A true son of Ireland - Michael Davitt

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I mentioned Michael Davitt in my previous post. Davitt was born in Straide, Co. Mayo, Ireland in 1846 during the Great Famine. His father was a tenant farmer and was evicted in 1850 because of rent arrears. The family migrated to Liverpool, England, and walked to East Lancashire. By the age of nine, Davitt was working in a cotton mill. Two years later, despite his objections that he wasn’t tall enough for a task he was commanded to do, his right arm was caught in a cogwheel. It was amputated ten days later. A local philanthropist sent him to a Wesleyan school. He found work in a local post office, joined the Mechanics’ Institute, and continued to read and study. In 1865, he joined the Irish Republican Brotherhood. Five years later, he was convicted for arms trafficking and sentenced to 15 years gaol. Hard labour and poor rations permanently damaged his health. He was paroled after 7 ½ years. His story is too long to be told in a few paragraphs but he was instrumental in bringing to an end the era of tenanted farmers. He travelled widely, wrote a number of books, inspired Nelson Mandela and Mahatma Gandhi, and always championed the cause of the underdog. Little wonder he is revered in Ireland.