Revolutions are frequently thought of as the realm of men, but the women of Ireland not only fought beside their countrymen — refusing to flee and save themselves from capture or execution – but they themselves advocated for change. Inghinidhe na hEireann, founded by Maud Gonne in 1900, argued for Irish freedom five years before Arthur Griffith founded Sinn Fein.
For Irish women, the fight for freedom was not just about nationalism or patriotism, it was a social movement. Inghinidhe witnessed the reality of the poorest people in Ireland – the high infant mortality rates, the vile standards of living, the lack of education – and it was this social awareness that set women revolutionaries apart from their contemporaries.
Mná 1916 agus Réabhlóid na hÉireann
Ceaptar go minic gur réimse na bhfear iad réabhlóidí, ach ní hamháin gur throid mná na hÉireann taobh le fir na tíre – ag diúltú teitheadh ionas nach ngabhfaí iad nó iad a chur chun báis – ach mhol siad féin athruithe freisin. D’áitigh Inghinidhe na hÉireann, a bhunaigh Maud Gonne in 1900, gur cheart d’Éirinn a bheith saor cúig bliana sular bhunaigh Arthur Griffith Sinn Féin.
Dar le mná na hÉireann, níor bhain an troid ar son na saoirse leis an náisiúnachas nó leis an tírghrá amháin, ba ghluaiseacht shóisialta í. Chonaic Inghinidhe na hÉireann fíorshaol na ndaoine ba bhoichte in Éirinn – an mhortlaíocht naíonán ard, na caighdeáin ainnise mhaireachtála, an easpa oideachais – agus ba í an fheasacht shóisialta seo a chruthaigh idirdhealú idir na mná réabhlóideacha agus lucht a gcomhaimsire.
