James Fintan Lalor
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James Fintan Lalor (in Irish, Séamas Fionntán Ó Leathlobhair) (10 March 1809 – 27 December 1849) was an Irish revolutionary, journalist, and “one of the most powerful writers of his day.” A leading member of the Irish Confederation (Young Ireland), he was to play an active part in both the Rebellion in July 1848 and the attempted Rising in September of that same year. Lalor's writings were to exert a seminal influence on later Irish leaders such as
Michael Davitt Michael Davitt (25 March 184630 May 1906) was an Irish republican activist for a variety of causes, especially Home Rule and land reform. Following an eviction when he was four years old, Davitt's family migrated to England. He began his caree ...
,
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 ...
,
Pádraig 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 w ...
, and
Arthur Griffith Arthur Joseph Griffith ( ga, Art Seosamh Ó Gríobhtha; 31 March 1871 – 12 August 1922) was an Irish writer, newspaper editor and politician who founded the political party Sinn Féin. He led the Irish delegation at the negotiations that prod ...
.Thomas P. O'Neill, ''James Fintan Lalor'', Golden Publications, Dublin,


Early life

James Fintan Lalor was born in Tinnakill House (Fintan Lalor always referred to his birthplace as Tenakill), Raheen,
County Laois County Laois ( ; gle, Contae Laoise) is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and in the province of Leinster. It was known as Queen's County from 1556 to 1922. The modern county takes its name from Loígis, a medie ...
(known at the time as Queen's County) on 10 March 1807. The first son of
Patrick "Patt" Lalor Patrick "Patt" Lalor (1781–1856) was a political leader in Queen's County, Ireland in the 19th century and the father of revolutionary politicians James Fintan Lalor, Peter Lalor and Richard Lalor. He was the first Catholic elected to the House ...
and Anne Dillon (daughter of Patrick Dillon of Sheane near Maryborough). Patrick and Anna were to have twelve children. Patrick was to become the first Catholic M.P. for Laois in 1832 - 1835, and was to lead a campaign of passive resistance to the payment
tithes A tithe (; from Old English: ''teogoþa'' "tenth") is a one-tenth part of something, paid as a contribution to a religious organization or compulsory tax to government. Today, tithes are normally voluntary and paid in cash or cheques or more r ...
. Patrick was to out live his eldest son by six years, dying in 1856, and his mother Anna was to die in 1835, the same year as his brother Joseph. James was, according to Tomás Ó Néill one of his biographers, a fine healthy baby when born, but as the result of an accident as an infant, was left semi-crippled. Though small for his age, being both pale and delicate, James was to display unexpected strength of body. Though hardy enough he was never sent to school, having private tuition at home instead. This was to continue up until he was seventeen, when it was then decided that he should go to college.


St Patrick's, Carlow College

In February 1825 he went to
St. Patrick's, Carlow College St Patrick's, Carlow College, is a liberal arts college located in Carlow, Ireland. The college is the second oldest third level institution in Ireland and was founded in 1782 by James Keefe, then Roman Catholic Bishop of Kildare and Leighlin, an ...
, the vice-president of which, Father William Kinsella, was to go on to become the
bishop of Ossory The Bishop of Ossory () is an Episcopal polity, episcopal title which takes its name after the ancient of Kingdom of Ossory in the Provinces of Ireland, Province of Leinster, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. In the Roman Catholic Church it remain ...
. It was Father William himself who welcomed James to the college and introduced him to Maurice Lenihan, who was to be his advisor and guardian. In College James studied both chemistry, under a Mr. Holt and the classics under Father Andrew Fitzgerald. While in college he became a member of the Apollo Society, where literature and music were studied, his favourite author at the time being
Lord Bolingbroke Henry St John, 1st Viscount Bolingbroke (; 16 September 1678 – 12 December 1751) was an English politician, government official and political philosopher. He was a leader of the Tories, and supported the Church of England politically des ...
. In college one of the great influences on James was
Bishop James Doyle James Warren Doyle, O.E.S.A. (1786–1834) was a Roman Catholic Bishop of Kildare and Leighlin in Ireland, who used the signature "JKL", an acronym from "James Kildare and Leighlin." Doyle was active in the Anti-Tithe movement. A campaigner for C ...
. In the controversies over
tithes A tithe (; from Old English: ''teogoþa'' "tenth") is a one-tenth part of something, paid as a contribution to a religious organization or compulsory tax to government. Today, tithes are normally voluntary and paid in cash or cheques or more r ...
, education and the
freedom of religion Freedom of religion or religious liberty is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or community, in public or private, to manifest religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship, and observance. It also includes the freedom ...
Dr. Doyle, writing under the pen name J.K.L, was considered very influential. An atmosphere of patriotism in the college was encouraged, and this was shown later, not just in James Fintan's later life, but in that of students such as John O'Leary,
Richard D'Alton Williams Richard D'Alton Williams (8 October 1822 – 5 July 1862) was an Irish physician and poet, "Shamrock" of the ''Nation''. Life He was born in Dublin, son of James and Mary Williams, who came from Westmeath. He grew up in Grenanstown, a townland n ...
and Maurice Leyne. While in college James worked hard and learnt the basics and principles not just of chemistry but law also. This understanding of law, Tomás Ó Néill suggests became evident from his writings later on. He suffered greatly through ill health during his time in college, and in February 1826, being ill and very weak he had to return home.


