Eoin MacNeill
Eoin MacNeill
Eoin MacNeill was born in Glenarm in 1867, he co-founded the Gaelic League in 1893 with Douglas Hyde who would become the first President of Ireland. The League was set up as a non-political organisation to study Irish Language, Literature and Culture. MacNeill was a great linguist and historian and became Professor of Medieval Irish History in 1909. In 1913 he became instrumental in the founding of the Irish Volunteers along the same lines as the Ulster Volunteers, both were preparing for conflict over the issue of Home Rule, by 1916 he was Chief of Staff of the Irish Volunteers.
A split occurred in the volunteers after the majority sided with John Redman's call in agreeing with Edward Carson, to support Britain in the war against Germany. The remaining 10,000 members though remained under MacNeill's command. When he heard of the secret plan by the Irish Republican Brotherhood for an Easter uprising, he confronted Pearse who was one of the leaders. MacNeill refused to support the plan as he felt the volunteers were not well enough equipped but hearing of the planned gun shipment from Germany involving Roger Casement, he was reluctantly persuaded to stay with the plan and have those loyal to his leadership readied.
When news broke that the ship had been intercepted by the Royal Navy and scuttled by the crew with the loss of all arms, he countermanded his force which restricted the Easter Uprising to Dublin. Although he took no part in the Easter uprising he was tried by court-martial and sentenced to life imprisonment but subsequently released under an amnesty in June 1917. He became Minister for Education in the Executive Council of the Irish Free State from 1922 to 1925. He gradually withdrew from politics and became Chairman of the Irish Manuscripts Commission and published several books. He died in Dublin in 1945 aged 78.