Daniel O'Connell

Daniel O'Connell (1775-1847) was the most formidable Irish barrister of the age. In 1823 he founded the Catholic Association, which transformed the political scene and created the basis of modern Irish democracy. In 1829 it wrung Catholic Emancipation from a reluctant British government. In the 1830s O'Connell embarked on a mass agitation for Repeal of the Union. The anticlimactic end to this campaign, together with the shadow of the Irish famine, clouded his final years. Yet O'Connell can fairly be regarded as the most influential figure in modern Irish history. He set the course for all subsequent Irish nationalist movements. He established patterns of political organisation that Irish emigrants took with them around the world. Not least, he was a figure of European stature, the first to combine Catholicism and liberalism. This short biography is written by one of the outstanding authorities on O'Connell.