Michael Collins was born in to the O'Coileain clan on October 16, 1890. He was the son of Michael Sr. and Marianne Collins. He was born in his father's seventy fifth year, and Michael Sr. would die six years later. Michael Sr. was a famed animal healer and he was also gifted with classical speech. He was fluent in French, Latin and Greek. He was also know for his fantastic memory and skill with numbers. He picked up these remarkable skills in a hedge school, education was in direct disobedience of the penal laws enacted by Cromwell. Michael Sr. married late, he was sixty when he wed Marianne O'Brien, who was twenty three. With the death of Michael Sr. Marianne became the head of the Collins farmstead in Woodfield.
Due to the hard work of Marianne and the many in-laws and children Woodfield was primarily self supporting. Michael quickly established himself a leader. In the most simple or remedial task he always stepped forward and took charge. One day when his sister Mary was left in charge of Woodfield, she became so engrossed in the chores of the household she forgot to dig the potatoes until the evening. Leaving the kitchen and heading for the garden she found three year old Michael dragging a bucket of potatoes he had dug. Stories like this fill Collins' childhood. In fact, his father recognized his name sake was something special when on his death bed he said, "One day he'll be a great man. He'll do great work for Ireland." (Coogan, 3).
Michael was immersed in revolutionary Irish culture at a young age. He was often found at James Santry's forge. Santry came from a long line of blacksmith who had help the Irish cause. His grandfather fought the British in 1798 and his father made pikes for the rebels in 1848 and 1865. Santry also started the Lisavaird National School, where he initially taught and then handed the reins over to Denis Lyons. Lyons was a strict teacher and a member of the Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB). Collins would later comment that his political thinking was developed under the watchful eye of Santry and Lyons. Collins said, "In Denis Lyons and James Santry I had my first tutors capable of... infusing into me a pride of the Irish as a Race... In Denis Lyons especially his manner... had this pride of Irishness that has always meant most to me. (Coogan, 10)
In July 1906 Michael moved to West Kensington to live with his sister, Hannie. Sadly, his mother lost her bout with cancer the following year. He lived across the Irish Sea for nine years. The teachings of Santry and Lyons were not forgotten when Collins landed on enemy soil. Instead of living in the English culture surrounding him, he dove into the Irish world around the city. Surprisingly his closest friend in London was also his best friend back in Cork, his cousin Sean Hurley. Collins was a descent athlete so he joined the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA), to play football and hurling. He was renowned for his size, and more importantly, the size of his of his temper. The GAA was in a period of turmoil while Collins lived and played in England. There was a debate over whether or not soccer should be one of the four games the association would endorse. Collins felt it was a primally English sport and was used for the "peaceful penetration of Ireland" (Coogan, 16). Even in his youth Collins wanted a Gaelic Ireland.
In 1905 Arthur Griffith founded the Sinn Fein, a political party to publish United Irishmenand spread his Irish views. Collins was invited to write about the Church in Ireland and he wrote critically. So heavily that he was labeled as an anti-cleric. While his outspoken view and mighty stature on the athletic fields turned some away from him, others saw a useful ally. In November 1909, three years after moving to London Michael Collins was sworn into the Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB). He was now a member of an organization whose one goal was the removal of the English form the emerald isle.
Collins held various different jobs during his tenure in London, everything from bank teller to clerk at the Board of Trade. Culturally Michael grew as well. He loved the theater and with some prodding by his sister Hannie he became well versed in all facets of nationalistic writings. With more education in nationalistic pride he began to drift away from his sister, so much that she tried to turn him around by varying the readings and introducing him to he English friends. Trying to turn Michael from his nationalistic pride was like trying to stop a runaway train. Hannie knew the day would come when Michael would return to his home. On 15 January 1916 he left Hannie and returned to Dublin to be with his friends. Hannie could not believe he was leaving and prophetically said, "They'll [his friends] let you down Michael, They'll let you down." (Coogan, 31).
The situation in Ireland was tense. The questions surrounding the land had mostly been put to rest by the Ameliorative Acts, which allowed for tenants to purchase the land. Another pro-Irish act was on the books in Home Rule. However it was in a holding pattern until the unrest in Europe, mainly the Germans and World War I, could be quelled. Home Rule was simply allowing the Irish to have their own parliament and make most of the ruling decisions for themselves. It did not give them a free state. Ireland would remain part of empire and remain subject to her taxes and laws. In particular Ulster was no stranger to secratarian violence, Home Rule was not well received by the Unionist who were still loyal to the King. With all the problems that remain unsolved and World War I occupying most of England's attention, the time for the Nationalist to strike was drawing near.
