IN THIS ISSUE: FAMILY HISTORY THROUGH THE LENS EYEWITNESS

ISSUE 2/SUMMER 2016 6.25

THE
FENIAN
RAM

FIRE ON L
CLIONA
An eyewitness
account

John Hollands
Submarine

COUNTY
DONEGAL
IN 1916

HISTORY
BEHIND
BARS

The Easter
Rebellion

Mountjoy Gaol
Museum

LIMERICKS
CITADEL
King Johns Castle

THE FENIAN
INVASION OF
CANADA 1866

By Dr. David Doolin

Display date: June 1st September 1st

Veterans | Heritage | Living History

WELCOME

Publisher:
Reveille Publications Ltd.
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Maynooth
Co. Kildare
ISSN
Print- ISSN 2009-8847
Digital-ISSN 2009-8855
Editor
Wesley Bourke
editor@irelandsmilitarystory.ie
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Editors Note

his year has made for some interesting

discussions. Notably commemorations have
marked the sesquicentennial of the Fenian
invasion of Canada; the centenary of the 1916
Easter Rising and the Irish in the Battle of the Somme;
and the 75th anniversary of the North Strand bombings by the Luftwaffe. Most
attention has been paid to the Easter Rising with commemorations and events all
over Ireland and abroad. One event which has all but been forgotten at home is the
Fenian invasion of Canada.
The Fenian Brotherhood were the American counterpart to the Irish Republican
Brotherhood. Some of these Fenians were in exile after a failed rebellion in 1848. By
the end of the American Civil War plans had been put in motion to liberate Canada
from British rule. To commemorate this event, historians gathered on the anniversary
to discuss the raids of 150 years ago.
Remarkably there are still several Circles of the Fenian Brotherhood. Made up
of Irish Americans, these modern day Fenians spend their time researching and
co-ordinating living history commemorative events. These living historians such
as James M. Madden have methodically researched down to the button what the
Fenians of 1866, dressed like and were equipped with. Although 150 years ago the
Fenians were ordered to wear civilian attire so as not to raise suspicion, they did have
a green uniform, and believe it or not some buttons and rifles were stamped with the
letters IRA (Irish Republican Army).

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Yours in history,
Wesley Bourke

Digital distribution
MagazineCloner.com
Contributors
Donegal County Museum
Pat Dargan
Dr. David Doolin
Conor Dullaghan
James Madden
Patrick MccCarthy
Dr. James ONeill
Peter ONeill

Front cover

Members of the Fenian Brotherhood

Emmet Circle of New York/New Jersey
re-enacting an advanc across the
Canadian Border.
(Photo by Stephanie Ann Farra)

Interested in submitting an article or photographs? Here at Irelands military story we

welcome submissions from our readers. For further information please contact the editor
at editor@reveille.ie or visit www.reveille.ie/submissions
Disclaimer: All rights reserved. The opinions and views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of
Irelands military story or its contributors. Readers are requested to seek specialist advice before acting on information
contained in this publication, which is provided for general use and may not be appropriate for the readers particular
circumstances. While every effort is taken to ensure accuracy of the information contained in this Publication the
Publisher are not liable for any errors and/or omissions contained in this publication.

IRELANDS MILITARY STORY | 1

IN THIS ISSUE

Contents

11

1
4
5
11

Editors Note
Letters to the Editor
Dispatches

The Fenian Invasion of Canada 1866

Marking the 150th anniversary, Historian Dr. David
Doolin details the campaign by Irishmen to
liberate Canada.

22
27
32
33

Uniforms of the Fenian Brotherhood

Taking you back to 1866, James Madden examines
the uniforms and equipment of the Fenians.

History Behind Bars Mountjoy Gaol

Museum
In a rare opportunity we got to explore one of
Irelands most guarded museums.

42

Fire on L Cliona
Two Irish Naval Service veterans recall an
emergency at sea that nearly cost them the ship.

47
53
57

The Fenian Ram John Hollands

Submarine

County Donegal in 1916 - The Easter

Rebellion
In the first of a two part article, Donegal County
Museum looks at the effects of the Easter Rebellion
and the Great War on Co. Donegal.

The Balloon goes up in Ulster: taking

the Blackwater Fort
Dr. James ONeill looks at once Art ONeill attacked
Blackwater Fort in 1595 open war ensued.

