The Irish Revolution, 1916-1923 (3 page)

Who's who

Anderson, Sir John
(1882–1958): Joint Under Secretary at Dublin Castle May 1920–January 1922.

Asquith, H. H.
(1852–1928): British Prime Minister 1908–16.

Barry, Kevin
(1902–20): Medical student and IRA volunteer hanged in Mountjoy Prison in November 1920.

Barry, Tom
(1897–1980): Leader of the IRA's west Cork flying column in the War of Independence.

Birrell, Augustine
(1850–1933): Irish Chief Secretary 1907–16.

Breen, Dan
(1894–1969): Tipperary IRA leader during the War of Independence and author of a memoir of the revolution.

Broy, Ned
(1887–1972): Detective in G Division of the Dublin Metropolitan Police who was one of Michael Collins's most important spies.

Brugha, Cathal
(1874–1922): Minister for Defence in the First Dáil and an opponent of the treaty who was killed in the Civil War.

Carson, Sir Edward
(1854–1935): Leader of the Ulster Unionist Party, 1910–21.

Casement, Roger
(1864–1916): Former British diplomat who acquired guns in Germany for the Easter Rising, after which he was executed.

Ceannt, Eamon
(1881–1916): Leader of the Easter Rising.

Childers, (Robert) Erskine
(1870–1922): Sinn Féin propagandist, secretary to the Irish treaty delegation and subsequent opponent of the treaty who was executed in November 1922.

Clarke, Thomas
(1858–1916): Senior IRB figure and leader of the Easter Rising. xiv THE IRISH REVOLUTION, 1916–1923

Collins, Michael
(1890–1922): Minister for Finance in the First Dáil; IRA Director of Organisation and Intelligence; signatory of the Anglo-Irish Treaty; chairman of the Provisional Government of the Irish Free State and Commander-in-Chief of its army.

Connolly, James
(1868–1916): Socialist, trade unionist and leader of the Easter Rising.

Cope, Alfred W. ‘Andy’
(1877–1954): Joint Assistant Under Secretary at Dublin Castle 1920–2 and go-between for Lloyd George with Sinn Féin.

Cosgrave, William Thomas (W. T.)
(1880–1965): Minister for Local Government in the First Dáil and chairman of the Provisional Government of the Irish Free State.
Craig, Sir James
(1871–1940): Leader of the Ulster Unionist Party and first Prime Minister of Northern Ireland.

de Valera, Eamon
(1882–1975): Leader of the Easter Rising and president of Sinn Féin and Dáil éireann. An opponent of the treaty and later Taoiseach and President of Ireland.

Devlin, Joseph
(1871–1934): IPP MP for Belfast Falls.

Dillon, John
(1851–1927): IPP MP; succeeded John Redmond as leader in 1918.

French, Field Marshal Lord
(1852–1925): Lord Lieutenant May 1918– April 1921.

Greenwood, Sir Hamar
(1870–1948): Irish Chief Secretary April 1920– October 1922.

Griffith, Arthur
(1871–1922): Journalist and founder of Sinn Féin; acting president (1919–20) and president (1922) of Dāil éireann; signatory of the treaty.

Johnson, Thomas
(1872–1963): Trade unionist and leader of the Irish Labour Party.

Lloyd George, David
(1863–1945): British Prime Minister 1916–22.

Lynch, Liam
(1893–1923): IRA leader in Cork during the War of Independence and Chief-of-Staff of the anti-treaty IRA 1922–3.

MacCurtain, Tomás
(1884–1920): Sinn Féin Lord Mayor of Cork shot dead by police in March 1920.

MacDermott (MacDiarmada), Seán
(1883–1916): IRB organizer and leader of the Easter Rising. Who's who xv

MacDonagh, Thomas
(1878–1916): Poet, academic and leader of the Easter Rising.

MacNeill, Eoin ( John)
(1867–1945): Founder of the Irish Volunteers, Sinn Féin TD and Irish representative on the Boundary Commission.

MacPherson, Ian
(1880–1937): Irish Chief Secretary January 1919–April 1920.

Macready, General Sir Nevil
(1862–1946): Commander of the British Army in Ireland 1920–2.

MacSwiney, Mary
(1872–1942): Sinn Féin TD and sister of Terence MacSwiney, who was a vociferous opponent of the treaty.

MacSwiney, Terence
(1879–1920): Sinn Féin Lord Mayor of Cork who died on hunger strike in October 1920.

Markievicz, Countess Constance
(1868–1927): ICA commander during the Easter Rising, Sinn Féin TD and Minister for Labour in the First Dáil and an opponent of the treaty.

Mulcahy, Richard
(1886–1971): Sinn Féin TD, IRA Chief-of-Staff during the War of Independence, Commander-in-Chief of the Free State Army.

O’Connor, Rory
(1883–1922): Anti-treaty IRA leader who occupied the Four Courts in April 1922 and was executed on 8 December 1922.

O’Flanagan, Fr Michael
(1876–1942): Catholic priest from County Roscommon who was active in organising Sinn Féin after the Easter Rising.

Pearse, Patrick
(1879–1916): Educationalist and leader of the Easter Rising.

Plunkett, George Noble, Count
(1851–1948): Father of Joseph Mary Plunkett and Sinn Féin TD.

Plunkett, Joseph Mary
(1887–1916): Planner and leader of the Easter Rising.

Redmond, John
(1856–1918): Leader of the Irish Parliamentary Party 1900–18.

Sheehy-Skeffington, Francis
(1878–1916): Pacifist, journalist and suffragist controversially shot dead during Easter Rising.

Sheehy-Skeffington, Hanna
(1877–1946): Wife of Francis Sheehy-Skeffington and Sinn Féin activist.

