Joseph Plunkett (1887-1916) was a poet, journalist and one of the Seven Signatories of the Proclamation of the Irish Republic. Born to a devoutly Catholic family in Dublin, Plunkett spent part of his youth in North Africa. He would join the Gaelic League alongside his close friend, fellow poet Thomas MacDonagh and by 1915, was sworn into the Irish Republican Brotherhood, and would become one of the chief conspirators for the 1916 Easter Rising. Plunkett, although seriously ill on the day of the Rising, would be present at the General Post Office and would have a limited role in the fighting. Upon the surrender of the rebels, Plunkett, as one of the Proclamation signatories, would be sentenced to death. He would be married to his sweetheart Grace Gifford hours before his execution on 4 May 1916, at the age of 28.
Writings
Civilised Nationhood: Reached Through The Volunteers (1914)