Young Irelander Rebellion of 1848

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Young Irelander Rebellion (some times called "Famine Rebellion" of 1848 as it took place during the Great Irish Famine) was a failed uprising of the Young Ireland political movement, which took place on July 29, 1848 in the village of Ballingarry in the Republic of Ireland (at that time in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland).

1 Origins
2 Rebellion
3 See also
4 Source

[edit] Origins

1848 was a year of revolutions throughout continental Europe. In February 1848, King Louis-Philippe of France was overthrown 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, Budapest and Kraków. At least temporarily, absolutist governments were replaced by liberal administrations, near universal suffrage was introduced and elections were held to constituent assemblies to draw up new national constitutions. It was sometimes described as the "springtime of the people."

The Young Irelanders, inspired by these events and the success of liberal, romantic nationalism on the European mainland, began to contemplate revolution in Ireland. Leaders William Smith O'Brien and Thomas Francis Meagher led a delegation to Paris to congratulate the new French Republic. Meagher returned to Ireland with the tricolour flag (now the national flag)—a symbol of reconciliation between the Orange and Green.

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 Young Irelanders prepared for an uprising in the autumn of 1848. The government, however, forced their hand on 22 July 1848 by announcing the suspension of habeas corpus, which meant that the Young Irelanders could be imprisoned on proclamation without trial. O'Brien decided that, rather than let the government arrest the leaders of Young Ireland, he would have to make a stand.

[edit] Rebellion

From the 23rd to the 29th of July 1848, O'Brien, Meagher and Dillon raised the standard of revolt as they traveled from County Wexford through County Kilkenny and into County Tipperary. The last great gathering of Young Ireland leaders took place in the village of The Commons on July 28. The next day, O'Brien was in The Commons where barricades had been erected 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 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-story 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, 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 reconnoitering 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 parlor 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 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 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, 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 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 the era of Young Ireland and Repeal, but the consequences of their actions would follow them for many years.

The McCormack family emigrated to the USA about 1853. Since that time, the McCormack house (which was owned by a number of 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 has become a national monument.