The Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB; Bráithreachas na Poblachta in Irish) was a secret fraternal organisation dedicated to fomenting armed revolt against the British state in Ireland in the nineteenth century and early twentieth century.

The IRB played an important role in the history of Ireland. It was the chief group advocating armed revolt during the campaign for Ireland's independence from the United Kingdom during the latter half of the nineteenth century. It was formed in the 1850s by James Stephens, and organised an abortive revolt in 1867. Although the IRB co-operated with Charles Stewart Parnell's Irish Parliamentary Party (which opposed violent action) in the 1870s and 1880s during the Land War, it also was associated with a dynamite campaign in English cities in the 1880s. Its members often referred to themselves as "Fenians". From 1801 to 1922 the whole island of Ireland formed a constituent part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (UK). ... Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ... James Stephens (1825 - 1901) was also an Irish nationalist who founded the Irish Republican Brotherhood around 1850. ... Note: This was originially a subsection of Fenian Brotherhood. ... Charles Stewart Parnell, the uncrowned King of Ireland Charles Stewart Parnell[1] (27 June 1846 – 6 October 1891) was an Irish political leader and one of the most important figures in 19th century Ireland and the United Kingdom; William Ewart Gladstone described him as the most remarkable person he had... The Irish Parliamentary Party (IPP) (commonly called the Irish Party) was formed in 1882 by Charles Stewart Parnell, the leader of the Nationalist Party, replacing the Home Rule League, as official parliamentary party for Irish nationalist Members of Parliament (MPs) elected to the House of Commons at Westminster within the... // The invention of the telephone (1876) by Alexander Graham Bell. ... // Development and commercial production of electric lighting Development and commercial production of gasoline-powered automobile by Karl Benz, Gottlieb Daimler and Maybach First commercial production and sales of phonographs and phonograph recordings. ... The Irish painter Henry Jones Thaddeus enlisted the conscience of the propertied classes with the sentimental realism of La retour du bracconier (The Wounded Poacher), exhibited in the Paris Salon of 1881, at the height of the Irish Land War The Irish Land League was an Irish political organization of... Dynamite is an explosive based on the explosive potential of nitroglycerin, initially using diatomaceous earth (kieselguhr) as an adsorbent. ... For other uses, see England (disambiguation). ... Fenian is a term used since the 1860s for an Irish nationalist who espouses violence, usually by people opposed to their aims. ...

Its counterpart in the United States of America was organized by John O'Mahony and known as the Fenian Brotherhood (later Clan na Gael), which would organize several raids into British Canada from 1866 to 1871 in an effort aimed at exchanging control of Canada for Ireland's freedom. John OMahony was one of the founders of the Irish Republican Brotherhood. ... The Fenian Brotherhood was an Irish nationalist organization based in the United States in the mid-nineteenth century. ... With Irish immigration to the United States of America in the 18th_century there arose Irish ethnic organizations. ... Fenian Monument - Queens Park, Toronto Canada ca. ... 1866 (MDCCCLXVI) is a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar or a common year starting on Wednesday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar. ... 1871 (MDCCCLXXI) was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ...

Origins

James Stephens, one of the "Men of 1848," (a participant in the 1848 revolt) had established himself in Paris, and was in correspondence with O'Mahony in the United States and other radical nationalists at home and abroad. A club called the Phoenix National and Literary Society, with Jeremiah Donovan (afterwards known as O'Donovan Rossa) among its more prominent members, had recently been formed at Skibbereen. Stephens visited it in May 1858 and made it the centre of his preparations for armed rebellion. James Stephens (1825 - 1901) was also an Irish nationalist who founded the Irish Republican Brotherhood around 1850. ... The Young Irelander Rebellion or Famine Rebellion of 1848 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. ... This article is about the capital of France. ... Jeremiah ODonovan Rossa. ... Skibbereen (Irish: An Sciobairín) in Ireland is known as the capital of West Cork. ... 1858 (MDCCCLVIII) is a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Sunday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar). ...

The object of Stephens, O'Mahony, and other leaders of the movement was to form a league of Irishmen in all parts of the world against British rule in Ireland. The organization was modelled on that of the Jacobins of the French Revolution; they even formed a "Committee of Public Safety" in Paris, with a number of subsidiary committees and affiliated clubs. The Fenians were soon found in Australia, South America, Canada, and above all in the United States, as well as in the large cities of Great Britain such as London, Manchester, and Glasgow. The Fenians had more trouble gaining the support of the tenant-farmers or agricultural labourers in Ireland, because of their fears of British government reprisals. The early movement was also denounced by the Roman Catholic Church, as indeed were all Irish separatist movements that advocated the use of force. One Irish bishop famously declared that "Hell is not hot enough, nor eternity long enough" for the Fenians. It has been suggested that Jacobin/Sandbox be merged into this article or section. ... The French Revolution (1789–1815) was a period of political and social upheaval in the political history of France and Europe as a whole, during which the French governmental structure, previously an absolute monarchy with feudal privileges for the aristocracy and Catholic clergy, underwent radical change to forms based on... This article is about the capital of France. ... South America South America is a continent crossed by the equator, with most of its area in the Southern Hemisphere. ... This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ... This article is about the City of Manchester in England. ... “Glaswegian” redirects here. ... The United Kingdom is a unitary state and a democratic constitutional monarchy. ... The Catholic Church in Ireland is part of the worldwide Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope and curia in Rome. ... For other uses, see Hell (disambiguation). ...

