Michael Collins

Dates: 1890-1922

With his talent for organisation and logistics, Collins helped transform the Irish Republican Army into a powerful insurgent force that fought the British to a standstill.

The online voting has reached its deadline and is now closed. However, the comments section below remains open.

The son of a west Cork farmer, Michael Collins moved to London in 1906 to work for the Post Office Savings Bank in West Kensington. While in London he studied at King’s College, joined the Gaelic Athletic Association and was sworn into the underground Irish Republican Brotherhood.

He returned to Ireland in 1916 and joined the Irish Volunteers. Collins fought alongside Sean MacDiarmada in the Dublin General Post Office during the Easter Rising, but took a dim view of its military strategy. He believed the policy of capturing and then holding indefensible and vulnerable posts in the middle of the capital foolhardy. Such places were impossible to escape from and hard to supply. It was a lesson he would not forget.

Collins was arrested and imprisoned at Frongoch internment camp in Wales. Following his release in late 1916 he helped lead the revival of the Sinn Féin-Volunteer movement, combining political and military strategies, with many volunteers fighting elections on the Sinn Féin platform.

After Sinn Féin’s 1918 election victory, in which he was elected MP for Cork South, Collins refused to take his seat at Westminster and instead became Minister of Finance in the newly formed underground government (Dáil Éireann). In January 1919 the Dáil declared that the Irish Republican Army (IRA) was the legitimate army of the Irish Republic and in September Collins was appointed its Director of Intelligence.

In partnership with Richard Mulcahy, the IRA chief of staff, he effectively ran the army’s campaign during the subsequent Irish War of Independence (1919-22). With the assistance of Dick McKee, Collins introduced the ‘flying columns’, volunteers who waged a guerrilla campaign, mounting surprise attacks on barracks and police stations and ambushing convoys before quickly withdrawing. He also created an assassination team known as ‘The Squad’, who killed British agents and police informers. For over two years he ran an intelligence system that infiltrated the British military and police authorities in Dublin.

Despite the difficulties in trying to run a government department during an underground war, Collins also managed to organise a large bond issue in the form of a ‘National Loan’ to help fund the Irish Republic and more importantly fund IRA units that needed money and arms. He also emphasised that IRA men should rely on the Irish population for support. The latter willingly provided food, safe houses and generally resisted passing information to the British. Much of this support was due to British excesses during the war, especially those carried out by the paramilitary ‘Black and Tans’ and Auxiliary Division.

After the cease-fire in July 1921 Collins led the Irish delegation to London to negotiate the Anglo-Irish Treaty (6 December 1921). The agreement led to the partition of Ireland. He believed that this was the best deal that could be achieved given the comparative strength of the IRA and the British, but also felt it would be a stepping-stone to an Irish Republic that would eventually include the six northern counties. Indeed, even after the Dáil had ratified the treaty Collins launched a brief IRA guerrilla offensive against Northern Ireland. Nevertheless, many in the IRA felt the replacement of the republic by a Free State with dominion status within the British Empire was a betrayal and rejected his arguments.

This defiance of the new Provisional Government, of which Collins became chairman, precipitated the Irish Civil War (1922-23), in June 1922. Collins tried to prevent an IRA split, but eventually accepted that the anti-treaty faction was irreconcilable. He was also under strong British pressure to act against the anti-treaty IRA after they carried out attacks in Northern Ireland and London. In the conflict that followed, Collins borrowed British artillery to bombard the anti-treaty IRA volunteers in the Four Courts in Dublin, and energetically built up a new Irish National Army to crush the anti-treaty forces. As commander-in-chief he led a successful military campaign while continuing to seek a peaceful solution, but before he could negotiate a deal with his old IRA comrades he was shot and killed in West Cork on 22 August 1922.

Collins was the outstanding leader of the Irish War of Independence and fought the British to a standstill. He made much of Ireland ungovernable with an army that never exceeded more than 3,000 active volunteers at any given time. He also had an instinctive understanding of the strengths and limitations of guerrilla warfare, realising that the IRA could not completely defeat the British. Indeed on the eve of the 1921 treaty discussions, he conceded that his army was running out of weapons and ammunition. Collins compromised in order to win a partial victory, but he is said to have commented after signing the treaty: ‘I tell you, I have signed my death warrant.'

