Joseph Mary Plunkett
A project by Jacqueline McCarrick

Joseph Mary Plunkett was born on November 21st 1887 on 26 Upper Fitzwilliam Street
Even though he came from quite a privileged background, his life was very difficult due to his tuberculosis
Tuberculosis is a disease which effects your organs, mostly the lungs

He went to school at the Catholic University School, Belvedere College and Stonyhurst College in Lancashire
He came from quite a religious family. His dad George Noble Plunkett was made a Papal Count by Pope Leo XIII for donating money and property to a Roman Catholic nursing order and he is believed to be a descendent of Saint Oliver Plunkett, the last priest martyred for being a Catholic in England

Thomas MacDonagh, another rebel, had tutored Joseph in Irish to help him prepare for university
They became friends as they both shared an interest in poetry and theatre
Thomas also published some of Joseph’s poems in his literary journal and edited his first collection of poems ‘The Circle and the Sword’ in 1911

The Stars Sang in God’s Garden
 
The stars sang in God’s garden;
The stars are the birds of God;
The night-time is God’s harvest,
Its fruits are the words of God.  
God ploughed His fields at morning,
God sowed His seed at noon,
God reaped and gathered in His corn
With the rising of the moon.  
The sun rose up at midnight,
The sun rose red as blood,
It showed the Reaper, the dead Christ,
Upon His cross of wood.  
For many live that one may die,
And one must die that many live—
The stars are silent in the sky
Lest my poor songs be fugitive.

Joseph joined the IRB (Irish Republican Brotherhood) in 1915
He was sent to Germany to meet with Robert Casement and negotiate a deal with their army
The deal was, that if Germany provided a shipment of arms to Ireland, the rebels would start a revolt against England. This would force more English troops to Ireland and help Germany in World War I
Casement’s main aim was to recruit Irish prisoners of war to help fight for Ireland in the rebellion

The following month he was appointed to the IRB Military Council
Along with James Connolly and Séan Mac Diarmada, he was very involved in preparations for the Rising
Just days before Easter, his health got worse and he had to have an operation on his neck
He took part in the Rising despite his illness with the assistance of Michael Collins

After the surrender, Joseph was brought to Kilmainham Jail to be executed along with the six other signatories of the Proclomation and several others
On the night before his execution on the 4th May, he got married to his fiancée Grace Gifford, sister-in-law of Thomas MacDonagh. They had been engaged before either of them had any knowledge of the Rising
Joseph was only 28 when he was executed

There are several buildings in Ireland named after Joseph Plunkett:
Plunkett Station in Waterford City
Joseph Plunkett Tower in Ballymun, though it is planned to be demolished in 2014
Plunkett Barracks in the Curragh Camp, Co. Kildare

Before his execution, he said:
“I am very happy I am dying for the glory of God and the honour of Ireland”

The End