96-588: The word Fenian ( / ˈ f iː n i ə n / ) served as an umbrella term for the Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB) and their affiliate in the United States, the Fenian Brotherhood . They were secret political organisations in the late 19th and early 20th centuries dedicated to the establishment of an independent Irish Republic . In 1867, they sought to coordinate raids into Canada from
192-518: A Committee of Organization or Executive, with the same supreme control over the Home Organization (Ireland, England, Scotland, etc.) I have exercised myself. I further empower them to appoint a Committee of Military Inspection, and a Committee of Appeal and Judgment, the functions of which Committee will be made known to each member of them by the Executive. Trusting to the patriotism and ability of
288-466: A bomb on 26 April 1897 at Aldersgate Street station which fatally injured two people. In 1868, an Irishman, Henry James O'Farrell , attempted to assassinate the Duke of Edinburgh , second son of Queen Victoria , who was visiting Sydney. O'Farrell claimed to be a Fenian but was probably a lone actor. He was hanged on 21 April 1868. The Duke recovered but the attack was used by politician Henry Parkes to wage
384-700: A breakaway IRB faction calling itself the Irish National Invincibles assassinated the British Chief Secretary for Ireland Lord Frederick Cavendish and his Permanent Under-secretary (chief civil servant), in an incident known as the Phoenix Park Murders . The Fenian Brotherhood , the Irish Republican Brotherhood's US branch, was founded by John O'Mahony and Michael Doheny , both of whom had been "out" (participating in
480-550: A delegation to Paris to congratulate the new French Republic. Meagher returned to Ireland with a tricolour flag (now the national flag ) – a symbol of the reconciliation of the green of Catholic Gaelic Ireland with the orange of Protestant Anglo Ireland. Since most of the continental revolutions were relatively bloodless, O'Brien believed he could attain similar results in Ireland. He hoped to unite Irish landlords and tenants in protest against British rule. The government, however, forced
576-444: A democrat and egalitarian in the mid 19th century was tantamount to being a revolutionary, and was something to be feared by political establishments. It was Stephens "firm resolution to establish a democratic republic in Ireland; that is, a republic for the weal of the toiler", and that this would require a complete social revolution before the people could possibly become republicans. In propagating republican principles, they felt,
672-563: A document containing secret resolutions on the Committee of Organization or Executive of the IRB. Though Luby intimated its existence to O’Leary, he did not inform Kickham as there seemed no necessity. This document would later form the basis of the prosecution against the staff of the Irish People. The document read: EXECUTIVE I hereby appoint Thomas Clarke Luby, John O’Leary and Charles J. Kickham,
768-532: A message for Stephens from members of the Emmet Monument Association, calling on him to set up an organisation in Ireland. Considine also carried a private letter from O’Mahony to Stephens which was a warning as to the condition of the organisation in New York, which was overseen by Luby and Stephens at the time. Both had believed that there was a strong organisation behind the letter, only later to find it
864-622: A newspaper, with financial aid from O’Mahony and the Fenian Brotherhood in America. The offices were established at 12 Parliament Street, almost at the gates of Dublin Castle. The first edition of the Irish People appeared on 28 November 1863. The staff of the paper along with Kickham were Luby and Denis Dowling Mulcahy as the editorial staff. O’Donovan Rossa and James O’Connor were in charge of
960-551: A perceived threat to turn what they saw as "decent civilised" society on its head by movements such as trade unionism seeking to change the existing social order in the United Kingdom . James Stephens , one of the "Men of 1848" (a participant in the 1848 revolt ), had established himself in Paris, and was in correspondence with John O'Mahony in the United States and other advanced nationalists at home and abroad. This would include
1056-581: A police van to release Fenians held captive earlier that year. On 13 December 1867 the Fenians exploded a bomb in attempt to free one of their members being held on remand at Clerkenwell Prison in London . The explosion damaged nearby houses, killed 12 people and caused 120 injuries. None of the prisoners escaped. The bombing was later described as the most infamous action carried out by the Fenians in Great Britain in
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#17328442412811152-686: A result of the Great Irish Famine), the Battle of Ballingarry or the Battle of Widow McCormack’s Cabbage Patch . As with the earlier United Irishmen , who sought to emulate the French Revolution , the Young Irelanders were inspired by Republicanism in America and in Europe. The year 1848 was a year of revolutions throughout continental Europe. In France, King Louis Philippe was overthrown by
