[URBAN NOTE] "How Toronto Reacted to the Dublin Easter Rising 100 Years Ago"

[rfmcdonald]

Daniel Panneton's Torontoist post noted how Toronto, famously dominated by the Orange Order and with its biggest minority being Irish Catholics, reacted to the Easter Rising.

The most popular newspapers were quick to try and downplay the situation’s severity, assuring their readerships that the rebellion was being quelled. On April 26 the Toronto Globe prematurely announced “Troops promptly suppress the rising in Dublin,” while four days later the Toronto World declared that “capture of the rebels thought to be just a matter of time.” On May 1 the Star delivered news that “All Irish Rebel Leaders in Dublin Surrender with 450 followers.”

The major papers emphasized the Irish people’s trustworthiness in their coverage. While reporting on the Irish volunteers involved with suppressing the rebellion, the Globe quipped that “the Irish loyalists are not all in the north.” On May 3 the Star reported that Irish troops were victorious, and that they “HATE REBS.” The Globe, World, and Star all reprinted letters from Irish Catholics across the British Empire denouncing the rebels and reaffirming their own commitment to the war effort.

Not forgetting that there was a war on, newspapers were quick to emphasize German connections to the rebels. The Globe asked “Is Hun Rule for Ireland the best substitute for Home Rule the [rebels] can suggest?” while the Star reported that the rebels were “undoubtedly [counting] upon the arrival of a considerable German force.” This was not without merit; a few days before the Rising took place, Irish nationalists attempted unsuccessfully to land a shipment of roughly 20,000 rifles and 1,000,000 rounds of ammunition from the German Empire. The Proclamation read by the rebels themselves mentions the aid provided by their “gallant allies in Europe.”

In the Rising’s aftermath, it was briefly rumoured that a Toronto-raised battalion was involved in putting down the fighting when the Star reported that a private from a unit recently sent to England had appeared on the British army’s casualty list. Pvt. Neville Fryday was an Irish-born 16-year-old labourer who lied about his age to serve in the 75th Canadian Infantry Battalion, Ontario Regiment. Fryday was on leave at the time, most likely visiting family. He was killed outside of Trinity College, allegedly while wearing his military uniform. He was buried in Dublin with a Canadian military grave.

The Rising placed Toronto’s Irish Catholics in an uncomfortable position. Although anti-Irish bigotries were nowhere near as intense or widespread as they were in the 19th century, many Irish Catholic Canadians still had to deal with accusations of disloyalty. Toronto in particular was dominated culturally and politically by the Orange Order, a hyper-Protestant association of Irish import that controlled city patronage. The staunch British Imperial milieu and the experience of being a double minority within their own linguistic and religious communities created a strong incentive to keep Irish Catholic toes on the British Imperial line.