William Smith O'Brien was honoured in his birthplace yesterday, 150 years after his inglorious revolution, when Lord Inchiquin, great-great nephew of O'Brien, unveiled a plaque at Dromoland Castle, Co Clare.
In 1848, O'Brien's brother and fellow MP, Sir Lucius, supported the British government when it suspended the Habeas Corpus Act in Ireland on July 22nd. This measure, the equivalent of internment, made a humiliating submission or a premature revolt unavoidable.
Honour, in the light of Young Ireland rhetoric, demanded a protest against the Famine suffering. The reluctant leaders drifted half-heartedly towards insurrection.
Yesterday's ceremony, organised by Tipperary Clans, was attended by a gathering which included descendants of the Young Irelanders from Ireland, the US, and Australia.
The plaque reads:
"Birthplace of William Smith O'Brien (1803-64) Leader of the Rising of 1848 Descended from the ancient line of the O'Briens of Thomond; inspired by the Nation newspaper founded by Thomas Davis, Charles Gavan Duffy and John Blake Dillon; after 20 years as an MP and in the third year of the Great Famine; this Protestant patriot asserted the independence of his country For which he and six companions were banished to Tasmania:
John Mitchel (1815-75), John Martin (1812-75), Kevin Izod O'Doherty (1823-1905), Thomas Francis Meagher (1823-67), Terence Bellew MacManus (1811-61), Patrick O'Donohue (1810-54)
Those talented men lived restless but distinguished lives in exile. Some escaped to the United States
On being pardoned, O'Brien returned to Ireland in 1856. His mausoleum is in Rathronan, near Cahirmoyle, his County Limerick estate
This plaque was unveiled on 29 July 1998, the 150th anniversary of the Young Irelanders' defeat. Their legacy, however, includes the Tricolour as our national flag. Its ideal of reconciling orange and green awaits fulfilment."