THE BIG FELLA. MICHAEL COLLINS. MICHEAL O COILEAIN.

MICHAEL COLLINS 16/10/1890 to 22/8/1922. Born in Clonakilty, County Cork. His father was a farmer, and was 60 when he married Mary Anne O’Brien in 1876, she being 23. He was 74 when Michael was conceived. He instilled in his son his beliefs for Irish nationalism. Michael was the youngest of 8 children. Mary Anne died in 1907 aged 54. His father died at 80 when Michael was 6.

He was a bright and precocious child with a passionate feeling of Irish nationalism. He left school at 15 and moved to London where he worked at the Post Office Savings bank at Blythe as a boy clerk. He was a fine wrestler.

He later studied law at King’s College, London. In 1915 he moved to New York for a year, returning to work with a firm of accountants in Dublin. He joined the Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB).

EASTER RISING. Collin’s was highly respected in the IRB and worked with Joseph Mary Plunkett, preparing arms and drilling troops for the insurrection. He was Plunkett’s energetic aide-de-camp in the GPO in Dublin on Easter Monday 1916. Plunkett was present but ill, recovering from an operation on his neck glands. The rising was a military disaster, but they achieved their goal of holding their positions for the minimum time required to justify a claim for independence under international criteria.

PATRICK PEARSE. Patrick Pearse was a scholar and poet with latent paedophile tendencies. He was the leader of the Easter Rising who gave the order for its commencement. He read the Proclamation of the Irish Republic outside the General Post Office on Easter Monday 1916. After 6 days of fighting he ordered the surrender.

Collins was arrested and imprisoned at Frongoch internment camp in Wales. General Sir John Maxwell, the military governor, arranged the execution by firing squad at Kilmainham jail, Dublin, of the leaders of the rising.

THOSE EXECUTED. Patrick Pearse, Tom Clarke, Joseph Plunkett, Eamonn Ceannt, Sean MacDiarmada, James Connolly who were signatories of The Proclamation of the Republic. James Connolly had been seriously injured during the rising and was executed sitting in a chair because he was unable to stand. Also executed were Ned Daly, Willie Pearse, Michael O’Hanrahan, John MacBride, Michael Mallin, Con Colbert, Thomas Kent and Sean Heuston.

The timing of the Easter Rising was ill conceived as Britain was fighting for its life on the Western Front. After the executions public sentiment, which had been against the leaders of the rising, changed, and they became martyrs. Eamon De Valera, was the only commandant of a batallion not executed, probably because he was born in New York and was a US citizen, although Tom Clarke was also a US citizen. The British were trying to get the USA to join the war on our side in 1916.

Collins became one of the leading figures in the post-rising independence movement spearheaded by Arthur Griffith. By October 1917 Collins was an executive member of Sinn Fein, a non violent group founded in 1905, and Eamon De Valera was its president. In the 1918 general election Sinn Fein swept the board in much of Ireland and formed Dail Eireann. Collins was appointed Minister for Finance.

The Irish War of Independence began in January 1919. Collins became president of IRB and helped organise volunteers as an effective military force, being a proponent of military action. He directed a guerilla war against the British. He also created a special assassination unit called The Squad to kill British agents and informers.

Often with the £10,000 bounty put on his head Collin’s would be seen on his bicycle on the streets of Dublin.

The British responded with the creation of the Black and Tans in 1920 The British responded with the creation of the Black and Tans in 1920. They pepetrated the “Bloody Sunday”massacre at Croke Park, Dublin. A ceasefire was declared in July 1921, and Lloyd George’s government offered a truce.

A delegation was required to travel to London for a peace conference and to negotiate a treaty. Surprisingly De Valera refused to go and Arthur Giffith and a reluctant Michael Collins went instead. The British were represented by Lloyd George, Winston Churchill, F E Smith and Lord Birkenhead.

The negotiations were from October to December 1921. At their first meeting Collins angrily said to Churchill “you put a £10,000 bounty on my head” to which Churchill quietly showed the £25 bounty the Boer’s had put on his head and said ”at least I gave you a good valuation.” Collins laughed and from then on they got along together.

Towards the end of the negotiations Lord Birkenhead said “I may have signed my political death warrant tonight” to which Collins replied “I may have signed my actual death warrant” The Anglo-Irish treaty was signed at 2.10 am on 6th December 1921 after Lloyd George said that without the signing there would be war within days. It provided for a Dominion status “Irish Free State”, whose relationship with the British Commonwealth would be modelled after Canada’s, and effectively overturned the Act of Union of 1800 and was a compromise. It was agreed areas of Ulster with a large Unionist population could opt out of the Free State, and an Irish Boundary Commission was established.

De Valera called Michael Collins and Arthur Griffith traitors. The Dail debated the Treaty bitterly for 10 days and on 7th January 1922 it was approved by a vote of 64 to 57. 2 days later De Valera and a number of his supporters walked out of The Dail forming the anti treaty faction and leaving the pro treaty faction. Arthur Griffith became president of The Dail. The stage was set for the Irish Civil War

The Irish Civil War was fought from 28th June 1922 to 24th May 1923 The Irish Civil War was fought from 28th June 1922 to 24th May 1923. In 1926 Fianna Fail was created from the anti treaty faction, and Fianna Gael from the pro treaty faction.

The provisional government’s (Dail’s) first obligation was to create a constitution for the new Irish Free State. Michael Collins as effective prime minister under president Arhur Griffith effectively did this, and it remains to this day the Constitution of Ireland. Thus began the terrible Irish Civil War.

MICHAEL COLLINS, COMMANDER IN CHIEF, IRISH NATIONAL FORCES.

ARTHUR GRIFFITH. Griffith was president of the Dail and exhausted through strain and overwork. He died of a possible sub arachnoid haemorrhage, or a heart attack 10 days before Michael Collins assassination.

By August 1922 the Civil War appeared to be winding down with the pro treaty forces having gained control of much of Ireland. On 20th August 1922, against advice, Collins journeyed to Cork, a stronghold of anti treaty forces, to meet republican leaders with a view to ending the war. His convoy undertook circuitous tour of West Cork where he stopped at an isolated crossroads at Beal na Blath where he was recognised by an anti treaty sentry.

As a result an ambush was laid by an anti treaty column at that point, on the chance that the convoy might come through again on their return journey. Between 7:30 and 8 pm the convoy approached Beal na Blath for the second time.

By then most of the ambush party had left leaving just 5 or 6 men at the scene. Shots were exchanged and Collins suffered a fatal head wound, and was the only fatality. Almost every other detail of what happened is uncertain due to conflicting reports.

“BY THE SWORD YOU DID YOUR WORK, AND BY THE SWORD YOU DIE” “BY THE SWORD YOU DID YOUR WORK, AND BY THE SWORD YOU DIE”. Aeschylus’s Agamemnon 1558.

De Valera has been suspected of ordering Collins killing, but there is no evidence for this. De Valera is alleged to have declared in 1966, “it is my considered opinion that in the fullness of time history will record the greatness of Michael Collins; and it will be recorded at my expense.”

Michael Collins was a larger than life personality with boundless energy and enthusiasm. His personal warmth and charm were combined with an ability to inspire confidence in a wide variety of people. However he was totally married to the Nationalist cause, and during the wars had no hesitation in ordering the death of opponents who threatened it. In 1921 he became engaged to Kitty Kiernan

An annual commemoration ceremony takes place every August at the ambush site at Beal na Blath, county Cork.