Davitt in the Land League Committee Room
Illustration of the new committee room of the Land League in Dublin. Michael Davitt is seated. This is taken from The Graphic, 22 January 1881.
By permission of Mayo Library.Davitt in the Land League Committee Room
By permission of Mayo Library.
By permission of Mayo Library.
Davitt in the Land League Committee Room
Illustration of the new committee room of the Land League in Dublin. Michael Davitt is seated. This is taken from The Graphic, 22 January 1881.
By permission of Mayo Library.Along with other Land League leaders, including Parnell, Davitt was sent to prison in 1881 for making speeches criticising the government. Gladstone's 1881 Land Act granted the three Fs, but ignored certain other problems, including the plight of tenants who were in arrears with their rent, meaning they owed back rent. The leaders issued a 'no rent manifesto' from prison, encouraging tenants to continue avoiding the payment of rent to landlords until the prisoners were released.
Land League Poster
A Land League poster from the early 1880s. This poster was to encourage tenants to refuse to pay rent to their landlords while the leaders of the Land League remained in jail.
Land League Poster
Land League Poster
A Land League poster from the early 1880s. This poster was to encourage tenants to refuse to pay rent to their landlords while the leaders of the Land League remained in jail.
There was much unrest in Ireland, and Gladstone reached an agreement with Parnell, known as the Kilmainham Treaty. Under the agreement, Gladstone increased the rights of tenants under the Land Act and released the prisoners. In return, Parnell agreed to pacify the Irish people and co-operate with the government. Davitt and other more radical Land Leaguers were opposed to the Kilmainham Treaty.
The Ladies' Land League
An illustration of members of the Ladies' Land League at work. It is taken from The Graphic, 12 November 1881.
The Ladies' Land League
The Ladies' Land League
An illustration of members of the Ladies' Land League at work. It is taken from The Graphic, 12 November 1881.
The Ladies' Land League
The Ladies' Land League, which had been set up with the backing of Davitt, operated with some success while the Land League leaders were in prison. Davitt had invited Anna Parnell, sister of Charles Stewart Parnell, to organise the group. It quickly established 420 branches throughout Ireland, offered relief to over 3,000 evicted tenants and organised prison support. The organisation also set up a Children's Land League to educate children about the land question.
The Ladies' Land League joined Davitt in opposing the Kilmainham Treaty, and wanted the Land League to continue engaging in civil disobedience until the land system was totally changed. However, the land war died down eventually as tenants gained further rights over time.
Michael Davitt met Parnell in September of 1882 and agreed to set up the Irish National League and become a member of its committee. This organisation put Home Rule before land reform. In 1903, Davitt wrote that the setting up of the Irish National League was 'the overthrow of a movement and the enthronement of a man.' Although he cooperated with Parnell, Davitt was critical of his style of leadership and some of his policies.