One hundred and fifty years ago, members of the Fenian Brotherhood sought to force Britain’s hand by creating disturbances along the Canadian border. The raids failed, but they led to an unexpected outcome in 1867. OTTAWA, Ontario – It was civil warfare, with some almost comic sidelights, and it might have been lost in the mists of time but for a discovery in the attic … [Read more...] about 150 Years: The Fenians and Canada
Fenians
The Bonds of a Nation,
100 Years On
With the centenary of the 1916 Easter Rising upon us, a curious piece of memorabilia printed 150 years ago reminds us that the Rising was not the only bid for Irish independence. In the possession of Patrick Doherty, a director in the state comptroller’s office for New York, is a Fenian bond dating from 1866. Doherty is an avid collector of Irish artifacts and a well informed … [Read more...] about The Bonds of a Nation,
100 Years On
Dear Julia: Personal Reflections on 1916 and its Aftermath
A grandmother’s letters, passed down through two generations, offer a fascinating, and at times intimate, glimpse into the period following the 1916 Rising. Dermot McEvoy talks to Rosemary Mahoney “My maternal grandmother, Julia Frances Rohan (née Fraher), and her five sisters who emigrated to Boston from Ballylanders, County Limerick, were fervid Sinn Féiners. My grandmother … [Read more...] about Dear Julia: Personal Reflections on 1916 and its Aftermath
The Fenian Invasion of Canada
Irish veterans of the American Civil War launched attacks on Canada in an effort to win independence for Ireland. It was 4 a.m., but the men of the 17th Regiment were wide-awake. They'd encountered no opposition crossing the water, and they expected little trouble trouncing the enemy when they came face to face. They'd been waiting for this moment for a long, long time. … [Read more...] about The Fenian Invasion of Canada
A Soldier’s Story
The Fenians sold these bonds in the name of the then non-existent "Irish Republic," to help finance the Canadian invasion. The vignette depicts Cathleen Ní Houlihann gesturing with one hand to an Irish-American Civil War veteran to pick up the sword again to go and fight for Ireland which she points to across the sea. With 6% compounded annual interest from its date of issuance … [Read more...] about A Soldier’s Story