He had managed to unite the three major streams of Irish self-assertion under his leadership: firstly the parliamentary party itself, which he had made into a formidable force through a strategy of giving or withdrawing his support to either the Liberals or the Conservatives according to the circumstances of the moment; secondly the Fenians, who agreed to put their energies at his disposal; and lastly the Irish Land League, founded by an ex-Fenian, Michael Davitt, with the objective of rectifying the crisis on the land.