After College

Not much is known about James after he left college, most information being based on oral tradition. One suggestion is that he became an apprentice to a Dr. John Jacob, who worked in Portlaoise county hospital. In the June 1827 Dr. Jacob died and was replaced by his son who was a young medical student. The suggestion is that they did not get on and James left the hospital. Another account put forward for this period is that he left the hospital because of a "disappointment in love.” It is then suggested that James intended to sail to France. Tomás Ó Néill is fairly certain that James never went to France, and points to the fact that there is no reference to it in James later writings. However, in T. F. O’Sullivan, account of his life, in The Young Irelanders, states that he did in fact go and lived there for a couple of years, being supplied with money by his mother. What is known though, is that there is no real definite account at all about him for several years.


Tithe Campaign

Catholic Emancipation had been granted in 1829, and according to Patrick Lalor, Catholics would never be fully free while the burden of a foreign faith was on them in the form of tithes. Supported by his family, Patrick at a public meeting in Portlaoise, said he intended to give up paying tithes to a foreign faith. As a result of this declaration, Arthur Moore Mosse, who was the secretary of the Grand Jury, asked Patrick to call off his campaign offering to give him a receipt for the year's tithe, but this he refused. Mosse then offered him a receipt that would free him from tithes for the rest of his life, and this was also refused. Shortly after, the proctor seized twenty of the brothers' sheep, but they got ''replevin'' and the sheep had to be returned. When the sheep had to be sold the family painted "Tithe" on them, which meant no-one would buy them. On the way to Smithfield market in Dublin no-one would offer any help to the drovers. In Dublin the only bid for them was from the steward of the Rev. John Latouch, a Mr. Brough. It was Latouch who had sent the proctor to the Lalors in the first place. As a result of this the sheep had to be placed on a boat for Liverpool, but even there no-one would bid for them, so they were then driven to Manchester and then to Leeds: most died on the road. The Lalor brothers had through their father become politically active. (The
Tithe War The Tithe War ( ga, Cogadh na nDeachúna) was a campaign of mainly nonviolent civil disobedience, punctuated by sporadic violent episodes, in Ireland between 1830 and 1836 in reaction to the enforcement of tithes on the Roman Catholic majority f ...
had started according to
O'Neill The O'Neill dynasty (Irish: ''Ó Néill'') are a lineage of Irish Gaelic origin, that held prominent positions and titles in Ireland and elsewhere. As kings of Cenél nEógain, they were historically the most prominent family of the Northern ...
, but it would be some time before it would end.)


Politics

Politics began to play an important part in the life of the Lalor family. In 1832 Patrick Lalor, was called to give evidence before a Select Committee, having been recognised as one of the leaders in
Daniel O'Connell Daniel O'Connell (I) ( ga, Dónall Ó Conaill; 6 August 1775 – 15 May 1847), hailed in his time as The Liberator, was the acknowledged political leader of Ireland's Roman Catholic majority in the first half of the 19th century. His mobilizat ...
's Repeal Association. Founding himself the Laois Liberal Club, which was in later year's part of the election machinery for Parnell. During the elections of this year, Patrick was to come in ahead of Sir Charles Coote, the Tory Party candidate winning the seat, and this was seen as a major victory to the cause. During the campaign the Tory paper, the Leinster Express, attempted to destroy Patrick's character, claiming he himself was a tyrant. Patrick was in 1835 to lose his seat to Thomas Vesey, the son of Lord Vesey. Lord Vesey during the election compelled his tenants to vote against their conscience, and those who did not were evicted from their holdings. Around this time there were a number of secret societies in Ireland. With names such as the Blackfeet, Whitefeet and the
Terryalts The Terry Alts was an Irish secret society allegedly named after a Protestant army pensioner. The Terry Alts was one of many clandestine societies founded in Ireland. The society was set up in 1828 in the Corofin/ Klnaboy area and was active in r ...
. These groups originated from the Whiteboys of the previous generation. It was these groups who reacted to these type of evictions. James was of the view the root of the problem lay not with the societies but with the power of the landlords to evict tenants. Lalor's great friend at this time was John Marnell, also the son of a farmer, and he too shared Lalor's views. It was the issue of land and the ownership of land which was to shape the rest of James Fintan Lalor's life.