58

Last Out the Royal Munster Fusiliers

and the Italian Front
In researching his grandfather in World War I,
Pat Dargan traces the steps of the 1s Garrison
Battalion, Royal Munster Fusiliers.

Irish Prison Service 1916

Commemorative Medal.

Books

Militaria
In this issue Conor Dullaghan examines the
Cumann na mBan badge.

Limericks Citadel King Johns Castle

Still guarding Limerick today stands one of the
best preserved medieval castles in Europe.

Read the latest news in Irelands military history.

17

37

66

Find out what titles are on the shelves that you can
add to your library. Read reviews of Irish Aces of
the RFC and the RAF in the First World War, and
Peacekeeper.

Calendar
Find an event near you.

Described as Irelands Michelangelo, this

remarkable Irish inventor changed the course of
naval warfare.

IRELANDS MILITARY STORY | 3

REMEMBERING OUR PAST

The Province of Canada

was formed in 1841. On July
1st, 1867, the British North
America Act formed the
Dominion of Canada. In the
centre was Rupperts land
which was owned by the
Hudsons Bay Company
and Alaska to the west was
owned by Russia.

The Fenian Invasion of

Canada 1866
By Dr. David Doolin

n the first week of June 1866, barely

a year after the conclusion of the
American Civil War, a new conflict
was initiated along the United States
northern border with what was then
known as British North America. Starting
on the morning of June 1st, a series of
raids by a group of Irish immigrants
calling themselves the Fenian Brotherhood
(Fenians or FB) culminated in a short

military confrontation with the BritishCanadian authorities. These Fenian raids,

also widely described as the Invasion
of Canada, were planned, commenced,
and carried out from within the United
States in an attempt to achieve one, or
both, of two main objectives: namely,
seize some territory and proclaim it a
Republic, with the future intention of
having that territory annexed to the

United States; and alternatively, or indeed

concomitantly, to try and foment an
international war between the United
States and Great Britain. These raids were
motivated by the Fenians aspiration to
damage the British Empire as severely as
possible so as to further the cause of Irish
independence. More specifically, those
that planned the invasion of Canada were
part of a transnational, revolutionary
IRELANDS MILITARY STORY | 11

REMEMBERING OUR PAST

organisation, an American branch (FB) of

an Irish revolutionary movement, the Irish
Republican Brotherhood (IRB).
How or what, one might ask, were the
FB doing in the United States in 1866, not
only organising but carrying out military
maneuvers across the border? Before
the American Civil War (1861-1865),
the Fenian organisation raised
money and planned for a
future date that would see
the Irish people in Ireland
rise in rebellion. The
US side was to act as
moral support and
asked to finance
revolutionary
plans, pay
for military
materials,
and provide
a salary for
leaders who
could donate
Cork born
General Thomas
their entire
William Sweeny
energy and
(December 25th,
concentration
1820 April 10th,
on ensuring
1892). (Image
courtesy of Library
an uprising
of Congress)
in Ireland.
The American
Civil War,
however,
generated
novel proposals
surrounding
both the function
of the American
FB, and what they
could achieve for Irish
freedom from within
the United States. As
the American Civil War
commenced, an immense
amount of Irish migrs had
been flooding into the United
States for at least two previous
decades. In the decade from 1845 to
1855 alone, at least two million, mostly
young, mostly single, men and women
left Ireland for the United States, fleeing
nefarious conditions, for which countless
remained eternally embittered. For
many of these mostly impoverished and
12 |

IRELANDS MILITARY STORY

unskilled migrants, the US army became

one of the few well-paying jobs for which
they were eligible. The Fenians quickly
figured that they potentially could have a

well-trained revolutionary army produced

from the American Civil War. From these
contingencies, then, the suggestion was
not only should the American FB be

