Editing Easter Rising (section)

=== Easter Monday ===
[[File:General Post Office Dublin 20060803.jpg|thumb|right|The [[General Post Office, Dublin|General Post Office]] in Dublin – the rebel headquarters]]
[[File:Irish Republic Flag.svg|thumb|right|One of two flags flown over the GPO during the Rising]]
[[File:Easter rising 1916.jpg|thumb|right|Positions of rebel and British forces in central Dublin]]
{{main|First Day of the Easter Rising}}

On the morning of Monday 24 April, about 1,200 members of the Irish Volunteers and Irish Citizen Army mustered at several locations in central Dublin. Among them were members of the all-female [[Cumann na mBan]]. Some wore Irish Volunteer and Citizen Army uniforms, while others wore civilian clothes with a yellow Irish Volunteer armband, military hats, and [[bandolier]]s.<ref>Ward, Alan. ''The Easter Rising: Revolution and Irish Nationalism''. Wiley, 2003. p. 5</ref><ref>Cottrel, Peter. ''The War for Ireland: 1913–1923''. Osprey, 2009. p. 41</ref> They were armed mostly with rifles (especially [[Mauser Model 1871|1871 Mausers]]), but also with shotguns, revolvers, a few [[Mauser C96]] semi-automatic pistols, and grenades.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Dorney |first=John |url=http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/1916/the-rising-explained/the-weapons-of-1916-34505344.html |title=The Weapons of 1916 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160330064043/http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/1916/the-rising-explained/the-weapons-of-1916-34505344.html |archive-date=30 March 2016 |work=[[Irish Independent]] |date=3 March 2016}}</ref> The number of Volunteers who mobilised was much smaller than expected. This was due to MacNeill's countermanding order, and the fact that the new orders had been sent so soon beforehand. However, several hundred Volunteers joined the Rising after it began.{{sfn|McGarry|2010|p=129}}

Shortly before midday, the rebels began to seize important sites in central Dublin. The rebels' plan was to hold Dublin city centre. This was a large, oval-shaped area bounded by two canals: the [[Grand Canal (Ireland)|Grand]] to the south and the [[Royal Canal|Royal]] to the north, with the [[River Liffey]] running through the middle. On the southern and western edges of this district were five British Army barracks. Most of the rebels' positions had been chosen to defend against counter-attacks from these barracks.<ref>{{cite book |last=Dorney |first=John |title=The Story of the Easter Rising, 1916 |publisher=Green Lamp |date=2010 |page=33}}</ref> The rebels took the positions with ease. Civilians were evacuated and policemen were ejected or taken prisoner.{{sfn|McGarry|2010|p=133}} Windows and doors were barricaded, food and supplies were secured, and first aid posts were set up. Barricades were erected on the streets to hinder British Army movement.{{sfn|McGarry|2010|p=135}}

A joint force of about 400 Volunteers and the Citizen Army gathered at Liberty Hall under the command of Commandant James Connolly. This was the headquarters battalion, and it also included Commander-in-Chief Patrick Pearse, as well as Tom Clarke, Seán Mac Diarmada and [[Joseph Mary Plunkett|Joseph Plunkett]].<ref>McNally and Dennis, p. 41</ref> They marched to the [[General Post Office, Dublin|General Post Office]] (GPO) on [[O'Connell Street]], Dublin's main thoroughfare, occupied the building and hoisted two republican flags. Pearse stood outside and read the [[Proclamation of the Irish Republic]].<ref>Foy and Barton, pp. 192, 195</ref> Copies of the Proclamation were also pasted on walls and handed out to bystanders by Volunteers and newsboys.{{sfn|McGarry|2010|p=34}} The GPO would be the rebels' headquarters for most of the Rising. Volunteers from the GPO also occupied other buildings on the street, including buildings overlooking [[O'Connell Bridge]]. They took over a [[Wireless telegraphy|wireless telegraph]] station and sent out a radio broadcast in [[Morse code]], announcing that an Irish Republic had been declared. This was the first radio broadcast in Ireland.<ref>{{cite news|last=McGee |first=John |url=http://www.independent.ie/business/time-to-celebrate-a-centenary-of-irish-broadcast-heroes-34514674.html |title=Time to celebrate a centenary of Irish broadcast heroes |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160412035334/http://www.independent.ie/business/time-to-celebrate-a-centenary-of-irish-broadcast-heroes-34514674.html |archive-date=12 April 2016 |work=[[Irish Independent]] |date=6 March 2016}}</ref>

