Latest / The History of Ireland: Rebellion, Empire, and Independence — Fexingo History / The Fenian Rising: Ireland's Forgotten American Invasion
Transcript
- Lucas: For anyone coming with us through these conversations about Europe, it’s easy to think of Irish independence as a single, linear march toward 1922. But the path was actually a tangled web of exiles, invasions, and desperate gambles across the Atlantic. Luna: So we’re skipping ahead past the famines to see what they were doing in America? Lucas: Exactly. By the late 1860s, the immediate shock of An Gorta Mor had faded into a grim stability, but the political fire hadn’t gone out. Instead, it had moved to New York City, where the Fenian Brotherhood was organizing a massive military campaign to invade Ireland from the north. Luna: They actually tried to invade? Lucas: They did. Led by veterans of the American Civil War, groups like the Clan na Gael amassed thousands of rifles and even some artillery pieces. Their leader, John O’Mahony, believed that if they could land a well-armed force in County Donegal, the British army would crumble under the weight of local support. Luna: Did they really think it would be that easy? Lucas: It sounds almost comical in hindsight, but their logic was rooted in the recent past. They had just won the American Civil War against a much larger opponent, so why shouldn’t a few thousand Irish-Americans defeat the British? The problem was that Ireland in 1867 wasn’t Ireland in 1798. Luna: How had things changed so much? Lucas: The trauma of the famine had broken the backbone of rural radicalism. Most people were too exhausted and focused on survival to take up arms for a cause they couldn’t quite see. When the Fenians landed at Buncrana in July 1867, they found almost no one waiting for them. Luna: Just a handful of locals? Lucas: A tiny group, yes. General Thomas Sweeney led the main landing party, but within hours, they were surrounded by British troops. There was barely a skirmish before they surrendered or scattered into the hills. It was less a battle and more a humiliating retreat. Luna: That must have been devastating for the organizers. Lucas: It shattered their credibility instantly. But while the invasion in Donegal fizzled out, a parallel plot was brewing in England that would become far more famous. A group called the Invincibles planned to kidnap the Queen when she traveled through London. Luna: Kidnap the Queen? Lucas: Yes, using explosives and pistols. The plan went wrong at every step. The bomb exploded prematurely, killing a police officer and injuring bystanders, including the famous journalist Walter Bingham. In the chaos, two Fenians, William O’Brien and Michael Larkin, were shot dead by police. Luna: And they became symbols after they died? Lucas: They became the Manchester Martyrs. Even though the plot failed completely, the British response was brutal. Two other men, Allen and Lynam, were executed for their role despite weak evidence linking them to the shooting. The public outcry was immense. Luna: The backlash helped the Irish cause internationally. Lucas: It absolutely did. The executions turned the Fenians from viewed as terrorists into martyrs in the eyes of many Americans and Europeans. It kept the flame of Irish nationalism alive even when the physical invasion had failed. Luna: Wait, I didn't realize the American angle was so huge. Lucas: It was entirely driven by the diaspora. Without the money and weapons from the United States, there would have been no movement at all. Figures like Patrick O’Donovan Rossa worked tirelessly to keep the organization funded and connected across the ocean. Luna: So the real power base was always in New York? Lucas: Precisely. The irony is that while the Fenians were planning invasions, ordinary Irish immigrants in America were just trying to build lives. The political elite were shouting about revolution while the working class wanted stability. Luna: That tension must have made things messy. Lucas: Very messy. There were splits within the Clan na Gael itself between those who wanted armed action and those who wanted political reform. But the momentum of violence had already picked up, fueled by the anger over the Manchester executions. Luna: It feels like a precursor to everything that came later. Lucas: It was. The tactics, the secrecy, and the reliance on external funding all set the stage for the Easter Rising fifty years later. The Fenians proved that the idea of an independent Ireland could still move millions, even if their methods were flawed. Luna: Thanks for helping me understand the scale of their ambition. Lucas: If you've been stepping into history with us episode by episode, you know we don't rely on corporate sponsors. A handful of listeners chip in monthly through buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo, and that's literally what funds making this many of these. Luna: It really keeps the research deep and the ads away. Lucas: And it lets us dig into stories like this without rushing. So if you can, check that link out. If not, that’s fine too, because your attention is enough for now. Luna: Back to the Fenians, what happened to the leaders afterward? Lucas: Most escaped back to America, but some were captured and transported to Australia as convicts. John O’Mahony himself lived quietly in New York until his death, never seeing Ireland free. Luna: Did he regret the whole endeavor? Lucas: There’s no record of him saying he regretted it. He saw it as a necessary attempt to break the cycle of oppression. For him, failure was better than submission. Luna: That’s a powerful way to look at it. Lucas: It was. And while the specific goal wasn’t met, the network they built remained intact. Decades later, that same infrastructure would help organize the Easter Rising. Luna: So the roots were definitely there. Lucas: Absolutely. You can’t separate the 1916 rebels from the Fenians. One grew directly out of the soil the other prepared, even if that soil was rocky and unforgiving. Luna: It makes the sacrifice feel more connected. Lucas: It does. We often view these events as isolated incidents, but they are threads in a very long tapestry of resistance and hope. Luna: What other secrets are hidden in those threads? Lucas: Many. Like the role of women in keeping the organizations running when the men were in jail or hiding. Luna: I’d love to hear more about that next time. Lucas: We will. Until then, keep wondering about the connections between past and present.