"A True Brotherhood of Race" [1]

The Rising, and consequently Ireland’s independence, would have been far more difficult to achieve were it not for the assistance of the United States. Even prior to the Rising, the connection between the United States and Ireland was a long and intimate one. The Irish assisted America in her own war for Independence against the British, and during the Civil War of the 1860s, numerous Irish fought for the United States. As the Irish nationalists prepared for the Rising, they asked for help from America, reminding the Irish Americans of the Irish people’s service to the United States, and appealing to the American principles of liberty, freedom, and independence. [2]

Mac Neill, Eoin. Arms, Not Money, Wanted From America, July 1, 1914. S.I.: s.n., 1914. [Digital Library]

Irish National Volunteers. To Aid the Irish National Volunteers, June 1, 1914. S.I.: s.n., 1914. [Digital Library]

The Irish Americans readily answered these calls for assistance. The Clan-na-Gael, as the foremost Irish American society at this time, donated large amounts of money to the Irish cause, and helped make connections with the Germans. Furthermore, Irish American support for Ireland’s independence was not just a question of nationality, money, and munitions, but also one of commercial interest, as seen in this short article. [3]

What Independent Ireland Would Mean to the U.S. by P. O'Mahoney, 1916.

O’Mahoney, P. What Independent Ireland Would Mean to the U.S. S.I.: s.n., 1916. [Digital Library]

Irish Americans willingly offered their support in the months following Easter Week. [4]  This support continued over the years as the Irish fought boldly in their War of Independence. [5]  An American committee was even formed that, dedicated to Ireland’s relief, provided assistance for the Irish who had been affected by the War for Independence and British rule. [6]

McGarrity, Joseph. Typescript, Philadelphia Draft Speech by Joseph McGarrity, 1916. 1916. [Digital Library]

Clan-na-Gael. The Clan-na-Gael Journal, No. 29, June 25, 1916. Philadelphia: Clan-na-Gael, 1916. [Digital Library]

Republic of Ireland Prospectus of the First Issue of Bond Certificates Authorized By Dáil Eireann The Elected Congress of the Irish People. Philadelphia, Pa.: American Depository Land Title & Trust Company. [Digital Library]

American Committee for Relief in Ireland. A Summons to Service From the Women and Children of Ireland. New York: American Committee for Relief in Ireland, 1920. [Digital Library]

Just as the Americans reached out to the Irish, the Irish turned to the Americans for assistance. In 1920, Eamon de Valera, the President of the Republic of Ireland, reached out on at least two different occasions to the United States, asking for America’s financial and political support of Ireland as a sovereign nation. [7]

De Valera, Eamonn. “Letter, To: [Philadelphia], From: Eamon De Valera, March 9, 1920.” 1920. [Digital Library]

De Valera, Eamonn. Ireland's Request to the Government of the United States for Recognition As a Sovereign Independent State. Washington, D.C.: Irish diplomatic mission, 1920. [Digital Library] 

References

1. Eamonn De Valera, Letters from Ireland and from Lincoln Jail, England (Philadelphia: The Celtic Press, 1919), 5, http://digital.library.villanova.edu/Item/vudl:446032.

2. “Ireland for Belgium,” The Fatherland 4, no. 16 (New York: International Monthly Inc, 1916), 10-11, http://digital.library.villanova.edu/Item/vudl:147464; Irish National Volunteers, To Aid the Irish National Volunteers, June 1, 1914 (S.I.: s.n., 1914), http://digital.library.villanova.edu/Item/vudl:138667.

3. P. O’Mahoney, What Independent Ireland Would Mean to the U.S. (S.I.: s.n., 1916), http://digital.library.villanova.edu/Item/vudl:136682.

4. Joseph McGarrity, Typescript, Philadelphia Draft Speech by Joseph McGarrity, 1916 (1916), http://digital.library.villanova.edu/Item/vudl%3A336658.

5. Republic of Ireland Prospectus of the First Issue of Bond Certificates Authorized By Dáil Eireann The Elected Congress of the Irish People (Philadelphia, PA: American Depository Land Title & Trust Company, n.d.), http://digital.library.villanova.edu/Item/vudl:138100.

6. American Committee for Relief in Ireland, A Summons to Service From the Women and Children of Ireland (New York: American Committee for Relief in Ireland, 1920), http://digital.library.villanova.edu/Item/vudl:138124.

7. Eamonn De Valera, “Letter, To: [Philadelphia], From: Eamon De Valera, March 9, 1920,” 1920. http://digital.library.villanova.edu/Item/vudl:137464; Eamonn De Valera, Ireland's Request to the Government of the United States for Recognition As a Sovereign Independent State (Washington, D.C.: Irish diplomatic mission, 1920), http://digital.library.villanova.edu/Item/vudl:119295.