Lily Kempson (17 January 1897 – 21 January 1996) was an Irish revolutionary who took part in the 1916

Easter Rising The Easter Rising ( ga, Éirí Amach na Cásca), also known as the Easter Rebellion, was an armed insurrection in Ireland during Easter Week in April 1916. The Rising was launched by Irish republicans against British rule in Ireland with the a ...

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

. Born Elizabeth Anne Kempson in

County Wicklow County Wicklow ( ; ga, Contae Chill Mhantáin ) is a county in Ireland. The last of the traditional 32 counties, having been formed as late as 1606, it is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and the province of Leinster. It is bordered by t ...

, Ireland, she is remembered as an trade union activist and lecturer, as well as an insurrectionist in the

Irish Citizen Army The Irish Citizen Army (), or ICA, was a small paramilitary group of trained trade union volunteers from the Irish Transport and General Workers' Union (ITGWU) established in Dublin for the defence of workers' demonstrations from the Dublin M ...

. She was the last surviving participant of the Easter Rising.

Early life

Kempson was born into an impoverished Catholic family in County Wicklow. She and her family moved to Dublin when she was a child. The Kempsons, including her father James, a railway porter, mother Esther Moore Kempson, 92-year-old grandmother Mary Moore, Lily and her eight siblings, shared a two-room tenement home in 8 Piles Building situated between Golden Lane and Wood Street in Dublin's

Liberties Liberty is the ability to do as one pleases, or a right or immunity enjoyed by prescription or by grant (i.e. privilege). It is a synonym for the word freedom. In modern politics, liberty is understood as the state of being free within society fr ...

area close to the City Centre. In 1913, aged 16, during the

Dublin lock-out The Dublin lock-out was a major industrial dispute between approximately 20,000 workers and 300 employers that took place in Ireland's capital and largest city, Dublin. The dispute, lasting from 26 August 1913 to 18 January 1914, is often vie ...

, she was arrested and on 14 November imprisoned for two weeks in

Mountjoy Gaol Mountjoy Prison ( ga, Príosún Mhuinseo), founded as Mountjoy Gaol and nicknamed ''The Joy'', is a medium security men's prison located in Phibsborough in the centre of Dublin, Ireland. The current prison Governor is Edward Mullins. History ...

for participating in a strike at

Jacob's Jacob's is a brand name for several lines of biscuits and crackers in the Republic of Ireland and the United Kingdom. The brand name is owned by the Jacob Fruitfield Food Group, part of Valeo Foods, which produces snacks for the Irish market. ...

Biscuit Factory in Bishop Street, Dublin where she had been employed since 1911. She was also charged with assaulting a fellow worker Jane Timmons. She and the other strikers objected to the harsh working conditions inside the factory. She lost her job as a result of her participation in the strike. Kempson was described in 1913 as having been small and slender with light brown hair, brown eyes and a sallow complexion.Lily Kempson McAlerney and the 1916 Easter Rising. Lily 1916.com Her father and two of her brothers,James and Patrick served in the British Army in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

Activism

By the age of 19, Kempson had become involved in the trade union movement working out of Dublin's

Liberty Hall Liberty Hall ( ga, Halla na Saoirse), in Dublin, Ireland, is the headquarters of the Services, Industrial, Professional, and Technical Union (SIPTU). Designed by Desmond Rea O'Kelly, it was completed in 1965. It was for a time the tallest b ...

. Like many of the most militant women sacked from Jacob's during the lockout, she joined

James Connolly James Connolly ( ga, Séamas Ó Conghaile; 5 June 1868 – 12 May 1916) was an Irish republican, socialist and trade union leader. Born to Irish parents in the Cowgate area of Edinburgh, Scotland, Connolly left school for working life at the a ...

, a small group of trained trade union volunteers from the Irish Transport and General Workers' Union (ITGWU) established in Dublin for the defence of worker's demonstrations from the police. She eventually joined the rebel Irish Voluntary Army. During the Easter Rebellion which lasted the Easter Week of 24-29 April, she was dispatched to help take over

St. Stephen's Green St Stephen's Green () is a garden square and public park located in the city centre of Dublin, Ireland. The current landscape of the park was designed by William Sheppard. It was officially re-opened to the public on Tuesday, 27 July 1880 by Lo ...

. She was given a gun and instructed "you’ve got to use this, but be careful who you hit." When one of the other insurrectionists attempted to abandon the group, she pointed the firearm at him and explained that "no one was leaving". During the siege of Dublin, which lasted a week, Kempson served as a courier for

Padraic Pearse Patrick Henry Pearse (also known as Pádraig or Pádraic Pearse; ga, Pádraig Anraí Mac Piarais; 10 November 1879 – 3 May 1916) was an Irish teacher, barrister, poet, writer, nationalist, republican political activist and revolutionary who ...

and the others insurrectionists inside the General Post Office, risking her life as she dodged snipers. Frank Robbins, a fighter in the Irish Citizens Army, noted that Commandant Michael Mallin "had actually to avail of the services of members of the women's section of the Citizen Army...

Constance Markievicz Constance Georgine Markievicz ( pl, Markiewicz ; ' Gore-Booth; 4 February 1868 – 15 July 1927), also known as Countess Markievicz and Madame Markievicz, was an Irish politician, revolutionary, nationalist, suffragist, socialist, and the fir ...

, Lily Kempson and Mary Hyland gave invaluable assistance." Kempson claimed that as part of a group of seven, led by Malkin and Markiewicz, she slashed the portrait of

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 21 ...

when the group occupied the Royal College of Surgeons located at St. Stephens Green. When the insurrection was put down on 29 April, Kempson was marked for arrest and imprisonment, but fled to

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

where she sailed for the United States using her sister's passport. In recognition of her role in the 1916 Rising, Kempson received medals as well a monthly pension from the Irish government.

Personal life

Shortly after she arrived in the United States and settled in

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

, Washington, Kempson married Matthew McAlerney, an Irish immigrant from

County Down County Down () is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the traditional thirty-two counties of Ireland. It covers an area of and has a population of 531,665. It borders County Antrim to the ...

.John F. Keane, "Irish Seattle," Irish Heritage Club, 2007, pp. 42-43 The marriage took place on 27 February 1917 and couple went on to have seven children, Kathleen, Alice, Matthew, John, James, Betty and Peggy. She was a great-great-grandmother of five at the time of her death in Seattle at the age of 99.

References

External links

Lily (Kempson) McAlerney official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kempson, Lily 20th-century Irish women 1897 births 1996 deaths Cumann na mBan members 20th-century Irish people Irish emigrants to the United States People of the Easter Rising Irish rebels People from County Wicklow Irish Citizen Army members