Leaving Cert History

1. The 1916 Rising and the rise of
Militant Nationalism

2. • The IRB had been a secret organisation that had been responsible for
organising rebellions in Ireland’s past.
• The success of ‘parliamentary nationalism’ of had meant that most Nationalists
had moved away from the idea of organising a violent rebellion
• Tom Clarke was released from prison in 1907 and quickly started about
reorganising the IRB and planning an uprising
• His tobacco shop on Moore street became the meeting place for extreme
nationalists
• Clarke and others such as Sean MacDiarmada set about infiltrating the Irish
volunteers and organising a rebellion
• For them World War was an opportunity to strike
“England’s difficultly is Ireland’s opportunity”

3. Changes in public opinion
• In the first year many men signed up for the war believing it was
the best way to secure home rule
• However, rumours of compulsory recruitment (conscription)
began to spread and turned many against the idea
• The war had caused food prices to increase while emigration was
banned, further eroding confidence in the British government
• As time (and the war) went on people began to see the passing
of the home rule bill as a hollow victory
• This undermined confidence in Redmond and the home rule
movement.

4. Pathe Video clips
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hd-
61UV_TLk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vNqHF6S
At4A

5. • Eoin Mac Neill complained about being kept in the dark about
plans for Rising. He was initially opposed to the idea.
• In order to get MacNeill’s support the IRB needed to convince
him that the Irish Volunteers were under threat from the
British.
• The IRB forged the ‘Castle Document’ that pretended the British
were planning to arrest the leaders of the Volunteers.
• MacNeill issues a statement for all Volunteers to resist arrest.
• The IRB also sent Roger Casement to Germany to secure
weapons and men for the rising. Germany refuse the men but
agree to send weapons
Eoin MacNeill and the Castle Document

6. • The ship sent by the Germans with 20,000 weapons (The Aud) is
to land in Kerry but captured by British and scuttled by her
captain. The rebellion would have few weapons.
• The Volunteers had planned ‘manoeuvres’ (training) on the
Easter Sunday as a cover for the rising
• When MacNeill discovers the capture of the Aud he orders the
cancellation of the Rising on Easter Sunday in newspaper advert
• However, confusion ensues as other orders are spread by IRB
members saying it will go ahead on the Monday
• IRB decided to go ahead with Rising on Easter Monday knowing
that it was likely to fail
• This followed Pádraic Pearse’s idea of blood sacrifice

7. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qhMADxJZc_0&list=PLvsS9mRi0sXZyXDqnxUqZmGpNVTvcQdz-&index=9
Video Clip: Timelines.tv History of Britain C09

8. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n5hslg8qEt8
Video Clip: Fergal Keane

9. The Easter Rising Begins
• 1,500 Volunteers and ICA members take over the GPO and other
buildings around Dublin
• The Easter Proclamation is read by Padraig Pearse outside the GPO
(General Post Office)
• Fighting lasts for 6 days, with the GPO, St. Stephens Green and the
Four Courts amongst buildings occupied by rebels
• By the end of the Rising there were 12,000 British troops in Dublin.
Rebels had few weapons and a large number of casualties
• British send the gunship ‘The Helga’ down the Liffey to bomb rebel
strongholds
• On Saturday 29 April the rebels agree to an unconditional surrender
to the British military

10. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7kUIHMOZhBs&index=11&list=PLD3A90D6D409BB4BE

11. Aftermath of the Easter Rising
• British interned (imprisonment without trial) around 3,500 men
and women (most in Frongoch prison camp in Wales)
• The British court-martialled 170 of the rebels and sentenced 90 to
be executed
• Sixteen of the leaders were executed
• Initially many Dublin people opposed the actions of the rebels and
the death and destruction the Rising caused
• Public opinion is horrified by the executions and the British order a
stop to further executions
• The executed leaders were now seen as martyrs of the
independence struggle. Was the idea of Blood sacrifice true?

12. Effects of the 1916 Rising
• Sinn Fein mistakenly blamed for the Rising. This helps Sinn Fein
grow as a nationalist party.
• After the Rising the Irish Parliamentary Party went into decline.
This was due to:
(a) the failure to introduce Home Rule
(b) Redmond’s acceptance of partition
(c) Growth of Sinn Fein.
• Catholic Church opposes the executions and began to support
radical nationalism
• Recruitment of Irishmen to British Army falls
• Many new figures emerged to replace those killed in the rising

13. Timeline of lead up to the rising:

14. Title: Cultural Nationalism
Keywords:
• An Claidheamh Soluis
• Gaelic league
• Michael Cusack
• IRB
• Anglicisation
• Music
• Timiri
• 14%
• National Identity

15. Fill in blanks
on Cultural
Nationalism

16. New title: The Rise of Sinn Fein
Keywords:
•Arthur Griffith
•Internment
•The Irish Convention
• The Conscription Crisis
• The German Plot
• General Election 1918

17. • Before 1916 moderates supported the IPP,
republicans supported the IRB. Sinn Fein was
unimportant on a national level
• After Easter Rising there is a shift in opinion from
support for Home Rule to support for Irish
Independence.
• British government and media mistakenly
dubbed the Easter Rising the ‘Sinn Fein Rising’.
• Within a year of the Rising membership of Sinn
Fein had increased ten-fold.
• Prisoners released from internment become
more involved in the nationalist movement.
Sinn Fein Reborn 1916