It would be a few years after its foundation before the IRB made much headway. The Phoenix Club conspiracy in County Kerry had been betrayed by an informer and was crushed by the government. Some twenty ringleaders were put on trial, including Donovan, and when they pleaded guilty were, with a single exception, treated with leniency. Statistics Province: Munster County Town: Tralee Code: KY Area: 4,746 km² Population (2006) 139,616 Website: www. ...

1867 revolt and land agitation

About the same time the Irish People, a revolutionary journal, was started in Dublin by Stephens, and for two years advocated armed rebellion and appealed for aid to Irishmen who had received military training and experience in the American Civil War. At the close of that war in 1865, numbers of Irish who had borne arms flocked to Ireland, and the plans for a rising were worked on. The government, well served as usual by informers, now took action. In September 1865 the Irish People was suppressed, and several of the more prominent Fenians were sentenced to terms of penal servitude; Stephens, through the connivance of a prison warder, escaped to France. The Habeas Corpus Act was suspended in the beginning of 1866, and a considerable number of persons were arrested. The failed revolt the following year proved a serious setback to the IRB's hopes, with numerous arrests in both Ireland and Britain. Revolutionary, when used as a noun, is a person who either advocates or actively engages in some kind of revolution. ... Dublin city centre at night WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: , Statistics Province: Leinster County: Dáil Éireann: Dublin Central, Dublin North Central, Dublin North East, Dublin North West, Dublin South Central, Dublin South East European Parliament: Dublin Dialling Code: +353 1 Postal District(s): D1-24, D6W Area: 114. ... Combatants United States of America (Union) Confederate States of America (Confederacy) Commanders Abraham Lincoln, Ulysses S. Grant Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee Strength 2,200,000 1,064,000 Casualties 110,000 killed in action, 360,000 total dead, 275,200 wounded 93,000 killed in action, 258,000 total... 1865 (MDCCCLXV) is a common year starting on Sunday. ... Penal labour is a form of the unfree labour. ... Habeas Corpus Act 1679 Habeas Corpus Act of 1863 (US Civil War) This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... 1866 (MDCCCLXVI) is a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar or a common year starting on Wednesday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar. ... Note: This was originially a subsection of Fenian Brotherhood. ...

In the years following the failed revolt against the English, leaders of the IRB carried out their own foreign policy, and courted support from ambassadors of nations they perceived as enemies of England. When the chances of war with England were fading, IRB looked for allies among other Irish national groups, and on the cusp of the 1870–1880s, their attempts at coalition building were successful. From amongst the many Irish nationalist organisations, a coalition was formed among the IRB and sections of the Irish Land League. In 1882, a breakaway IRB faction calling themselves the Irish National Invincibles assassinated the British Chief Secretary for Ireland Lord Frederick Cavendish and his secretary (see Phoenix Park Murders). // The invention of the telephone (1876) by Alexander Graham Bell. ... // Development and commercial production of electric lighting Development and commercial production of gasoline-powered automobile by Karl Benz, Gottlieb Daimler and Maybach First commercial production and sales of phonographs and phonograph recordings. ... An Irish nationalist is generally one who seeks (greater) independence of Ireland from Great Britain, including since 1921 the goal of a United Ireland. ... The Irish painter Henry Jones Thaddeus enlisted the conscience of the propertied classes with the sentimental realism of La retour du bracconier (The Wounded Poacher), exhibited in the Paris Salon of 1881, at the height of the Irish Land War The Irish Land League was an Irish political organization of... Irish National Invincibles usually known as the Invincibles was largely composed of former Irish Republican Brotherhood members operating independently of the IRB. They planned to kill the Permanent Under Secretary at the Irish Office Thomas Henry Burke and it was Chief Secretary for Ireland Lord Frederick Cavendishs misfortune that... The Chief Secretary was the most important position for determining British policy in Ireland after the Lord Lieutenant, and was frequently a cabinet level position in the 19th and early twentieth centuries. ... Lord Frederick Charles Cavendish (November 30, 1836 - May 6, 1882), son of William Cavendish, 7th Duke of Devonshire, was a English Liberal politician and protégé of the Prime Minister, William Ewart Gladstone, who was appointed to the post of Chief Secretary for Ireland in May 1882. ... The term Phoenix Park Murders is used to refer to the assassination in 1882 of the second and third in command of the British Dublin Castle government of Ireland by the Irish National Invincibles. ...