1248-511: A secret body. We called ourselves a military organization; with, so to speak, a legionary oath like all soldiers." The revised oath ran: I, A.B, in the presence of Almighty God, do solemnly swear allegiance to the Irish Republic, now virtually established; and that I will do my very utmost, at every risk, while life lasts, to defend its independence and integrity; and, finally, that I will yield implicit obedience in all things, not contrary to
1344-565: A sectarian campaign against Catholics and people of Irish origin. Later in 1868, the Hougoumont , the last convict ship to Australia, arrived in Western Australia carrying 62 Fenian prisoners convicted in England. Over the next decade, most were released and many chose to go to America. By 1876 only six remained in custody, and in that year they were freed in a daring rescue mission organised by
1440-503: A small settlement about 4.3 km north-northeast of the village of Ballingarry, South Tipperary . After being chased by a force of Young Irelanders and their supporters, an Irish Constabulary unit took refuge in a house and held those inside as hostages . A several-hour gunfight followed, but the rebels fled after a large group of police reinforcements arrived. It is sometimes called the Famine Rebellion (because it took place as
1536-534: A wealthy New York City dry-goods merchant, more closely allied with the Democratic-Party machine. It was Roberts' faction that sponsored the plan to invade Canada and hold it hostage for the liberation of Ireland. In 1867 there was a further challenge to O'Mahony from the new IRB exile David Bell , and his weekly the Irish Republic . In contrast to Roberts, Bell, committed to black suffrage and to Reconstruction,
1632-549: Is among several versions in James Stephens's own papers, ran: I, AB., do solemnly swear, in the presence of Almighty God, that I will do my utmost, at every risk, while life lasts, to make [other versions, according to Luby, 'establish in'] Ireland an independent Democratic Republic; that I will yield implicit obedience, in all things not contrary to the law of God ['laws of morality'] to the commands of my superior officers; and that I shall preserve inviolable secrecy regarding all
1728-570: The Emmet Monument Association . In early 1856, Stephens began making his way back to Ireland, stopping first in London. On arriving in Dublin, Stephens began what he described as his three thousand mile walk through Ireland, meeting some of those who had taken part in the 1848/49 revolutionary movements, including Philip Gray , Thomas Clarke Luby and Peter Langan. In the autumn of 1857, a messenger, Owen Considine arrived from New York with
1824-617: The February Revolution and the Second Republic was proclaimed in Paris. This revolution sent political shock waves across Europe, and revolutions broke out in Berlin , Vienna , Rome, Prague , and Budapest . At least temporarily, absolutist governments were replaced by liberal administrations, suffrage was introduced for a portion of the population and elections were held to constituent assemblies to draw up new national constitutions. It
1920-677: The Fianna of Irish mythology —groups of legendary warrior-bands associated with Fionn mac Cumhail . Mythological tales of the Fianna became known as the Fenian Cycle . In the 1860s, opponents of Irish nationalism within the British political establishment sometimes used the term "Fenianism" to refer to any form of mobilisation among the Irish or to those who expressed any Irish nationalist sentiments, or questioned
2016-808: The Land War . The IRB staged the Easter Rising in 1916, which led to the establishment of the first Dáil Éireann in 1919. The suppression of Dáil Éireann precipitated the Irish War of Independence and the signing of the Anglo-Irish Treaty in 1921, ultimately leading to the establishment of the Irish Free State , which excluded the territory of Northern Ireland . In 1798 the United Irishmen , which had initially been an open political organisation, but which
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#17328442412812112-514: The Manchester Martyrs , were executed in Salford for their attack on a police van to release Fenians held captive earlier that year. On 13 December 1867, the Fenians exploded a bomb in attempt to free one of their members being held on remand at Clerkenwell Prison in London . The explosion damaged nearby houses, killed 12 people and caused 120 injuries. None of the prisoners escaped. The bombing
2208-613: The Metropolitan Police 's Special Irish Branch was formed, initially as a small section of the Criminal Investigation Department , to monitor IRB activity. Young Ireland rebellion The Young Irelander Rebellion was a failed Irish nationalist uprising led by the Young Ireland movement, part of the wider Revolutions of 1848 that affected most of Europe. It took place on 29 July 1848 at Farranrory,
2304-594: The Offensive Behaviour at Football and Threatening Communications (Scotland) Act 2012 , before its repeal in January 2018. The use of Fenian as a term of abuse has also been documented when Celtic play outside Scotland. In 2013, AFC Ajax was fined €25,000 by UEFA when its supporters displayed a banner reading "Fenian Bastards" at a match between the sides at the Amsterdam Arena on 6 November that year. The term
2400-590: The Phoenix National and Literary Society , with Jeremiah O'Donovan (afterwards known as O'Donovan Rossa ) among its more prominent members, which had been formed recently at Skibbereen . Along with Thomas Clarke Luby , John O'Leary and Charles Kickham he founded the Irish Republican Brotherhood on 17 March 1858 in Lombard Street, Dublin . The Fenian Rising in 1867 proved to be a "doomed rebellion", poorly organised and with minimal public support. Most of
