#OTD in 1888 – Birth of Irish nationalist, Sorcha MacMahon, in Co Monaghan.

20/07/2018.Reading time 4 minutes.

It was said of Sorcha by her contemporaries that there was no ‘woman of that period whose efficiency, selflessness and enthusiasm was greater’. Born Sarah Teresa MacMahon at Coas, Co Monaghan. Born in 1888, she was called after her mother; as well as using her given name, she also used the Irish form, Sorcha. Her […]

#OTD in 1874 – Cathal Brugha (b. Charles William St. John Burgess) is born in Dublin.

18/07/2018.Reading time 3 minutes.

Fuair sé bás ar son Saoirse na hÉireann. Twas England bade our wild geese go, that ‘small nations might be free’; Their lonely graves are by Suvla’s waves or the fringe of the great North Sea. Oh, had they died by Pearse’s side or fought with Cathal Brugha Their graves we’d keep where the Fenians […]

#OTD in 1884 – Louise Gavan Duffy, teacher and revolutionary, is born in Nice, France.

17/07/2018.Reading time 7 minutes.

Best known for her involvement in nationalist politics, the Gaelic revival, and the women’s suffrage movement in Ireland, Louise Gavan Duffy joined Cumann na mBan on its foundation in 1914 and was made joint secretary. Louise Gavan Duffy was writing her MA thesis at her lodgings on Haddington Road when she heard the 1916 Easter […]

#OTD in 1922 – Death of Cathal Brugha from injuries received when shot by Free State forces on O’Connell Street on 5 July.

07/07/2018.Reading time 3 minutes.

#OTD in 1918 – Sinn Féin, the Irish Volunteers, Cumann na mBan and the Gaelic League were all proclaimed as illegal organisations by the Lord Lieutenant, Viscount French.

05/07/2018.Reading time 3 minutes.

The proclamation stated that the proscribed organisations are dangerous and a ‘grave menace’ designed to ‘terrorise the peaceful and law-abiding subjects of His Majesty in Ireland’. It goes on to say that these associations ‘encourage and aid persons to commit crimes and promote and incite to acts of violence and intimidation and interfere with the […]

#OTD in 1957 – Death of nurse and member of Cumann na mBan, Elizabeth O’Farrell. Best known for delivering the surrender in the Easter Rising of 1916.

25/06/2018.Reading time 3 minutes.

Elizabeth O’Farrell was born in Dublin in November 1884. In 1906 she joined Inghinidhe na hÉireann and along with her lifelong friend Julia Grenan she also joined Cumann na mBan, the women’s branch of the Irish Volunteers. As plans were put in place for the Easter Rising of April 1916, Elizabeth and Julia were sent […]

#OTD in 1981 – Death of activist, writer and member of the Senate, Nora Connolly O’Brien, in Dublin. 1981 – Death of activist and writer, and member of the Senate, Nora Connolly O’Brien, in Dublin.

17/06/2018.Reading time 8 minutes.

Nora Connolly was born in Edinburgh in 1893. She was the second daughter of James Connolly, and the family moved to Dublin having lived for a time in the United States and Belfast. Her father was an organiser for the Dublin Socialist club and the family lived in poverty for much of her childhood. […]

#OTD in 1948 – Death of writer and playwright and member of Cumann na mBan, Lily O’Brennan.

31/05/2018.Reading time 2 minutes.

Lily O’Brennan, sister of Áine Ceannt, was born in Dublin in 1878. She was a writer and playwright and joined Cumann na mBan upon its inception; she was a member of the Inghinidhe Branch. During the Rising she served with the Marrowbone Lane garrison. She was arrested and held in Kilmainham Gaol and was released […]

#OTD in 1892 – Birth of revolutionary and feminist, Margaret Skinnider, in Coatbridge, Scotland. She fought during the 1916 Easter Rising in Dublin.

28/05/2018.Reading time 4 minutes.

‘Scotland is my home, but Ireland my country.’ –Margaret Skinnider Margaret Skinnider was born to immigrant parents from Co Monaghan. She became a mathematics teacher in Scotland and was active in the women’s suffrage movement. She also joined the Glasgow branches of the Irish Volunteers and Cumann na mBan in 1914; she also joined the […]

#OTD in 1858 – Birth of activist, feminist, politician and businesswoman, Jennie Wyse Power, in Baltinglass, Co Wicklow.

01/05/2018.Reading time 3 minutes.

Jennie Wyse Power, born Jane O’Toole, in Baltinglass, Co Wicklow in 1858. In the 1880s she joined the Ladies Land League and found herself immersed in their activities during the Land War. She would compile lists of those evicted from their homes and also she organised the Land League in Wicklow and Carlow. In 1883 […]

Stair na hÉireann/History of Ireland

Tag: Cumann na mBan