Easter Rising

The Easter Rising (Irish: Éirí Amach na Cásca) was a militarily unsuccessful rebellion staged in Ireland against British rule on Easter Monday in April 1916. Nevertheless, despite its military failure, it can be judged as being a significant stepping-stone in the eventual creation of the Irish Republic.

The Rising

The plan, largely devised by Plunkett (and apparently very similar to a plan worked out independently by Connolly), was to seize strategic buildings throughout Dublin in order to cordon off the city, and resist the inevitable attack by the British army. The Dublin division had been organized into 4 battalions, each under a commandant who the IRB made sure were loyal to them. A makeshift 5th battalion was put together from parts of the others, and with the aid of the ICA. This was the battalion of the headquarters at the General Post Office, and included the President and Commander-in-Chief, Pearse, the commander of the Dublin division, Connolly, as well as Clarke, MacDermott, Plunkett, and a young captain named Michael Collins. Meanwhile the 1st battalion under Commandant Ned Daly seized the Four Courts and areas to the northwest, the 2nd battalion under Thomas MacDonagh established itself at Jacob's Biscuit Factory, south of city center, in the east Commandant Eamon de Valera commanded the 3rd battalion at Boland's Bakery, and Ceannt's 4th battalion took the workhouse known as the South Dublin Union to the southwest. Members of the ICA also commandeered St. Stephen's Green and Dublin's City Hall. Ideological tensions came to the fore when a Volunteer officer gave an order to shoot looters, only to be angrily countermanded by James Connolly.

Related Topics:
General Post Office - Commander-in-Chief - Michael Collins - Ned Daly - Four Courts - Thomas MacDonagh - Eamon de Valera - St. Stephen's Green - City Hall

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As MacNeill's countermand basically prevented all areas outside of Dublin from rising, the command of all active rebels fell under Connolly, who some say had the best tactical mind of the group. After being badly wounded, Connolly was still able to command by having himself moved around on a bed. (Although he had the dubious achievement of insisting that a capitalist government would never use artillery against their own property. It took the British less than 48 hours to prove him wrong.) The British worked slowly, unsure of how many they were up against, and put their efforts into securing the approaches to Dublin Castle and isolating the headquarters at the GPO, before the gunboat Helga shelled large parts of the city and burned much of it down. Their plan by and large worked very well. Outnumbering the rebels with approximately 4500 British troops and 1000 RIC (the insurgent Volunteers are estimated at about 1000 and the ICA at under 250), they bypassed many of the defenses, and isolated others to the extent that by the end of the week the only order they were able to receive was the order to surrender. The headquarters itself saw little real action. Perhaps its most noteworthy moment was when Pearse read the Proclamation of the Republic to a largely indifferent crowd outside the GPO. After that the rebels barricaded themselves within the post office and were soon shelled from afar, unable to return effective fire, until they were forced to abandon their headquarters when their position became untenable. On Saturday, April 29, from the new headquarters on Moore Street, after realizing that all that could be achieved was further death, Pearse issued an order for all companies to surrender.

Related Topics:
Capitalist - RIC - Proclamation of the Republic - April 29

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The rebels had little public support at the time, and hundreds of people were killed and wounded, (mostly civilians caught in the crossfire). Some 3000 suspects were arrested and 15 leaders (including all seven signatories of the independence proclamation) were executed (May 3–12). Among them was the already mortally wounded Connolly, shot while tied to a chair because he was unable to stand. At the time the executions were demanded in motions passed in Irish local authorities and by many newspapers, including the Irish Independent in an editorial. Prisoners being transported to internment camps in Wales were jeered and spat upon by angry Dubliners.

Related Topics:
May 3 - 12 - Irish Independent - Wales

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