Back in the 1880s, Irish-American organizations had mostly divided in between two groups, the aforementioned Clan na Gael and the Ancient Order of Hibernians. Clan na Gael was the U.S. based sister organization of the Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB) and played a crucial role to the planning and execution of the 1916 Rising. It was headed up by the Irish exile John Devoy who, despite becoming a naturalized American citizen, made independence for Ireland the focal point of his life’s work. To this end, Devoy established the weekly newspaper the Gaelic American which he would use to editorialize and gain support for the cause of Irish independence in America. One of the main difficulties faced by Clan na Gael was a general lack of focus among its membership. All they really knew was that they wanted Irish independence but it was unclear what actions would be best for them to take given they were not actually within Ireland itself. The convention held in 1912 helped Devoy to consolidate his influence over the group and begin to more keenly focus its efforts.
When World War I broke out the Irish republican leaders, including Devoy, realized that with the British entangled in a war with Germany the time was right to stage an uprising. As the saying went, “England’s difficulty is Ireland’s opportunity.” When planning for the Easter Rising began Devoy was brought into the fold and had close contact with many of the movements leaders including Patrick Pearse, James Connolly, and Roger Casement. They visited the states various times, holding pro-Irish rallies, delivering speeches, and trying to galvanize as much support as possible. Their success was somewhat varied, as they did manage to gain some support and raise money, but not nearly as much as they had hoped to. [Go here to find out how most Americans reacted towards the Rising].
Clan na Gael’s main contribution was in fundraising. The IRB was going to need money if it was to successfully resist British control, but there was not exactly a lot of money floating around Ireland that could be put to use for the cause. Devoy focused Clan na Gael’s efforts around raising money from the multitude of Irish immigrants living in America who were sympathetic to the Irish cause. In total about $100,00 ($2.5 million in today’s money) was raised to aid in the rising to come. It was the largest influx of money received by any previous Irish insurrection. Clan na Gael’s leadership also helped facilitate the Rising’s ties with the Germans by arranging a meeting with the German consulate in the U.S. to begin discussions of how their and the Germans interest might align.
Devoy had also established the pro-Irish Nationalist newspaper Gaelic American, which had a national circulation of 28,000 by 1916, mostly amongst Irish households. With Devoy being so personally involved in the uprising, often corresponding with James Connolly and Paidric Pearse and offering his advice, it comes as no surprise that he was privy to the exact dates and plans they held. His newspaper was often skewed in favor of the Irish Nationalists during its coverage, portraying them as a united band freedom fighters against Britain, which was described as an Ancient Empire (like Assyria, Greece, and Rome) that was ready to fall.
As World War I loomed, the organization made it clear their intent to side with any group that could bring Ireland closer to freedom, even if they were Britain’s enemies. This brought them into contact with Germany, and come the breakout of the war, inadvertently edged America away from its official stance of neutrality. Germany hoped to start up a new front to the war and distract Britain from supporting France, and directly sold arms to Clan na Gael. From here, these weapons were shipped to Ireland, and were, ironically enough, sometimes assaulted by German submarines.
After the uprising had failed, information began to leak of possible support for the rebellion back in America. Jeremiah O’Leary, a member of the American Truth Society, told the associated press that a huge sum of money had been provided by Irish Americans for the Rising, along with these countless shipments of weapons.