Researchers who have claimed this convict
There is currently one researcher who has claimed Dennis Dougherty
Biographies
Dennis Dherty (Dougherty arrived in Sydnet in 1833 on board the Aurora. According to official records, Dennis was convicted by court martial of desertion and mutiny from the 95th Regiment and 16th Lancers. He was also allegedly charged with treason and sedition for attempting to blow up The 16th Irish Guard barracks in Belfast
The 16th Lancers were stationed in India at the time of the alleged incident and had been sent their by George V who believed that they were plotting a coup to overthrow him and install themselves as a military government in Britain. No member of the Lancers was allowed back onto British soil until the 1880’s.
The 95th Regiment were stationed in Malta at the time and Dennis could not have been a member of both these regiments at the same time.
A check of the British National Archives also shows that Dennis Doherty (Dougherty) never served in either of these regiments. The National Archives includes records of Court Martials conducted everywhere in the British Empire and no record af Dennis' alleged court matial exists.
Under the British Universal Military Code of Conduct as it stood at the time, transportation was not a penalty that could be imposed by a military tribunal and there is no record of any soldier being sentenced to transportation after being court martialed.
Doherty was a member of the Feinien movement fighting the British for Irish Independence. Dennis Doherty's father was head of the Feinien movement. It appears that Doherty was transported to Australia without trial or conviction and a record falsified to justify his transportation. As trial records were publicly available the alleged conviction needed to be a military one so that there would be no publicly available court record to dispute.
2 years ago extracts of letters written home on behalf of Dennis Doherty were read into record in the Irish Parliament by one of his descendents Michael Doherty, Head of the Sinn Fein political party. The Irish Parliament voted to have Dennis Doherty recognised as a political prisoner.
Dennis was released in 1890 after a campaign by English author Anthony Trollope in English newspapers. He died soon after his release and is buried in an unmarked grave in Melbourne.
Submitted by Researcher (8448) on 4 September 2017
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Disclaimer: The information has not been verified by Claim a Convict. As this information is contributed, it is the responsibility of those who use the data to verify its accuracy. Research notes
There are currently no research notes attached to this convict. Sources
- The National Archives (TNA) : HO 11/9, p.161
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