Theobald Wolfe Tone

Tone co-founded the Society of United Irishmen in Belfast, a revolutionary organization seeking parliamentary reform and Catholic emancipation. The society later became a secret republican movement aiming for Irish independence.

Tone published a pamphlet arguing for the inclusion of Catholics in Irish political life. It helped bridge the gap between Protestant radicals and the Catholic majority, broadening the base of the United Irishmen.

Tone accompanied a French fleet of 43 ships carrying 15,000 troops to invade Ireland. The expedition was scattered by storms off Bantry Bay and failed to land, a major setback for the republican cause.

Tone traveled to France to secure French military support for an Irish rebellion. He persuaded the French Directory to launch an invasion of Ireland, leading to the dispatch of a large expeditionary force.

Tone was captured aboard a French ship at the Battle of Tory Island, part of a second French invasion attempt. The French squadron was defeated by the Royal Navy, ending French hopes of aiding the Irish Rebellion.

Tone was tried for treason in Dublin and sentenced to death by hanging. Before execution, he cut his own throat to deny the British the spectacle of his hanging, dying from the wound a week later.