1.1.3.1 Daniel O'Connell and the Repeal Association

• Despite a small uprising in 1803, the Irish remained silent on the issue of legislative independence, preferring to focus on the issue of Catholic emancipation in 1829
• In 1840, Daniel O'Connell founded the Repeal Association to raise funds and to gain public support to pressurise the Westminster Parliament into granting repeal
• O'Connell used 'monster meetings' which involved huge public gatherings that drew tens of thousands of people, as he had done to achieve Catholic emancipation
• In 1843, more than 40 monster meetings took place and were said to have been attended by between 100,000 to 500,000 people