Sturgis, Mark
(1884–1949): Diarist and joint Assistant Under Secretary at Dublin Castle, May 1920–2. xvi THE IRISH REVOLUTION, 1916–1923

Treacy, Seán
(1895–1920): Tipperary IRA leader during the War of Independence.

Tudor, Hugh
(1871–1965): Police adviser 1920–2, who recruited the Black and Tans and Auxiliaries.

Wilson, Field Marshal Sir Henry
(1864–1922): Irish-born former Chief of the Imperial General Staff of the British Army and security adviser to the Northern Ireland Government assassinated by the IRA in June 1922.

Glossary

Act of Union
: Political, economic and religious union of Ireland with Great Britain from 1801 until 1921.

Anglo-Irish Treaty
: Treaty signed in December 1921 between Britain and Southern Ireland that created the Irish Free State as a dominion of the Commonwealth.

An tóglach
: Journal of the Irish Volunteers/IRA, edited by Piaras Béaslaí.

Ard fheis
: Annual national convention of Sinn Féin.

Auxiliaries (Auxiliary Division of the RIC)
: Paramilitary police force recruited largely from ex-soldiers brought to Ireland in August 1920 to bolster the RIC.

Belfast boycott
: Boycott of Ulster businesses introduced by Dáil éireann in protest at partition and sectarian attacks on Catholics in Ulster.

Black and Tans
: Paramilitary police force recruited largely from ex-soldiers and introduced to Ireland in January 1920.

Bloody Sunday
: 21 November 1920. Forty-one people were killed including British Intelligence agents, civilians attending a football match at Croke Park and senior IRA prisoners in Dublin Castle. Not to be confused with Bloody Sunday in Derry in January 1972.

Boundary commission
: Commission established under the Anglo-Irish Treaty to delineate the border between Northern Ireland and the Irish Free State. Its 1925 report was suppressed and the border left unchanged.

B Specials
: see
Ulster Special Constabulary
.

Ceann Comhairle
: Chairman or speaker of Dáil éireann.

Christian Brothers
: An Irish Catholic teaching order founded in the nineteenth century.

Criminal Investigation Department (CID)
: Free State intelligence unit that operated during the Civil War and earned a reputation for ill-treatment and controversial killings of republicans.

Cumann na mBan
: The women's auxiliary of the Irish Volunteers/IRA, formed in 1914.

Cumann na nGaedheal
: Political party formed in 1922 from pro-treaty Sinn Féin.

Curragh Mutiny
: Threat by Irish officers in the British Army stationed at the Curragh in County Kildare to resign their commissions rather that use force against Ulster during the home rule crisis in March 1914.

Dáil éireann
: Irish Parliament, established by Sinn Féin in January 1919.

Document No. 2
: De Valera's alternative to the treaty that envisaged an external association relationship between the Free State and Britain, under which the King would not be recognised as Irish head of state.

Dominion status
: The sovereignty granted to the Irish Free State under the Anglo-Irish Treaty, under which the King remained as head of state, similarly to Australia, New Zealand, Canada and South Africa.

Dublin Castle
: The administrative centre of British government in Ireland.

Dublin Metropolitan Police (DMP)
: Police force for Dublin until 1925.

Fenians: see Irish Republican Brotherhood
.

Fianna éireann
: Republican boy scouts and youth wing of the Irish Volunteers, many of whose members took part in the Easter Rising.

Fianna Fáil
: Political party formed by Eamon de Valera in 1926 following a split in Sinn Féin.

Flying column
: Mobile active service unit formed by the IRA during the War of Independence to wage guerrilla warfare.

Friends of Irish Freedom (FOIF)
: Irish-American organisation led by John Devoy and Daniel Cohalan that supported Irish independence and split with de Valera's American Association for the Recognition of the Irish Republic (AARIR) in October 1920.

Frongoch
: Prison camp in north Wales where many of the 1916 prisoners were interned.

Gaelic Athletic Association
: Association formed in 1884 to codify and regulate Gaelic sports. It was infiltrated by the Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB) and many prominent revolutionaries were members. Glossary xix
Gaelic League
: Organisation formed in 1893 by Eoin MacNeill and Douglas Hyde to revive the Irish language. Became increasingly politicised and included many revolutionaries including Patrick Pearse.

Government of Ireland Act (1920)
: Legislation partitioning Ireland into the six counties of Northern Ireland and the 26 counties of Southern Ireland that later became the Irish Free State.

Home rule
: Devolved government for Ireland within the United Kingdom. Existed in Northern Ireland 1921–72.

Irish Bulletin
: Propaganda newspaper of Dáil éireann.

Irish Citizen Army (ICA)
: Militia formed by James Connolly to protect striking workers in Dublin city during the 1913 lock-out which played a key role in the Easter Rising.

Irish Parliamentary Party (Irish Party/IPP)
: The Irish home rule party.

Irish Republican Army (IRA): see Irish Volunteers
.

Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB)
: Secret oath-bound society formed in 1858 to achieve an Irish republic by revolutionary means. Responsible for planning the Easter Rising.

Irish Transport and General Workers Union (ITGWU)
: Trade union founded by Jim Larkin in 1908.

Irish Volunteers (Irish Volunteer Force)
: Paramilitary body formed on 25 November 1913 in response to the formation of the Ulster Volunteers. It split in September 1914 into Redmond's National Volunteers and MacNeill's Irish Volunteers, which carried out the Easter Rising. It was rejuvenated in 1917 and 1918 and fought the guerrilla campaign in the War of Independence (1919–21), by which time it was more commonly known as the Irish Republican Army (IRA).