruism, a story of crime, punishment and redemption. The legend of ‘Lugs’’s career as Ireland’s most famous garda (police officer), founded on his physical strength and the manner in which he faced up to the criminal gangs of Dublin over the course of fifty years, is part of Dublin’s folk history.
In The Legendary ‘Lugs’ Branigan, bestselling historian Kevin C. Kearns presents a revealing and unvarnished portrait of the man and his life, authenticated by the oral testimony of family members, friends and Garda mates who stood with him through the most harrowing and poignant experiences.
Born in the Liberties of Dublin in 1910, Jim Branigan was, by his own admission, a shy, scrawny ‘sissy’ as a lad. Cruelly beaten by bullies in the railway yard where he worked during his teens, he refused to fight back. Yet he went on to become a heavyweight boxing champion and to earn the ‘undisputed reputation as the country's toughest and bravest garda’. Chief Superintendent Edmund Doherty proclaimed him ‘one of those people who become a legend in his own time’.
As a garda he refused to carry a baton, relying upon his fists. He took on the vicious ‘animal gangs’ of the 1930s and 40s and in the ‘Battle of Baldoyle’ broke their reign of terror. In the 1950s he quelled the wild ‘rock-and-roll riots’ and tamed the ruffian Teddy boys with their flick-knives. All the while, he was dealing with Dublin's full array of gurriers and criminals.
As a devotee of American Western films and books, Branigan emulated the sheriffs by doling out his unique ‘showdown’ brand of summary justice to hooligans and thugs on the street. In the 1960s his riot squad with its Garda ‘posse’ patrolled Dublin's roughest districts in their ‘black Maria’. They contended with the most dangerous rows and riots in the streets, dancehalls and pubs. The cry ‘Lugs is here!’ could instantly scatter a disorderly crowd.
Ironically, for all his fame as a tough, fearless garda, he was most beloved for his humanity and compassion. His role as guardian of the battered women of the tenements and as protector and father figure of the city's piteous prostitutes—or ‘pavement hostesses’, as he called them—was unrecorded in the press and hushed up by the Garda brass. Yet, Garda John Collins vouches, ‘Women … oh, he was God to them!’ Upon retirement he entered his ‘old gunfighter’ years; ageing and vulnerable, he became a target for old foes bent on revenge and for ‘young guns’ seeking a quick reputation.
A man with a reputation powerful enough to echo through generations of Dubliners, the legendary ‘Lugs’ Branigan finally has a book worthy of his story.
Kevin C. Kearns
Kevin C, Kearns, PhD, is a social historian, Professor Emeritus at the University of Northern Colorado and the author of fifteen books, including several bestsellers – most notably Dublin Tenement Life and Ireland’s Arctic Siege. In 2021 he was awarded the Lord Mayor’s Scroll from Dublin City Council, in recognition of his ‘dedication to preserving Dublin’s social history’. Kearns now lives in New England, on the coast of Maine.
Read more from Kevin C. Kearns
Dublin Pub Life and Lore – An Oral History of Dublin's Traditional Irish Pubs: The Recollections of Dublin's Publicans, Barmen and 'Regulars' Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDublin Tenement Life: An Oral History of the Dublin Slums Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWorking Class Heroines: The Extraordinary Women of Dublin's Tenements Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsIreland's Arctic Siege of 1947: The Big Freeze of 1947 Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Dublin Voices: An Oral Folk History Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Legendary 'Lugs Branigan' – Ireland's Most Famed Garda: How One Man became Dublin's Tough Justice Legend Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Bombing of Dublin's North Strand by German Luftwaffe: The Untold Story of World War 2 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Year of Glory and Gold: 1932 - Ireland's Jazz Age Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsIn Our Day: An Oral History of Dublin's Bygone Days Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsIreland 1963: A Year of Marvels, Mysteries, Merriment and Misfortune Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Related to The Legendary ‘Lugs Branigan’ – Ireland’s Most Famed Garda
Related ebooks
The Legendary 'Lugs Branigan' – Ireland's Most Famed Garda: How One Man became Dublin's Tough Justice Legend Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMichael Collins: A Biography Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Twelve Apostles: Michael Collins, the Squad, and Ireland's Fight for Freedom Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Crossing the Line: My Life on the Edge Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Hoodlum Band, or, The Boy Chief, The Infant Politician, and The Pirate Prodigy Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBulldog Drummond Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5A Student in Arms: Second Series Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe authentic life of Billy the Kid Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Plainsman Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Plainsman: A Story of Wild Bill Hickok Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsRefusal to Submit: Roots of the Vietnam War and a Young Man's Draft Resistance Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Clinch: The Pugilism Anthology Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBearing Witness: The remarkable life of Charles Bean, Australia's greatest war correspondent Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBeyond the Mirror, Volume 7: Heroic Worlds: Beyond the Mirror, #7 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Story of Young Abraham Lincoln (Civil War Classics): The Early History of an American Icon Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsKnuckles and Gloves Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Story of General Gordon Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsKid Lexington Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWild Bill Hickok: The Plainsman Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsParis Peace Plot Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsRaven's Ridge Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBecoming Abraham Lincoln: The Coming of Age of Our Greatest President Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Floating Outfit 13: Sidewinder Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsPeople Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsContraband Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Passing of Prize-Fighting - A Collection of Classic Articles from Pugilistica, the Times and Punch Magazine Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Mucker: "So nearly one are love and hate, the two most powerful and devasting emotions that control man, nations, life." Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsAll the Dead Voices: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Incredible Life of Wild Bill Hickok: The Plainsman Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWith the Dublin Brigade: Espionage and Assassination with Michael Collins' Intelligence Unit Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Historical Biographies For You
Master Slave Husband Wife: An Epic Journey from Slavery to Freedom Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Book of Charlie: Wisdom from the Remarkable American Life of a 109-Year-Old Man Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Leonardo da Vinci Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Moveable Feast Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Frederick Douglass: Prophet of Freedom Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Manhunt: The 12-Day Chase for Lincoln's Killer: An Edgar Award Winner Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Devil's Chessboard: Allen Dulles, the CIA, and the Rise of America's Secret Government Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Indifferent Stars Above: The Harrowing Saga of the Donner Party Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Black Like Me: The Definitive Griffin Estate Edition Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Coreyography: A Memoir Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Devil and Harper Lee Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Seven Pillars of Wisdom: A Triumph Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Twelve Years a Slave (Illustrated) (Two Pence books) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Vanderbilt: The Rise and Fall of an American Dynasty Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Diary of Anne Frank (The Definitive Edition) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Girls of Atomic City: The Untold Story of the Women Who Helped Win World War II Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Seven Pillars of Wisdom (Rediscovered Books): A Triumph Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5King Leopold's Ghost: A Story of Greed, Terror, and Heroism in Colonial Africa Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Gulag Archipelago: The Authorized Abridgement Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Benjamin Franklin: An American Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Mein Kampf Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Day the World Came to Town: 9/11 in Gander, Newfoundland Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Frida Kahlo: An Illustrated Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Agatha Christie: An Elusive Woman Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Putin's People: How the KGB Took Back Russia and Then Took On the West Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/518 Tiny Deaths: The Untold Story of Frances Glessner Lee and the Invention of Modern Forensics Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5About Face: The Odyssey of an American Warrior Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Reviews for The Legendary ‘Lugs Branigan’ – Ireland’s Most Famed Garda
0 ratings0 reviews