40 Years On: Honoring Francis Hughes, the Fearless IRA Volunteer Who Died on Hunger Strike

May 12, 2025 |

Today marks the 40th anniversary of the death of Francis Hughes, a name etched deeply into the history of the Irish republican struggle. On May 12, 1981, Hughes became the second Irish republican prisoner to die during the infamous 1981 hunger strike in the H-Blocks of Long Kesh prison—also known as the Maze. His passing sent shockwaves across Ireland and the world, further intensifying the political unrest that defined Northern Ireland’s Troubles.

Francis Hughes, born on February 28, 1956, in Bellaghy, County Derry, was just 25 years old when he died after 59 harrowing days without food. A committed member of the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA), Hughes was known among comrades and adversaries alike as a fierce and disciplined guerrilla fighter. His death, along with those of nine others who followed him during the hunger strike, drew global attention to the plight of republican prisoners and the broader nationalist cause in Northern Ireland.

Hughes was arrested in 1978 after a shootout with the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) in which one officer was killed. He was badly wounded in the exchange and subsequently sentenced to life in prison for the killing of a British soldier, along with other charges related to IRA activity. Hughes consistently maintained that he was a political prisoner, not a criminal, and it was this belief that led him to join the hunger strike initiated by Bobby Sands in March 1981.

The hunger strike was a protest against the British government’s revocation of Special Category Status for paramilitary prisoners. The prisoners demanded recognition as political prisoners, and their “Five Demands” included the right not to wear prison uniforms, not to do prison work, free association with other prisoners, one visit, one parcel, and one letter per week, and the restoration of remission lost through the protest.

Hughes, described by fellow prisoners as intensely principled and unyielding, joined the strike shortly after Bobby Sands and died just one week after Sands succumbed on May 5, 1981. Their deaths sparked mass protests, riots, and political upheaval in both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. Public opinion was sharply divided, with many condemning the British government’s refusal to negotiate, while others viewed the hunger strikers as dangerous radicals.

Despite the controversy, there is no denying the enormous symbolic power Hughes’s death held. In republican communities across Ireland and the Irish diaspora, he is remembered as a martyr who gave his life for the cause of Irish freedom. Memorials, murals, and commemorative events honor his sacrifice annually, with many gathered today in Bellaghy and throughout Ireland to reflect on his legacy.

The 40th anniversary is a solemn occasion marked by vigils, speeches, and prayers. In his hometown, members of the Hughes family, former prisoners, local republicans, and sympathizers gathered at his graveside, where tricolor flags waved in the breeze and the haunting notes of the lament “The Lonesome Boatman” rang out. Messages of remembrance flooded social media, and the hashtag #FrancisHughes trended across Irish digital spaces.

Speaking at the commemoration, Sinn Féin representatives and community activists emphasized Hughes’s unwavering courage and the need to preserve the history of those turbulent years.

“Francis Hughes did not die in vain,” one speaker stated. “He was a son of Ireland who stood against injustice. His sacrifice reminds us that the fight for equality and self-determination continues in different forms today.”

While the political landscape has shifted dramatically since 1981—with the signing of the Good Friday Agreement in 1998 and ongoing efforts for peace and reconciliation—Francis Hughes remains a powerful and complex figure in the Irish republican narrative. His life and death continue to provoke debate, reflection, and, for many, deep admiration.

As the evening sun sets over County Derry, candles flicker across gravesites and murals, and songs are sung in pubs and community centers. Forty years on, the memory of Francis Hughes lives not only in history books but in the hearts and minds of those still touched by the sacrifices of the 1981 hunger strikers.