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EH1 1JW - James Connolly Plaque,107 Cowgate

James Connolly, a leader of the 1916 Easter Rising in Dublin was born in Edinburgh’s Cowgate, in what was known as ‘Little Ireland’. When news came to Scotland, the children of his brother John faced prejudice and sensational reports in the newspapers. Connolly, a famous socialist, led the fight at the GPO in Dublin against the British Army, before being captured and then executed by being tied to a chair to be shot. The Rising, coming at the height of the war was seen by most Scots, including many Irish ones, as a betrayal. More Irishmen were killed that week in Flanders (as British soldiers), than were killed in the rising itself. But the reprisals afterwards, may have changed a lot of minds towards independence. Kirsty Lusk of Glasgow University and John Connolly’s descendant Sean Bell look at Connolly and the Scottish reaction to Easter 1916.