MICHAEL COLLINS

BASIC INFO

• Birthdate: October 16, 1890
• Birth place: Clonakilty, Ireland
• Occupation: activist, military leader, political leader

EARLY LIFE

• Born to successful family of farmers
• Mother: Mary Anne O'Brien (age 26)
• Father: Michael John Collins (age 60)
• Youngest of 8 siblings
• Lived in a beautiful/remote part of south west Ireland

EARLY LIFE

• Educated at local primary schools
• At Lisavaird National School Michael was inspired
• Inspired by a teacher
• Teacher was member of IRB (Irish Republican Brotherhood)

EARLY LIFE

• In 1906, Collins went to London, England
• Lived in London for 10 years
• Became active in various Irish organizations
• Including Gaelic League (a society - promoted use of Irish language)
• Influenced by writings of Arthur Griffith (Irish nationalist) (later Collins' political ally)

IRB (IRISH REPUBLICAN BROTHERHOOD)

• Secret organization- one goal: Irish independence
• Formed in 1858
• Never had more than 2,000 members
• In 1909- Collins became a member of IRB
• later became IRB treasurer for South of England

EASTER RISING

• Easter Sunday, April 1916 in Dublin, Ireland
• Ireland revolting against English rule
• 3 local forces (IRB, Volunteers, Citizen Army)
• Collins volunteered to be part of battle and was captured in Dublin
• Released after 8 months - emerged nationalist leader

DÁIL ÉIREANN (THE ASSEMBLY OF IRELAND)

• Irish republican political party- Sinn Fein met in Dublin
• Proclaimed themselves as Dáil Éireann
• Collins-minister of finance and head of intelligence for IRA

BRITAIN'S PERSPECTIVE

• Britain realized that Collins was their biggest enemy
• Offered a reward for his capture (dead or alive)
• Collins narrowly escaped their capture several times
• Britain knew they had to capture Collins in order to continue their rule

ANGLO-IRISH TREATY (DEC. 1921)

• Truce agreed with Britain in July 1921, Collins & Eamon de Valera- two most powerful men
• Collins led Irish delegation-resulted in the treaty-brought the Irish Free State to existence
• de Valera opposed, and was accepted by the Dáil by a very small majority
• Collins became chairman and finance minister of the provisional government
• The republican movement was now split into - opposed -supported the treaty

GO TO VIDEO

DEATH OF MICHAEL COLLINS

• August 22, 1922 in County Cork, Ireland
• April 1922, group of anti-Treaty IRA men took control of the Four Courts Building in Dublin
• With support from London, Collins ordered it to be attacked, marking the beginning of civil war in Ireland
• Collins took charge as commander-in-chief of the pro-treaty, Free State army
• Campaign was successful - before conclusion, he was assassinated by anti-treaty forces in an ambush

ACCOMPLISHMENTS MADE BY MICHAEL COLLINS

• A founder of Irish free state- free from Britain
• Helped found Dáil Éireann (assembly of Ireland/ Republic of Ireland)
• Irish revolutionary leader - military and political leader
• As director of intelligence for IRA, Collins crippled British intelligence system
• headed the IRB, and as minister of finance in Republican government- raised and disbursed large sums to rebel cause

FUN FACTS

• Collins originally entered civil service as a postal clerk (gotta start somewhere)
• Collins' sister Margaret Collins O'Driscoll's great granddaughter is actress Dervla Kirwan
• Dervla Kirwan is an Irish actress famous for roles in British television shows

😃 THE END 😃

WORK CITED

• "Collins, Michael." Encyclopedia Americana. International ed. Vol. 7. Danbury, CT: Groiler, 2003. 22. Print. Chapter / AnthologyTagsEditDelete
• "Michael Collins (1890-1922)." BBC News. BBC, n.d. Web. 09 Oct. 2013. .
• "World Biography." Michael Collins Biography. Advameg Inc., n.d. Web. 09 Oct. 2013. .
• What are n.p. & n.d.? | See in list | Edit citation Citation added: "Michael Collins Biography." Bio. True Story. A&E Television Networks, LLC, n.d. Web. 9 Oct. 2013.
• "Collins, Michael (1890-1922)." Encyclopedia of World Biography. Detroit: Gale, 1998. General OneFile. Web. 9 Oct. 2013.