Temperance and The Shamrock Friendly Society

In 1838
Father Mathew Theobald Mathew (10 October 1790 – 8 December 1856) was an Irish Catholic priest and teetotalist reformer, popularly known as Father Mathew. He was born at Thomastown, near Golden, County Tipperary, on 10 October 1790, to James Mathew and his ...
, the temperance priest, began his campaign. In just a year or two of starting this campaign millions were to give up alcohol. One such society was formed in Raheen and Fintan Lalor became a member. In the November 1840 he then proposed that the Society should become an association and that it should have additional aims also. This was agreed and the name was changed to The Shamrock Friendly Society. In this Society they planned to organise free legal aid to help the poor, as well as organise reading and promote healthy games. In addition to the Society, Fintan Lalor was influenced by a group of agrarian reformers in his native county. They were led by William Conner, who suggested a scheme for arbitration on rents and fixity of tenure for tenant farmers. Conner's suggestions were to find few supporters, but Fintan Lalor was one of them. He became closely associated with Conner and spent weeks at his house near Athy. He also attended Conner's public meetings which were held in various parts of Kildare and Laois.Leaders and Workers, Edited by J. W. Boyle, Mercier Press, Dublin, 1978, Conner was finally charged with making a seditious speech at Mountmellick in 1841 for which he received a sentence of six months’ imprisonment. As a result of his activities Conner was expelled from the Repeal Association because he proposed that Repealers should not pay rent, county cess, rent charge, tithe poor rate or any other charge arising out of land until repeal was granted. Fintan Lalor agreed with Conner and it was at this stage that his political differences with his Father really began.


Repeal Association

In 1840
Daniel O'Connell Daniel O'Connell (I) ( ga, Dónall Ó Conaill; 6 August 1775 – 15 May 1847), hailed in his time as The Liberator, was the acknowledged political leader of Ireland's Roman Catholic majority in the first half of the 19th century. His mobilizat ...
split with the Whigs and re-established the
Repeal Association The Repeal Association was an Irish mass membership political movement set up by Daniel O'Connell in 1830 to campaign for a repeal of the Acts of Union of 1800 between Great Britain and Ireland. The Association's aim was to revert Ireland to th ...
as a separate parliamentary entity. While support for another one of O'Connell's associations was slow to start, with the adhesion of both Thomas Davis and
John Blake Dillon John Blake Dillon (5 May 1814 – 15 September 1866) was an Irish writer and politician who was one of the founding members of the Young Ireland movement. John Blake Dillon was born in the town of Ballaghaderreen, on the border of counties May ...
the Association was to quickly developed. James was totally opposed to both O'Connell and the Association. He thought O'Connell's whole policy was flawed, and wrote a letter to
Robert Peel Sir Robert Peel, 2nd Baronet, (5 February 1788 – 2 July 1850) was a British Conservative statesman who served twice as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1834–1835 and 1841–1846) simultaneously serving as Chancellor of the Exchequer ...
the head of government, calling for it to be suppressed. ''See Full text here:'' s:Letter to Robert Peel calling for Repeal to be suppressed This opinion of O’Connell was to cause a rift to develop between Fintan Lalor and his father, who much admired O’Connell. The final event being an article Fintan Lalor was to write in January 1844 about the aims of the Irish agricultural Society. As a result of this their relationship was to break down completely, and Fintan Lalor was obliged to leave home.


