1906 - 1908 AD

                                                                                                             "Sinn Fein Political Party -  Dungannon Clubs - Irish Parliamentary Party Decline."

1906 - 1914 AD January :  Sir Henry Campbell - Bannerman, the leader of the Liberal Party was to win the British Westminster General Elections in England, with a big majority, and they then became the new British Imperial Liberal Government and granted self - government to "South Africa" under General Botha and General Smuts and they also tried to bring in "social reform," but due to their majority in the Parliament they were to have no need to offer Irish Home Rule to the Irish Parliamentary Party until 1918 AD as although it was still in their Party's "platform," it had played no part in their election strategy, although the Irish Parliamentary Party had returned 81 members, of which 73 were elected "unopposed,"  During the speech by the German Saxe - Coburg British King, on behalf of the Liberal Party,  devolution was to be mentioned for Ireland, involving an Irish Council that would be "partly" elected, partly "appointed" by the British Imperial LiberalGovernment, to control certain Irish departments, which were to be financed by the British Imperial Exchequer. As it was not to be Irish Home Rule, John Redmond who was now the Irish Parliamentary Party "leader" rejected it completely, and despite this rejection the Ascendancy "Unionists" in the Ulster Province still carried on their activities in "defiance" of an expected introduction of Irish Home Rule. (No one outside of Ulster Province was to take any notice of them).

    Edward Saunderson, the staunch non - Catholic Ascendancy Unionist leader, who previously had quit the "Whigs" under William Gladstone over the disestablishment of the Ascendancy Church of England / Ireland, died, and he was to be replaced in the British Westminster Parliament by Walter Long the M.P. for South Dublin, until he later became an M.P. once more in England.

   The "defeated" Conservatives in the Westminster Parliament, who were now the "Opposition" were to use their permanent Conservative majority in the "unelected" House of Lords, as they still had the "veto" over all legislation, to either delay it, amend it or "defeat" any measure the new British Liberal Government was to bring forward despite the Liberal Government having the elected "overall majority" in the British House of Representatives / Commons. (This constant use of the undemocratic power of "veto" by the "unelected" Conservatives would finally see the beginning of the end of their Centuries of "negativity" over all previous legislation in both England and Ireland.

    Joseph Devlin now became the M.P. for West Belfast in Co. Antrim in the north - east of the Ulster Province.  

    Arthur Griffith who had founded the "political" Sinn Fein Party (We Ourselves), and who was the editor of the United Irishmen newspaper resigned from it, and also resigned from the Irish Republican Brotherhood / I.R.B., and wrote an article entitled, "The Resurrection of Hungary, a parallel for Ireland," which was to set the basic principals for the development of policies in the future for the "political" Sinn Fein Party in Ireland, and Edward Martyn, the President of the Sinn Fein Party also joined the "Gaelic League," and Dennis Mac Cullough became a  member of the "Supreme Council" of the I.R.B. / Irish Republican Brotherhood,

   Michael Collins, who was to become Ireland's leading light in the future, was now 15 year old, and he passed the test to obtain employment in the Post Office where he began to gain "administration" capabilities that he would utilise in the future, and to further this end he went to Kensington in England to live with his sister.

  Michael Davitt, the intrepid founder of the Irish Land League, that had begun the "return" of the land in Ireland back to the population in Ireland, died, this year.

   "An Phoblacht" / The Republic newspaper was founded this year by the Dungannon Clubs in Belfast in Co. Antrim in the Ulster Province.

1907 AD James Larkin, who had been born in Lancashire in England, and who was to become a great Labour leader in Ireland, organized the "Dockers" in Ireland, and also carried out dock strikes in Belfast in Co. Antrim in the Ulster Province, with green and orange banners, to try and gain better "working" conditions there, and as a consequence "strike breakers" were brought over from England and Scotland to counteract his actions.

     The Royal Irish Constabulary / R.I.C who were also in Belfast in the north - east of the Ulster Province "mutineered" and British Imperial Military Forces were brought into there, and Joseph Devlin the M.P. for Belfast was among those who supported their strike.

    Patrick Mac Cartan, from Carrickmore in Co Tyrone in the centre of the Ulster Province had previously formed the "Dungannon Club" for students there in the north of Ireland, to play a part in their Country’s political affairs and they came out and backed the principals of the "political" Sinn Fein Party (We Ourselves) and the "Cumann na nGaedheal," and then all of the Dungannon Clubs "combined" to become known as the "Sinn Fein League" and the Irish National Council then merged with them also, together with the Irish Republican Brotherhood / I.R.B. although they did not agree to the provision of a British King of Ireland that had been included originally by Arthur Griffith who was not a Nationalist at the time. To get around this, they then introduced a further article into the "political" Sinn Fein Party Convention where the Irish population themselves would actually be able to "choose" by referendum their own form of Government, and Bulmer Hobson from the Ulster Province also became the Vice - President of the "poitical" Sinn Fein Party.

     Sir Henry Campbell - Bannerman, the leader of the British Liberal Government in England, in a move towards Irish Home Rule had Augustine Birrell, who they had appointed as their British Chief Secretary in Ireland until 1916 AD, introduce the Irish Council Bill, which was to allow for 82 elected members and 24 "nominated" members by the British Imperial Liberal Government, to govern Ireland, with the "appointed" British Lord Lieutenant in Ireland having the power also to "annul" any resolutions that "did not suite" the British Liberal Imperial Government. John Dillon one of the Irish Parliamentary Party M.P.s opposed it, and after a meeting of the "Convention" of the United Irish League the Irish Nationalists "rejected" it also, so the British Liberal Government was forced to "drop it" altogether. John Redmond who was now the "leader" of the Irish Parliamentary Party was in "trouble" politically, as many of the Irish Parliamentary Party members attending the Westminster Parliament now "wanted out" of the alliance with the "Liberal Party," which they now saw as going back on their word, and they also saw their "alliance" with the "Liberal Party" as being next to useless. Once again another "recalcitrant" British Imperial Government had finally pushed the Irish population to again become determined to bring about real change in Ireland by more "vigorous" means.      

