The tip of the spear point
It was against this unprepossessing backdrop that Irish republicans engaged on a plan that certainly had audacity, but little else, to recommend it. They were the inhabitants of the weakest and apparently most backward of the territories of this realm, this “United Kingdom”. Yet they decided that they would, by their own efforts, take their leave of this mighty polity, whether their rulers in London willed it or not. Dáil Éireann was the tip of the spear point launched at the heart of empire.
The leaders of this daring initiative lacked experience of public affairs. Only one ‑ Laurence Ginnell ‑ had experience of serving in a national legislature. On account of his age, arrest and illness, he played a relatively marginal role in the affairs of the First Dáil. None had served as a Government Minister. Even those, such as Cathal Brugha, who had some managerial experience in the business world, found that knowledge of limited relevance in their new roles. Some, like Harry Boland and J.J. Walsh, had a deep familiarity with the affairs of the Gaelic Athletic Association, but this was of limited use given the difference in scale and importance compared to the direction of a national revolution.
There was an upside to this lack of experience. In the absence of established models of behaviour, the leaders were forced to develop their own methods and practices, rooted in the lived experience of the struggle itself. But, of course, it took some time for those involved to make progress up this learning curve, and especially in the early days of the struggle there was a necessarily ad hoc feel to their actions.