Elsewhere, some of the headquarters battalion under [[Michael Mallin]] occupied [[St Stephen's Green]], where they dug trenches and barricaded the surrounding roads. The 1st battalion, under [[Edward Daly (Irish revolutionary)|Edward 'Ned' Daly]], occupied the [[Four Courts]] and surrounding buildings, while a company under [[Seán Heuston]] occupied the [[Mendicity Institution]], across the River Liffey from the Four Courts. The 2nd battalion, under Thomas MacDonagh, occupied [[Jacob's]] biscuit factory. The 3rd battalion, under [[Éamon de Valera]], occupied [[Boland's Mill]] and surrounding buildings (uniquely, without the presence of Cumann na mBan women whom de Valera expressly excluded).<ref>{{Cite news |last=Ward |first=Margaret |date=17 October 2012 |title=A role in Home Rule |url=https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/heritage/century/century-women-and-the-vote/a-role-in-home-rule-1.553496 |access-date=2024-04-03 |newspaper=The Irish Times |language=en}}</ref> The 4th battalion, under Éamonn Ceannt, occupied the [[House of Industry (Dublin)|South Dublin Union]] and the distillery on [[Marrowbone Lane]]. From each of these garrisons, small units of rebels established [[Outpost (military)|outposts]] in the surrounding area.<ref>McNally and Dennis, pp. 39–40</ref>

The rebels also attempted to cut transport and communication links. As well as erecting roadblocks, they took control of various bridges and cut telephone and telegraph wires. [[Dublin Pearse railway station|Westland Row]] and [[Harcourt Street railway station|Harcourt Street]] railway stations were occupied, though the latter only briefly. The railway line was cut at [[Fairview, Dublin|Fairview]] and the line was damaged by bombs at [[Dublin Connolly railway station|Amiens Street]], [[Dublin Broadstone railway station|Broadstone]], [[Dublin Heuston railway station|Kingsbridge]] and [[Lansdowne Road railway station|Lansdowne Road]].<ref>McKenna, Joseph. ''Guerrilla Warfare in the Irish War of Independence''. McFarland, 2011. p. 19</ref>

Around midday, a small team of Volunteers and [[Fianna Éireann]] members swiftly captured the [[Magazine Fort]] in the [[Phoenix Park]] and disarmed the guards. The goal was to seize weapons and blow up the ammunition store to signal that the Rising had begun. They seized weapons and planted explosives, but the blast was not loud enough to be heard across the city.{{sfn|Caulfield|1995|pp=48–50}} The 23-year-old son of the fort's commander was fatally shot when he ran to raise the alarm.<ref>[http://www.historyireland.com/20th-century-contemporary-history/children-of-the-revolution/ "Children of the Revolution"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160331080024/http://www.historyireland.com/20th-century-contemporary-history/children-of-the-revolution/ |date=31 March 2016 }}. [[History Ireland]]. Volume 1, issue 23 (May/June 2013).</ref>

[[File:Osteraufstand - Dublin - Barrikade.jpg|thumb|right|A street barricade erected by the rebels outside the [[Westmoreland Lock Hospital]] in Dublin during the Rising]]

A contingent under Seán Connolly occupied [[Dublin City Hall]] and adjacent buildings.<ref>Foy and Barton, pp. 87–90</ref> They attempted to seize neighbouring Dublin Castle, the heart of British rule in Ireland. As they approached the gate a lone and unarmed police sentry, James O'Brien, attempted to stop them and was shot dead by Connolly. According to some accounts, he was the first casualty of the Rising. The rebels overpowered the soldiers in the guardroom but failed to press further. The British Army's chief intelligence officer, Major Ivon Price, fired on the rebels while the Under-Secretary for Ireland, Sir Matthew Nathan, helped shut the castle gates. Unbeknownst to the rebels, the Castle was lightly guarded and could have been taken with ease.<ref>Foy and Barton, pp. 84–85</ref> The rebels instead laid siege to the Castle from City Hall. Fierce fighting erupted there after British reinforcements arrived. The rebels on the roof exchanged fire with soldiers on the street. Seán Connolly was shot dead by a sniper, becoming the first rebel casualty.<ref name="rte-timeline"/> By the following morning, British forces had re-captured City Hall and taken the rebels prisoner.<ref name="rte-timeline"/>