a group in charge of fundraising and

generating political support, but now they
would have an army of armed men and
more importantly trained military officers,
to aid their fight for Irelands freedom.
As historian Kerby Miller has best
explained, the American Civil War:
provided a ready-made military
framework for Fenian recruitment
and training: over 150,000
Irish-Americans served in
the Union armies, many
in Irish companies easily
converted into Fenian
circles. When the Civil
War came to a close in
1865 the Fenians had
managed to mobilise
tens of thousands
of members from
their recruitment
scheme during
the War, and of
those who were
not intending
to participate in
a future battle,
their sympathies
helped raise
the hundreds
of thousands
of dollars that
swelled the
Fenian treasury.
Furthermore, the
quick disbanding
of the Union army
accelerated the
excitement and work
of the FB. In 1865 there
were a total of 273 Fenian
circles; 247 in good standing.
For the Fenians, then, plainly
the time to strike was the Wars
conclusion, when Anglo-US
tensions were grave, ever since the
British had accorded belligerent status
to the Confederacy; when the Fenian
membership was resolute; and with armed
soldiers readily available. Conditions were
clearly in the Fenians favour.
In the same year, 1865, the emergence
of William Roberts and Thomas Sweeny
as leaders of the FB was spurred by the

REMEMBERING OUR PAST

confluence of global affairs that saw

into the Canadian provinces. By May 1st,
Anglo-American relations excessively
1866, Sweeny and the War Department
strained. Indeed, the prospect of an
had drawn up orders to commence a
approaching imperial conflict between the
campaign for the Canadian frontier.
United States and Great Britain had all
Special Orders, No. 61 on May 22nd,
Fenian factions giddy with expectation.
ordered General William Lynch to take
So much so, in fact, the Brotherhoods
leadership advised that a programme to
train young Irishmen all across America
to prepare for an American-English
war be commenced. Whats more,
the United States was not
only saturated with battle
hardened soldiers, many
with Irish sympathies,
A Canadian MP from
Irish ancestry, or were
Roscommon, Lieutenant
Irish exiles, but the
Colonel Bernard Devlin,
had helped raise an
country also had a
Irish company for the
surfeit of arms and
1st Prince of Wales
munitions, which
Rifle Regiment. In June
a cash-strapped
1866 he was assigned
to guard the border
American
from Huntingdon to
Administration
Hemmingford. (Image
was willing to
courtesy of Fenian
hawk to eager
Historical Society)
customers. But
it was events
in Ireland that
became the
international cue
that pushed the
Fenians into action.
The IRBs national
organ, The Irish
People, was seized,
closed down, and all
the people associated
with it arrested, including
the IRB founder and
leader, James Stephens. For
the Roberts/Sweeny faction
the apparent collapse of the IRB
conspiracy in Dublin signalled the
need for action in North America.
American Civil War veteran, General
Thomas William Sweeny was appointed
Secretary of War of the FB, essentially
command of all troops on the Lake Erie
establishing the new way forward for
shore, at the points where the Fenians
the organisation. His authority now
were set to cross into Canada. Sweeny
perpetuated the disavowal of James
decided to send General Samuel Spear
Stephens Ireland plans. Sweeny began
to St. Albans on May 26th, 1866, to take
to solidify his position by recruiting an
command and as hastily as possible
ardently loyal staff, not necessarily to
descend on Canada. Sweeny laid out in
himself, but to the vision of an excursion
great detail the order of regiments and

battalions he expected there and the order

in which to assail the enemy. He outlined
what regiments should undertake the
various tasks in his plans of securing
the garrisons and bridges, as well as the
railroad and rivers, and to make a threat
on Montreal. The Roberts/Sweeney
faction of the Fenian army that gathered
along the border began to be referring to
themselves as the Irish Republican
Army (IRA). For the first time
in history buttons and rifles
donned the letters IRA.
For those who chose to
go forth to the border,
the daily news columns
continued to support
the notion that the
Fenians day of
redemption was at
hand. A plethora
of newspaper
reports in
late May reemphasised the
fact that secrecy
or stealth had
been long lost.
Daily bulletins
countenanced
how these Fenian
men of action
were serious about
their intentions.
Newspaper account
were important in
part to facilitate the
nationwide call for
recruits and volunteers,
so in a sense the reports
became a double-edged sword:
welcomed in the case of inspiring
draftees, unwelcomed for alerting
authorities on both sides of the border
of the Fenian movement. As the Fenians,
then, gathered along the border at Buffalo,
New York and St. Albans, Vermont,
these two positions on the American side
became focal points from where the only
significant manoeuvres that amounted to
the Fenian invasion of Canada would be
undertaken.
The basic strategy for the military
incursion of Canada was for Generals
IRELANDS MILITARY STORY | 13