2496-602: The Protestant Ascendancy (such as by advocating for the rights of tenant farmers ). The political establishment often applied the term in this sense—inaccurately—to the unrelated Tenant Right League , the Irish National Land League and the Irish Parliamentary Party , who did not advocate explicitly for an independent Irish Republic or for the use of force. The establishment warned people about
2592-526: The Young Ireland rebellion ) in 1848. In the face of nativist suspicion, it quickly established an independent existence, although it still worked to gain Irish American support for armed rebellion in Ireland. Initially, O'Mahony ran operations in the US, sending funds to Stephens and the IRB in Ireland. In 1865, O'Mahony's leadership was challenged and the movement was split by a faction led by William B. Roberts,
2688-608: The history of Ireland , as the chief advocate of republicanism during the campaign for Ireland's independence from the United Kingdom , successor to movements such as the United Irishmen of the 1790s and the Young Irelanders of the 1840s. As part of the New Departure of the 1870s–80s, IRB members attempted to democratise the Home Rule League and its successor, the Irish Parliamentary Party , as well as taking part in
2784-522: The repeal movement became impatient with O’Connell's over-cautious policies, and began to question his intentions. Later they were what came to be known as the Young Ireland movement. In 1842 three of the Young Ireland leaders, Thomas Davis , Charles Gavan Duffy and John Blake Dillon , launched the Nation newspaper . In the paper they set out to create a spirit of pride and an identity based on nationality rather than on social status or religion. Following
2880-464: The 19th century. It enraged the public, causing a backlash of hostility in Britain which undermined efforts to establish home rule or independence for Ireland. In 1882, a breakaway IRB faction calling itself the Irish National Invincibles assassinated the British Chief Secretary for Ireland Lord Frederick Cavendish and his secretary, in an incident known as the Phoenix Park Murders . In March 1883
2976-543: The ALP who wished to remove the title Queen's Counsel and other references to the crown as "Fenians and Bolsheviks ". Atkinson made a further mention of Fenianism when the title of Queen's Counsel was abolished. The title of Queen's Counsel was re-instated by the South Australian government in 2019. Irish Republican Brotherhood The Irish Republican Brotherhood ( IRB ; Irish : Bráithreachas Phoblacht na hÉireann )
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3072-587: The American Fenians. They presented them as enemies of Catholicism quoting negative comments by some American Catholic bishops. As in Irish-America, likewise Ireland and England, the Catholic hierarchy felt the growth of nationalist politics among Irishmen was essentially dangerous. Therefore, during the 1860s and succeeding decades, the upper or middle classes who controlled the Irish press were very apprehensive in
3168-732: The British North America colonies to consider a more centralised defence for mutual protection, ultimately realised through Canadian Confederation . The Fenians in England and the British Empire were a major threat to political stability. In the late 1860s, the IRB control centre was in Lancashire. In 1868, the Supreme Council of the IRB, the provisional government of the Irish Republic, was restructured. The four Irish provinces (Connacht, Leinster, Ulster and Munster), along with Scotland,
3264-494: The British prime minister William Pitt introduced a bill to abolish the Irish parliament and manufactured a Union between Ireland and Britain. Opposition from the Protestant oligarchy that controlled the parliament was countered by the widespread and open use of bribery. The Act of Union was passed, and became law on 1 January 1801. The Catholics, who had been excluded from the Irish parliament, were promised emancipation under
3360-581: The European mainland and disgusted by Daniel O'Connell 's consideration of a renewed alliance with the British Whigs , a group known as Young Ireland broke away from O'Connell's Repeal Association . They took an uncompromising stand for a national Parliament with full legislative and executive powers. At its founding, the Confederation resolved to be based on principles of freedom, tolerance and truth. While
3456-599: The Executive, I fully endorse their action beforehand, and call on every man in our ranks to support and be guided by them in all that concerns our military brotherhood. 9 March 1864, Dublin J. STEPHENS Kickham was caught after a month on the run. Stephens would also be caught, but with the support of Fenian prison warders, John J. Breslin and Daniel Byrne was less than a fortnight in Richmond Bridewell when he vanished and escaped to France. David Bell evaded arrest, escaping first to Paris and then to New York During
3552-529: The Fenian movement in Montreal (and who was later suspected of being a government spy), was a case in point. In public, he proclaimed his loyalty to the queen and called for an Irish militia company to defend Canada against the Fenians. In private, he wrote that the real purpose of an Irish militia company would be to assist the Fenian invasion, adding for good measure that if the government denied his request he would raise