Collins returned to Ireland in the beginning of 1916, at the age of twenty six. He was somewhat of an unknown in Dublin since most of his reputation was left in the Irish cliques of London. Many saw him as a strong tempered, over bearing, power hungry man from Cork, but those who knew him saw through this facade to a gentle, kind, and well versed in the issues of the day. Dublin was in shambles, with enormous slums, high infant mortality and unemployment. This drove the working classes to militant movements like the great Dublin lockout of 1913. In 1916 little had changed so as winter changed to spring. Holy Week, 1916 proved to be one of the most active weeks for the Nationalist in history.
Collins met with Nancy O'Brien, his cousin, and Sean MacDiarmada through out Holy Week. Good Friday, April 21, saw a considerable set back for the Nationalists. German arms were en route to Dublin via a shipment that was to land in Kerry. However the British intercepted and decode messages that told of the shipment and intercepted it. The captain was forced to scuttle the ship and Roger Casement the Irishman in charge was capture half drowned on the rocky shores of Kerry. Easter Monday arrived and Collins went to the Irish Transport and General Workers' Union to meet with James Connolly, Padraig Pearse and Joseph Plunkett. These three leaders led their men out of the hall at noon time with Collins, wearing his Volunteers uniform, in tow. The patriot's weapons consisted of old German rifles, pistols, and shotguns. Contrary to the original plan fighting was confined within the city limits of Dublin. For reason that still remain a mystery the Nationalists did not overrun Dublin Castle, the seat of British power. Instead they attack the General Post Office on O'Connell street. Here Pearse read the proclamation of the Republic and the other leaders signed it. The rebels also seized other areas throughout the city, places like St. Stephen's Green, Jacob's biscuit factory, the College of Surgeons, The Four Courts, the North and South Dublin Unions, Marrowbone Lane Distillery, Boland's Mill and outpost along Lower Mount Street. (Coogan 39). The rebel at most amounted to 1,200 men and while they had surprise on their side the British quickly called 6,000 soldiers from around the city to quell the uprising. By Friday, 28 April, O'Connell Street as well as much of the city was in flames and the soldiers had laid and held an effective siege with their overpowering numbers and firepower. The GPO was bombarded so heavily that it was evacuated by tunneling out into neighboring shops. With their headquarters, wreck and the leadership literally out on the street, it was only a matter of time before the British rounded up the rebels and restored the peace.
The fifteen primary leaders, including MacDiarmada, were arrested and executed in Kilmainham Jail. Collins was also arrested but some how he was blessed with some of the most extraordinary luck of his life. When he was arrested he was initially placed in with those rebels who were to be severely dealt with. While waiting in line to be processed he heard his name called from the opposite end of the building and mustering all his courage he walk across the room and stayed there with the minor participants. Frank O'Connor observed that the detectives had "left behind tem one of the really dangerous man, the man who in a few short years would kill off the craftiest of them and render the rest so impotent that he would be able to walk the streets of Dublin undisguised." (Coogan, 46). Even though Collins was not severely dealt with he was still arrested and ship to England to attend the principle "Republican University". A Republican University was a jail or interment camp based in England or Ireland where political dissidents were sent. Collins' graduation from the Stafford Detention Barrack the week before Christmas in 1916. Collins Returned to Dublin on Christmas morning and would never be imprisoned again.
After the Easter rising the English were taking no chances with their unruly neighbor. Intelligence was the foremost weapon utilized by the Crown, but the Republicans countered with Michael Collins leading one of the most successful counter-espionage operations in the world. Collins moved through out the city on bicycle or foot, stopping at various safe houses and talking with his own informers. Within a year of his release form prison Collins had set up a network comparable to and in many respects better than the British network. He was ruthless when it came to captured informers and spies. He got his hands dirty in the uprising, but with the number of death warrants he personally signed after his imprisonment his hands were now covered in blood. The nationalistic blood flowed in Collins' veins, but also in the veins of his cousin, Nancy O'Brien. She continued to work in the GPO, and supplied Collins with some of his best intelligence. She was actually put in charge of handling most of Dublin Castle's most secret message traffic. The situation in Dublin was confused by double agents and the vast networks working against one another. Collins succeeded so well that he was one of the most wanted men in Europe, while working right under the British's nose. Over the next few years the situation deteriorated so much that Lloyd George, the Prime Minister was forced to rework his strategy.