18. • After Easter Rising over 3,500 republicans arrested. Most
of these were considered dangerous and imprisoned
without trial. This was called internment.
• Many ended up in internment camps.
• This internment policy stirred up much anti-British
sentiment in Ireland as many young men are interned
• Prison camp at Frongoch, Wales became known as the
‘Sinn Fein University’.
• Republicans in prison set about organising the nationalist
campaign.
• Griffith reorganised Sinn Fein and of those released began
to join and run for election
Prisoner Releases

19. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1xjeJb5NQ6o&index=12&list=PLD3A90D6D409BB4BE
Video Clip: Rise of Sinne Fein

20. • In February 1917 Count Plunkett elected as an independent
candidate in the North Roscommon by-election
• Plunkett was heavily backed by Sinn Fein
• Sinn Fein then win further by-elections in Longford and with
Eamon de Valera in Clare
• Sinn Fein establishes itself as the leading nationalist party in
Ireland
• Large numbers of Irish Volunteers join Sinn Fein
• At Sinn Fein Ard-Fheis DeValera is elected President of Sinn Fein
and of the Irish Volunteers
• For the first time the political and military wings of nationalism
are under one leader
Early Electoral Success

21. Fatal British mistakes

22. The Irish Convention
• Lloyd George (British Prime Minister) establishes the Irish
Convention at Trinity College to negotiate the
introduction of Home Rule.
• Attended by Ulster Unionists, Irish Parliamentary Party
and some independents.
• Boycotted by Sinn Fein and Labour Party. Sinn Fein
disagreed with the idea of partition (border between
Ulster and the rest of Ireland)
• Unionists state ‘nothing in any way binding would be
done without consultation with the Ulster people’. This
restricted possible agreement
• IPP Leader Redmond dies in March 1918.
• Convention ends in April without agreement

23. • April 1918 British Government introduced conscription
to the army in Ireland
• Opposed by IPP, Sinn Fein, Church, Labour Party and
the Trade Unions
• Large anti-conscription rallies held around the country.
2 million people sign anti-conscription pledge
• Trade Unions organise a 24 hour general strike on 23
April 1918 against conscription
• Thousands more join the Irish Volunteers
• British government abandon conscription
The Conscription Crisis

24. The German Plot
• On 17 May the British Government ordered the arrest of
key leading members of Sinn Fein
• The British claimed that Sinn Fein were attempting to get
weapons from Germany
• Nationalist organisations like the Gaelic League, the Irish
Volunteers and Sinn Fein are banned by Government
• The Irish public did not believe the British claims of German
intervention
• Yet again, British Governments actions increase support for
Sinn Fein

25. General Election 1918
• The Representation of the People Act 1918 gives the vote
to all men over 21 and all women over 30 years of age
• Increases Irish electorate to nearly 2 million voters.
• World War One ends on 11 November 1918
• British government calls General Election for December.
• The Labour Party are persuaded not to contest the
election (‘Labour must wait’.)
• Sinn Fein win 73 seats, Ulster Unionists win 26 seats, IPP
win 6 seats.

26. Why did Sinn Fein win?
• Sinn Fein’s candidates were young and enthusiastic
• They had support of Volunteers and claimed to be heirs of the 1916
martyrs
• Sinn Fein had a large well organised network throughout Ireland
• Mistakes by Britain (conscription crisis, German plot, 1916 executions
and arrests, failure to introduce HR) increased Sinn Fein’s popularity
• Home Rule was no longer enough for many people.
• The IPP were considered out of touch and people were tired waiting
for Home Rule
• The ‘first past the post’ election system meant Sinn Fein won more
seats than if with Proportional representation
• Giving vote to all men over 21 (and women over 30) now saw more
young first time voters. These voters largely supported Sinn Fein

27. Essay question – due next tuesday
Higher Level:
Account for the decline of the Home rule party and
the rise of Sinn Fein between 1914 and 1918
Ordinary Level:
Why did Sinn Fein win the 1918 General election?

28. Introduction- Period of
change combination of
British mistakes and
changing Irish attitudes
saw the rise and fall of
home rule
Context paragraph:
Ireland poor, home
rule defeated for
years, turning point
was Power of Veto for
house of lords gone
1910 General
election:, balance of
power, 3rd home rule
bill passed, Home Rule
at peak of it’s
popularity, Redmond
national hero
1916 rising, (do not
talk about planning)
talk about the
executions and public
opinion afterwards.
How had Irish people’s
opinions changed?
What about cultural
nationalism? refer
back to the question
Irish volunteers, Eoin
MacNeill, weapons and
violence in society, two
armies in Ireland,
violence is a possibility,
and Redmond's call to
join WWI, Nationalist
volunteers, Buckingham
conference, king invites
all sides, no settlement,
posponed until after war,
refer back to the
question
Reaction in Ulster /
afraid of HR, Build
Ulster Volunteers,
Ulster covenant, 1
million people,
Curragh Mutiny, British
soldiers refuse to act
against the Unionist ,
refer back to the
question
Growth of Sinn Fein –
Why? How? British
mistakes and growth
of Sinn Fein, 1918
election, people sick of
waiting for HR,
mandate for a Dublin
parliament
Conclusion