In March 1883 the London Metropolitan Police's Special Irish Branch was formed, initially as a small section of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), to monitor IRB activities. Subsequently, the term 'Irish Branch' was replaced by the Special Branch title, as over time it took on responsibility for countering a wider range of revolutionary and anarchist activity. Year 1883 (MDCCCLXXXIII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Saturday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... The Metropolitan Police Service (usually just referred to as the Metropolitan Police or the Met) are the police of Greater London, England, with the exception of the square mile of the City of London, which has its own police force, the City of London Police. ... Special Branch is the arm of the British, Irish and many Commonwealth police forces that deals with national security matters. ... Revolutionary, when used as a noun, is a person who either advocates or actively engages in some kind of revolution. ... Anarchism is a generic term describing various political philosophies and social movements that advocate the elimination of hierarchy and imposed authority. ...

Nineteenth-century Fenianism was among the most important movements in modern Irish history. Its radicalism influenced later leaders like Patrick Pearse and Éamon de Valera and the IRB was well placed in the subsequent independence movement with Michael Collins at the helm. However, though influential in radical nationalism, the early IRB never gained widespread popular support and its attempts to stage rebellions in Ireland failed dismally. Its impact was through the ideas it developed among later Irish nationalists. The History of Ireland began with the first known human settlement in Ireland around 8000 BC, when hunter-gatherers arrived from Britain and continental Europe, probably via a land bridge. ... Patrick Henry Pearse (also known as Pádraig Pearse; Irish: ; 10 November 1879 – 3 May 1916) was a teacher, barrister, poet, writer, nationalist and political activist who was one of the leaders of the Easter Rising in 1916. ... Éamon de Valera (born with the name Edward George de Valera, IPA: [1][2]) (14 October 1882 – 29 August 1975) was one of the dominant political figures in 20th century Ireland. ...

Later history

Revitalised from about 1910, the IRB was the chief organising force behind the Easter Rising of 1916, under the leadership of such men as Tom Clarke, Sean MacDermott and Patrick Pearse. The IRB infiltrated the Irish Volunteers, and commandeered them to act as the military wing of the republican movement, against the wishes of the Volunteers' leadership. It was also a major influence during the 1919–21 Irish War of Independence. Its president since the summer of 1919 was Michael Collins, who was also a chief organising force behind the Irish Republican Army. Due to Collins' leadership, the IRB accepted the Anglo-Irish Treaty agreed by Collins with the British government as compatible with its aims and dissolved itself. In fact, Collins used the IRB in 1922 as a vehicle for getting the Treaty accepted by IRA officers. This was somewhat strange as the IRB had up to this point been the most extreme Irish republican organisation. Anti-Treaty republicans like Ernie O'Malley^[1], who fought a civil war against the Treaty, saw the IRB at this time as being used to undermine the Irish Republic. Following the civil war in 1924, the Supreme Council under Collins' protoge Richard Mulcahy as chairman, voted to dissolve the organization, deeming that its goals had been achieved. Year 1910 (MCMX) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Friday [1] of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... Combatants Irish Volunteers, Irish Citizen Army, Irish Republican Brotherhood British Army Royal Irish Constabulary Commanders Patrick Pearse, James Connolly Brigadier-General Lowe General Sir John Maxwell Strength 1250 in Dublin, c. ... 1916 (MCMXVI) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar). ... Thomas James Clarke (March 11, 1857-May 3, 1916) was an Irish revolutionary leader and was perhaps the man most responsible for the Easter Rising of 1916. ... Sean MacDermott (February 28, 1883 – May 12, 1916) was one of the leaders of the Easter Rising of 1916 in Ireland. ... Patrick Henry Pearse (also known as Pádraig Pearse; Irish: ; 10 November 1879 – 3 May 1916) was a teacher, barrister, poet, writer, nationalist and political activist who was one of the leaders of the Easter Rising in 1916. ... Irish Volunteers - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... Year 1919 (MCMXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar). ... Year 1921 (MCMXXI) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar). ... Combatants Irish Republic United Kingdom Commanders Michael Collins Richard Mulcahy Cathal Brugha Important local IRA leaders Henry Hugh Tudor Strength Irish Republican Army c. ... Michael John (Mick) Collins (Irish: ; 16 October 1890 – 22 August 1922) was an Irish revolutionary leader, Minister for Finance in the Irish Republic, Director of Intelligence for the IRA, and member of the Irish delegation during the Anglo-Irish Treaty negotiations, both as Chairman of the Provisional Government and Commander... This article is about the historical army of the Irish Republic (1919–1922) which fought in the Irish War of Independence 1919–21, and the Irish Civil War 1922–23. ... Signature page of the Anglo-Irish Treaty The Anglo-Irish Treaty, officially called the Articles of Agreement for a Treaty Between Great Britain and Ireland, was a treaty between the Government of the United Kingdom and representatives of the extra-judicial Irish Republic that concluded the Irish War of Independence. ... The United Kingdom is a unitary state and a democratic constitutional monarchy. ... Ernie OMalley (1897-1957) was born in Castlebar, County Mayo, Ireland. ... The Irish Civil War (June 28, 1922 – May 24, 1923) was a conflict between supporters and opponents of the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 6, 1921, which established the Irish Free State, precursor of todays Republic of Ireland. ...

