FENIANS

FENIANS. The Fenians were members of the Fenian movement in Ireland and elsewhere, especially America and England. The Fenians wanted independence from British rule. The Great Famine had a massive impact on Ireland. Some in Ireland believed that the government in London had deliberately done as little as possible to aid the people of Ireland and these people concluded that the only hope Ireland had for its future was a complete separation from Great Britain. If London was unwilling to grant this, then the Fenians would fight for it. (1)

In 1848 a group of revolutionaries known as "Young Ireland" launched an ill-prepared uprising against the government. It was a failure. Two of the members of Young Ireland, James Stephens and John O'Mahony, fled to Paris. (2)

In 1853, O'Mahony went to America. Here he tried to gain support for another uprising from those who had left Ireland during the Great Famine. Stephens returned to Ireland in 1856. In Dublin in March 1858, he formed a secret society that became known as the Irish Republican Brotherhood. Its aim was Independence for Ireland. (3)

In America O'Mahony became the leader of a new organization called the "Fenian Brotherhood." Its name came from the Fianna, a band of Irish warriors of the 2nd and 3rd centuries. The name ‘Fenians’ became an umbrella term to cover all the groups associated with wanting independence for Ireland. (4)

As the Fenian movement grew, so did the difficulties of keeping it organized. The two founders – O’Mahony and Stephens – disagreed on how the movement should develop. In 1863, Stephens founded a newspaper called the Irish People. He wanted to make people aware of what the Fenians represented. O’Mahony did not approve. He felt such a paper would attract even more attention to the movement from the British government based in Dublin. He preferred the movement develop in secrecy. Another problem faced by the Fenians was that the Roman Catholic Church was generally not supportive of them. The power of the local priests was great and their influence within a local community, especially among the older members, meant that they could undermine whatever influence the Fenians tried to establish. (5)

The Fenians always faced the possibility of being infiltrated by British spies. An uprising in Ireland had been planned for 1866 but never took place because the government knew about it. In September 1866, the Irish People was shut down by the government and Stephens was arrested and sent to prison. He escaped from jail and went to America. Anyone suspected of being involved with the Fenians was arrested. Money sent from America for the Fenians was seized. The government also believed that some units of the British Army based in Ireland were sympathetic to the Fenians. These units were moved out of Ireland. (6)

For the Fenians the Battle of Ridgeway in Canada on June 2, 1866 was the first celebrated Irish victory over the forces of the British Empire since the Battle of Fontenoy when in 1745 the exile Irish brigade –‘The Wild Geese’—in the service of the French king charged the Duke of Cumberland’s elite Coldstream Guards and scattered them. The Fenians, also known as the Irish Revolutionary Brotherhood, and later the Irish Republican Brotherhood (I.R.B.) were the predecessors of the I.R.A.—the Irish Republican Army. (7)

For Canadians Ridgeway was the first battle to be fought exclusively by Canadian troops and led on the battlefield entirely by Canadian officers. The Battle of Ridgeway was also the last battle fought in what would become the Province of Ontario in the 1867 Confederation of Canada. It was also the battle in which Canada's army suffered its first nine battlefield deaths: the first officer, sergeant, corporal and six privates killed in action. (8)

There was an attempted uprising in 1867, though it was a failure. The ‘uprising’ was led by Thomas Kelly who had fought in the American CIVIL WAR. Kelly based himself in London where he gained support from the large Irish community that had come to the city during the Great Famine. (9)

Kelly and other Fenians failed in their attempt to attack Chester Castle to gain weapons and ammunition. Kelly and another Fenian were arrested. In September 1867, Kelly was being taken to Manchester to be tried, when he was rescued by other Fenians. During the rescue, a policeman was killed. Three of the Fenians were caught and after a trial were hanged for murder. To the Fenians, they became known as the "Manchester Martyrs". To many in Ireland, the sentence was considered far too harsh for what they saw as an accidental killing. (10)

In December 1867, several Londoners were killed when a bomb planted by the Fenians exploded at Clerkenwell Prison. This caused a wave of anti-Irish feeling in London and elsewhere in England. The activities of the Fenians were partly responsible for prompting William Gladstone into his stated mission – "to pacify Ireland". (11)

One of the first meetings in Dubuque concerning the Fenians was a lecture entitled "Irish Nationality and the Fenian Organization" held at the DUBUQUE COUNTY COURTHOUSE on September 8, 1864, (12) Following the lecture, a Fenian Brotherhood was organized. (13) Called the Stephens' Circle of the Fenian Brotherhood, the group moved its headquarters in 1866 from Molony Bock to old Turner's Hall. Meetings were held weekly. (14)

The Fenian Movement spread to Iowa from 1866 to 1869. (15) A meeting held on January 30, 1866 led to the sale of $150 worth of bonds of the Irish Republic and a second Fenian group was formed in Dubuque. (16) On July 4, 1866 large Fenian demonstrations were held in the city. A Fenian convention was held in Dubuque on July 2-4, 1867. Between 1867 and 1870 the Sarsfield Circle of Fenians, led by John O'Neill, held at least four balls. The height of the movement in Iowa was reached in 1868 when an estimated fifty chapters were present. (17)

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Source:

1. "The Fenian Movement," History Learning Site. Online: http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/fenian_movement.htm

2. Ibid.

3. Ibid.

4. Ibid.

5. Ibid.

6. Ibid.

7. Fenians.org Online: http://www.fenians.org/index.htm

8. Ibid.

9. "The Fenian Movement."

10. Ibid.

11. Ibid

12. "Free Lecture," Dubuque Democratic Herald, September 8, 1864, p. 4. Online: https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=A36e8EsbUSoC&dat=18640908&printsec=frontpage&hl=en

13. "Fenian Brotherhood," Dubuque Democratic Herald, September 9, 1864, p. 4. Online: https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=A36e8EsbUSoC&dat=18640909&printsec=frontpage&hl=en

14. "Headquarters Removed," Dubuque Herald, June 21, 1866, p. 4

15. Mahan, Holly. "Irish Citizens in Nineteenth Century Dubuque, Iowa." Ron E. Roberts ed. Iowa's Ethnic Roots. Dubuque: Kendall/Hunt Publishing Company, 1993, p. 134

16. "Fenian Meeting," Dubuque Herald, January 30, 1866, p. 4. Online: https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=uh8FjILnQOkC&dat=18660131&printsec=frontpage&hl=en

17. Mahan