REMEMBERING OUR PAST

Charles Tevis to cross with 3,000 men and

and fields. Notably, to underscore the
take Sarnia and Windsor; William Lynch
transnational condition, the eager invaders
was to cross with 5,000 men from Buffalo;
pronounced their intentions to fight the
and Sam Spear was to cross with the main
British Empire for Irelands freedom,
army of 16,800 and take Montreal. Tevis
then promptly raised the American flag
attempt amounted to nothing when he
on Canadian soil. As the summers day
gave up the ghost at the very first obstacle;
drew to an uneventful close, it was not
namely, an inability to secure boats to cross until 10pm that ONeill gave the order to
the lakes. Originally, Lynch
was ordered to organise a
crossing at Cleveland, but
somewhere along the way he
had taken severely ill, and
John ONeill was ordered to
take charge and invade from
Buffalo. As for General Spear,
his ultimate attempt at the
Vermont border incorporated
a force of approximately
1,000, some 16,000 off the
estimated numbers believed
to have been available
for the main army. While
the campaign ultimately
faded away, the Fenians
did make an important
and noteworthy start from
Buffalo, New York.
On the morning of June
1st, 1866, the Fenians
traversed the Niagara River
landing on British North
American soil and began
to spread out among the
village of Fort Erie. Under
the leadership of General
John ONeill, the Fenians
went about setting up a
preliminary camp, gathering
tools, horses, equipment and
Portrait of Brigadier General Thomas W. Sweeny.
food. The first strategic orders
(Image courtesy of Library of Congress)
entailed sending men out to
lift the rails near town, cut the telegraph
break camp. Word had come through of
wires, dig trenches, and erect pickets. The
Canadian movements towards the area,
elementary charge for Fenian officers was
as the Fenian army mobilised to advance
to ensure impatient soldiers were kept in
inland.
check through the idle morning hours in
Having left some men assigned to
the little waterfront town. Irish accented
varying details throughout Fort Erie, the
men, clad in an odd mixture of American
Fenian army humped their way inland.
apparel, including remnants of Union
ONeill deliberated over his best tactics,
uniforms from the late Civil War, went
and once he realised he would have a
about their assignments in the collection
better chance to defeat a smaller Britishof food and tools, constructing pickets,
Canadian force coming from his south,
and patrolling the surrounding roads
that determined his strategy to move in
14 |

IRELANDS MILITARY STORY

that direction. Having received a positive

report of British troops presence at Port
Colborne, ONeills decision was a military
calculation, knowing that if the troops
from Chippewa to the north, managed
to congregate with the troops from Port
Colborne in the south and together march
on the Fenians, then there was absolutely
zero hope of affecting
anything at all. By turning
south to the Ridge Road
to advance on Ridgeway,
ONeill aimed to dissect the
two positions, marching on
what he wagered was the
weaker column. His hope
was to proceed far enough
south to meet and defeat
the Port Colborne front,
while also putting enough
distance between himself
and the column coming
from Chippawa to the north.
This would have gained
the Fenians enough time
to perfect the conquest at
Ridgeway before having to
deal with anything moving
in their direction from
the north. All the while,
the hopes of being joined
by supporting FB forces
remained with ONeill.
On the morning of June
2nd, Colonel Owen Starr and
his advanced guard met the
enemy at the crossroads of
Garrison Road, Ridgeway;
here the Fenians finally
engaged the British foe on
North American soil at the
Battle of Ridgeway. The
Fenians were about a mile north of town
when their scouting party reported the
approach of the enemy. The British force
was made up of Canadian militia (the
dark-green uniformed Queens Own
Rifles of Toronto and the red-coated 13th
Battalion of Hamilton, reinforced by two
local companies from Caledonia and York).
They were under the overall command of
Lieutenant Colonel Alfred Booker of the
13th Battalion.
The Fenians rallied forward to the first

REMEMBERING OUR PAST

Orangeville Volunteers (Ontario) of 1866, Ready to Meet the Fenian Raiders.

