Tomas Mac Donagh

Thomas Mac Donagh was a relative late comer in relation to the other signatories. In 1915 the IRB established a Military committee to discreetly deal in acts of war and piece, MacDonagh however, was not inducted until April 1916. Why the long wait? And what exactly was his purpose there?

He was a man of many talents, mostly in the field of arts and literature, he published many works in The Irish Review and co-edited the publication several times before it was disbanded in 1914. Mac Donagh was a lover of the Irish language, he did not necessarily have a great love of the Gaelic League, but set up a Branch in Kilkenny. His ultimate desire was to be a painter, going to Paris, where baguettes were prefered over the buscuit, to pursue his dream. Unfortunately he just did not have the talent and returned to Ireland with his mind firmly set on literary endeavours.

A strong hint towards his nationalism came with the production of his only full length play entitled When the Dawn is Come. In this he envisaged Ireland setting out for its final battle against the dominant English Army. The road to his induction into the events of 1916 officially came about in 1908 when he took a job in St Enda, along with Patrick Pearse he helped establish the bilingual ethos of the facility and became entangled in Pearses beliefs.

Although he was no orator, Marxist, felon, polemicist or Extreme nationalist like the other signatories, he did have a keen interest in military strategist and a desire to give up his own life for the well being of Ireland. He was present at the landing of guns from Erskine Childer's yacht at Howth and used his wit to help a group of Volunteers escape the gaze of H.V. Harrel, the Assistant Commissionart of Police. And through his organisation of the Volunteer parade accompanying the body of Jereniah O'Donocan to Glasnevin cemetery he proved himself more the worthy of trust.

Mac Donagh was responsible for writing up the proclamation that YOU GUYS all signed (thus establishing him as the coolest signatory among you muppets) and on Easter week he was to take a group of Volunteers and hold the Jacob's Biscuit factory, this important stratigic move left tens of British commanders without any treat to dip into their tea, thus rendering them useless in the field of urban combat. (well at least until the Helga took a detour down the liffey)

On the 30th of April order of surrender from Pearse finally reached Mac Donagh in the Jacobs Factory where his volunteers had made many strategic advances, discovering that without any milk or water based condiments cream crackers were utterly useless. He officially gave up, relinquishing arms to the British in the wake of many liberties residents .

After His court Martial and death sentence he wrote, "I, Thomas MacDonagh, having now heard my sentence of the court martial held on me today, declare that in all my acts - all the acts for which I have been arraigned - I have been actuated by one move only, the love of ny country."

On the 2nd of May he was killed, his preferred biscuit at the time was the Bourbon Cream.