Gabriel Doherty argues that Collins's conviction, imagination and daring enabled him to deliver a powerful blow to the British Army on British soil. (Excerpt from the talk given at the 'Enemy Commanders: Britain's Greatest Foes' speaker day on 14 April 2012.)

View a transcript of this audio excerpt

Michael Collins, Glasnevin Cemetery, Dublin, 16 August 1922

Michael Collins at the funeral of Arthur Griffith, Glasnevin Cemetery, Dublin, 16 August 1922. Collins was assassinated six days after this picture was taken.

"There was a touch of the Napoleonic in Collins’ military brilliance. He used thorough, unorthodox methods to beat his enemy, giving tactical lessons which have not been lost since his time on other guerilla fighters in many parts of the world."

Rex Taylor, in 'Michael Collins' (1958)

A barricade in Talbot Street, Dublin, Easter 1916

NAM. 1961-12-594-15

Enemy Commanders: Britain's Greatest Foes

Stephen
14 February 2012, 5.03pm

The Man

clive seymour
17 February 2012, 10.04am

Collins was not only a genius

Collins was not only a genius with the concept of "flying Columns" but also a great negotiator and politician who brokered a peace( that ultimately killed him) with the mightiest empire of the time.A man of war,yes but i think also if he had lived a man of peace also.

Robert A Mosher
9 March 2012, 11.22pm

Britain actually had Michael

Britain actually had Michael Collins in custody and released him, yet never knew what he looked like until he sat down to negotiate the Treaty. In between those two encounters, the British Army regularly crossed paths with Collins as he made his way around the streets of Dublin directing the war against Britain. With the slimmest of resources available to anyone who ever fought Britain, he fought the British Army and security forces and compelled them to seek a negotiated end to that conflict.

George Barry
9 March 2012, 11.32pm

The National Army website

The National Army website states that 'The aim of the poll is to highlight the achievements of Britain’s most celebrated enemies, but also to draw attention to some of our lesser-known adversaries. In assembling the shortlist our main criterion was that each commander must have led a force against the British in the field of battle'. While Michael Collins may have been a ruthless and charismatic leader, can anyone inform me when he actually 'led a force against the British in the Field of Battle'?

peter donnelly
10 March 2012, 9.27am

Two words: Legend & Genius.

Rob
10 March 2012, 10.15am

Military & political genius

Military & political genius who fought the British to a standstill. His assassination was a disaster for Irish independence which we are probably still recovering from.

Joe Neville
10 March 2012, 12.02pm

Collins was both a military

Collins was both a military and political activist. His involvement in the "War of Independence" set a template that was used in colonial Africa and elsewhere.

Genevieve
11 March 2012, 1.02am

Hero

Pat O'Brien
11 March 2012, 8.19pm

Collins was a very worthy

Collins was a very worthy adversary and was feared and respected by the British forces. Many members of the British military attended his funeral and paid their respects to this man, their former enemy.

#10

Ray O'Halloran
12 March 2012, 3.12pm

Irreplaceable

#11

Colin
13 March 2012, 11.23am

It would appear that Michael

It would appear that Michael Collins was a man of genius, wouldn't argue with that. I just don't think that the percentage of people that are aware of him is represented by the extreme top-heaviness of the poll result so far. I think the Irish are rallying. Carry on chaps.

#12

George Barry
13 March 2012, 8.01pm

Legend? yes! Genius? yes!

