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Portrait of a civilian 77<br />
Troops hold back a crowd of civilians during a military<br />
round-up in Dublin. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty<br />
Images, © Hulton Archive/Stringer)<br />
It is not known for certain that<br />
Hornibrook was a Mason, but it is extremely<br />
likely as both Nagle and Fitzmaurice were<br />
neighbours of his and members of the same<br />
Church of Ireland congregation. In the eyes<br />
of the rebels most landowners were<br />
Freemasons, and most landowners were<br />
pro-British, which meant that all Freemasons<br />
must be pro-British as well. By a similar train<br />
of logic all Freemasons were Protestant so all<br />
Protestants were Loyalists. This was most<br />
definitely not the case with James Buttimer<br />
of Dunmanway, who was a dedicated<br />
supporter of Home Rule. This did not stop<br />
the IRA from killing him in April <strong>1922</strong>.<br />
<strong>The</strong> West Cork IRA was convinced that<br />
the county's Protestants were behind the<br />
'Protestant Action Group' that was<br />
responsible for the assassination of several<br />
Republicans. In reality, the Protestant Action<br />
Group was probably a front organization for<br />
a Loyalist death squad drawn from the ranks<br />
of the RIC or Auxiliaries. However, the<br />
Protestant community was a disappointment<br />
to the British security forces. James<br />
McDougall, a Scottish businessman in Cork,<br />
accused the county's Protestants of being<br />
'spineless'. Tom Bradfield of Killowen, who<br />
was also killed by the IRA, was a rabid<br />
Unionist who proudly boasted that he was<br />
'not like the rest of them around here'.<br />
As the RIC was driven out of its more<br />
isolated stations in West Cork, and law and<br />
order began to break down, the Protestant<br />
community became fair game for robbers<br />
and land-grabbers. One Protestant, Joe<br />
Tanner, was forced out of his home by armed<br />
men who told him that 'as there is no law in<br />
the county now I will have to get back what<br />
belonged to my forefathers'. Despite being<br />
resident in Co. Cork for a few hundred years,<br />
men like Hornibrook, Tanner, Nagle and the<br />
rest were still outsiders. Many Cork Catholics<br />
referred to the Protestants as 'English' and<br />
one of the IRA men who attempted to<br />
assassinate Tom Bradfield's brother Henry is
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