The parish of St.Matthew's, Ballymacarrett/ Short Strand houses one of the oldest Catholic communities in Belfast, dating back to 1830.

It is a community history fought with conflict: its geographical location on the fringe of Unionist East Belfast has drawn it directly into the annals of sectarian warfare that engulfed Belfast since 1853.

Nestled against the east side of the River Lagan it was a close-knit parish where many families are related reflecting several generations if settlement creating a core of community spirit.

Nationalist Ballymacarrett had a strong tradition, firstly of Home Rule politics and later of Republicanism in the struggle for Irish Independence. 

Several hundred men from the district fought in WW1, while later in 1920, the first IRA Company, which by the summer of 1921 had a nominal role of ninety volunteers, was raised to defend the area during the 1920-1922 period of the conflict. 

In the decades that followed, the district played a prominent role in the rebuilding of the Belfast IRA resulting in the Internment and imprisonment of many local Republicans. 

That tradition was maintained in the recent conflict with the 1970-1972 period in particular taking its toll of loss on a parish that fought, suffered and endured for the basic right of equality and national identity.

Every district has its own story of struggle: events of tragedy and resistance that shaped community resilence and empowerment. 

This small, but highly informative book tells the story of one intense four-month period during 1971 which highlights the scale of conflict that engulfed one community in a city at war.