Dublin and Belfast

Having left home Fintan Lalor headed to Dublin. While in the capitol his health deteriorated and was to break down completely. Thomas Brady attended to him, and treated him for a chest complaint. Based on the medication proscribed, O’Neill suggests that it seems likely that what he was suffering from was tuberculosis. Fintan Lalor was to never fully recover from this episode. When his father found out about his sons condition, he sent money to help him out. Though he could have returned home at this time, he went instead to look for employment. His friend John Marnell introduced him to William Blood, who ran a bank come pawn shop, where the poor could get loans at reasonable rates. Fintan Lalor then went to Belfast to learn more about this from a similar establishment run by a Father James Finn. He took ill again, at one stage vomiting blood, and on the advice of his family and friends was urged returned home to Tenakill. He wrote to his father and apologized for his many faults. As a result, the bonds between the two were mended. Fintan Lalor, did not return home though, instead staying in the city and attempted to find employment. But his health was again to break down and at last he was forced to return home. By March 1846, he was back with his family in Tenakill.


The Nation

The
Great Irish Famine The Great Famine ( ga, an Gorta Mór ), also known within Ireland as the Great Hunger or simply the Famine and outside Ireland as the Irish Potato Famine, was a period of starvation and disease in Ireland from 1845 to 1852 that constituted a ...
led him into direct action: he attempted to found tenant-right societies and organise
rent strike A rent strike is a method of protest commonly employed against large landlords. In a rent strike, a group of tenants come together and agree to refuse to pay their rent ''en masse'' until a specific list of demands is met by the landlord. This can ...
s. On 11 January 1847, Fintan Lalor began to publish a series of "stirring and controversial letters and articles to newspapers such as The Felon and
The Nation ''The Nation'' is an American liberal biweekly magazine that covers political and cultural news, opinion, and analysis. It was founded on July 6, 1865, as a successor to William Lloyd Garrison's '' The Liberator'', an abolitionist newspaper tha ...
". Writing from Tenakill, his family home, Fintan Lalor put forward his views on current affairs and in particularly on land reform. His manner and style of writing quickly caught the attention of both its readers and staff. T. F. O’Sullivan commented that “the journal realise that a new force had arisen in the political world.” In the first letter, Fintan Lalor stated that contrasted with the question of the land, Repeal “was a petty, parish question.” On this he was quite emphatic “I will never contribute one shilling, or give my name, heart or hand for such an object as the simple Repeal.” Young Ireland, T. F. O’Sullivan, The Kerryman Ltd, 1945. Commenting on the Irish Confederation, which was about to be formed he advocated that its policy should be one of “national independence.” He then proceeded to outline the policy he would approve on obtaining independence, “in what form of words you please; but denounce nothing—proscribe nothing, more especially of your own freedom of action. Leave yourselves free individually and collectively.” He continued “if any resolution, or pledge, be adopted to seek Legislative independence by moral force and legal proceedings alone, with a denunciation, or renunciation of all or any other means or proceedings, you may have millions better and stronger men than I to join you; but you won’t have me. . . . There has already, I think, been too much giving in on this question of means and force.” He wrote again another letter on 19 April on the association between landowner and occupiers. Addressing himself to the landlords Fintan Lalor stated that “Ireland demanded more than her present dole of bread… Her demand was for a new Constitution…” In his third letter titled “Tenants’ Rights” and “Landlord Law,” he addressed the subject of the famine. “Famine, more or less, was in 500,000 families—famine with all its diseases and decay; famine, with all its fears and horrors; famine, with all its dreadful pains and more dreadful debility. All pined and wasted, sickened and drooped; numbers died—the strong man, the fair maiden, the infant—the landlord got his rent… The 8,000 individuals who are owners of Ireland by divine right and the grant of God, confirm (by themselves) in sundry successive acts of parliament have a full view of these coming results .e. Ireland would become a pasture ground once gain. and its agricultural population would decay or vanish and become extinct at onceand have distinctly declared their intention of serving notice to quit on the people of Ireland…The landlords have adopted the process of depopulating the island and are pressing it forward to their own destruction, or to ours…” Fintan Lalor's view was that the Landlords were “enforcing self-defence on us.” In the September 1847, Fintan Lalor, along with Michael Doheny, organised at Holycross, in County Tipperary, for the purpose of putting forward his views on land reform. The meeting was failed to produce the results he wanted. Lacking both eloquence as a public speaker, and his weak state of health also rendered him unfit to conduct a public campaign.