Organization

The Irish Republican Brotherhood was led by an eleven member Supreme Council, consisting of representatives from the seven districts in which the organization was active: the Irish provinces of Ulster, Munster, Leinster, and Connacht, as well as Scotland, North England, and South England. Four other members were co-opted, and together this council elected three of its members to the executive, which consisted of President, Secretary, and Treasurer. This article is about the nine-county Irish province. ... Statistics Area: 24,607. ... Statistics Area: 19,774. ... Statistics Area: 17,713. ... This article is about the country. ... For other uses, see England (disambiguation). ...

Presidents of the Irish Republican Brotherhood (1858-1922)

The Supreme Council of the IRB was established in 1869. Nevertheless, James Stephens and Thomas J. Kelly are usually recognized as presidents or chairmen of the organization. Theoretically, its presidence could have changed every two years between 1869 and 1922. Here there is a provisional list of the IRB presidents. It goes without saying that many dates are uncertain. Apart from that, whoever was IRB president didn't necessarily play a major factor in what the movement was doing, as sometimes it was just an honourable title.

• James Stephens (1858-1866)
• Thomas J. Kelly (1866-1867)
• James Francis Xavier O'Brien (1869?-1872?)
• Charles Kickham (1873-1882)
• John O'Connor (1882?-1891?)
• John O'Leary (1891?-1907)
• Neal O'Boyle (1907-1910)
• John Mulholland (1910-1912)
• Seamus Deakin (1913-1914)
• Denis McCullough (1915-1916)
• Thomas Ashe (1916-1917)
• Seán McGarry (1917-1919)
• Harry Boland (1919-1920)
• Patrick Moylett (1920)
• Michael Collins (1920-1922)

James Stephens (1825 - 1901) was also an Irish nationalist who founded the Irish Republican Brotherhood around 1850. ... Charles Joseph Kickham (9 May 1828–22 August 1882) was an Irish patriot, novelist and poet. ... John Cardinal OConnor His Eminence John Cardinal OConnor, (January 15, 1920 – May 3, 2000) was the eleventh bishop (eighth archbishop) of the Roman Catholic archdiocese of New York, serving from 1984 until his death in 2000. ... John OLeary (1830 - 1907) was an Irish poet noted for his failure as a student of both law and medicine, and for his imprisonment in England during the nineteenth century. ... Denis McCullough (1883 - 1968) was a prominent Irish rebel in the early 20th century. ... Thomas Ashe Thomas Ashe (12 January 1885 – 25 September 1917) born in Lispole, County Kerry, Ireland, a teacher, was a member of the Gaelic League, the Irish Republican Brotherhood as well as a founding member of the Irish Volunteers. ... Harry Boland Harry Boland (1887–1922) was an Irish nationalist of the early Twentieth Century. ... Michael John (Mick) Collins (Irish: ; 16 October 1890 – 22 August 1922) was an Irish revolutionary leader, Minister for Finance in the Irish Republic, Director of Intelligence for the IRA, and member of the Irish delegation during the Anglo-Irish Treaty negotiations, both as Chairman of the Provisional Government and Commander...

The oath

The oath of the Irish Republican Brotherhood changed throughout the years, though the one probably best known goes as follows:

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 the constitution of the Irish Republican Brotherhood and all my superior officers and that I will preserve inviolable the secrets of the organisation.

Footnotes

1. ^ O'Malley, who was not an IRB member, describes in his book, "The Singing Flame", attending an IRB meeting in Limerick in 1922, in which members were ordered to accept the Treaty. He viewed this as an attempt to subvert the true Republicans in the IRA by manipulating the IRB's secret oath-bound organisation.
   

This article incorporates text from the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica, which is in the public domain.

See also

• Catalpa rescue,The escape of six Fenians from Australia.
• [UCD Archives]

The Catalpa rescue was a 1876 escape of six British penal colony of Western Australia. ...

External links

• The Irish Republican Brotherhood, from the BBC History site
• Irish Nationalism and Anglo-American Naturalization: The Settlement of the Expatriation Question 1865-1872