(Image courtesy of Toronto Public Library)

crossroads in their vanguard where the

troops constructed pickets out of fence
posts and awaited the enemy. Having
drawn Torontos Queens Own Rifles into
a fire fight, the small number of Fenians
in front steadily fell back. The main body
of the Fenian army waited patiently back
along the road in a pine scrub, eager for
the advancing enemy. When the Fenian
skirmishers in the advance had drawn the
Canadians continually forward, they had
the superior force falling for their strategy.
They managed to draw the Canadians
towards the main Fenian picket, the men
lying in wait in a small enclosure. Having
sucked the enemy into their ambush,
the Fenians made a sudden advance at
the Canadians, who were thrown into
confusion and fear when the Irish front
line opened a consistent fire. The Fenians,

consisting of battle-hardened Civil War

veterans, chased the Canadian troops,
bearing down upon them, killing several,
and causing the enemy to such panic that
they ran away.
The infamous form square scandal
in Canadian military lore ensued at this
point. In startled terror at the sudden
Fenian assault, the discombobulated
Canadian forces were instructed to
form square in the expectation of a
cavalry charge, but there was no Fenian
cavalry. The defensive posture left the
Canadian militia sitting-ducks for
the Fenian skirmishers. This martial
debacle allowed the Fenians to take the
forward momentum and chase the more
numerous Canadians scampering through
Ridgeway. About a mile beyond the
far side of Ridgeway town, the Fenians

finally ceased the chase. Their strategy

had worked a charm, and the Canadians
absconded in disarray. During the Battle
of Ridgeway, the Fenians killed nine
members of the Queens Own Rifles
and wounded twenty-three, as well as
wounding eight of Hamiltons thirteenth,
including two of their officers. From
the Canadian reports, there were nine
Fenian bodies found at Limestone Ridge
and one at Frenchmans Creek. As the
exhausted Fenian few began to reassemble
on the outskirts of Ridgeway, they had
delivered a fleeting victory on behalf
of the Irish Republican Army. It was a
bitter sweet victory, however, when at
the conclusion of the battle, having no
back-up nor much material support, there
was little choice but to organise a retreat.
In ONeills official report he explained
IRELANDS MILITARY STORY | 15

REMEMBERING OUR PAST

that even though they had won the first

to avoid the scene of battle. Hurriedly
what was being performed elsewhere and
encounter, he realised that he was out
they plied full-steam ahead, on a nerveto offer a martyred sacrifice to the cause,
numbered two to one at Ridgeway. By the
wracking journey to Port Colborne with
in the name of greater success. He wrote:
time he had collected the wounded and
their cargo of prisoners.
If the movement is going on elsewhere,
made arrangements for the dead to be
When the firing had stopped at Fort
I will remain here until to-morrow, and
buried, ONeills return to Fort Erie was
Erie the Fenians were left unmolested.
will make this old fort a slaughter-pen,
not achieved until 4pm, coinciding with
Admitting that the day was against them,
but word was brought that the movement
Colonel Starrs return to the Old Fort from
the Canadian militia literally shed tears
was stopped through the interference of
Ridgeway.
over the disorder and confusion they had
the United States authorities. Only with
Sometime during the
news that no invasion was
day of June 2nd, when
underway did the Fenian
the main body of Fenians
commander then demand
marched inland to meet
transportation to enable his
the advancing enemy, the
armys return to Buffalo,
British had sent the Robb
when no good to the cause
steam tug with some
for Ireland could result from
80 men of the Welland
staying.
Field Battery, to patrol
And yet the Fenian
the Niagara River in an
invasion of Fort Erie, Canada,
attempt to stop Fenian
was a minor success for a
reinforcements arriving
brief period of time. ONeill
from the American side.
later praised the men who
On learning that the
had obeyed his orders and
largest body had broken
worked for the Fenian cause,
camp from Frenchmans
and singled out two for
Creek and marched
commendation: All who
inland, the Robbs
were with us acted their
commander set course
parts [] Michael Cochrane,
for Fort Erie. Once at the
color (sic) sergeant of the
village they came ashore
Indianapolis Co., whose
and began to pick up
gallantry and daring was
prisoners they assumed
conspicuous throughout the
were Fenians. Word came
fight at Ridgeway. [] Major
through that there had
Canty, who lived at Fort Erie.
been a fracas at Ridgeway
He risked everything he
and it appeared that
possessed on earth, and acted
the Fenians were on the
his part gallantly on the field.
march back to Fort Erie.
Special praise was reserved
When Commanders Starr
also for Colonel Starr, Colonel
and ONeill met up at
Hoy, and Captains Shields,
John Charles ONeill. Born in Drumgallon,Clontibrit Co. Monaghan,
the Old Fort in the town,
Conlon, and Munday, for
ONeill played a prominent role in all the Fenian raids.
they immediately organised (Image courtesy of Fenian Historical Society)
individual acts of bravery.
to engage the Welland
ONeill recommended their
Battery. The engagement ended after just
experienced, which left their comrades
promotion to officers in the IRA.
fifteen-minutes, with a total of three or
lying dead in the field. Nonetheless, the
In the meantime the US authorities
four men killed, and between eight and
odds were now heavily stacked against
were busy blocking more Fenians from
ten wounded. As did their colleagues
ONeill and his remaining men. Assessing
crossing to aid the Fort Erie invasion.
on terra firma earlier that morning, the
their position ONeill ordered for all his
At one stage close to midnight, after
command of the Robb panicked when they
men to gather up at the Old Fort at the
the retreat order was already issued,
recognised they were about to engage the
southern end of town. His initial orders
some 500 Fenians had arrived in Buffalo
approaching Fenian forces. The FB had
were to prepare the towns defences, while
waiting to cross and join the battle, but
won a second skirmish for the day. In the
the officers deliberated the best course of
it was too late. The US authorities were
brief melee, the few officers left on board
action. A determined militarist, ONeill
determined to halt the raids and ONeill
the Robb had shoved off and set adrift
sent word back across the water, to learn
had already implemented a full retreat.
16 |

