0:00:30 > 0:00:31TYPEWRITER KEYS CLICK
0:00:52 > 0:00:54MACHINEGUN FIRE
0:00:56 > 0:00:59We cannot reduce the options of the choices that were facing
0:00:59 > 0:01:02people like MacNeill in such crude terms,
0:01:02 > 0:01:05that they had either to be on one side of a debate or another side.
0:01:05 > 0:01:07There was a hell of a lot in between.
0:01:23 > 0:01:28This is the letter signed by my grandfather, Eoin MacNeill,
0:01:28 > 0:01:30calling off the 1916 Rising.
0:01:32 > 0:01:35And this document changed his life
0:01:35 > 0:01:37and arguably changed Irish history.
0:01:56 > 0:02:00I'm the youngest son of the youngest daughter of Eoin MacNeill,
0:02:00 > 0:02:02he's my grandfather.
0:02:03 > 0:02:09Eoin MacNeill himself was a man of documents and letters and records.
0:02:09 > 0:02:12He was a hoarder, I suppose, rather than a person who was
0:02:12 > 0:02:15careless about documents, he knew their value.
0:02:18 > 0:02:22Well, these are three photographs of Eoin MacNeill,
0:02:22 > 0:02:25showing him at different stages of his life.
0:02:25 > 0:02:27This is a picture of MacNeill and his wife Taddie
0:02:27 > 0:02:30when they were living close to Malahide in a house
0:02:30 > 0:02:34called "Hazelbrook", and it shows him as a young man with a moustache.
0:02:34 > 0:02:38This picture here shows MacNeill at another stage of his life,
0:02:38 > 0:02:39clean-shaven.
0:02:39 > 0:02:41I'd imagine it was when he was Minister for Education
0:02:41 > 0:02:47or perhaps Minister for Finance, in the period 1919 to 1923.
0:02:47 > 0:02:51But all three pictures show him, I think,
0:02:51 > 0:02:57as a kind of lean, intelligent, ascetic kind of man.
0:02:57 > 0:03:02A serious-minded... But a warm character notwithstanding.
0:03:10 > 0:03:14He wrote a memoir detailing what had happened in relation
0:03:14 > 0:03:17to his own early life and up to the time of his resignation.
0:03:20 > 0:03:25I think his family thought that he should take some time to go back over
0:03:25 > 0:03:30the painful periods of his life and put on paper his own account of it.
0:03:32 > 0:03:35CLOCK TICKS
0:03:52 > 0:03:56I was born on May 15th 1867.
0:03:58 > 0:04:0120 years to the day after Daniel O'Connell's death.
0:04:03 > 0:04:10My people in Glenarm all came from the same local stock.
0:04:10 > 0:04:12They belonged to families of hillside farmers.
0:04:21 > 0:04:24My father had started life as an apprentice
0:04:24 > 0:04:26to the shipbuilding trade,
0:04:26 > 0:04:28completed his apprenticeship,
0:04:28 > 0:04:32became a journeyman and in that capacity made a voyage
0:04:32 > 0:04:37as ship carpenter that he used to often talk about afterwards.
0:04:38 > 0:04:41His name was Archibald,
0:04:41 > 0:04:45and he was known to the whole countryside as "Big Archie",
0:04:45 > 0:04:49and when we were children, we were simply called "Archie's ones".
0:06:00 > 0:06:02Here we are at the Four Courts, which is
0:06:02 > 0:06:05one of the most popular stops on my 1916 Walking Tour.
0:06:08 > 0:06:12Dublin was changing at the time, there was a new upsurge
0:06:12 > 0:06:15in interest in Irish history, and it became popular again
0:06:15 > 0:06:17to have an interest not only in our language,
0:06:17 > 0:06:21but in our culture, and here was Eoin MacNeill at the centre of it.
0:06:21 > 0:06:23He has a few shillings in his pocket,
0:06:23 > 0:06:26he spent a quarter of his salary on Irish lessons,
0:06:26 > 0:06:30he is introduced to a new cultural aspect of Dublin.
