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First Home Rule Bill
Charles Stewart Parnell
In October 1879 the Irish National Land League was founded. The main objectives of this movement, from which Charles Stewart Parnell was the President, was to bring land reforms into force.
Charles Stewart Parnell, a Protestant landlord in County Wicklow, believed that land reforms could act as prelude for Home Rule. The Irish National Land League became highly popular and learned the farmers to stand up for themselves.
In the early 80's of the nineteenth century Charles Stewart Parnell was considered the Uncrowned King of Ireland. Supported by funds raised in the United States his Irish Parliament Party flourished, and, what is perhaps even more important, Charles Stewart Parnell found a benevolent conversation partner in the British Prime Minister William Ewart Gladstone. After the 1885 elections this relation improved and William Ewart Gladstone attached his political career to Irish Home Rule.
First Home Rule Bill
Parnell statue, O'Connell Street, Dublin
(authors collection)
The First Home Rule Bill was presented by Prime Minister Gladstone in 1886. This Home Rule Bill provided in a separate legislature for Ireland, while Great Britain reserved many powers, such as taxation, for the British Parliament. The First Home Rule Bill met fierce opposition and it did not made it through the House of Commons.
The rejection of the First Home Rule Bill triggered gory riots in Belfast between celebrating Protestants and disappointed Catholics. Although Belfast has been tormented by riots throughout the nineteenth century the Home Rule riots are known to be the most severe until then as they caused the death of 50 - mainly Catholic - people.
William Ewart Gladstone lost office in the 1886 elections but the close friendship with Charles Stewart Parnell persisted. After the general elections of 1892 Gladstone became Prime Minister again and continued working on the Second Home Rule.
The Times of London initiated a smear campaign against the leaders of the Home Rule movement. Especially Charles Stewart Parnell took the rap for it when the movement was accused of being involved with murder and outrage. It took a commission two years disprove the accusations and Charles Stewart Parnell became more popular then ever before.
The popularity of Charles Stewart Parnell came to a sudden end when his relation with Katherine O'Shea, a married and soon to be divorced woman, became public. This relation caused a rift in the Irish Parliamentary Party, Parnell's lifework. He refused to keep a low profile for a while, but despite his marriage with Katherine after her divorce he was basically expelled from public life. He died aged 45 on 6 October 1891.