The Seven: The Lives and Legacies of the Founding Fathers of the Irish Republic

by Ruth Dudley Edwards

On Easter Sunday, 23 April 1916, the seven members of the Irish Republican Brotherhood’s military council met to proclaim an Irish Republic with themselves as the provisional government. After a week of fighting with the British army on the streets of Dublin, the Seven were arrested, court-martialled and executed.

Cutting through the layers of veneration that have seen them regarded unquestioningly as heroes and martyrs by many, Ruth Dudley Edwards provides shrewd yet sensitive portraits of Ireland’s founding fathers. She explores how an incongruous group, which included a communist, visionary Catholic poets and a tobacconist, joined together to initiate an armed rebellion that changed the course of Irish history. Brilliant, thought-provoking and captivatingly told, The Seven challenges us to see past the myths and consider the true character and legacy of the Easter Rising.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Ireland, Politics, Biography, Irish Literature

408 pages, Hardcover

First published April 12, 2016

About the author

After being a Cambridge postgraduate, a teacher, a marketing executive and a civil servant, Ruth Dudley Edwards became a full-time writer. A journalist, broadcaster, historian and prize-winning biographer who lives in London, her recent non-fiction includes books about The Economist, the Foreign Office, the Orange Order and Fleet Street. The first of her ten satirical mysteries, Corridors of Death, was short-listed for the CWA John Creasey Memorial Dagger; two others were nominated for the CWA Last Laugh Award. Her two short stories appeared respectively in The Economist and the Oxford Book of Detective Stories.

Series:
* Robert Amiss Mystery

Reviews

[Iseult Coffey]

Very informative, particularly the sections on Clarke and Mac Diarmada I thought. Wildly biased though, which was incredibly obvious through her use of language in describing Clarke and Connolly in particular, and took away from the book. Her obvious fondness of Pearse and Plunkett was endearing. I don't think she really got MacDonagh though, or at least, he didn't come out in the pages. And implying that Plunkett's attraction to Grace Gifford was merely down to her first name? Not cool or accurate, belying the many letters between the two which spoke of a real attachment between them. .

[Fionnbharr Rodgers]

Some nuggets of interest to be found, however she is rather militant in her revisionism and one can easily detect the embellishments made for the sake of argument. It possible for historians to find a middle ground between the Daily Mail ans The Wolfe Tones; Luke Kelly, pehaps? Take with a few spoonfuls of salt.

[Sean Hennessy]

I found this book to be badly researched, Poorly written, flagrantly biased and insulting to my Irishness. Not unexpected from this self proclaimed revisionist.

[Joe]

A very informative book on the seven signers of the Proclamation. In recent years it has been hip to take a much more critical look at those forefathers who once were untouchable and hero-worshipped. While it is interesting to learn the deeper history of these great men. But something is also lost. The author in this book seems to revel in tearing these men down back to the human level with the rest of us. She clearly adores Pearse, and seems more willing to forgive some of his faults far easier than the others. An enjoyable read to get a deeper dive into the seven responsible for the Rising. I felt that the last chapter about their legacies was a bit far fetched, claiming that they were responsible for all the violence for the next 100 years. While they were the poster children, I do believe that the violence would have still continued. Just like it does for any group of people that are treated as second class citizens.

[Iarfhlaith O'Scannaill]

I enjoyed the layout of the book, as well as the meticulous research in an honest attempt to understand each of the seven men, who were all so unique in their approach. It is, as other reviewers have noted, not an easy read, partially as a result of the research and seeking to understand.

She does express her perspectives on each, in particular in the last 1/3 of the text where the futility of the rebellion was laid clear.

I was left with more information about each but also a lasting feeling that each of the seven, in their own way, were ideologues rather than practical proponents of armed rebellion. Pearse, in particular, was a frankly odd man.

One has to wonder how different Irish history would be if there had been fewer or no executions in the aftermath of the rising. Likely a civil war, but the figureheads of Irish history would likely be very different.

[Peter Dunn]

Ignoring the politics and Marmite style highly divided opinions on the authour, I must say I learned: a great deal more about the three of the seven I was aware of: Pearse, James Connolly, Joseph Plunkett; a great deal about Thomas J. Clarke who I had not heard of; and a little about the remaining three that I was also not really aware of: Seán Mac Diarmada, Thomas MacDonagh, Eamonn Ceannt.

Yes there is a particularly striking and disturbing claim about Pearse in this book, but the same claim has also been made by other biographers who could not be accused of any bias of the sort that some have accused this author of.

[Jim Foley]

Very detailed history of the seven men who signed the Irish Declaration of Independence read outside the Dublin GPO in 1916.

[John Savage]

Not a bad book, pity the author did not show the same sympathy to the Seven as she did to the Faithful Tribe. One or two howlers as well which I hope was down to bad editing ( the green Irish Republic flag does not have a harp on it).

[Karen]

I won this book through a free giveaway from Librarything.

This is a placeholder review as I am only about 40% through the book. I love the author's voice and she truly makes the characters come to life. Unfortunately this is basically a biography of seven people and all of the close influences so it is dense. While remodeling my house and taking a class for work it has not been easy to find time to sit and do a deep dive into something so dense, but I will co to he to read in small chunks and finish the novel as I do want to get to the end and see what happens, similar to the feeling I would receive watching a movie!

Update upon completion:

This is a true biography, seeking to explore the entire & complete lives of the seven signatories of the 1916 Proclamation of the Irish Republic. The author details the birth, upbringing, and political philosophy of each member up to and through the uprising, capping the book with an account of the revolution, defeat, and deaths. There doesn't seem to be any stone left unturned and the reader gains information and insight to each actor's religious beliefs, familial obligations, and political history. The author has a tendency to state a fact, then back up years to explain how that fact came into being. The book can get bogged down in detail, but for a historian I would imagine that interesting. Overall I gained new insight and found the writing a good addition to my library.

[Paul]

I received a free copy of this book as a Goodreads giveaway.

I do feel as if I have learnt a lot from reading this book and am glad I read it, even though I found it rather turgid at times. It gives a good insight into the era and the personalities to the forefront.

For someone who is studying or has a particular interest in the subject matter, it's no doubt a 'must-read' but for the everyday reader who might just want to better understand the movement itself. it's hard going.

[Pablo Vazquez]

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this this book. There is a chapter for each of the seven Fathers about their background and the story of how they become key players on the Easter Rising. I’d have given 5 stars if it wasn’t for the last chapter -I bought this book to learn more about this topic with facts so I can form an opinion of my own.

[Ted Farrell]

Excellent thought--provoking account of the leaders of the 1916 rising, their lives, their dreams and their legacy.

[Tracy]

I have read at least 5 books on the subject and this one is the best at explaining the lives of the leaders.