Arthur O'Connor (July 4, 1763 – April 25, 1852), was a United Irishman and later a general in Napoleon's army.

Biography

Born near Bandon, County Cork, O'Connor embraced the Republican movement early on as he was encouraged by the American Revolution overseas. From 1791 to 1796 he was a member of the colonial parliament in College Green. In 1796 he became a member of the Society of United Irishmen. He and Lord Edward Fitzgerald petitioned France for aid in support of an Irish revolution. While traveling to France he was arrested alongside Father James O'Coigly and three other United Irishmen. O'Coigly, a Catholic priest, was hanged whereas O'Connor was acquitted. He was re-arrested immediately and imprisoned at Fort George in Scotland, until he was released in 1802 under the condition of ‘banishment’. He traveled to Paris, where he was regarded as the accredited representative of the United Irishmen by Napoleon who, in February, 1804, appointed him General of Division in the French army. General Berthier, Minister of War, directed that O'Connor was to join the expeditionary army intended for the invasion of Ireland at Brest. When the plan fell through, O'Connor retired from the army, later marrying the daughter of scholar Marquis de Condorcet, Eliza, in 1807. The rest of his life was spent composing literary works on political and social topics.

References