The Irish Felon

John Mitchel John Mitchel ( ga, Seán Mistéal; 3 November 1815 – 20 March 1875) was an Irish nationalist activist, author, and political journalist. In the Great Famine (Ireland), Famine years of the 1840s he was a leading writer for The Nation (Irish n ...
one of the
Confederation A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a union of sovereign groups or states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...
leaders, was very impressed by Lalor's views on land reform, and in a letter to
William Smith O'Brien William Smith O'Brien ( ga, Liam Mac Gabhann Ó Briain; 17 October 1803 – 18 June 1864) was an Irish nationalist Member of Parliament (MP) and a leader of the Young Ireland movement. He also encouraged the use of the Irish language. He ...
himself the leader of the Confederation, said of him “Mr. Lalor, …does not now go for the whole of his system, but contemplates violent pressure on the landlords of those districts to coerce them into a fair settlement of the tenure question; the coercion to take the form of non-payment to such landlords as hold out.” A policy Mitchel was later to adopt. Having failed to rouse the farmers, Lalor retired again to Tenakill, and it was not till the June 1848, that he again took to the public stage. He cooperated with John Martin in writing for ''
The Irish Felon The Irish Felon was a nationalist weekly journal printed in Dublin in 1848. Only five issues were published before its suppression by the British Government. History The ''United Irishman'' was a republican journal printed and published by Joh ...
'' which started on June 4, 1848. The publication of the ''Felon'' was in response to the suppression of John Mitchel's ''
United Irishman ''The United Irishman'' was an Irish nationalist newspaper co-founded by Arthur Griffith and William Rooney.Arthur Griffith ...
'', and the transportation of Mitchel. Among some of the titles were “What must be Done,” “The Faith of a Felon,” “Resistance,” his final one being “Clearing Decks,” on 22 July 1848. T. F. O’Sullivan was to describe Fintan Lalor writing as “powerful” of which three were included later in the indictment against, Martin for Treason Felony. Fintan Lalor responding to the indictment wrote to the Under Secretary, and took responsibility for the articles, and asked that the charges against Martin be dropped, stating that he would take responsibility. This was refused and Martin was, like Mitchel transported. This prompted the following response from Fintan Lalor “The rights of property may be pleaded. No one has more respect for the than I have; but I do class among them the robber’s right by which the lands of this country are now held in fee for the British Crown. I acknowledge no right of property in a small class which goes to abrogate the rights of a numerous people… I deny and challenge all such rights, howsoever founded or enforced. I challenge them as founded only on the code of the brigand, and enforced only by the sanction of the hangman.” In another letter in the Irish Felon titled “The First Step—The Felon Club,” which was published on 1 July, Lalor addressing the Government wrote “We hold the present existing government of this island and all existing rights of property in our soil, to be mere usurpation and tyranny, and to be null and void as of moral effect; and our purpose is to abolish them entirely, or lose our lives in the attempt. The right founded on conquest and affirmed by laws made by the conquerors themselves, we regard as no other than the right of the robber on a larger scale. We owe no obedience to laws enacted by another nation without our consent, nor respect to assumed rights of property which are starving and exterminating our people…” Outlining his intentions he wrote “We have determined to set about creating, as speedily as possible, a military organisation, of which the Felons office shall be the centre and citadel. As a first step of proceeding, we are now founding a Club which, it is intended, shall consist of one, two or more persons from each parish throughout Ireland who are to be in immediate connection and correspondence with this office. . . . A prospectus and set of rules are in preparation, which we will publish when completed. But without waiting for such publication, we earnestly request every man in Ireland who desires to enrol himself as a colleague and comrade, and as a member of the Felon Club, will signify his wish by letter to the provisional secretary, Mr. Joseph Brenan, Felon office, 12 Trinity Street.” In his last article for the Irish Felon “Clearing Decks,” Lalor wrote —“Remember this—that somewhere and somehow, and by somebody, a beginning must be made. Who strikes the first blow for Ireland? Who draws first blood for Ireland? Who wins a wreath that will be green forever?”