3648-418: The IRB in the United States. The ship Catalpa was sailed from New Bedford, Massachusetts, to Fremantle, Western Australia, a distance of some 12,000 miles, and took the men back to the United States. The rescue caused a worldwide sensation and sparked several ballads. In Northern Ireland, Fenian is used by some as a derogatory word for Irish Catholics; in 2012, British National Party leader Nick Griffin
3744-502: The IRB. Late in 1858 Stephens travelled to the United States to secure support and financial backing. He was unsuccessful, however, in winning the support of former Young Irelanders such as John Mitchel and Thomas Francis Meagher. Eventually, he joined with John O'Mahoney and Michael Doheny to form the Fenian Brotherhood , intended as the American sister organisation of the IRB, with O'Mahoney as its president. The precise relationship between
3840-464: The Irish-American officers who landed at Cork , in the expectation of commanding an army against England, were imprisoned; sporadic disturbances around the country were easily suppressed by the police, army and local militias. On 22 November 1867 three Fenians, William Philip Allen, Michael O'Brien, and Michael Larkin known as the Manchester Martyrs , were executed in Salford for their attack on
3936-599: The Irish-American officers who landed at Cork , in the expectation of commanding an army against the British, were imprisoned; sporadic disturbances around the country were easily suppressed by the police, army and local militias. In the aftermath, Fenian assassination circles were active in Cork and in Dublin and were responsible for shooting two officers of the Dublin Metropolitan Police on duty in October 1867. In 1882,
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4032-466: The Supreme Council in Ireland, which was reliant on Clan na Gael for funds. The movement was denounced by the British establishment, the press, the Catholic Church and Irish political elite, as had been all Irish Republican movements at that point. The Tories, disturbed by the increase in republican propaganda, particularly in America, launched a propaganda campaign in the Irish press to discredit
4128-581: The Tories had coined the phrase ' Fenianism ' to describe all that was considered potentially bothersome among Irishmen on both sides of the Atlantic. Fenianism as a term was then used by the British political establishment to depict any form of mobilisation among the lower classes and, sometimes, those who expressed any Irish nationalist sentiments. They warned people about this threat to turn decent civilised society on its head such as that posed by trade unionism to
4224-584: The Union. This promise was never kept, and caused a protracted and bitter struggle for civil liberties. It was not until 1829 that the British government reluctantly conceded Catholic emancipation . Though leading to general emancipation, this process simultaneously disenfranchised the small tenants, known as 'forty shilling freeholders' , who were mainly Catholics. This resulted in the Irish Catholic electorate going from 216,000 voters to 37,000. A massive reduction in
4320-404: The United States in the early 1850s. They served on opposite sides of the American Civil War : Meagher serving with the Union , for which he recruited and commanded the Irish Brigade , and Mitchel allying himself with the South and living there, sending three sons to fight with the Confederacy . The McCormack family emigrated to the US in about 1853. Since that time, the McCormack house (which
4416-403: The United States with a rising in Ireland . In the 1916 Easter Rising and the 1919–1921 Irish War of Independence , the IRB led the republican struggle. Fenianism ( Irish : Fíníneachas ), according to O'Mahony, embodied two principles: firstly, that Ireland had a natural right to independence, and secondly, that this right could be won only by an armed revolution. The name originated with
4512-405: The United States, Australia, and every country where Irish emigrants gathered. Shocked by the scenes of starvation and greatly influenced by the revolutions then sweeping Europe, the Young Irelanders moved from agitation to armed rebellion in 1848 . The attempted rebellion failed after a small skirmish in Ballingary, County Tipperary , coupled with a few minor incidents elsewhere. The reasons for
4608-443: The acceptance of Stephens terms and £80. Denieffe also reported that there was no actual organised body of sympathisers in New York but merely a loose knot of associates. This disturbed Stephens but he went ahead regardless and that evening, St. Patrick's Day , the Irish Republican Brotherhood commenced. The original oath, with its clauses of secrecy was drawn up by Luby under Stephens' direction in Stephens' room in Donnelly's which
4704-426: The better part of valour, they veered right up the road toward County Kilkenny. The rebels followed them across the fields. Sub-Inspector Trant and his 46 policemen took refuge in a large two-storey farmhouse, taking the five young children in the house as hostages . They barricaded themselves in, pointing their guns from the windows. The house was surrounded by the rebels and a stand-off ensued. Mrs. Margaret McCormack,