IRELANDS MILITARY STORY

REMEMBERING OUR PAST

An 1869 illustration of the Battle of Ridgeway Charge of General

ONeills Fenians upon the Canadian troops, causing their rout.
(Image courtesy of Library of Congress)

In the early hours of June 3rd, as the

Fenian tugs approached the city from
whence they had boldly left just fortyeight hours previously, the mood turned
from despondency to abject humiliation.
Forced to surrender, the retreating
Fenians were informed they were under
arrest, and hauled to the USS Michigan.
The Michigan played a decisive role in
the final summation of this particular
Fenian attempt to invade British North
America. General ONeill and his fellow
Fenians were extremely frustrated at the
FBs own carelessness on the day, while
equally blaming American intervention.
Aside from the Michigan arrests, it was
the actions prior to the foray that were
beginning to shed light on American
interference and obstruction. Reminding
all observers that the arms confiscated by
the US government prior to and during the

Fenian incursion were federally authorised

purchases, for ONeill such seizures
of FB arms illustrated the American
governments bad faith. Furthermore,
arriving back in Buffalo, ONeill learned
that the town had been inundated with
Fenians, belatedly arriving to support his
cause.
When considering the Fenian invasion,
hindsight can embarrass a grand and
extravagant paladin. However, it is
important to note that when it came to the
discharging of that scheme, the writing
was only faintly on the wall, particularly
when it came to American policy. Even
when the Buffalo/Fort Erie exhibition
stalled, the Americans were sending
mixed signals. Between June 2nd and 6th
as Fenians continued to assemble and
men slowly and haltingly kept arriving to
border towns between Malone, Potsdam,
IRELANDS MILITARY STORY | 17