0:08:44 > 0:08:46The Gaelic League gave the young people of the country
0:08:46 > 0:08:49something they could do for themselves
0:08:49 > 0:08:52and of themselves in the work of national regeneration.
0:08:55 > 0:08:59Who can doubt that we have fallen very far from that standard?
0:09:12 > 0:09:16When I was secretary of the League, I once received an invitation
0:09:16 > 0:09:19to address a society of young men who met weekly in Dublin.
0:09:21 > 0:09:23The president of the society was
0:09:23 > 0:09:25a very young man called Patrick Pearse.
0:09:27 > 0:09:29TYPEWRITER KEYS CLICK
0:09:29 > 0:09:31I want to ask you one question.
0:09:31 > 0:09:34'I addressed them on the subject of the language generally,
0:09:34 > 0:09:36'and the object of the Gaelic League,
0:09:36 > 0:09:39'but in the end of the proceedings
0:09:39 > 0:09:43'I made an earnest appeal to these young men to join up
0:09:43 > 0:09:48'with the League, which needed all the workers it could enlist.
0:09:48 > 0:09:50'A number of them, including Pearse,
0:09:50 > 0:09:54'came into the Gaelic League some time afterwards.'
0:09:54 > 0:09:56Thank you, Eoin.
0:09:59 > 0:10:04"Dear Mr MacNeill, you will recollect that on Friday evening
0:10:04 > 0:10:08"I requested on the part of the New Ireland Literary Society
0:10:08 > 0:10:12"that you deliver a lecture before us towards the middle or end
0:10:12 > 0:10:16"of January. I now enclose you a copy of the rules of the society."
0:11:05 > 0:11:09In a sense, MacNeill had taken Pearse in under his wings
0:11:09 > 0:11:12when it came to the Gaelic League movement.
0:11:12 > 0:11:16They would have been linguistic soldiers together.
0:11:16 > 0:11:19And the Gaelic League movement brought an awful lot
0:11:19 > 0:11:22of individuals like that very close together.
0:16:21 > 0:16:23CLAMOUR
0:16:23 > 0:16:26- MACNEILL:- At that time, a great change was shaping
0:16:26 > 0:16:27in the political situation.
0:16:29 > 0:16:33The agent in bringing about this change was Edward Carson.
0:16:33 > 0:16:35CHEERING
0:16:35 > 0:16:38Carson had set about organising
0:16:38 > 0:16:39resistance in Ulster,
0:16:39 > 0:16:42and it should be clearly understood
0:16:42 > 0:16:44that this resistance
0:16:44 > 0:16:46was to Irish self-government,
0:16:46 > 0:16:51to the creation of an Irish parliament without any limitation.
0:16:55 > 0:16:59In this time of crisis, The O'Rahilly was one of
0:16:59 > 0:17:03the most active workers in the Gaelic League headquarters.
0:17:03 > 0:17:05He undertook, for a time, the management of
0:17:05 > 0:17:09An Claidheamh Soluis, and under his direction it was
0:17:09 > 0:17:13decided that this periodical should be made in various ways
0:17:13 > 0:17:18more attractive. It was to make a fresh start in a new form.
0:17:22 > 0:17:24When this change was to be made,
0:17:24 > 0:17:26I happened to be laid up with a severe cold.
0:17:27 > 0:17:31'The O'Rahilly came to my house, told me about his plans
0:17:31 > 0:17:34'and asked me to write a leading article in English
0:17:34 > 0:17:37'for the first number of the new issue.'
0:17:39 > 0:17:44I agreed, and the next issue of the paper contained an article by me -
0:17:44 > 0:17:48advocating the formation of an Irish Volunteer Force.
0:18:53 > 0:18:54KNOCK ON DOOR
0:18:58 > 0:19:00'A few days after its publication,
0:19:00 > 0:19:02'The O'Rahilly came again to my house,
0:19:02 > 0:19:04'accompanied by Bulmer Hobson.
