The Fianna was unlike other boys’ organisations. It was not a ‘boys brigade’. These latter, wherever they exist in Ireland and whether worked in conjunction with the Church or not failed miserably to turn out real live, earnest Irish – rebel – boys, because firstly they do not try to make such out of them, and secondly, they do not understand the psychology of the boy. The Fianna was trained, taught, officered, and worked by boys who were elected by their fellow members. The movement was built up and maintained to a great extent by the subscription of the boys themselves.
For quite a long time it consisted of scarcely more than a few dozen members. These met and tried to train themselves and forward the movement under the greatest difficulties. None of them had money; all were poor. Some were at school, while others, like Con Colbert, had to work hard for a living. A hall was secured in Camden Street, the rent of which, by the way, the Countess paid for several years. With the possession of a headquarters, the movement began slowly to grow. The corrupt and venal press, masquerading as National, gave it no support, while printing columns about the Boys Brigades as the English Boy Scouts were termed, and other boys brigades were anything but National. The few small papers that still stood for Irish principles, gave, of course, what publicity they could. The following appeared in Bean na hÉireann, a little paper that in the short term of its existence, did an amount of good. Like nearly everything written about the Fianna this little article was written by one of the boys:
With the formation of Na Fianna Éireann the boys of Ireland have got a National organisation of their own. Some Nationalists think that the boys don’t count in the Nation, but the founders of Na Fianna Éireann rightly consider them of supreme importance. They are the recruits for the future armies of Ireland, and on them the future of Ireland must depend. All through our history, the boys of the country have played the part of heroes. In the old literature we have the boy deeds of Cuchullain and the youthful exploits of Fionn. In the Red Branch Cycle can we ever forget the story of how the boys of Emain Macha stayed the armies of Maeve and saved Ulster, and died fighting while their fathers slept.
Now that Na Fianna Éireann has been started, the boys of Ireland will again come to the front working for Irish independence. In their headquarters, 34 Lower Camden Street, they drill every Tuesday and Thursday. Every Irish boy is invited to join. Other centres will be opened shortly, as the hall is already crowded with the numbers who have joined. As time goes on it is hoped to have branches of Na Fianna in every part of Ireland, so that the next generation will know their country and love her, and be prepared to assert their independence.
During 1910 great progress was made in organising new branches and in promoting schemes for the government and training of the boys. Sluaghte – the Irish word used by the Fianna to designate a corps or branch, for Irish terms were used on all possible occasions – were formed in several centres in Dublin, and in Belfast. Each Sluagh was named after some Irish Patriot whose life and deeds would be a source of inspiration to the members of the Slaugh. Regular programmes of work were drawn up and carried out. The different branches met usually twice weekly at their halls or meeting places at night time. There they underwent a short course of military and physical drill followed by a short discourse on Irish history by one of the officers who, in his own words and in a simple unaffected way, using language that the youngest could understand, told the boys of the glories of Ireland and the noble heritage that was theirs. And the boys listened eagerly to such talks, drinking in with avidity the story of the gallant deeds done for Ireland.
Every Sunday marches-out were held and these were made the occasion of still further fostering a rebel spirit. To city boys in particular it appealed, and the Dublin Mountains was the goal of the Dublin boys every Sunday. Rations were brought and cooked, some of the boys developing great skill in the culinary art, while considerable ingenuity was shown in the way fires and cooking places were built and arrangements made for hanging pots over them.
Camping out was also attempted during this summer but with little success. Want of funds and want of experience were not exactly a combination conducive to success. Nevertheless, a few, headed by Con Colbert, heroically suffered all the discomforts attendant on camping in the most primitive manner, believing that it was fitting them to fight the good fight later on. But whether tired on the march or cold at night in camp, scorched by the sun or drenched by the rain, the boys always sung and laughed and joked. And the songs they sang – not the vulgar suggestive inanities from the music halls, vile importations from England that were perhaps the best proof of how far Anglicisation had eaten into the national life of Ireland – were the songs of resurgent Ireland, ballads that breathed patriotism, love of country, rebellion and defiance. Ah! those merry hearts that sung as they trod the paths to freedom. Some are stilled in death by the bullets of the tyrant, some are being seared with the anguish of the captive in the penal cell, some are in exile and others are still in the land they love, still hoping, still working, still believing.
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No boy became a member of the Fianna until he passed the preliminary Test, and took the Fianna Pledge. He remained on probation for three weeks during which time he was taught the subjects necessary to pass the test. These subjects were as follows:
1. Understand aims and objects and how the name of the organisation was derived.
2. Know his name in Irish.
3. Be able to count up to twenty in Irish.
4. Be able to perform the few simple drill movements taught him.
5. Read and send the first circle in the semaphore system of signalling.
6. Have saved a small amount of money, according to his means, towards his uniform.
At the end of the three weeks having passed the test, he took the following pledge: ‘I promise to work for the independence of Ireland, never to join England’s armed forces, and to obey my superior officers.’ He was then a fully fledged member and entitled to wear the Fianna badge and uniform. The badge was a representation of the rising sun on gold on a green background with a white border on which were the words ‘Cuimnige ar Luimneac agus ar fheall na Sasanac’ – meaning ‘remember Limerick and English faith’. The Fianna also wore the colours of the Irish Republic and carried the Republican flag in addition to their own flag. There were two uniforms. Kilts were originally intended as the only uniform, but as it required tremendous moral courage at one time in some parts of Ireland to appear in kilts, another uniform was authorized in addition. The present writer well remembers his first appearance in the old Irish dress. He was the cynosure of all eyes, and many and varied were the comments that greeted his ears on all sides, and being like most Irish boys, self-conscious, it was a long while before he got used to wearing them. Nevertheless all who adopted the kilt uniform grew to like it very much. This consisted of a green kilt and green knitted woollen jersey with blue cuffs and collar, of Irish manufactured material. The second uniform was an olive green double-breasted shirt and knee pants, of Irish manufactured material also.
Each Sluagh or branch was governed by rules in conformation with the general principles of the organisation, with such additions as local circumstances demanded. One of the branch rules was that ‘no Anglicizing influences will be tolerated’. Usually when a boy joined he knew nothing of Irish Ireland and the first song or air he usually whistled or sung was something not Irish. The method adopted by his comrades to correct his ignorance was effective if arbitrary. The first warning he received that he was transgressing the rules would usually be some rough handling by his fellows, who themselves perhaps had only learned better some months before. And the new member in turn was generally the hardest on the latest recruit. Of course such methods were not countenanced by the officers but nevertheless they were of regular occurrence.
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