Legend? yes! Genius? yes! Field Commander? NO! The only two times that Collins saw fighting was as an Irish Volunteer captain in the General Post Office in Dublin in the 1916 Rising and at Beal na mBlath, Co. Cork on 22 August 1922. On the latter occasion he was Commander-in-Chielf of the newly formed Free State Army and was on a tour of inspection in Co. Cork. He was travelling back to Cork City when his convoy was ambushed by Anti-Treaty Forces. General Emmet Dalton (a vetern of the Great War and recepient of the Militiary Cros) was travelling in a touring car with Collins that day and when the first shots rang out he ordered the driver of the car to 'drive like hell' in order to get out of the killing zone. This drill is something that most corporals are aware of. Collins, however, immediately countermanded Dalton's order and decided to engage the ambush party - an action that ultimatley cost him his life! This is NOT an attempt to denigrate Collins, his leadership qualities, or his role in Ireland's War of Independence but it is an attempt to prove that, unlike others on the list, he was certainly not a field commander along the lines of Rommel, Bonaparte, Washington etc.

#13

dave
14 March 2012, 9.25am

The greatest disaster for

The greatest disaster for Ireland in the 20th century was the loss of Collins. What we needed after independence was a strong leader who would have pulled the whole country behind him, his death robbed us of a real leader and Irish history would have been completely different.

#14

Joe Walsh
14 March 2012, 12.18pm

In the end of the day, he got

In the end of the day, he got the result. Though he had some help from the fighting men who continued on where he fell short.

#15

Nikolai Kutuzov
14 March 2012, 12.30pm

Seriously, an Irishman? How

Seriously, an Irishman? How big was the possibility of Mr Collins taking a parade of his soldiers on the Mall while defeated Londoners look on? And now compare to Napoleon, or maybe Rommel, and, if you want to be very pessimistic, Hindenburg. No other named "foe" had only a remote capability to threaten Britain with invasion. There might have been smarter commanders, more brilliant ones, and more honorable ones, but none more dangerous.

#16

Peter Trevaskis
15 March 2012, 11.54pm

As a person who served for 10

As a person who served for 10 years in the Irish Defence Forces, it was a rare day that I did not pass a portrait of the Big Fella. So it may surprise some when I agree with some of the comments above about the one sided nature of the poll. However the National Army Museum compiled the list and therefore felt he met the criteria. As a nation we tend to be drawn to polls such as this, indeed I even posted a link on my own Facebook page asking people to give Mick one more little victory.
However I do believe he deserves to be here. Imagine what he would have achieved had he the resources of Bonaparte or Rommel.

Finally I read recently that he had a love of Kerry Blues, the dog breed, and won a prize at a dog show in Summerhill, county Meath at the height of the war, only to be presented with his prize by a British army Captain. If you do nothing else you have got to laugh at the bare-faced cheek of the man.

#17

Steven Miller
16 March 2012, 2.34am

Seriously Nikolai Kutuzov?

Seriously Nikolai Kutuzov? what are you trying to say or are you really trying to say anything at all with your back handed complimetary analysis of Michael Collins are you a limey in disguise, i doubt of leading victory parades down the mall was an ambition held by Michael Collins a military commander dedicated to the practice and strategy of Guerilla Warfare which in itself is not geared to outright victories but to causing disruption and aggravation to occupying forces inside your own territory; and so leading to a stalemate which ultimately forces the opposition to the negotiating table something which Collins did Brilliantly.

#18

Ellen O'Connell
16 March 2012, 10.29am

Great tactics and more

Great tactics and more importantly so handsome and charismatic.

#19

EAMON DE VALERA
16 March 2012, 11.48am

A great tactitian. The man

A great tactitian. The man gets my vote.

#20

David O'Connell
16 March 2012, 12.27pm

Michael Collins may have been

Michael Collins may have been an inspiring Intelligence/Guerrilla Warfare commander, but he certainly wasn't the greatest military foe faced by the British Army, and he certainly didn't fight Crown Forces 'to a standstill'. Had the conflict lasted another 4 to 6 months, the IRA would have been defeated militarily. The much-vaunted 'Flying Column', was adopted by Crown Forces in answer to the IRA, (and had been first used by the British Army to quell rebels during the 1798 Rebellion) and was producing results. By early 1920, most rebel forces were confined to the South -West of Ireland, and Crown troops were flooding the various military districts. In addition, the British Intelligence apparatus was obtaining good information, and disrupting the effective capability of the IRA to operate.
The decision to seek a truce was a purely political one, possibly based on the realisation that the authorities had lost the people: the rebellion was not in the hands of a few diehards, but had the backing of the populace at large.