0:19:08 > 0:19:10'They referred to this article of mine
0:19:10 > 0:19:14'and asked me did I mean it in earnest?
0:19:14 > 0:19:16'I said, "Of course I did,
0:19:16 > 0:19:19' "I should not think of publishing it otherwise."
0:19:19 > 0:19:22'And then, at once, we began to discuss plans
0:19:22 > 0:19:25'for the institution of a volunteer force.
0:19:30 > 0:19:33'I had no doubt in my mind that both these men came to me
0:19:33 > 0:19:38'from the old physical party whose organisation was the IRB.
0:19:40 > 0:19:43'And I also had little doubt of what part I was expected to play.'
0:20:47 > 0:20:51Well, this is the room in the Rotunda that Bulmer Hobson
0:20:51 > 0:20:57initially booked for the 25th of November 1913.
0:20:57 > 0:20:59The objective of that meeting was to
0:20:59 > 0:21:02found some sort of a volunteer force.
0:21:02 > 0:21:05When you look at the room, you see maybe 400 or 500 people
0:21:05 > 0:21:08would be the max capacity here.
0:21:08 > 0:21:11As it turned out on the night, so many people turned up
0:21:11 > 0:21:16that the Rink itself, which held 4,000 people, was not big enough,
0:21:16 > 0:21:20so an additional meeting had to be held in the gardens of the Rotunda.
0:21:20 > 0:21:23People in Dublin probably felt that it was time for them
0:21:23 > 0:21:26to form some sort of a defensive organisation.
0:21:27 > 0:21:30And that's the very important thing about the initial foundation
0:21:30 > 0:21:33of the Volunteers - they were a defensive army.
0:22:37 > 0:22:39GUNFIRE AND EXPLOSIONS
0:23:18 > 0:23:20DR CONOR MULVAGH:
0:23:26 > 0:23:29"Wherever the firing line extends in defence
0:23:29 > 0:23:32"of right, freedom and religion in this war."
0:24:45 > 0:24:49This is Colaiste Mhuire, which was the headquarters
0:24:49 > 0:24:51of Conradh na Gaeilge.
0:24:51 > 0:24:56A very important gathering occurred here in September 1914,
0:24:56 > 0:25:01when the future signatories of the Proclamation of Independence
0:25:01 > 0:25:06and a number of other advanced nationalists gathered together
0:25:06 > 0:25:10and discussed the potential for some form of insurrection
0:25:10 > 0:25:14against British rule while Britain was at war.
0:25:14 > 0:25:18It's a curious fact that right under MacNeill's nose,
0:25:18 > 0:25:23all these advanced nationalists were gathering together and conspiring
0:25:23 > 0:25:26in the headquarters of Conradh na Gaeilge,
0:25:26 > 0:25:29an organisation that he had founded,
0:25:29 > 0:25:33and yet he had no idea about what was going on right behind his back.
0:26:56 > 0:27:00We do know that there's correspondence in 1914 where
0:27:00 > 0:27:03Patrick Pearse is referring to MacNeill as being
0:27:03 > 0:27:06"weak", "hopelessly weak", and there's a frustration there
0:27:06 > 0:27:08on the part of Pearse
0:27:08 > 0:27:10that things are not moving quickly enough.
0:27:10 > 0:27:13But again, that's because Pearse is moving off in that direction.
0:27:13 > 0:27:17MacNeill is certainly not engaging in the flights of fancy
0:27:17 > 0:27:20that Pearse is at the time of the outbreak of the war.
0:27:23 > 0:27:26Eoin MacNeill was...not a pacifist,
0:27:26 > 0:27:29he did believe that there were conditions
0:27:29 > 0:27:35under which it would be legitimate to rise and use physical force.
0:27:35 > 0:27:38The problem was, as far as MacNeill was concerned,
0:27:38 > 0:27:42those conditions did not exist in Ireland in 1916.