4800-545: The business office, with John Haltigan being the printer. John O'Leary was brought from London to take charge in the role of Editor. Shortly after the establishment of the paper, Stephens departed on an American tour, and to attend to organisational matters. American Fenians made plans for a rising in Ireland, but the plans were discovered on 15 July 1865 when an emissary lost them at Kingstown railway station . They found their way to Dublin Castle and to Superintendent Daniel Ryan head of G Division . Ryan had an informer within
4896-454: The club has thus been associated with Irish nationalism, symbolised by the almost universal flying of the Irish Tricolour during matches. Other Scottish clubs that have Irish roots, such as Hibernian and Dundee United , do not tend to have the term applied to them, however. The term is now firmly rooted within the Old Firm rivalry between Celtic and Rangers . Use of the term as a religious slur carried criminal penalties in some contexts under
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#17328442412814992-404: The collapse of the Repeal Association and with the arrival of famine , the Young Irelanders broke away completely from O’Connell in 1846. The blight that destroyed the potato harvest between 1845 and 1850 caused a massive human tragedy. An entire social class of small farmers and labourers were to be virtually wiped out by hunger, disease and emigration. The laissez-faire economic thinking of
5088-613: The constitution of the Irish Republican Brotherhood and all my superior officers and that I will preserve inviolable the secrets of the organisation. The IRB was re-organised at a convention in Manchester in July 1867. An 11-man Supreme Council was elected to govern the movement. They would eventually be representatives from the seven districts in which the organisation was organised: the Irish provinces of Ulster , Munster , Leinster and Connacht , as well as Scotland , North England, and South England. The remaining four members were co-opted. The Supreme Council elected three of its members to
5184-571: The construction of the Royal Naval Dockyard on Ireland Island . He was subsequently sent to Van Diemen's Land (in present-day Tasmania, Australia ) where he was soon to be joined by other leaders, such as William Smith O'Brien and Thomas Francis Meagher who had both been arrested after Ballingarry. John Blake Dillon escaped to France, as did three of the younger members, James Stephens , John O'Mahony and Michael Doheny . Meagher and John Mitchel (who had been transported there before for political activities) both managed to escape and emigrate to
5280-411: The cry of anti-Irish Catholic discrimination and bring more of his aggrieved countrymen into the Fenian Brotherhood. A suspected Fenian, Patrick J. Whelan , was hanged in Ottawa for the assassination of Irish Canadian politician, Thomas D'Arcy McGee in 1868, who had been a member of the Irish Confederation in the 1840s. The danger posed by the Fenian raids was an important element in motivating
5376-450: The era of Young Ireland and Repeal, but the consequences of their actions would follow them for many years. This event is colloquially known as "The Battle of Widow McCormack's cabbage plot". John Mitchel , the most committed advocate of revolution, had been arrested early in 1848, then convicted on the purposefully–created charge of treason-felony . He was sentenced to transportation to Bermuda , where he joined other convicts labouring on
5472-459: The executive, which consisted of a president, secretary, and a treasurer. The Council met twice a year, usually in the spring and the summer. In Manchester August 1867 Thomas Kelly was declared Chief Organiser of the Irish Republic (COIR), in succession to Stephens. The arrest and subsequent rescue of Kelly with Timothy Deasy in September 1867 resulted in the execution of the Manchester Martyrs . Kelly escaped to USA and remained associated with
5568-516: The existing social order in England. The same term was taken up by members of the Irish Catholic hierarchy, who also began denouncing "Fenianism" in the name of the Catholic religion. One Irish Bishop, David Moriarty of Kerry , declared that "when we look down into the fathomless depth of this infamy of the heads of the Fenian conspiracy, we must acknowledge that eternity is not long enough, nor hell hot enough to punish such miscreants." In mid-1863 Stephens informed his colleagues he wished to start
5664-423: The failure were obvious, the people were totally despondent after three years of famine, having been prompted to rise early resulted in an inadequacy of military preparations, which caused disunity among the leaders. The government quickly rounded up many of the instigators. Those who could fled across the seas, and their followers dispersed. A last flicker of revolt in 1849, led by among others James Fintan Lalor ,
5760-482: The fight should be made early in 1867. Some thousands of rifles were afterwards sent to Ireland, but arrived too late to be of any use in the Rising. In Canada, Fenian is used to designate a group of Irish radicals, a.k.a. the American branch of the Fenian Brotherhood in the 1860s. They made several attempts to invade some parts of the British colonies of New Brunswick (i.e., Campobello Island ) and Canada (present-day Southern Ontario and Missisquoi County ), with