REMEMBERING OUR PAST

and St. Albans, there had still not been a

war on our own account. Yet, war we must
movement was no mere Irish tomfoolery,
definitive signal from Washington that
make [].
domestically nor internationally. The
the federal government would intervene.
The Fenian Brotherhoods plans to take
difficulty the US authorities had when it
Despite the fact General Meade was doing
the fight to British North America did
came to negotiating the place of the FB as
his utmost to intercede, the President
not end in 1866. For the following years
an Irish constituent organisation, further
had not, in fact, spoken out directly
to come the Canadian border became a
underscores the influence in domestic
against Sweenys Canadian invasion plot.
continuous skirmish line between Fenian
and international affairs they had, in the
Moreover, because it was left to State
and British soldiers.
middle of the nineteenth-century. The
officials to deal with the situation, the
Fenians, as a transnational, diaspora
organisation believed they were being
Dr. David Doolin has been working
organisation incorporated their agenda
offered a palpable wink and
as adjunct faculty
a nod, and they sent the
where he has taught
Cork born Fenian President William Randall Roberts, was a diplomat
word abroad to ignore State
courses in American,
and later a United States Representative from New York (18711875).
authorities and only adhere
European, and Irish
(Image courtesy of the Library of Congress)
to US federal decrees. The
history at University
Fenians believed they still
College Dublin (UCD),
had the administrations
Maynooth University,
unofficial support. It wasnt
and the American College
until midnight the day of
Dublin since his return
Sweenys planned incursion
to Ireland in September
at St. Albans on June 6th,
2014, after spending
that the federal government
the previous decade in
officially stepped in to
the United States. Dr.
put an end to the affair.
Doolin has specifically
It is easy to comprehend,
designed and taught
then, the grievances the
courses on the Fenians
Fenians asserted after US
in North America, Irish
intervention, although
Emigration, and the
it may have saved them
American Civil War.
from an extensively bloody
His first monograph
outcome. The much
Transnational
maligned Fenian invasion
Revolutionaries: The
was not as outrageous as the
Fenian Invasion of
historical lens has coloured
Canada, 1866 was
it. True, its execution was
published this year (2016)
far from meticulous, and the
to coincide with the
martial blueprint, however
150th year anniversary
thorough, ultimately had its
of that event. The
flaws. Still, its articulated
book was launched in
goals were noble, as
February by the Lord
illustrated in the words
Mayor of Dublin Crona
offered by General Thomas
N Dhlaigh, in the
Sweeny. Imagining success,
presence of the Canadian
he wrote: We shall have
Ambassador to Ireland,
won glory and credit for our
Kevin Vickers at Dublins
cause, both at home and abroad, we shall
Mansion House. Dr. Doolin will give the
into the global arena and they influenced
have humbled the pride of England and
Mark Defries Keynote Address on the
all the political debates of the day, on
silenced the cavilings of our enemies, and
opening morning of the Fenian Raids/
both domestic and foreign policy issues.
we shall have gained the active sympathies Calibrated to the vision of the Fenian men
Battle of Ridgeway Historical Authors
of thousands who [had] feared that
Conference in Fort Erie, on June 2nd. He
of action, that transnationalism meant
our scheme was chimerical and without
will also appear on Newstalk Radios
for the Irish people in the United States
a practical solution. For the authorities
Talking History show with Patrick
that, as ONeill put it after the invasion:
of Britain, British North America, and
Geoghegan to speak about his book on
We are a nation without a country, and
indeed the United States, the Fenian
consequently destitute of the right to Wage Sunday, July 10th, 2016.
18 |

IRELANDS MILITARY STORY

TAKE A STEP BACK TO 1866

UNIFORMS OF THE
FENIAN BROTHERHOOD
By James M. Madden
Photos by Stephanie Ann Farra
Members of the Fenian Brotherhood Emmet Circle of New York/New Jersey in preparation
for the 150th anniversary of the Battle of Ridgeway.

he Fenian Brotherhood evolved

in the United States from the
Emmet Monument Association
during 1858. Young Irelander
exiles, John OMahony and Michael
Dohoney founded the Fenians, as they
were collectively known. They were
closely associated with James Stephens
Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB)
in Ireland. Unlike the IRB, the Fenian
Brotherhood was not outlawed in the
United States and could meet publicly.
The Brotherhoods organisation was
broken down into Circles lead by a Head
Centre which reported up to a chain of
command to Head Quarters in New York

City. Each Circle usually had a military

body attached to it. During the American
Civil War, Fenian circles grew within
many Northern cities and towns. The US
Federal Army and Navy even had eleven
Fenian Circles during the war and officers
were given temporary leave to attend
Fenian National Congresses. Most Union
military showed up in their blue uniforms
wearing their rank within the US service.
When the Civil War ended in April
1865, returning veterans swelled the
ranks of the Fenian Brotherhood, anxious
to apply their acquired military skills
to save their beloved Ireland from its
British oppressor. In late 1865, a division

within the Brotherhood took place. It

was restructured with the creation of a
Fenian Senate, shifting the power from
New York to men from the midwestern
states. Colonel John OMahony was also
deposed as the Head Centre replaced with
William R. Roberts, a wealthy New York
businessman elected as President. The
Roberts wing was the most evident with
their public displays of drills, sometimes
in uniform.
Fenian uniforms began appearing in the
early months of 1865. The military dress
varied from circle to circle, as no uniform
regulations were in place, but the design
was always based on the US military
IRELANDS MILITARY STORY | 19