0:29:23 > 0:29:27In the weeks before the Rising, the word is beginning to get out,
0:29:27 > 0:29:29and actually by the time you get to Easter Week itself,
0:29:29 > 0:29:31it's becoming something of an open secret.
0:29:31 > 0:29:34MacNeill actually learns about a rising from one
0:29:34 > 0:29:36of his students in a tutorial, who mentions that
0:29:36 > 0:29:38he's got instructions to go and bomb a bridge.
0:29:38 > 0:29:40So the word is getting out at that stage,
0:29:40 > 0:29:43but I think MacNeill had believed the assurances that he
0:29:43 > 0:29:46was repeatedly given from the conspirators such as Pearse,
0:29:46 > 0:29:49who had assured him that there'd be no pre-emptive action.
0:30:13 > 0:30:16I went off, and thereupon, before going to bed,
0:30:16 > 0:30:18made immediate arrangements with Hobson about
0:30:18 > 0:30:21counteracting that particular line of action.
0:30:23 > 0:30:26TYPEWRITER KEYS CLICK
0:30:26 > 0:30:28And early the next day, Friday,
0:30:28 > 0:30:32messengers with my instructions, both verbal and written,
0:30:32 > 0:30:35were sent to different parts of the country.
0:30:42 > 0:30:47And in the morning, I think about 8am, I was awakened
0:30:47 > 0:30:50and told that Sean MacDermott was there to see me.
0:30:50 > 0:30:54I sent word to him to come up to the bedroom.
0:30:54 > 0:30:58'He came immediately and I sat up in bed talking to him.
0:30:58 > 0:31:02'He then disclosed to me, for the first time, that a ship
0:31:02 > 0:31:06'with arms from Germany was expected at that very time.
0:31:06 > 0:31:08'It was of course evident to me'
0:31:08 > 0:31:12that in the circumstances a landing of arms from Germany meant
0:31:12 > 0:31:16an immediate challenge to the British government,
0:31:16 > 0:31:19'and I said to MacDermott...
0:31:19 > 0:31:24' "Very well, if that is the state of the case, I'm with you."
0:31:26 > 0:31:28'Then he went downstairs and waited.
0:31:34 > 0:31:38'When I came down, Pearse had arrived.
0:31:38 > 0:31:41'And Pearse, MacDermott and I had breakfast together.
0:31:43 > 0:31:46'There was not much said, the situation being that
0:31:46 > 0:31:48'all three of us were looking forward to
0:31:48 > 0:31:50'an immediate rising in arms.'
0:31:56 > 0:32:00MacNeill is facing a situation where he doesn't know who to trust.
0:32:00 > 0:32:03There are people who he considers to be good friends,
0:32:03 > 0:32:05including Patrick Pearse,
0:32:05 > 0:32:09and when he discovers the extent of their deception, he's hurt,
0:32:09 > 0:32:11he's angry, but he's also then wondering
0:32:11 > 0:32:14"Who else has been lying to me?"
0:32:14 > 0:32:18And then he might be wondering, "Well, if they're hellbent on this,
0:32:18 > 0:32:21"would it be an idea to go along with it?
0:32:21 > 0:32:24"Maybe this will be the beginning of something
0:32:24 > 0:32:27"that ultimately could lead us towards our aims."
0:33:15 > 0:33:18On the Saturday, news from the country began to reach me
0:33:18 > 0:33:20from various channels.
0:33:21 > 0:33:25I had now come to the conclusion that an armed rising
0:33:25 > 0:33:30would not be forced upon us, that there would be time
0:33:30 > 0:33:34to at least consider fully what was to be done.
0:33:34 > 0:33:37People's lives are at stake, there's far too many people...
0:33:37 > 0:33:39people will die
0:33:39 > 0:33:42'On Saturday, I met Thomas MacDonagh, who seems to
0:33:42 > 0:33:45'have been chosen as a sort of intermediary between those
0:33:45 > 0:33:48'who had assumed direction and myself,
0:33:48 > 0:33:51'representing the Volunteer Council.
