Henry Grattan

This systematic deprivation fed a deep resentment that spilled over into political activism.

Henry Grattan, an eloquent advocate of parliamentary liberty, saw how the Irish volunteers, raised against potential French invasion during the American Revolution, could become a formidable instrument for demanding representation.

He argued that without the vote Catholics would be left voiceless and unrepresented, effectively encouraging rebellion in their own homeland if Parliament remained closed.

When France sent an expedition to Bantry Bay in 1796, the hopes of Irish nationalists were again dashed by bad weather.