Amidst such apparently hopeless conditions, the small band of enthusiasts steadfastly carried on their work. Weekly meetings were held in a single room in Dublin, a few branches were started throughout the country, and a vigorous propaganda was carried on in the Irish-speaking districts. Soon it was recognised that there was a new and forceful spirit displayed in advocating the claims of the language. Political and educational bodies supported a vigorous agitation for an improvement in the position of Irish in the ... Read More

Some of the publications issued by those editors were initiated by private enterprise, and a few were helped by assistance from the State. But most of them were the result of voluntary societies associated for the purpose. The earliest of these was the " Gaelic Society," formed in Dublin in the first decade of the century. This was succeeded by the " Iberno-Celtic Society," of which the moving spirit was Edward O'Reilly, the compiler of a dictionary (1820), and of a list ... Read More