TAKE A STEP BACK TO 1866

Fenian Green US style shell jacket with yellow trim and IRA
buttons, worn by a Fenian cavalry regiment, taken from a
prisoner during the 1870 Fenian Raid. (Photographed on
display while on loan to the Collin Barracks Musuem Dublin by
Matthew Cassady)

pattern of the period with an element

of green within it. The uniform fashion
was whatever was on hand or what war
surplus the Circles could get tailored.
Most monies raised by the Circles went
to the purchase of arms. Uniforms were a
secondary concern.
One particular military dress appeared
in Cincinnati, during the 1865 St. Patricks
Day Parade. A Fenian contingent marched
in US pattern uniforms, green jackets
with yellow trim, sky blue pants and
blue fatigue caps encircled by a green
band around the bottom. At a meeting in
early February 1866, President Roberts
declared war on Britain and to the tune
of Garry Owen, Fenian troops paraded
in Cincinnati as a show of their readiness,
now wearing dark green pants and light
green jackets. Not all men were uniformed
who marched during this demonstration,
as not every member was completely
outfitted, but they all carried rifles.
Chicagos 1866 St. Patricks Day Parade
brought out The First Regiment of the
Chicago Fenian Volunteers. Only two
thirds had green uniforms with light
green shirts, blue caps with green bands
and many wore badges indicating their
company letter. Every man was also armed
with a new Springfield musket. It was
during this time, the term Irish Republican
20 |

IRELANDS MILITARY STORY

Fenian Buttons
Left, Brass Officers Irish Republican Army (IRA) button
with a wreath of shamrocks. These buttons first appeared
in 1867 and were worn on uniforms during the 1870 Fenian
Raid. (Right) Legion of St. Patrick brass button with a single
shamrock, St. Patricks Cross, sunburst in back of the cross,
centered, surrounded by a wreath of shamrocks.
(J. M. Madden Collection)

Army or IRA or the Army of Irish

Liberation was being regularly applied to
the Fenian Brotherhoods military.
Prior to the invasion of Canada, in most
cases, soldiers were told to dress in civilian
garb as not to raise suspicions with the
local authorities and in case of any inquiry
to state they were laborers heading west to
work on the railroads.
At the Battle of Fort Erie and Ridgeway
on June 1st/2nd, 1866, General John
ONeill, a former Civil War cavalry
veteran, commanded just under a thousand
men. These were professional soldiers,
seasoned on many battlefields under Union
Generals Ulysses S. Grant and William T.
Sherman, as well others under Confederate
Generals Robert E. Lee or Joseph Johnston.
Eyewitnesss recall seeing the majority
of Fenians, ages from fifteen to fifty years
old, wearing no regular uniforms but had
on an array of outfits, mostly civilian,
black broadcloth coats, every style of
blouse, slouch hats, stove pipe hats and
some had green ribbons tied to their hats
or in the button holes of their clothing.
Many accounts described an assortment
of U.S. Federal uniforms, artillery jackets,
blue caps and sack coats and quite a few
Confederate gray jackets as well as belt
plates embossed with C.S.A. (Confederate
States of America), attesting to the Souths

quota to the Fenian expedition.

Fenian prisoner Patrick Norton, a twenty
three year old laborer from Cincinnati,
Ohio was wounded and captured at
Ridgeway. One reporter portrayed Norton
as, wearing something resembling a
uniform with a pair of light blue pants,
green vest and a blue American sack coat
with a blue Federal cap. When asked,
Norton reluctantly admitted he had on a
Fenian Uniform.
The only hint of true uniforms came from
the Louisvilles 17th Kentucky Regiment,
which wore Federal blue jackets with green
facing on both the collars and sleeves
and the Fenian Cleveland Rangers, of the
18th Ohio Regiment, who donned green
overshirts with green Federal caps.
With the summer heat, many of the
Fenians tossed off their coats, vests and
even shirts during the battle and fought;
like devils.
Most officers at Ridgeway generally
dressed in citizens clothes also, with the
exception of a sword strapped to their side.
After the Fenian Raids of June 1866, it
became necessary to create a formal military
organisation within the Brotherhood. For
a more detailed article on uniforms of the
Fenian Brotherhood keep an eye out for a
full detailed account on Fenian uniforms by
James M. Madden in future issues.

r AT P BA K T

1866