In the interests of full disclosure, I've voted for Erwin Rommel!

#21

eamon de valera
16 March 2012, 2.30pm

The big fella gets my vote.

#22

Lou Robson
16 March 2012, 6.05pm

The Kerry Blue terriers might

The Kerry Blue terriers might just have swung my vote. I just can't imagine any of the other leaders at Crufts.

#23

Richard Blake
17 March 2012, 1.05am

seriously steven miller i

seriously steven miller i think you ought to think about what Nikolai Kutuzov said in his comment before you post a reply, it is possible that he was only being ironic about the attitudes that the British or english have traditionally shown towards the Irish. But seriously has an Englishman who admires Michael Collins and has read various autobiographies written by irish and other nationalities i think that Michael Collins like a lot of other military leaders of great repute learnt a lot from people who came before him and especially from some of the names mentioned in this poll. Michael Collins studied the tactics of the Boers in great detail and especially those of louis Botha one of the contenders in this poll and like all astute generals was quick to take and adapt tactics to suit his own environment has well as inventing his own. Did he not also mention to one of his colleagues that he had also studied the guerilla tactics of the native africans of German South-West Africa in their fight for independence against the Germans at least i think it was SW-Africa maybe someone could correct me on that. I would like to think that some Irish people who come on this site would consider voting for people like Ntshingwayo kaMahole the Zulu chief or louis Botha to balance things out a bit has voting out of sentiment defeats the whole purpose of the exercise i say this event though i would personally rate Michael Collins in the top 5.

#24

Michael Brennan
17 March 2012, 1.23am

In compiling this poll did

In compiling this poll did anyone consider putting Tom Barry's name forward has it was his flair for Guerilla Warfare which was instrumental in helping Michael Collins defeat the Black and Tans and Auxillaries and also his actions against the Essex regiment at crossbarry and the Auxillaries at Kilmichael helped alleviate the pressure which was been put on his units in Dublin after bloody sunday.

#25

dubinoz
18 March 2012, 6.24am

Looks like the Turkish

Looks like the Turkish community have blitzed te Irish on this one. Collins was a great adversary of the British, ata Turk was probably a better leader of men and beat many foes at Galipoli, he also had the dignity to recognise the feats of his enemy. Quite a man, as was the Big Fella

#26

Andrew
18 March 2012, 1.46pm

Brilliant Commander,

Brilliant Commander, Inspirational Leader.

#27

Brian Mardyke
18 March 2012, 4.43pm

A true hero

#28

Philip. Hannigan
18 March 2012, 5.41pm

Never has so few caused so

Never has so few caused so much trouble to so many in a new
and ultimately successful manner. Truly the best - or worst ?

#29

po'l o' bri'ain
18 March 2012, 6.54pm

THE BIG FELLA. irelands

THE BIG FELLA. irelands greatest revolutionary leader. my grandmother transported arms around cork for collins.

#30

Fiona Rossall
18 March 2012, 9.18pm

He gets my vote!!!

#31

Peter
18 March 2012, 9.32pm

Collins was an inspiration to

Collins was an inspiration to the volunteers who fought by his side. He infiltrated the crown forces and secured vital information that enabled the squad to eliminate key personnel. Marshaled a loyal band of volunteers to completely frustrate the enemy being the British army in Ireland. Coordinated and organised the resistance that drove the British to sue for peace.

#32

Maria Flood
18 March 2012, 10.33pm

I couldn't see the vote

I couldn't see the vote button, he gets my vote!

#33

CHE GUEVARA LYNCH
18 March 2012, 10.42pm

In just two days Mustafa

In just two days Mustafa Kemal Ataturk has received nearly 8,000 votes, do think someone has be using some guerrilla warfare tactics themselves to knock Mr Collins from the leader board and at this moment (sunday 9.30pm) N.A.M has suspended all voting on Britains greatest foes.

