A History of Ireland in Song

Napper Tandy

James Napper Tandy (1740-1803). Born in Dublin. He was a small tradesman who originally gained attention by his attacks on muncipal corruption and his proposal to boycott English goods as a reprisal for the many restrictions placed on Irish commerice by the parliament in Westminster. Inspired by the ideals of the French Revolution and the American War of Independence, Napper Tandy became a leader of the United Irishmen and was an organizer for that movement in County Louth. In 1793, betrayed by informers, and with a bounty on his head, he hid out in the tunnels beneath Darver Castle until, heavily disguised and using a false name, he sailed to America. He remained there until he sailed for France in 1798. The French government appointed him General, and sent him on one of their forlorn missions to invade Ireland, which landed on Rutland Island off the Donegal coast. Learning from letters in the local post office that Humbert's expedition had been finally defeated, he ordered his small force to re-embark, told the Captain to sail for Norway — and, they say, got thorougly drunk! Eventually he was captured in Hamburg and handed over to the British. He was sentenced to death after trial at Lifford, County Donegal. Throughout the trial, he insisted on his status as a French general and prisoner of war. Napoleon agreed and demanded the British release him unconditionally. They did so in 1802. He died at Bordeaux on August 24, 1803, age 63.

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