In 1920 the situation radically changed. The Year of Terror began with the arrival of the Black and Tans. The Black and Tans got their name from the black and brown uniforms they were issued. The popular rumor around Ireland was the Tans were enlisted from England's extensive prison system. In reality, they were unemployed ex-servicemen who were offered ten shillings a day and basically carte blanche to make Ireland, "hell for the rebels" (Coogan, 126). The Irish saw the influx of this new army as a step forward, rather than a step back. Many felt that successful revolutions took time and this was merely a stepping stone to a free country. Collins seemed to see this new threat as a game. He continued to gather intelligence throughout Dublin on his bicycle. He had a few close calls, but still managed to elude the British detectives and the Tans. As the winter of 1920 and 1921 set in, Collins began to realize that the British were slowly learning to become a better adversary.
The violence continued to escalate, with both the rebels and the Crown killing off one another and at times innocent civilians. Slowly both sides began to realize that the war was at a standstill. Through out the spring of 1921 peace became more and more of an attractive alternative for both sides. Finally in July of 1921 a truce was arranged. With the truce Collins had time to plan his next move. There were serious talks of a peace agreement and possibility of Irish self determination. Eamon de Valera returned from his exile in the United States in December of 1920. He would become an important figure in the peace process and ultimately the arch enemy of Michael Collins. The English Prime Minister, Lloyd George, met constantly with his cabinet and sent messengers back and forth across the Irish Sea to try and reach a settlement. Interestingly the sticking point of these initial talks were whether or not to let Collins in, and the disarmament of the Volunteers. Today we see the same situation with allowing Gerry Adams in to the talks and the disarmament IRA.
When the Dail Eireann finally convened de Valera appointed Arthur Griffith, Robert Barton, Eamonn Duggan, George Duffy and Michael Collins as the Irish envoys to the talks with the British. These five Irishmen were severely overpowered by the team the Crown sent to the table. On October 11, 1921 when the Irish and English sat down to talk peace the English held the advantage with Lloyd George, Lord Birkenhead, Austin Chamberlain and Winston Churchill. In just under three months, 6 December, a treaty was signed. This treaty was seen by many to be Collins' greatest mistake. Instead of returning to Ireland with a free country, the Irish delegate returned with two separate countries. A free republic in the south and six counties in the North still held by the crown. De Valera and Collins parted company at this moment.
De Valera believed and a totally free and unified Ireland. He saw the treaty as a disappointment, but as a corruption of his Irish delegation. Collins saw it, like the Black and Tans, as another stepping stone for Ireland to take on the road to freedom. Battle lines were drawn in the Dail, as well as in the country. Many on the anti-Treaty side felt Collins and Griffith had betrayed them. Some brought to light Collins' drinking habits and social behavior, while he was England, as a means to attack his decision. Inside the Dail the treaty was argued by both sided over and over again. Ultimately the Treaty was passed and a Constitution was written. However the tension in the Dail spilled over in to the streets and Ireland was thrown in to a violent civil war. Collins was caught in a bad position since he wanted the treaty and the peace it would provide, but by winning the masses over to his pro-Treaty side, he would be forced to part company with his old friends in the IRA. Collins was made the Commander in Chief of the Irish Army and lead her in to a battle against her brothers in the IRA. Michael Collins hated the idea of a civil war, but he was forced to fight it, in the hopes of returning to peace. These hopes were dashed on that August night in Bael na mBlath, where he was shot and killed by the same IRA he had commanded in Dublin a few years earlier.
Michael Collins death was a serious blow to Ireland as a nation. People came from all four corners to mourn his death. Eventually this civil war ended and de Valera became the first President of Ireland. Ironically he would prove that Collins' stepping stone argument was true and the right course of action for the country to take (Coogan, 319).
The mystery surrounding Collins' death leads to speculations of what Ireland might have been like if he had survived to keep working toward his dream. Some argue that he would have had little effect, while others cite his keen knowledge of economics as a means to pull Ireland from the cellar of the worlds markets. Regardless of which side one choose to be on, it is unarguable that Ireland lost a great leader in Michael Collins. The Irish band Black 47, says it best in their song Big Fella, "And though we had to shoot you down in golden Bael na mBlath/ I always knew that Ireland lost her greatest son of all" (Black 47).
Works Cited
Black 47. "Home of the Brave". Big Fella. EMI Records. 1994.
Coogan, Tim, Pat. The Man Who Made Ireland: The Life and Death of Michael Collins. Roberts Rinehart Publishers. 1992.