5856-501: The government ensured that help was slow, hesitant and insufficient. Between 1845 and 1851 the population fell by almost two million, or about a third of the total. That the people starved while livestock and grain continued to be exported, quite often under military escort, left a legacy of bitterness and resentment among the survivors. The waves of emigration because of the famine and in the years following, also ensured that such feelings were not confined to Ireland, but spread to England,
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#17328442412815952-403: The growth of democratic politics in Ireland, which represented to them a threat of anarchy and revolution. It was feared that if Britain was given any reason to renew coercion, Catholic interests in both Ireland and England would be undermined. In addition, the small class of Irish Catholic merchants, lawyers and gentry who had prospered under the Union felt anxious for the same reasons. By 1864,
6048-433: The latter part of 1866, Stephens endeavoured to raise funds in America for a fresh rising planned for the following year. He issued a bombastic proclamation in America announcing an imminent general rising in Ireland; but he was himself soon afterwards deposed by his confederates, among whom dissension had broken out. The Fenian Rising proved to be a "doomed rebellion", poorly organised and with minimal public support. Most of
6144-418: The laws of God [or 'the laws of morality'], to the commands of my superior officers. So help me God. Amen'. In yet a later version it read: In the presence of God, I, ..., do solemnly swear that I will do my utmost to establish the independence of Ireland, and that I will bear true allegiance to the Supreme Council of the Irish Republican Brotherhood and the Government of the Irish Republic and implicitly obey
6240-570: The leaders' hands on 22 July 1848 by announcing the suspension of habeas corpus . This meant they could imprison the Young Irelanders and other opponents on proclamation without trial. Having to choose between armed resistance or an ignominious flight, O'Brien decided that the movement would have to make a stand. From 23 July to 29 July 1848, O'Brien, Meagher and Dillon raised the standard of revolt as they travelled from County Wexford through County Kilkenny and into County Tipperary . The last great gathering of Young Ireland leaders took place in
6336-455: The north and south of England and London, had representatives on the council. Later four honorary members were co-opted. The Council elected three members to the executive. The President was chairman, the Treasurer managed recruitment and finance, and the Secretary was director of operations. There were IRB Circles in every major city in England. On 23 November 1867, three Fenians, William Philip Allen, Michael O'Brian, and Michael Larkin, known as
6432-419: The number of Catholics being able to vote. Daniel O’Connell , who had led the emancipation campaign, then attempted the same methods in his campaign, to have the Act of Union with Britain repealed. Despite the use of petitions and public meetings which attracted vast popular support, the government thought the Union was more important than Irish public opinion. During the early 1840s, the younger members of
6528-407: The offices of the Irish People named Pierce Nagle, he supplied Ryan with an "action this year" message on its way to the IRB unit in Tipperary. With this information, Ryan raided the offices of the Irish People on Thursday 15 September, followed by the arrests of O’Leary, Luby and O’Donovan Rossa. The last edition of the paper is dated 16 September 1865. Before leaving, Stephens entrusted to Luby
6624-473: The organisation would create this virtual democracy within the country, which would form the basis of an independence movement. The Fenians soon established themselves in Australia, South America, Canada and, above all, in the United States, as well as in the large cities of England, such as London, Manchester , Liverpool, and Glasgow , in Scotland . Inactive Defunct The original IRB oath, as quoted by Thomas Clarke Luby and John O'Leary , and which
6720-513: The owner of the house and mother of the children, demanded to be let into her house, but the police refused and would not release the children. Mrs. McCormack found O'Brien reconnoitring the house from the out-buildings and asked him what was to become of her children and her house. O'Brien and Mrs. McCormack went up to the parlour window of the house to speak to the police. Through the window, O'Brien stated, "We are all Irishmen—give up your guns and you are free to go." O'Brien shook hands with some of
6816-457: The parish, Rev. Philip Fitzgerald, endeavoured to mediate in the interests of peace. When a party of the Cashel police under Sub-Inspector Cox were seen arriving over Boulea Hill, the rebels attempted to stop them even though they were low on ammunition, but the police continued to advance, firing up the road. It became clear that the police in the house were about to be reinforced and rescued. The rebels then faded away, effectively terminating both
6912-501: The police through the window. The initial report to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland stated that a constable fired the first shot at O'Brien, who was attempting to negotiate. General firing then ensued between the police and the rebels. O'Brien had to be dragged out of the line of fire by James Stephens and Terence Bellew MacManus , both of whom were wounded. The rebels were incensed that they had been fired upon without provocation, and
