1916 : Easter Rebellion begins
On this day in 1916, on Easter Monday in Dublin, the Irish Republican
Brotherhood, a secret organization of Irish nationalists led by
Patrick Pearse, launches the so-called Easter Rebellion, an armed
uprising against British rule. Assisted by militant Irish socialists
under James Connolly, Pearse and his fellow Republicans rioted and
attacked British provincial government headquarters across Dublin and
seized the Irish capital's General Post Office. Following these
successes, they proclaimed the independence of Ireland, which had been
under the repressive thumb of the United Kingdom for centuries, and by
the next morning were in control of much of the city. Later that day,
however, British authorities launched a counteroffensive, and by April
29 the uprising had been crushed. Nevertheless, the Easter Rebellion
is considered a significant marker on the road to establishing an
independent Irish republic.
Following the uprising, Pearse and 14 other nationalist leaders were
executed for their participation and held up as martyrs by many in
Ireland. There was little love lost among most Irish people for the
British, who had enacted a series of harsh anti-Catholic restrictions,
the Penal Laws, in the 18th century, and then let 1.5 million Irish
starve during the Potato Famine of 1845-1848. Armed protest continued
after the Easter Rebellion and in 1921, 26 of Ireland's 32 counties
won independence with the declaration of the Irish Free State. The
Free State became an independent republic in 1949. However, six
northeastern counties of the Emerald Isle remained part of the United
Kingdom, prompting some nationalists to reorganize themselves into the
Irish Republican Army (IRA) to continue their struggle for full Irish
independence.
In the late 1960s, influenced in part by the U.S. civil rights
movement, Catholics in Northern Ireland, long discriminated against by
British policies that favored Irish Protestants, advocated for
justice. Civil unrest broke out between Catholics and Protestants in
the region and the violence escalated as the pro-Catholic IRA battled
British troops. An ongoing series of terrorist bombings and attacks
ensued in a drawn-out conflict that came to be known as "The
Troubles." Peace talks eventually took place throughout the mid- to
late 1990s, but a permanent end to the violence remained elusive.
Finally, in July 2005, the IRA announced its members would give up all
their weapons and pursue the group's objectives solely through
peaceful means. By the fall of 2006, the Independent Monitoring
Commission reported that the IRA's military campaign to end British
rule was over.
history.com/tdih.do
General Interest
1916 : Easter Rebellion begins
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihVideoCategory&id=4947
1800 : Library of Congress established
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=4946
1953 : Churchill knighted
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=6877
1980 : Hostage rescue mission ends in disaster
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=4948
#########################################
On this day in 1916, on Easter Monday in Dublin, the Irish Republican
Brotherhood, a secret organization of Irish nationalists led by
Patrick Pearse, launches the so-called Easter Rebellion, an armed
uprising against British rule. Assisted by militant Irish socialists
under James Connolly, Pearse and his fellow Republicans rioted and
attacked British provincial government headquarters across Dublin and
seized the Irish capital's General Post Office. Following these
successes, they proclaimed the independence of Ireland, which had been
under the repressive thumb of the United Kingdom for centuries, and by
the next morning were in control of much of the city. Later that day,
however, British authorities launched a counteroffensive, and by April
29 the uprising had been crushed. Nevertheless, the Easter Rebellion
is considered a significant marker on the road to establishing an
independent Irish republic.
Following the uprising, Pearse and 14 other nationalist leaders were
executed for their participation and held up as martyrs by many in
Ireland. There was little love lost among most Irish people for the
British, who had enacted a series of harsh anti-Catholic restrictions,
the Penal Laws, in the 18th century, and then let 1.5 million Irish
starve during the Potato Famine of 1845-1848. Armed protest continued
after the Easter Rebellion and in 1921, 26 of Ireland's 32 counties
won independence with the declaration of the Irish Free State. The
Free State became an independent republic in 1949. However, six
northeastern counties of the Emerald Isle remained part of the United
Kingdom, prompting some nationalists to reorganize themselves into the
Irish Republican Army (IRA) to continue their struggle for full Irish
independence.
In the late 1960s, influenced in part by the U.S. civil rights
movement, Catholics in Northern Ireland, long discriminated against by
British policies that favored Irish Protestants, advocated for
justice. Civil unrest broke out between Catholics and Protestants in
the region and the violence escalated as the pro-Catholic IRA battled
British troops. An ongoing series of terrorist bombings and attacks
ensued in a drawn-out conflict that came to be known as "The
Troubles." Peace talks eventually took place throughout the mid- to
late 1990s, but a permanent end to the violence remained elusive.
Finally, in July 2005, the IRA announced its members would give up all
their weapons and pursue the group's objectives solely through
peaceful means. By the fall of 2006, the Independent Monitoring
Commission reported that the IRA's military campaign to end British
rule was over.
history.com/tdih.do
General Interest
1916 : Easter Rebellion begins
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihVideoCategory&id=4947
1800 : Library of Congress established
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=4946
1953 : Churchill knighted
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=6877
1980 : Hostage rescue mission ends in disaster
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=4948
#########################################
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