The Hunger Strikers
Ten men died during the 1981 H-Block Hunger Strike. This page remembers each of them, and the wider group of volunteers who joined the protest.
In 1981, ten Irishmen died on hunger strike in the H-Blocks of Long Kesh prison. Their deaths remain a defining moment in modern Irish republican history, and Stailc 81 was formed to mark the 40th anniversary of that protest and to keep their names and words in memory.
The ten men who died were:
The Brave 13
Alongside the ten men who died, thirteen further volunteers took part in the 1981 hunger strike. Stailc 81 also honours their courage and sacrifice as part of the same protest and its history.
Further Reading
Writings, poems, and prisoners' statements connected to the hunger strike are gathered in the Anthology section, alongside coverage of commemorative events organised by the committee.
Beyond the ten who died, many more prisoners joined the 1981 hunger strike in solidarity, volunteering to take their place on the protest as others weakened or were taken off. These men and women endured weeks of fasting in the H-Blocks and Armagh prison, driven by the same demands for political status that had sustained the blanket protest and dirty protest before them. Their willingness to sacrifice their own health, and in some cases their lives, reflected a deep commitment to the republican struggle and to the principle that those imprisoned for political motives should not be treated as ordinary criminals. Stailc 81 honours this wider circle of volunteers whose courage and endurance made the hunger strike a collective act of resistance rather than an isolated gesture, and whose stories continue to inspire new generations of republicans.