Robert Simms (20 March 1761 – 1843) was an
Irish radical
Radical (from Latin: ', root) may refer to:
Politics and ideology Politics
*Classical radicalism, the Radical Movement that began in late 18th century Britain and spread to continental Europe and Latin America in the 19th century
*Radical politics ...
, and a founding member in
Belfast
Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...
of the
Society of United Irishmen
The Society of United Irishmen was a sworn association, formed in the wake of the French Revolution, to secure Representative democracy, representative government in Ireland. Despairing of constitutional reform, and in defiance both of British ...
. Opposed to insurrection in the absence of French assistance, he resigned his military commission in the Society on the eve of the
1798 rebellion.
A Presbyterian born in Belfast, Simms was the owner of a paper mill in Ballyclare with his brother William Simms, one of twelve proprietors of the ''
Northern Star'' newspaper. A close friend of
Wolfe Tone
Theobald Wolfe Tone, posthumously known as Wolfe Tone (; 20 June 176319 November 1798), was a revolutionary exponent of Irish independence and is an iconic figure in Irish republicanism. Convinced that, so long as his fellow Protestantism in ...
who nicknamed him 'the Tanner', he was one of the founders of the
Society of United Irishmen in Belfast in 1791 and the author of "Declaration and Resolutions of the Society of United Irishmen of Belfast." Simms served as the first Secretary of the Society, drafting many of its early letters, pamphlets and papers.
Following the French declaration of war on Britain in February 1793, the movement was outlawed and went underground from 1794 as they became more determined to force a revolt against British rule. Simms, along with his brother William and
Thomas Addis Emmet
Thomas Addis Emmet (24 April 176414 November 1827) was an Irish and American lawyer and politician. In Ireland, in the 1790s, he was a senior member of the Society of United Irishmen as it planned for an insurrection against the British Crown ...
were arrested, but swiftly acquitted. The leadership was divided into those who wished to wait for French aid before rising and the more radical elements that wished to press ahead regardless. However, the suppression of a bloody preemptive rebellion, which broke out in Leitrim in 1793, led to the former faction prevailing and links were forged with the revolutionary French government with instructions to wait sent to all of the United Irish membership.
In 1795, along with Tone,
Samuel Neilson
Samuel Neilson (17 September 1761 – 29 August 1803) was an Irish businessman, journalist and politician. He was a founding member of the Society of United Irishmen and the founder of its newspaper, the ''Northern Star''. Along with many other ...
and
Thomas Russell met atop the summit of McArt's Fort, overlooking Belfast, and, in Tone's words, "took a solemn obligation...never to desist in our efforts until we had subverted the authority of England over our country and asserted her independence." The Simms brothers were again arrested in 1797 and held in
Newgate Prison
Newgate Prison was a prison at the corner of Newgate Street and Old Bailey, just inside the City of London, England, originally at the site of Newgate, a gate in the Roman London Wall. Built in the 12th century and demolished in 1904, the pr ...
. From there he was transported along with Russell and Emmett to
Fort George, Scotland
Fort George is a large 18th-century fortress near Ardersier, to the north-east of Inverness in the Highland (council area), Highland council area of Scotland. It was built to control the Scottish Highlands in the aftermath of the Jacobite rising ...
. In his absence, the press of the Northern Star was burned.
Upon his release, he was appointed as Commander of the United Army in Antrim. The appointment was met reluctantly, however, as Simms felt his lack of military experience counted against him being an effective leader. In addition, many leaders were beginning to agitate for a rising without French aid. Simms was unwavering in his rejection of this idea. He resigned his position on 1 June 1798 after falling out with the leadership on this issue when most had changed their minds. He was replaced by
Henry Joy McCracken
Henry Joy McCracken (31 August 1767 – 17 July 1798) was an Irish republican executed in Belfast for his part in leading United Irishmen in the Rebellion of 1798. Convinced that the cause of representative government in Ireland could not be a ...
who would lead the society in the
Battle of Antrim
The Battle of Antrim was fought on 7 June 1798, in County Antrim, Ireland during the Irish Rebellion of 1798 between British troops and Irish insurgents led by Henry Joy McCracken. The British won the battle, beating off a rebel attack on Ant ...
. Simms was accused by many of cowardice and indecision for his refusal to launch an insurrection in Antrim.
He was nonetheless arrested and again imprisoned in Fort George with Emmet and
William James MacNeven and was released in 1802. When
Robert Emmet
Robert Emmet (4 March 177820 September 1803) was an Irish Republican, orator and rebel leader. Following the suppression of the United Irish uprising in 1798, he sought to organise a renewed attempt to overthrow the British Crown and Prote ...
's failed coup was launched in 1803, the Simms brothers did not participate. He died in 1843, at the age of 82.
Robert Simms was a friend of the naturalist
John Templeton
Sir John Marks Templeton (29 November 1912 – 8 July 2008) was an American-born British investor, banker, fund manager, and philanthropist. In 1954, he entered the mutual fund market and created the Templeton Growth Fund, which averaged gro ...
and his son, also
Robert Simms, was one of the founders of the
Belfast Natural History Society
The Belfast Natural History and Philosophical Society was founded in 1821 to promote the scientific study of animals, plants, fossils, rocks and minerals.
History
The Society was founded by George Crawford Hyndman, James Lawson Drummond, Ja ...
.
References
*Kibler, James Everett, Jr. 2009 Simms's Celtic Harp ''Studies in the Literary Imagination'' Georgia State University.
*The Rebellion in Ulster (http://www.ulsterancestry.com/newsletter-content.php?id=86)
*The Simms Initiative (http://simms.library.sc.edu/view_item.php?item=153735)
*Miller, Kerby, A. 2003 Irish Immigrants in the Land of Canaan: Letters and Memoirs from Colonial and Revolutionary America, 1675-1815: Letters and Memoirs from Colonial and Revolutionary America, 1675-1815, Oxford University Press.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Simms, Robert
1761 births
1843 deaths
Politicians from Belfast
United Irishmen