Easter Rising Ignites: Irish Rebellion Against British Rule
Irish nationalists seized key buildings in Dublin on April 24, 1916, during the Easter Rising, declaring an independent Irish Republic from the steps of the General Post Office. Patrick Pearse read the Proclamation of the Republic to a bewildered crowd. The rebels held out for six days against 16,000 British troops backed by artillery and a gunboat on the Liffey. The fighting killed 485 people, including 260 civilians. The Rising itself was a military failure, but British overreaction transformed public opinion. The execution of 16 rebel leaders by firing squad over ten days turned them into martyrs. James Connolly, too wounded to stand, was strapped to a chair and shot. Within five years, Ireland had won its independence.
April 24, 1916
110 years ago
Key Figures & Places
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