The rebels did not attempt to take some other key locations, notably [[Trinity College Dublin|Trinity College]], in the heart of the city centre and defended by only a handful of armed unionist students.{{sfn|Townshend|2006|pp=163–164}} Failure to capture the telephone exchange in Crown Alley left communications in the hands of the Government with GPO staff quickly repairing telephone wires that had been cut by the rebels.<ref>{{cite book|title=Business as Usual – GPO Staff in 1916 |last=Ferguson |first=Stephen |publisher=[[Mercier Press]] |year=2012 |isbn=9781856359948 |pages=60}}</ref> The failure to occupy strategic locations was attributed to lack of manpower.{{sfn|McGarry|2010|p=129}} In at least two incidents, at Jacob's{{sfn|McGarry|2010|p=142}} and Stephen's Green,{{sfn|Stephens|1992|p=18}} the Volunteers and Citizen Army shot dead civilians trying to attack them or dismantle their barricades. Elsewhere, they hit civilians with their rifle butts to drive them off.<ref>{{harvp|McGarry|2010|pp=142–143}}; {{harvp|Townshend|2006|p=174}}</ref>

The British military were caught totally unprepared by the Rising and their response of the first day was generally un-coordinated. Two squadrons<ref>Townsend, Easter 1916, p.170</ref> of British cavalry were sent to investigate what was happening. They took fire and casualties from rebel forces at the GPO and at the Four Courts.{{sfn|Caulfield|1995|pp=54–55}}<ref name="Coffey, Thomas M. pp. 38, 44">Coffey, Thomas M. ''Agony at Easter: The 1916 Irish Uprising'', pp. 38, 44, 155</ref> As one troop passed [[Nelson's Pillar]], the rebels opened fire from the GPO, killing three cavalrymen and two horses<ref name="Coffey, Thomas M. pp. 38, 44"/> and fatally wounding a fourth man. The cavalrymen retreated and were withdrawn to barracks. On Mount Street, a group of [[Volunteer Training Corps (World War I)|Volunteer Training Corps]] men stumbled upon the rebel position and four were killed before they reached [[Beggars Bush Barracks]].<ref>{{cite book |last=O'Brien |title=Blood on the Streets, the Battle for Mount Street |pages=22–23}}</ref> Although ransacked, the barracks were never seized.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Butler |first=William |url=https://muse.jhu.edu/pub/300/monograph/book/51437 |title=The Irish Amateur Military Tradition in the British Army, 1854-1992 |date=2016 |publisher=Manchester University Press |isbn=978-1-5261-0846-3 |pages=151}}</ref>

The only substantial combat of the first day of the Rising took place at the South Dublin Union where a [[picket (military)|piquet]] from the [[Royal Irish Regiment (1684–1922)|Royal Irish Regiment]] encountered an outpost of Éamonn Ceannt's force at the northwestern corner of the South Dublin Union. The British troops, after taking some casualties, managed to regroup and launch several assaults on the position before they forced their way inside and the small rebel force in the tin huts at the eastern end of the Union surrendered.{{sfn|Caulfield|1995|pp=76–80}} However, the Union complex as a whole remained in rebel hands. A nurse in uniform, Margaret Keogh, was shot dead by British soldiers at the Union. She is believed to have been the first civilian killed in the Rising.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/1916/the-victims/nurse-margaret-keogh-the-first-civilian-fatality-of-the-rising-34510459.html |title=Nurse Margaret Keogh, the first civilian fatality of the Rising |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160330162528/http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/1916/the-victims/nurse-margaret-keogh-the-first-civilian-fatality-of-the-rising-34510459.html |archive-date=30 March 2016 |work=[[Irish Independent]] |date=4 March 2016}}</ref>

Three unarmed [[Dublin Metropolitan Police]] were shot dead on the first day of the Rising and their Commissioner pulled them off the streets. Partly as a result of the police withdrawal, a wave of looting broke out in the city centre, especially in the area of O'Connell Street (still officially called "Sackville Street" at the time).{{sfn|Townshend|2006|pp=263–264}}