0:33:51 > 0:33:54'Several messages passed back and forth between me
0:33:54 > 0:33:56'and those with whom MacDonagh was acting.'
0:33:56 > 0:34:01Tomas, you know that. Tomas...
0:34:02 > 0:34:04Tomas!
0:34:15 > 0:34:19At last, about midnight, I came to the conclusion that these persons
0:34:19 > 0:34:25intended to have their own way and only wished to draw me into it.
0:34:26 > 0:34:29"April 22nd, 1916.
0:34:31 > 0:34:34"Owing to the very critical position,
0:34:34 > 0:34:36"all orders given to Irish Volunteers
0:34:36 > 0:34:40"for tomorrow, Easter Sunday, are hereby rescinded."
0:34:42 > 0:34:46'I went to the office of the Independent newspaper,
0:34:46 > 0:34:49'and there dictated the order which appeared in that paper
0:34:49 > 0:34:53'on the following morning, countermanding orders
0:34:53 > 0:34:57'for the assembling and parading of the Volunteers.'
0:34:57 > 0:35:02"Eoin MacNeill, Chief of Staff, Irish Volunteers.
0:36:21 > 0:36:23The countermand was hugely detrimental.
0:36:23 > 0:36:28You've got to remember, this was a rising that was supposed to
0:36:28 > 0:36:32be nationwide. What the countermand order ensured was that
0:36:32 > 0:36:35most of the action would be in Dublin.
0:36:35 > 0:36:40It also ensures that there is a lot of confusion around
0:36:40 > 0:36:43in relation to who said what
0:36:43 > 0:36:47or who wrote what, and why, and "Whose orders are we following?"
0:37:25 > 0:37:31I rode out to the house of the Augustinians at Orlagh,
0:37:31 > 0:37:35beneath Killakee Mountain, and told the Superior, Father Hughes,
0:37:35 > 0:37:37how the matter stood.
0:37:38 > 0:37:42And he invited me to become their guest for an indefinite time.
0:37:45 > 0:37:47I accepted the hospitality.
0:37:56 > 0:37:57I stayed that night at Orlagh.
0:37:57 > 0:37:59MACHINEGUN FIRE AND EXPLOSIONS IN DISTANCE
0:37:59 > 0:38:03I spent most of the time watching from the height,
0:38:03 > 0:38:09and as I watched alone I suppose I found the strain unbearable.
0:38:12 > 0:38:16From the roof, a large part of the city was visible,
0:38:16 > 0:38:21and almost every sound - rifle fire as well as artillery -
0:38:21 > 0:38:23could be plainly heard.
0:38:29 > 0:38:34I told myself, "I cannot live as a refugee".
0:38:35 > 0:38:39So I took my leave of Father Hughes.
0:38:39 > 0:38:44I thanked him for his unbounded kindness
0:38:44 > 0:38:47and I went back to my brother's house.
0:38:57 > 0:39:00Well, during Easter Week, as the week went on,
0:39:00 > 0:39:03MacNeill was in Rathfarnham on the outskirts of Dublin,
0:39:03 > 0:39:06and the Rising was going on, and Dublin was a battlefield.
0:39:08 > 0:39:11He increasingly felt that he had to intervene,
0:39:11 > 0:39:14and he hoped that by going down to the city centre
0:39:14 > 0:39:17and presenting himself there to the British authorities,
0:39:17 > 0:39:21who'd put a cordon round the city, that he'd be able to act as
0:39:21 > 0:39:26some kind of intermediary between the Crown forces and the rebels.
0:40:02 > 0:40:05"Unless we get ourselves arrested,
0:40:05 > 0:40:08"we have no political future in Ireland'.
0:40:45 > 0:40:46Thank you.
0:42:07 > 0:42:09CLAMOUR
0:42:16 > 0:42:20The release of 1916 prisoners created an opportunity
0:42:20 > 0:42:27for Sinn Fein to begin to look at how they would
0:42:27 > 0:42:31mobilise and manage this change of opinion. And what you have
0:42:31 > 0:42:33to do with the release of the prisoners
0:42:33 > 0:42:36is ensure that there are very public
0:42:36 > 0:42:38and very wild celebrations, that these individuals
0:42:38 > 0:42:41are seen as heroes to underline the extent
0:42:41 > 0:42:43of the transformation in public opinion.
