Sorry - missed a bit Dick
Your article on Dev may be of interest to you, but he played a peripheral part during Easter Week, though it might be worthwhile discussing what happened to the ideals of the Rising under his leadership of Ireland, which is partly what Coogan's book and and Diarmaid Ferriter's response is about - but not necessarily here though
I would remind you that you are one of the last people to accuse others of abuse and "puerile, infantile behaviour" - glass houses etc.
THe rudeness that happens here - from all sides - does not change any of the arguments
"That their leadership colluded with the German Government in time of war is undeniable"
It's been denied and proven to be not the case - they accepted guns and no more.
The leadership did not set it up to fail - where is there a modicum of proof to suggest they did?
They thought they could win and had things gone to plan and the Rising been backed throughout Ireland (and unofficially called off), it might have got further than it did.
You are still avoiding the fact that Britain behaved illegally in the way the trials were conducted (after the crisis was over) and the Prime Minister actually altered the reason for one execution after it had been carried out - SFA to do with "martial law" - it was a face-saving attempt to cover up the illegality of what had happened.
The Rising did not bring about the fall of the Empire (the term I used was "set in motion") but it inspired enough opposition to eventually bring the entire system tumbling.
"must be the slowest collapse in History."
I suggest you read Gibbon if you wish to learn how long it actually takes for an empire to collapse - centuries rather than a few decades.
As it was, a handful of ill-trained, ill-equipped volunteer rebels kept the army of the world's richest and mot powerful Empire at arms length for a full week - comparable to the peasant army which kicked the U.S. off the roof of Saigon Embassy after over a decade of armed struggle.
Credit where credit's due, I say.
Jim Carroll