Easter 1916: The Irish Rebellion

472 Pages·2006·22.124 MB·English

by  Charles Townshend

‘The definitive account’
John Banville, Guardian
‘Marvellous ..:enthralling’
Roy Foster, The Times Literary Supplement

CHARLES TOWNSHEND
Easter 1916
The Irish Rebellion
PENGUIN BOOKS
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Penguin G . LIBRARIES NI 14, USA
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st First published by Allen Lane 2005
* Publishedi n Penguin Books 2006
se 1 1
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a
‘Before the Last Battle’
God, we enter our last fight;
Thou dost see our cause is right;
Make us march now in Thy sight
On to victory
Let us not Thy wrath deserve
In the sacred cause we serve;
Let us not from danger swerve.
Teach us how to die.
Death for some is in reserve
Before our flag can fly.
All the agony of years,
All the horrors, all the fears,
Martyrs’ blood, survivors’ tears,
Now we offer Thee ©
As an endless holocaust;
For the freedom we have lost.
God, restore it, tho’ the cost
Greater still must be.
Terence MacSwiney

a
Contents
List of Illustrations Vill
List of Abbreviations
Maps Xil
Preface
Revolutionism
bp The Militarization of Politics 28
England’s Difficulty 60
Ireland’s Opportunity 90
To the Brink stp)
The Battle of Dublin I: to the Barricades ys
The Battle of Dublin II: the Counterstroke
The National Rising 214
Surrender 243
AfW©Owb Wu Nm
Io Punishment 269
II Transformation 300
IZ The Politics of Militarization 324
Epilogue: The Rebellion in History 344
Notes 360
Biographical glossary 407
Bibliography 414
Index es
4 ‘
List of Illustrations
Photographic acknowledgements are given in parentheses.
xx. The proclamation of the Irish republic, printed at Liberty
Hall on 23 April 1916 (National Museum of Ireland).
xxi. The proclamation of martial law by the Lord Lieutenant,
Lord Wimborne, 25 April 1916 (National Army Museum).
PLATES
1. ‘The North began’: the UVF struts its stuff, January 1914
(Hulton Getty).
2. Molly Childers and Mary Spring Rice aboard the ‘Asgard’ with
the shipment of Mauser rifles, July 1914 (George Morrison).
3. Irish Volunteers carrying the rifles back from Howth, 25 July
1914 (National Museum of Ireland).
4. The crowd of mourners crossing O’Connell Bridge on 29 July
1914, following the funeral procession for those killed in the
Bachelor’s Walk shooting (Getty).
5. The Irish Citizen Army parading in front of Liberty Hall in 1915
(George Morrison).
6 Sir Roger Casement with John Devoy in New York, 1914
(National Museum of Ireland)
7 Thomas J. Clarke, President of the Supreme Council of the Irish
Republican Brotherhood (National Museum of Ireland).
8. James Connolly, leader of the Irish Citizen Army, and
ILLUSTRATIONS
commander of all republican forces in Dublin in April 1916
(Hulton Getty).
Patrick Pearse, the Iri$h Volunteer Director of Organisation,
President of the Provisional Government and Commander-in-
Chief of the Army of the Republic in April 1916 (National
Museum of Ireland).
Io. Sean MacDermott, the most tireless of all republican organisers
(National Museum of Ireland).
Il. The warrior aesthete: Grace Gifford’s sketch of her fiancé Joseph
Plunkett in Volunteer uniform (Irish Military Archives).
I2. Are you looking at me? Constance, Countess Markievicz, in
characteristically combative pose (National Museum of
Ireland).
ce Mobilisation order for the 4th Battalion of the Irish Volunteers
on Easter Sunday 1916 (National Museum of Ireland).
4. The ‘Starry Plough’, the Citizen Army flag raised over the
Imperial Hotel during Easter week 1916 (National Museum of
Ireland).
nS Waiting for the counterattack: Irish republican forces inside the
GPO, Easter week 1916 (Irish Military Archive).
16. ‘Soldiers are we’: two men of the GPO garrison show off their
eclectic mix of clothing and equipment (Irish Military Archive).
£7. Into captivity: Eamon de Valera marching at the head of the 3rd
Battalion after the surrender (National Library of Ireland).
18. The war zone: a German image of the ruins by O’Connell bridge
after the ‘Aufstand’ (insurrection) (AKG).
19. ‘Conky’ and the ‘Gorgeous Wrecks’: General Sir John Maxwell
inspecting the Volunteer Training Corps shortly after the rebel-
lion (RTE/Cashman).
Resistance commodified: postcards of de Valera and other rebel
20.
leaders sold widely after the rebellion.
Incarceration: Irish internees in Stafford gaol, May 1916.
21.
Michael Collins is under the cross (Irish Military Archive).
4 \
List of Abbreviations
IN TEXT AND NOTES
AOH Ancient Order of Hibernians
BL British Library
BMH Bureau of Military History records, IMA
Bod Bodleian Library, Oxford
CAB Cabinet records, PRO
CCORI Central Committee for the Organization of
Recruitment in Ireland
Cd, Cmd Command Paper (British Parliamentary Papers)
CI County Inspector, RIC
CIGS Chief of the Imperial General Staff
CO Colonial Office records, PRO
DAG Deputy Advocate General
DATI Department of Agriculture and Technical Instruction
DMP Dublin Metropolitan Police
DORA Defence of the Realm Act(s)
DRR Defence of the Realm Regulation
GAA Gaelic Athletic Association
GOC(-in-C) General Officer Commanding (in Chief)
HC Deb. House of Commons Debates (Hansard)
HLRO House of Lords Record Office, London
HO Home Office records, PRO
ICA Irish Citizen Army
IMA Irish Military Archives, Dublin
INA Irish National Archives
INAA Irish National Aid Association