7008-554: The raids continuing after these colonies had been confederated . The ultimate goal of the Fenian raids was to hold Canada hostage and therefore be in a position to blackmail the United Kingdom to give Ireland its independence. Because of the invasion attempts, support or collaboration for the Fenians in Canada became very rare even among the Irish . Francis Bernard McNamee, the man who started
7104-421: The rebels retreated out of the range of fire. Another man, Patrick McBride, who had been standing at the gable-end of the house when the firing began—and was quite safe where he was—found that his companions had retreated. Jumping up on the wall to run and join them, he was fatally wounded by the police. It was evident to the rebels that the position of the police was almost impregnable, and a Catholic clergyman of
7200-465: The round-up of the IRB leadership in Dublin the previous year, but still promised that "The Irish flag—the flag of the Irish Republic—will float in an Irish breeze before New Year's Day, 1867." At the close of 1866, a conference of the refugees of the IRB and many of the American officers who had been in Ireland was held in New York and presided over by Stephens, at which the decision was taken that
7296-400: The shooting went on for a number of hours. During the initial exchange of fire, the rebels at the front of the house—men, women and children—crouched beneath the wall. So great was the pressure of the crowd that one man, Thomas Walsh, was forced to cross from one side of the front gate to the other. As he crossed between the gate piers he was shot dead by the police. During lulls in the shooting,
7392-470: The technique of conspiracy. At this time Paris was interwoven with a network of secret political societies. Stephens and O'Mahony became members of one of the most powerful of these societies and acquired the secrets of some of the ablest and "most profound masters of revolutionary science" which the 19th century had produced, as to the means of inviting and combining people for the purposes of successful revolution. In 1853, O'Mahony went to America and founded
7488-456: The transactions [ 'affairs'] of this secret society that may be confided in me. So help me God! Amen. This oath was significantly revised by Stephens in Paris in the summer of 1859. He asked Luby to draw up a new text, omitting the secrecy clause. The omitting of the secrecy clause was outlined in a letter from Stephens to John O'Mahony on 6 April 1859 and the reasons for it. 'Henceforth,’ wrote Luby to O’Leary "we denied that we were technically
7584-401: The two organisations was never properly set out. In the early 1870s the Fenian Brotherhood was superseded as the main American support organisation by Clan na Gael , of which John Devoy was a leading member. The IRB and Clan na Gael reached a "compact of agreement" in 1875, and in 1877 the two organisations established a joint "revolutionary directory". This effectively gave Devoy control over
7680-536: The village of The Commons on 28 July. The next day, O'Brien was in The Commons where barricades had been erected, near the Commons colliery , to prevent his arrest. His local supporters—miners, tradesmen and small tenant farmers—awaited the arrival of the military and police. As the police from Callan approached the crossroads before The Commons from Ballingarry, they saw barricades in front of them and, thinking discretion
7776-595: The young men did not call for rebellion, neither would they make absolute pledges for peace. Their goal was independence of the Irish nation and they held to any means to achieve that which were consistent with honour, morality and reason. The Young Irelanders , as they had become known, longed to see achieved in Ireland the liberties achieved on the Continent . At the beginning of 1847, they formed an organisation known as The Irish Confederation. Leaders William Smith O'Brien , Thomas Francis Meagher and Richard O'Gorman led
7872-479: The younger members, James Stephens , John O'Mahony and Michael Doheny . After the collapse of the 1848 rebellion James Stephens and John O'Mahony went to Europe to avoid arrest. In Paris they supported themselves through teaching and translation work and planned the next stage of "the fight to overthrow British rule in Ireland." Stephens set himself three tasks during his seven years of exile in Paris. These were: to keep alive, to pursue knowledge, and to master
7968-400: Was a secret oath-bound fraternal organisation dedicated to the establishment of an "independent democratic republic" in Ireland between 1858 and 1924. Its counterpart in the United States of America was initially the Fenian Brotherhood , but from the 1870s it was Clan na Gael . The members of both wings of the movement are often referred to as " Fenians ". The IRB played an important role in
8064-421: Was a number of loosely linked groups. On 23 December Stephens dispatched Joseph Denieffe to America with his reply which was disguised as a business letter, and dated and addressed from Paris. In his reply Stephens outlined his conditions and his requirements from the organisation in America. Stephens demanded uncontrolled power and £100 a month for the first three months. Denieffe returned on 17 March 1858 with