Arrest and Rising

Six days later Lalor was arrested under the suspension of the Habeas Corpus Act, and kept in prison for some months, after which he was released owing to the bad health which had been affected by his imprisonment. “His spirit, however, was undaunted,” according to O’Sullivan, and in the following year he set about organising a revival of the insurrection” in co-operation with John Savage,
Joseph Brennan Joseph Brennan may refer to: Politicians * Joseph Brennan (senator) (died 1950), Irish senator *Joseph Brennan (Clann na Poblachta politician) (1889–1968), Irish TD 1948–1951 *Joseph Brennan (Fianna Fáil politician) (1912–1980), Irish gove ...
, John O'Leary and
Thomas Clarke Luby Thomas Clarke Luby (16 January 1822 – 29 November 1901) was an Irish revolutionary, author, journalist and one of the founding members of the Irish Republican Brotherhood. Early life Luby was born in Dublin, the son of a Church of Ireland cler ...
in
Tipperary Tipperary is the name of: Places *County Tipperary, a county in Ireland **North Tipperary, a former administrative county based in Nenagh **South Tipperary, a former administrative county based in Clonmel *Tipperary (town), County Tipperary's na ...
and
Waterford "Waterford remains the untaken city" , mapsize = 220px , pushpin_map = Ireland#Europe , pushpin_map_caption = Location within Ireland##Location within Europe , pushpin_relief = 1 , coordinates ...
. At
Cappoquin Cappoquin, also spelt Cappaquin or Capaquin (), is a town in west County Waterford, Ireland. It is on the Blackwater river at the junction of the N72 national secondary road and the R669 regional road. It is positioned on a sharp 90-degree be ...
, in September, Savage and Brenan attacked the police barracks but the other leaders had not sufficient forces at their command to take aggressive action in the districts in which they were working, and the insurgents had to separate. Three months afterwards, on 27 December 1849, Lalor died in his 43rd year, as a result of an attack of bronchitis, and was buried in Glasnevin.


Legacy

The ''James Fintan Lawlor Commemorative Committee'', chaired by David Lawlor was formed in August 2005 to erect a memorial to mark the 200th anniversary of the birth of James Fintan Lalor. €110,000 was raised; Laois County Council provided the site;
Irish Life and Permanent Permanent TSB Group Holdings plc, formerly Irish Life and Permanent plc is a provider of personal financial services in Ireland. Irish Life Assurance plc and the Irish Permanent Building Society merged to form the Irish Life and Permanent Group ...
sponsored the project; the
Department of the Environment An environmental ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for the environment and/or natural resources. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of the Environment, ...
provided half the cost. The bronze statue of Lalor holding a pamphlet aloft was sculpted by Mayo-based artist Rory Breslin. The inscription on the limestone plinth reads:
Michael Davitt Michael Davitt (25 March 184630 May 1906) was an Irish republican activist for a variety of causes, especially Home Rule and land reform. Following an eviction when he was four years old, Davitt's family migrated to England. He began his caree ...
considered Lalor "the only real Irish revolutionary mind in the '48 period". His ideas were the ideological underpinning of the
Irish National League The Irish National League (INL) was a nationalist political party in Ireland. It was founded on 17 October 1882 by Charles Stewart Parnell as the successor to the Irish National Land League after this was suppressed. Whereas the Land League h ...
during the
Land War The Land War ( ga, Cogadh na Talún) was a period of agrarian agitation in rural Ireland (then wholly part of the United Kingdom) that began in 1879. It may refer specifically to the first and most intense period of agitation between 1879 and 18 ...
.


Family

James Fintan's brother
Richard Lalor Richard Lalor (1823 – 13 November 1893) was Irish Nationalist Member of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Queen's County, 1880–85 and for Queen's County (Leix), 1885–92. He was the son of Patrick "Patt" Lalor of Tenakill, Mountrat ...
born in 1823, became a
Young Ireland Young Ireland ( ga, Éire Óg, ) was a political movement, political and cultural movement, cultural movement in the 1840s committed to an all-Ireland struggle for independence and democratic reform. Grouped around the Dublin weekly ''The Nati ...
er who later supported Parnell. He was an M.P for Queen's County from 1880 until 1892. He died in the family home in November 1893.
Peter Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a sur ...
(1827–1889), James' youngest brother, went to Melbourne in the colony of
Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...
, Australia in 1852. In 1854 Peter led immigrant gold miners in an armed uprising at the
Eureka Stockade The Eureka Rebellion was a series of events involving gold miners who revolted against the British administration of the colony of Victoria, Australia during the Victorian gold rush. It culminated in the Battle of the Eureka Stockade, which ...
,
Ballarat Ballarat ( ) is a city in the Central Highlands (Victoria), Central Highlands of Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. At the 2021 Census, Ballarat had a population of 116,201, making it the third largest city in Victoria. Estimated resid ...
going on to become a Member of the
Victorian Legislative Assembly The Victorian Legislative Assembly is the lower house of the bicameral Parliament of Victoria in Australia; the upper house being the Victorian Legislative Council. Both houses sit at Parliament House in Spring Street, Melbourne. The presiding ...
(1856–1887) and ministerial posts including
Speaker Speaker may refer to: Society and politics * Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly * Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture * A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially: ** I ...
in 1880. His cousins included Alice Lalor (1768–1846), an early American religious leader, Dr Joseph Lalor (1811–86) an Irish mental health reformer, and
Joseph O'Lawlor Joseph O’Lawlor (sometimes O’Lalor; 11 July 1768 – 19 October 1850) was an Irish-born Spanish general who fought under the Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, Duke of Wellington during the Napoleonic Wars and later served as Governor of ...
(1768–1850) a Spanish general.


