By Áine Ní Shionnaigh
In 1800 the Acts of Union united the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Ireland, abolishing the Irish Parliament. Ireland and its people had already suffered for centuries from British influence. These Acts of Union simply sealed their fate. For the following one hundred years, the Irish would try in vain to extricate themselves from the claws of colonialism and the extreme exploitation and intrinsic impoverishment that came with it. Opposition took both revolutionary and constitutional forms such as: the Home Rule League, the Land League, the Fenian Rising, the Home Rule Bills, Catholic Emancipation, the Gaelic League and the Sinn Fein League, to name a few.
From the 24th to the 29th of April 1916, another armed insurrection took place in Ireland during Easter week. This became the most significant uprising since the Rebellion of 1798. It differed from the other uprisings in that it was centered around landmark buildings in the capital city of Dublin and was designed to attract attention. The rising itself was a failure. All of the signatories of the Republican declaration and most of the leaders were brutally executed by the British Government for their efforts in trying to secure a free Ireland. But the success of the 1916 Rising was that it led to the War of Independence and the Establishment of the Free State.
As we all prepare to commemorate the Easter Rising and it’s martyrs in this Centenary year, it’s important to remember that The Easter Rising had been preceded by many uprisings all over Ireland against British power and abuse. Because of poor communications and poverty, most of these uprisings went unnoticed, one of these such uprisings is the subject of an epic Irish heritage movie due to be released here in the United States in the Fall of 2016.
The movie “The Wild Goose Lodge” is a true story, based on real, actual events that happened in Reaghstown, Ardee, Co Louth in 1816, exactly one hundred years before Easter 1916. It is filmed on location in Reaghstown and is so authentic in that many of the actors are descendants of the actual people who were involved. The events in this movie occurred exactly 100 years prior to the Easter Rising in 1916, and the events really are the precursor for the Irish country man’s fight against His Majesty's Government. The movie portrays the hardship endured by the Irish tenant families who had to choose between the law or their land. The movie has an impressive cast including Finbar Furey (Gangs of New York), Dave Duffy (Leo from Fair City), John Connors (Love Hate), Joe Rooney (Fr. Ted), Michael Collins (Man about a dog), Shane Byrne (Mrs. Brown's boys movie and former Irish Rugby International star) and Brendan McCahey (winner of the Irish Voice of Ireland).
The movie is the brainchild of William P Martin from Co Louth. To view the trailer, please go to www.wildgooselodgemovie.com For further information please connect with William P Martin at wildgoose1816@gmail.com
