Lord Louis Mountbatten

Who was he? Though retired, the former First Lord of the Admiralty and Chief of the Defence Staff was a key establishment figure.

When was he assassinated? August 27, 1979.

Where was he assassinated? Mullaghmore, County Sligo, Irish Republic.

Who did it? Unknown member or members of the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA).

Why? An IRA statement said that Mountbatten was executed in order to tear out the "sentimental, imperialist heart of the British people".

What happened? Mountbatten and three members of his party were killed when a bomb ripped apart the fishing boat he was aboard.

What was the consequence? In concrete terms, very little apart from a hardening of attitudes on both sides. Lasting peace in Northern Ireland was still two decades away.