0:43:47 > 0:43:52The parliamentary representatives of Sinn Fein agreed unanimously
0:43:52 > 0:43:57not to attend the British Parliament, and further decided to
0:43:57 > 0:44:02establish here in Ireland the government of an Irish Republic,
0:44:02 > 0:44:06and to make that government function in every possible way.
0:44:06 > 0:44:10This work, from a standpoint of English law,
0:44:10 > 0:44:14was treason...rebellion...
0:44:14 > 0:44:16and all the rest.
0:44:20 > 0:44:22SHE STOPS TYPING
0:44:22 > 0:44:24WIRELESS HUMS
0:44:26 > 0:44:29- NEWSREADER:- 'Riots have broken out in the city of Londonderry...
0:44:31 > 0:44:33'..lasted into the early hours of this morning.
0:44:33 > 0:44:35'It's been reported that...'
0:44:35 > 0:44:38There were two sides to the Castle war policy.
0:44:38 > 0:44:42One was to bring about a pogrom situated in Ulster.
0:44:42 > 0:44:47The other was to use all the forces available to crush Sinn Fein
0:44:47 > 0:44:49throughout the rest of Ireland.
0:44:49 > 0:44:52'..more on this story in our later bulletin at 6pm.'
0:44:52 > 0:44:55HE CHANGES STATION
0:44:55 > 0:44:59'I was one of the ministers of the new Republican government.
0:44:59 > 0:45:03'Since we were in a position of open revolutionary revolt,
0:45:03 > 0:45:07'if we met publicly, all might be paralysed by a swoop
0:45:07 > 0:45:11'from Dublin Castle putting us under arrest.
0:45:14 > 0:45:19'It was evident that sooner or later the British government
0:45:19 > 0:45:22'must face one of the two alternatives.
0:45:22 > 0:45:25'Give up the pretence of governing Ireland,
0:45:25 > 0:45:28'or suppress the Republican government.
0:45:32 > 0:45:36'The fight began in the form of arrests and shootings,'
0:45:36 > 0:45:39and as things developed...
0:45:39 > 0:45:40guerrilla warfare.
0:46:16 > 0:46:18NEWSREADER, IN IRISH:
0:46:55 > 0:46:57GUNSHOTS AND PANICKED CRIES
0:47:18 > 0:47:21People like MacNeill were called "the Green Black and Tans".
0:47:21 > 0:47:24They were said to be doing the same things that the British
0:47:24 > 0:47:29had done, so it makes them quite assertive in terms of pushing
0:47:29 > 0:47:33for hardline policies, particularly the policy of executions,
0:47:33 > 0:47:37for which people like Blythe and MacNeill were never forgiven for.
0:47:46 > 0:47:48Eoin MacNeill's own family were divided by the Civil War.
0:47:48 > 0:47:52Two of his sons fought with the pro-treaty National Army,
0:47:52 > 0:47:55and one of his sons, Brian, fought with the anti-treaty IRA.
0:48:03 > 0:48:07Here's a letter which Brian MacNeill wrote
0:48:07 > 0:48:13to my grandmother on the 10th of August 1922.
0:48:13 > 0:48:17He says, "I'm glad to say that I'm well and in good spirits,
0:48:17 > 0:48:18"I hope that you are all the same.
0:48:18 > 0:48:20"Tell Niall and Turlough..."
0:48:20 > 0:48:23And they were two of my uncles who were his brothers.
0:48:23 > 0:48:27"..that I send my best wishes to them.
0:48:27 > 0:48:29"I would take a spin up to see you,
0:48:29 > 0:48:33"but I've no wish to spend such lovely weather in a convict's cell."
0:48:35 > 0:48:37He finishes the letter by saying,
0:48:37 > 0:48:38"If Athair..."