      John Mac Dermott / Sean Mac Diarmada from Co. Leitrim in Northern Connacht joined the Gaelic League, the I.R.B. / Irish Republican Brotherhood and the Hibernians, and was to become a great "influence" on all of those who were to be willing to physically fight once again for Irish Independence / Freedom, (especially the young Michael Collins), and he was now also ready to move the I.R.B. forward, towards actually doing something "physically" to bring about Irish Independence from the never ending oppression of the endless disinterested British Imperial Governments who still had total control over the population in Ireland under the auspices of the "Immoral Union." Tom Clarke, the Old Republican, who had previously spent 15 years in English prisons for his actions earlier on in trying to bring about Irish Independence returned from America to Ireland and set up a newsagency and tobacconist shop in Dublin, which was to become a meeting place for the Irish Republicans, and where he was to produce the newspaper "Irish Freedom," which was to represent the views of the I.R.B / Irish Republican Brotherhood.

   The people at Liscannor in Co. Clare in the north - west of the Munster Province, this year, rescued the members of a French ship, that had been wrecked off their coastline, and in gratitude the French were to build a Celtic Church there.  

   John O Leary born in 1830 AD who was also a revolutionary Irish Republican journalist, had been arrested, imprisoned and exiled in 1865 AD by the British Imperial Government's Dublin Castle (The Devill's 1/2 Acre) authorities, and he had later returned to Ireland to live in Dublin in 1885 AD where he had written his "memoirs" from those turbulent times, died this year.

1908 AD Under the Irish Universities Act / Queens College in Belfast in Co. Antrim in the north - east of the Ulster  Province became a separate University, with those in Co. Cork in Southern Munster and Co. Galway in Southern Connacht also becoming Colleges of the National University of Ireland, but the hierarchy of the Irish Catholic Church "objected" to Queen's College being non - denominational, without any "religious" instruction, where over time most of the graduates there were to be Presbyterian, while adherents to the Ascendancy Church of England / Ireland went to Trinity College in Dublin.

       Eamonn de Valera, a Professor of Mathematics, who had been born in America and grew up in Co. Limerick in the mid - west of the Munster Province was also educated by the Christian Brothers, and he now joined the Central Branch / Ard Chraobh of the "Gaelic League," and was to be a major player in future political developments in Ireland.  

       William O Brien the old Labor stalwart from Co. Cork in Southern Munster, who was always on the job, "rejoined" the Irish Parliamentary Party this year.

       Eammon Ceannt / Kent joined the "political" Sinn Fein Party and Sean O Kelly was now to become their "Secretary" up until 1915 AD, and at this time they tried standing a "candidate" in the bye - election for the seat of Northern Leitrim, but they had no success as it was won by the Irish Parliamentary Party who were still under the leadership of John Redmond although poitically they were by now becoming well and truly "out of step" with the rest of the population in Ireland, but this initial Sinn Fein Party "political" assault on their seat there in Northern Leinster, in reality actually showed up the "declining" position of the Irish Parliamentary Party now in the overall scheme of things, and should have sent them a warning to become more "active" on behalf of the general population in Ireland or make way for those who would. John Redmond as their leader was to keep pressing the British Liberal Government for an Irish Home Rule Bill, with no resullt, and continued to receive no encouragement or satisfaction from them, but as he was still living in hope he continued to maintain the "alliance" with them, while still under the pressure of no result back in Ireland.

      Robert Erskine Childers, who was an English civil servant also firmly believed in Irish Home Rule, and he too would also play a part in the future scheme of things to try and bring it about.

     Hanna Sheehy - Skeffington founded the "Womens Franchise League" and was to become their "Secretary" in anticipation of obtaining the "Right to vote for all Women."    

      Sir Campbell - Bannerman, the British Liberal Prime Minister, died this year, and Herbert Asquith, another member of the Liberal Party, was to take over his position as the British Liberal Prime Minister until 1915 AD, who would eventually be forced to take head on the "un - elected" Conservative controlled British House of Lords in regard to their "veto" power over all British legislation, when they would "reject" the Money Supply Bill just like they had continued to exercise this negative over riding power over English legislation for "Centuries," especially against any chance of "reform" for the people of Ireland, without any elected right, handed down and continued from the original Land Barons under the Magna Carta.

      Herbert Asquith, the new British Liberal Prime Minister, came out now and gave a public assurance that Irish Home Rule was the "only solution" for the ongoing problems in Ireland.  

     The Irish Universities Act was bought in under the control of Augustine Birrell the British Liberal Government's Chief Secretary in Ireland, and the Royal University was abolished, with the establishment of 2 new ones to replace it, the National University of Ireland to accommodate the Catholic Bishops preferences with colleges in Co. Dublin, Co. Cork and Co. Galway, and the Queen's University at Belfast in the Ulster Province that was to become a separate University as this action was to placate the non - Catholics there, and it was now opened "to all "students, but the Ascendancy "Unionists" were even then still "against it," as before most of it's graduates had been Presbyterians, while the Trinity College in Dublin was an Ascendancy Church of England / Ireland stronghold, and both Universities had previously been "denied" to the Catholic Irish.

     Up until now, Augustine Birrell, the British Liberal Government's representative in Ireland, had brought on " improvements in rural and urban housing," the re - instatement of the "tenant farmers" and their families in Ireland who were "evicted" from their holdings, and "protection" for the "tenants" in the towns.

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