Terence Bellew MacManus (born 1811 or 1823 – 15 January 1861) was an Irish rebel who participated in the

Young Irelander Rebellion of 1848 The Young Irelander Rebellion was a failed Irish nationalist uprising led by the Young Ireland movement, part of the wider Revolutions of 1848 that affected most of Europe. It took place on 29 July 1848 at Farranrory, a small settlement about ...

. Sentenced to death for treason, he and several other participants were given commuted sentences in 1849 and

transported ''Transported'' is an Australian convict melodrama film directed by W. J. Lincoln. It is considered a lost film. Plot In England, Jessie Grey is about to marry Leonard Lincoln but the evil Harold Hawk tries to force her to marry him and she ...

for life to

Van Diemen's Land Van Diemen's Land was the colonial name of the island of Tasmania during the European exploration of Australia, European exploration and colonisation of Australia in the 19th century. The Aboriginal Tasmanians, Aboriginal-inhabited island wa ...

in Australia. Three years later in 1852, MacManus escaped and emigrated to the United States. He lived in

San Francisco, California San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

until his death in 1861. There he was unable to re-establish his career. His body was returned to Dublin for burial, where the

Fenians The word ''Fenian'' () served as an umbrella term for the Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB) and their affiliate in the United States, the Fenian Brotherhood. They were secret political organisations in the late 19th and early 20th centurie ...

gave him a large funeral in honor of his part in the rebellion. MacManus was notable for his statement in court in 1848; he explained his actions by saying: "... was not because I loved England less, but because I loved Ireland more."

Biography

Terence MacManus was born about 1811 (or 1823)"Terence Bellew MacManus"
''A Compendium of Irish Biography'', Alfred Webb, 1878 in

Tempo In musical terminology, tempo (Italian for 'time'; plural 'tempos', or from the Italian plural), measured in beats per minute, is the speed or pace of a given musical composition, composition, and is often also an indication of the composition ...

County Fermanagh County Fermanagh ( ; ) is one of the thirty-two counties of Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of six counties of Northern Ireland. The county covers an area of and had a population of 63,585 as of 2021. Enniskillen is the ...

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

. He was educated in parochial schools. As a young man he moved to

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

, a major port, where he became a successful shipping agent. In 1848 he returned to Ireland, where he became active in the

Repeal Association The Repeal Association was an Irish mass membership political movement set up by Daniel O'Connell in 1830 to campaign for a repeal of the Acts of Union of 1800 between Great Britain and Ireland. The Association's aim was to revert Ireland to ...

, which sought to overturn the Act of Union between Great Britain and Ireland. After joining the Irish Confederation, he was among those who took part with William Smith O'Brien and John Blake Dillon in the July 1848 Young Irelander Rebellion in Ballingarry,

County Tipperary County Tipperary () is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. The county is named after the town of Tipperary (tow ...

. MacManus and the other leaders were charged and convicted of treason, and sentenced to death for their actions. Due to public support for clemency, the men's sentences were commuted to

deportation Deportation is the expulsion of a person or group of people by a state from its sovereign territory. The actual definition changes depending on the place and context, and it also changes over time. A person who has been deported or is under sen ...

for life. MacManus was transported to

Tasmania, Australia Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island States and territories of Australia, state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The sta ...

in 1849 on the ''Swift'', together with O'Brien,

Thomas Francis Meagher Thomas Francis Meagher ( ; 3 August 18231 July 1867) was an Irish nationalism, Irish nationalist and leader of the Young Irelanders in the Young Irelander Rebellion of 1848, Rebellion of 1848. After being convicted of sedition, he was first sent ...

and Patrick O'Donoghue. They were assigned to different settlements to reduce their collaboration in the new land. However, the Irish men continued to meet secretly. In 1852 MacManus and Meagher escaped from Australia and made their way to

, where MacManus settled. (Meagher went on to

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

.) Like other immigrants, the Irish revolutionaries carried their issues to the United States. Ellis, captain of a ship that was supposed to carry O'Brien to freedom, also emigrated to San Francisco. MacManus held a

lynch Lynch may refer to: Places Australia * Lynch Island, South Orkney Islands, Antarctica * Lynch Point, Marie Byrd Land, Antarctica * Lynch's Crater, Queensland, Australia England * River Lynch, Hertfordshire * The Lynch, an island in the Rive ...

court of Ellis among Irish emigrants for his betrayal of O'Brien in his escape attempt from Van Diemen's Land. The

court martial A court-martial (plural ''courts-martial'' or ''courts martial'', as "martial" is a postpositive adjective) is a military court or a trial conducted in such a court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of members of the mili ...

acquitted Ellis for lack of evidence. Failing to re-establish his career as a shipping agent, MacManus died in poverty around the age of 50. His body was returned to Ireland, here he was buried in

Glasnevin Cemetery Glasnevin Cemetery () is a large cemetery in Glasnevin, Dublin, Ireland which opened in 1832. It holds the graves and memorials of several notable figures, and has a museum. Location The cemetery is located in Glasnevin, Dublin, in two part ...

