Robert Emmet (1778-1803) was an Irish nationalist who led a revolt against the British government in 1803, in order to emancipate Ireland from the tutelage of the United Kingdom. His attempted revolt failed, however, and Robert Emmet was executed shortly afterwards in Dublin’s Kilmainham Gaol. He is one of the best-known Irish martyrs in Irish history.
Robert Emmet was born into a wealthy family near Clonakilty in 1778. His father, a military man, gave him a very strict upbringing with a strong emphasis on discipline. A good student, he went on to study at Trinity College, where he discovered the world of politics. Almost immediately, he was inflamed by the Anglo-Irish cause, and joined the closed circle of the United Irishmens, a clandestine society of Irish patriots deeply involved in the fight against the British.
His brother, Thomas Addis Emmet, was also part of this group, and along with the others tried to foment a revolt, with the help of France. Naturally, the British government never ceases to track down members of this secret society, well aware of the threat it represents.
1798 was a pivotal year for Emmet: he took an active part in the Rebellion of 1798, and was eventually forced to flee to France to escape the British.
Refusing to submit to this failure, Robert Emmet finally took part in an Irish delegation to meet Napoleon in 1803. The Irish secretly hope that Napoleon will give them an army and enough weapons to overpower the British in a future rebellion. Napoleon refused, however, as he was too busy with the Napoleonic Wars.
Disappointed, Emmet returned to Ireland and organized a revolt with the help of other revolutionaries. Emmet takes care of the weapons supply, collecting rifles and ammunition from the 4 corners of Dublin. Of course, all this is done with the utmost discretion, to create the perfect surprise effect.
The uprising began on July 23, 1803 in the streets of Dublin, and attempted to seize Dublin Castle. The revolt was poorly organized, however, and turned into a general riot. The fighting is extremely violent, and Emmet soon realizes that his attack is doomed to failure due to the inexperience of the belligerents. He then ordered an end to the insurrection, and tried to escape.
But it was all in vain: Robert Emmet was captured on August 25, 1803 as he tried to rejoin his companion Sarah Curran. He was tried for treason on September 19, 1803 and sentenced to death. Before he died, he tried to send a farewell letter to his lover, but the letter was eventually handed over to the authorities, who promptly captured Sarah Curran and put her to death.
Robert Emmet was finally executed on December 20, in Dublin’s Kilmainham Gaol prison, by hanging and beheading. The body was then buried in a secret location.
There’s a story that he was buried in the vault of a Dublin church. A headless corpse was found there in the 1950s, but there’s no proof that it was Emmet…
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