References


Sources

Additional reading
The Politics of Irish Literature: from Thomas Davis to W.B. Yeats, Malcolm Brown
Allen & Unwin, 1973. *John Mitchel, A Cause Too Many, Aidan Hegarty, Camlane Press. *Thomas Davis, The Thinker and Teacher, Arthur Griffith, M.H. Gill & Son 1922. *Brigadier-General Thomas Francis Meagher His Political and Military Career,Capt. W. F. Lyons, Burns Oates & Washbourne Limited 1869 *Young Ireland and 1848, Dennis Gwynn, Cork University Press 1949. *Daniel O'Connell The Irish Liberator, Dennis Gwynn, Hutchinson & Co, Ltd. *O'Connell Davis and the Colleges Bill, Dennis Gwynn, Cork University Press 1948. *Smith O’Brien And The “Secession”, Dennis Gwynn,Cork University Press *Meagher of The Sword, Edited By Arthur Griffith, M. H. Gill & Son, Ltd. 1916. *Young Irelander Abroad The Diary of Charles Hart, Edited by Brendan O'Cathaoir, University Press. *John Mitchel First Felon for Ireland, Edited By Brian O'Higgins, Brian O'Higgins 1947. *Rossa's Recollections 1838 to 1898, Intro by Sean O'Luing, The Lyons Press 2004. *Labour in Ireland, James Connolly, Fleet Street 1910. *The Re-Conquest of Ireland, James Connolly, Fleet Street 1915. *John Mitchel Noted Irish Lives, Louis J. Walsh, The Talbot Press Ltd 1934. *Thomas Davis: Essays and Poems, Centenary Memoir, M. H Gill, M.H. Gill & Son, Ltd MCMXLV. *Life of John Martin, P. A. Sillard, James Duffy & Co., Ltd 1901. *Life of John Mitchel, P. A. Sillard, James Duffy and Co., Ltd 1908. *John Mitchel, P. S. O'Hegarty, Maunsel & Company, Ltd 1917. *The Fenians in Context Irish Politics & Society 1848–82, R. V. Comerford, Wolfhound Press 1998 *William Smith O'Brien and the Young Ireland Rebellion of 1848, Robert Sloan, Four Courts Press 2000 *Irish Mitchel, Seamus MacCall, Thomas Nelson and Sons Ltd 1938. *Ireland Her Own, T. A. Jackson, Lawrence & Wishart Ltd 1976. *Life and Times of Daniel O'Connell, T. C. Luby, Cameron & Ferguson. *Young Ireland, T. F. O'Sullivan, The Kerryman Ltd. 1945. *Irish Rebel John Devoy and America's Fight for Irish Freedom, Terry Golway, St. Martin's Griffin 1998. *Paddy's Lament Ireland 1846-1847 Prelude to Hatred, Thomas Gallagher, Poolbeg 1994. *The Great Shame, Thomas Keneally, Anchor Books 1999. *James Fintan Lalor, Thomas, P. O'Neill, Golden Publications 2003. *Charles Gavan Duffy: Conversations With Carlyle (1892), with Introduction, Stray Thoughts On Young Ireland, by Brendan Clifford, Athol Books, Belfast, . (Pg. 32 Titled, Foster's account Of Young Ireland.) *Envoi, Taking Leave Of Roy Foster, by Brendan Clifford and Julianne Herlihy, Aubane Historical Society, Cork. *The Falcon Family, or, Young Ireland, by M. W. Savage, London, 1845.
An Gorta Mor
''Quinnipiac University'' *"Wolfe Tone Annual", 1939 {{DEFAULTSORT:Lalor, James Fintan 1807 births 1849 deaths People from County Laois Young Irelanders Alumni of Carlow College