8160-545: Was allied to the Republicans and was calling a "cleansing" of the spirits of the Irish in America: "Let our people fling off the scales of bigotry and declare that all men are entitled to 'life, liberty, and happiness.'" John Devoy records that, in the course of 1866, various conferences to reunite the various factions were held. Their efforts were to elect James Stephens as president of a united organisation. Stephens had escaped
8256-663: Was also used in an anti-Irish banner unfurled by Lazio supporters at a Champions League match against Celtic on 28 November 2023. In Australia, Fenian is used as a pejorative term for those members of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) who have Australian Republican views similar to those who support Irish unification . In a speech given at the ALP Convention in Adelaide on 15 October 2006, Michael Atkinson , Attorney-General of South Australia, spoke of those members of
8352-597: Was criticised by Unionists and Republicans for tweeting the term while attending an Ulster Covenant event at Stormont , Belfast ; Griffin referred to Lambeg drums , saying "the bodran [ sic ] can't match the lambeg, you Fenian bastards". The term Fenian is used similarly in Scotland. During Scottish football matches, it is often aimed in a sectarian manner at supporters of Celtic F.C. Celtic has its roots in Glasgow 's immigrant Catholic Irish population and
8448-403: Was equally unsuccessful. John Mitchel , the most committed advocate of revolution, had been arrested early in 1848 and transported to Australia on the purposefully created charge of Treason-felony . He was to be joined by other leaders, such as William Smith O'Brien and Thomas Francis Meagher who had both been arrested after Ballingary. John Blake Dillon escaped to France, as did three of
8544-490: Was later described as the most infamous action carried out by the Fenians in Great Britain in the 19th century. It enraged the public, causing a backlash of hostility in Britain which undermined efforts to establish home rule or independence for Ireland. The IRB Supreme Council condemned the bombing. The Fenians also exploded three bombs on the London Underground in 1883–1885 and were also believed to be responsible for
8640-512: Was later suppressed by the British establishment in Ireland and so became a secret revolutionary organisation, rose in rebellion , seeking an end to British rule in Ireland and the establishment of an Irish Republic . The rebellion was suppressed, but the principles of the United Irishmen were to have a powerful influence on the course of Irish history. Following the collapse of the rebellion,
8736-528: Was only one sixth of the total and far too small. Fenianism therefore, according to O'Mahony was symbolised by two principles: Firstly, that Ireland had a natural right to independence, and secondly, that that right could be won only by an armed revolution. Because of their belief in republicanism, that is, the "common people are the rightful rulers of their own destiny", the founding members saw themselves as "furious democrats in theory" and declared their movement to be "wholly and unequivocally democratic". Being
8832-428: Was organised into circles, a "circle" was analogous to a regiment, that the "centre" or A, who might be considered equivalent to a colonel, who chose nine B's, or captains, who in their turn chose nine C's, or sergeants, who in their turn chose nine D's, who constituted the rank and file. In theory an A should only be known to the B's; a B, to his C's: and a C, to his D's; but this rule was often violated. Dublin Castle
8928-543: Was owned by numerous other families after 1848) has always been known locally as the Warhouse. In 2004, the State decided on " Famine Warhouse 1848 " as the official name of the house, which had been designated a national heritage monument. After the collapse of the rebellion, James Stephens and John O'Mahony went to the Continent to avoid arrest. In Paris, they supported themselves by teaching and with translation work and planned
9024-563: Was situated behind Lombard Street. Luby then swore Stephens in and he did likewise. Those present in Langan's, lathe-maker and timber merchant, 16 Lombard Street for that first meeting apart from Stephens and Luby were Peter Langan, Charles Kickham , Joseph Denieffe and Garrett O'Shaughnessy. Later it would include members of the Phoenix National and Literary Society , which was formed in 1856 by Jeremiah O'Donovan Rossa in Skibbereen . The IRB
9120-464: Was sometimes described as the "springtime of the people". Ireland was also still reeling from the impact of the Great Famine . The British government's reaction had been too little and too late to prevent the Irish people from suffering great hardship. This delayed reaction was criticized by Irish officials, to little avail. Inspired by these events and the success of liberal, romantic nationalism on
9216-502: Was the seat of government administration in Ireland and was appointed by the British cabinet and was accountable only to the cabinet, not to the House of Commons and not to the Irish people or their political representatives. Irish MPs could speak at Westminster in protest about the actions of the administration, but its privileges were unchallengeable as Irish representation in the House of Commons
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