0:48:38 > 0:48:40And that's his father, Eoin MacNeill.
0:48:40 > 0:48:45"..had time, I'd very much like him to drop me
0:48:45 > 0:48:48"a line telling me how he sees things."
0:48:50 > 0:48:55And within 30 days of writing that letter, Brian had been
0:48:55 > 0:48:59shot down on the top of Benbulben by Free State forces
0:48:59 > 0:49:01under the command of his father's government -
0:49:01 > 0:49:03in very controversial circumstances.
0:51:09 > 0:51:12There has been a great deal of misunderstanding
0:51:12 > 0:51:16about the partition clause, Article 12 of the treaty.
0:51:16 > 0:51:19I consented to act on the commission for two reasons -
0:51:19 > 0:51:22because I was asked by the Provisional government to act
0:51:22 > 0:51:26and because no-one else could be found to act instead of me.
0:51:28 > 0:51:30PHONE RINGS
0:51:35 > 0:51:36Hello?
0:51:52 > 0:51:57It was the most disagreeable duty I had ever undertaken,
0:51:57 > 0:52:03for to my mind, it was nothing short of an outrage on Ireland -
0:52:03 > 0:52:09and, I may say, on civilisation - to be asked to draw a line
0:52:09 > 0:52:14across this country, dividing it on the basis of religious differences.
0:53:47 > 0:53:51I was going to Mass at Booterstown one bright Sunday morning,
0:53:51 > 0:53:53to the 12 o'clock Mass.
0:53:54 > 0:53:58As I came down the road leading to the church, at a bend in the road,
0:53:58 > 0:54:02I saw a motor car drawn up on the roadside with no occupant.
0:54:04 > 0:54:08Just when I had passed it I heard the sound of shots
0:54:08 > 0:54:11coming from round the corner in Cross Avenue.
0:54:14 > 0:54:18Knowing that Kevin O'Higgins was staying in Cross Avenue,
0:54:18 > 0:54:21I had little doubt that he was the victim.
0:54:24 > 0:54:26I knelt down beside him.
0:54:28 > 0:54:31He was still quite alive, but blind.
0:54:33 > 0:54:38He recognised my voice and said, "Is that you, John?"
0:54:39 > 0:54:41I says yes.
0:54:43 > 0:54:46And he then began to give me instructions about his last wishes.
0:54:48 > 0:54:49He first said...
0:54:52 > 0:54:55.."I want you to say that I forgive my murderers."
0:54:57 > 0:55:04Then he said, "Tell my wife I give her my eternal love".
0:55:08 > 0:55:12I had always been on the best of terms with O'Higgins,
0:55:12 > 0:55:15but in many ways there was not much sympathy between us.
0:55:17 > 0:55:22I knew that long before this he had been saying to people
0:55:22 > 0:55:25that it was time the old man got off the tram tracks.
0:55:27 > 0:55:31And it was at his insistence and upon his motion
0:55:31 > 0:55:35that my resignation from the government had been given in.
0:55:40 > 0:55:44Personally, I was glad to escape from politics
0:55:44 > 0:55:46and get back to my own congenial work.
0:55:47 > 0:55:52I had never pushed myself into politics and never taken
0:55:52 > 0:55:55any prominent part in them except at the request of others.
0:55:57 > 0:56:00In fact, under urgent pressure from them.
0:56:06 > 0:56:09I think we need to reassess Eoin MacNeill. There's a tendency
0:56:09 > 0:56:10to think about him in very negative terms.
0:56:10 > 0:56:14It's almost like his reputation is locked up in a double negative.
0:56:14 > 0:56:17We associate him with attempting to prevent the Rising,
0:56:17 > 0:56:21which became such an iconic moment in Irish Republican history,
0:56:21 > 0:56:25and then we associate him with the Boundary Commission debacle
0:56:25 > 0:56:27in the mid-1920s.
0:56:27 > 0:56:29There was much more to Eoin MacNeill, though.