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

, on 10 November 1861.

organized a huge funeral and nationalist demonstration to honor MacManus. According to police reports his funeral procession numbered between 6000 and 7000 people, with 40,000 spectators at Abbey Street. Father Patrick Lavelle delivered an oration at his funeral.

Quotes

From the dock before sentencing, 24 October 1848:''Speeches From The Dock, Part I. or Protests Of Irish Patriotism''
Dublin: A M Sullivan, 1868

... "I say, whatever part I may have taken in the struggle for my country's independence, whatever part I may have acted in my short career, I stand before you, my lords, with a free heart and a light conscience, to abide the issue of your sentence. And now, my lords, this is, perhaps, the fittest time to put a sentence upon record, which is this - that standing in this dock, and called to ascend the scaffold - it may be to-morrow - it may be now - it may be never - whatever the result may be, I wish to put this on record, that in the part I have taken I was not actuated by enmity towards Englishmen - for among them I have passed some of the happiest days of my life, and the most prosperous; and in no part which I have taken was I actuated by enmity towards Englishmen individually, whatever I may have felt of the injustice of English rule in this island; I therefore say, that it is not because I loved England less, but because I loved Ireland more, that I now stand before you".

References

* Further reading
Malcolm Brown, ''The Politics of Irish Literature: from Thomas Davis to W.B. Yeats'', Allen & Unwin, 1973.
*John Mitchel, ''A Cause Too Many,'' Aidan Hegarty, Camlane Press. *Thomas Davis, ''The Thinker and Teacher,'' Arthur Griffith, M.H. Gill & Son 1922. *Capt. W. F. Lyons, ''Brigadier-General Thomas Francis Meagher: His Political and Military Career,'' Burns Oates & Washbourne Limited, 1869 *Dennis Gwynn, ''Young Ireland and 1848,'' Cork University Press, 1949. *Daniel O'Connell The Irish Liberator, Dennis Gwynn, Hutchinson & Co, Ltd. *O'Connell Davis and the Colleges Bill, Dennis Gwynn, Cork University Press 1948. *Dennis Gwynn Smith, ''O’Brien And The "Secession",'' Cork University Press *''Meagher of The Sword,'' Ed, Arthur Griffith, M. H. Gill & Son, Ltd., 1916. *''Young Irelander Abroad: The Diary of Charles Hart,'' Ed. Brendan O'Cathaoir, University Press. *''John Mitchel: First Felon for Ireland'', Ed. Brian O'Higgins, Brian O'Higgins 1947. *''Rossa's Recollections 1838 to 1898'', The Lyons Press, 2004. *James Connolly, ''Labour in Ireland'', Fleet Street, 1910. *James Connolly, ''The Re-Conquest of Ireland,'' Fleet Street, 1915. *Louis J. Walsh, ''John Mitchel Noted Irish Lives,'' The Talbot Press Ltd., 1934. *Thomas Davis: Essays and Poems, Centenary Memoir, M. H Gill, M.H. Gill & Son, Ltd MCMXLV. *Life of John Martin, P. A. Sillard, James Duffy & Co., Ltd 1901. *P. A. Sillard, ''Life of John Mitchel,'' James Duffy and Co., Ltd., 1908. *P. S. O'Hegarty, ''John Mitchel,'' Maunsel & Company, Ltd., 1917. *R. V. Comerford,''The Fenians in Context: Irish Politics & Society 1848–82,'' Wolfhound Press 1998 *Robert Sloan, ''William Smith O'Brien and the Young Ireland Rebellion of 1848,'' Four Courts Press, 2000 *Seamus MacCall, ''Irish Mitchel,'' Thomas Nelson and Sons Ltd., 1938. *T. A. Jackson, ''Ireland Her Own,'' Lawrence & Wishart Ltd., 1976. *T. C. Luby, ''Life and Times of Daniel O'Connell,'' Cameron & Ferguson. *T. F. O'Sullivan, ''Young Ireland,'' The Kerryman Ltd., 1945. *Terry Golway, ''Irish Rebel John Devoy and America's Fight for Irish Freedom,'' St. Martin's Griffin, 1998. * Thomas Gallagher, ''Paddy's Lament Ireland 1846–1847: Prelude to Hatred,'' Poolbeg, 1994. *Thomas Keneally, ''The Great Shame,'' Anchor Books, 1999. *Thomas, P. O'Neill, ''James Fintan Lalor,'' Golden Publications, 2003. *Charles Gavan Duffy, ''Conversations With Carlyle'' (1892), Belfast: Athol Books, . *Brendan Clifford and Julianne Herlihy, ''Envoi, Taking Leave of Roy Foster,'' Cork: Aubane Historical Society, Cork. * M. W. Savage, ''The Falcon Family, or, Young Ireland,'' London, 1845.
An Gorta Mor
''Quinnipiac University'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Macmanus, Terence Bellew 19th-century births 1861 deaths Burials at Glasnevin Cemetery Convicts transported to Australia People from County Fermanagh Young Irelanders Activists from County Fermanagh

Biography

Quotes

See also

References