Thomas Clarke

16 Lives

by Helen Litton

A fascinating examination of the life of Thomas Clarke, a member of the Fenians and a key leader of the Irish Republican Brotherhood in 1916.

Clarke spent fifteen years in penal labour for his role in a bombing campaign in London between 1883 and 1898. He was a member of the Supreme Council of the IRB from 1915 and was one of the rebels who planned the 1916 Rising. He was the first signatory of the Proclamation of Independence and was with the group that occupied the GPO. He was executed on the 3rd of May 1916.

This accessible biography outlines Clarke's life, from joining the Republican Brotherhood as an eighteen year old, to his execution at the age of fifty-nine.

Genres: History, Biography, Nonfiction, Irish Literature, Ireland

272 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 2014

About the author

Born in Dublin, Helen Litton is the editor of Kathleen Clarke’s memoir, Revolutionary Woman, and the author of 6 illustrated history books. She is married with two children. Edward Daly was Helen’s great uncle; she has also written his biography for the 16 Lives series.

Reviews

[Bill Kerwin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thomas Clarke was the indisputable wise elder of The Easter Rising, and may well have been its one indispensable man. He was the closest thing to a live Fenian the young rebels could find, and he indeed had authentic rebel credentials, for he had done fifteen years hard time in Britain for attempting to dynamite London Bridge. Although a decade and a half of incarceration had weakened the health of his body, the fifty-eight year old Clarke still possessed a sharp mind and a steely resolve.

Clarke was a loving husband and a devoted father, but his country came first, and he was never happier than when he was plotting against the British in Ireland. Undoubtedly an ancient examplar of revolutionary virtue, he was also an indefatigable organizer, close-mouthed and trustworthy. His tobacconist shop was the communication center and treasury of the rebellion (Dublin Castle intelligence reports released in April 2015 include references to his Parnell Street shop on every page), and when the Rising occurred, Clarke faced his inevitable death with tranquility and joy.

Biographer Helen Litton has an excellent eye for detail, and depicts with skill the domestic life of Thomas and Kathleen and their three boys. She also gives a vivid account of the G.P.O. during the conflict, and relates more than a few stories that I had not heard before.

Unfortunately, though, this biography suffers from poor organization. It is not that Litton is not capable of it: it is just that Litton--whose grandmother was Kathleen Daly Clarke's sister and who is the editor of Kathleen Daly Clarke's autobiography--wished to write a somewhat different book: Kathleen Daly Clarke and the Revolutionary Women of the Rising, Together With Certain Contributions of the Celebrated Daly Family. Litton habitually mixes passages from this phantom book with the important events of Tom Clarke's life—which, after all, is what readers like me bought her book for—and the result is somewhat unfocused, frequently dissipating the mood and occasionally fragmenting an otherwise effective narrative.

Still, there is a lot of good stuff about Clarke and Kathleen here, and I would recommend that you give it a try.

[Betty Strohecker · Rating 5 out of 5]

I never know quite what to say about books in this series, since I know what the ending is going to be. This biography about the life of Tom Clarke was very well done and expressed his love and passion for Ireland so clearly that the reader can easily understand his willingness to give up his life for Irish freedom. Tom Clarke was arrested for his revolutionary activities at the age of 25 and spent 15 years in the British prison system. This biography gives great insight into the conditions of the penal system in the 19th century. Released in 1898, he met the niece of one of his fellow revolutionaries while staying in their home and soon married her, even though she was 20 years younger than he was. Theirs was a true love story of of devotion, loyalty, and commitment. Kathleen Clarke lost both her husband and brother when they were executed for their roles in the Easter Rising of 1916. Clarke's story brought me to tears numerous times. At 58, he was the oldest of the 16 men executed before public outcry at the rush of their trials and deaths caused the British to rethink their treatment of the hundreds of other prisoners. Kathleen went on to continue her husband's work and ensure that he would be remembered as a true hero. It is fitting to end this review with Tom Clarke's own words. "I and my fellow-signatories believe we have struck the first successful blow for Freedom. The next blow, which we have no doubt Ireland will strike, will win through. In this belief we die happy."

[Nick Wilson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating insight into his life and subsequent death, a man hardened by prison and his love for an independent Irelan

[Aaron McCormick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great biography this time of a Northern participate in the Irish Easter Rising of 1916 - a very determined and driven individual - again its fascinating getting an insight to lives from 100+ years ago

[theo · Rating 5 out of 5]

epilogue made me want to cry a wee bit and i am now a kathleen clarke fan 10/10 slay