#34

Niall Cummins
18 March 2012, 10.52pm

Michael Collins

#35

Roger Rafferty
18 March 2012, 11.00pm

I can't see any Plus sign to

I can't see any Plus sign to vote at the top of this so can't vote for Collins. Is this the same kind of British democracy at work as Collins fought against - when they didn't recognise the 1st Dáil despite Sinn Fein's landslide in the 1918 elections??

#36

Traolach
19 March 2012, 1.04am

My grandmother provided

My grandmother provided support for him in the West Cork area. A superb man gifted with great leadership qualities.

#37

harry
19 March 2012, 5.27pm

why.was.he.buried.in.unmarked

why.was.he.buried.in.unmarked.grave.till.the.60.?

#38

dand
19 March 2012, 5.43pm

Was sold out by Dev,should

Was sold out by Dev,should never have accepted the treaty! A true Irish warrior who spent much of his life in London

#39

Charlene
19 March 2012, 6.16pm

Inspirational leader

#40

Gerry White
19 March 2012, 8.01pm

In his comment Richard Blake

In his comment Richard Blake seems to suggest that some people may be voting for Collins out of sentiment. I agree - and the same certainly goes for the 'vote' that Ataturk received over the wekend. May I be so bold as to suggest that the comments posted in respect of each individual in the poll should concern their military skills and how they employed them against the British Army in the field. That, after all, is what this contest is supposed to be about. In their comments about Collins both George Barry and David O'Connell appear to question his military experience and leadership - and this is exactly what this forum should be used for! Collins was, without doubt, a highly influential and iconic figure in 20th century Irish history but, in the time left before the poll closes let us have some serious debate about his (and the other contenders) military capability and the impact they had on the British Army! Perhaps a good starting point for Collins would be his role as IRA Director of Intelligence!!

#41

lmcginn
19 March 2012, 8.50pm

not only the greatest Irish

not only the greatest Irish person ever born, but the greatest person ever born, such bravery, intelligence, handsome good looks and charm, he was extraordinary person, i'm so proud he was Irish.

#42

sean2504
19 March 2012, 9.57pm

The most remarkable Irishman

The most remarkable Irishman of his time. To take on the might of the greatest empire in the world, with never more than 3000 at his command, and bring them to a negotiated peace was truly incredible. Had he not been killed at Beal na Blath, Irish History might have been so so different.

#43

Pat from Tyrone
19 March 2012, 10.55pm

The consummate enemy within.

The consummate enemy within. Collins identified the weaknesses in the British rule of Ireland and used those weaknesses to full effect. Pity he was sold down the river by Dev. Didn't he say he had signed his own death warrant when he signed the treaty?

#44

Harbhee
19 March 2012, 10.59pm

Collin's Didn't have to line

Collin's Didn't have to line up in canonfodder formation to face the enemy. His battlefield was the streets of Irish towns and her hills and glens. Himself the organiser of the Guerrilla Warfare tactics that taught many a freedom seeking country how to take on might of Empires and remain undefeated.And how to wreck the foe's intelligence gathering system - thus making it blind. He may win the online vote - but I cant see him prevailing at the end of the five leading historians lectures.

#45

Ronan
20 March 2012, 12.11am

Of course there have been

Of course there have been many like him since. The difference is that the British like to call the contemporary ones terrorists.

#46

henorob
20 March 2012, 12.34am

Churchill said, "If we lose

Churchill said, "If we lose Ireland, We will lose the Empire"

He was right, Thanks to Collins.

In fairness to the British Army they put up a good fight. (even if the enemy was twenty times smaller)

but they were badly trained in the tactics of there opponents

#47

ryancooper
20 March 2012, 2.39am

Great man. Though, if i was

Great man. Though, if i was around in the early 1920s, i wouldve definitey been Anti-treaty, i still see Michael Collins as a great man and a great Irish man for what he did during the Irish War of Independence.

#48

john linehan
20 March 2012, 3.14am

its a pity we lost when we

its a pity we lost when we did.he would have dragged ireland out of the dark ages and helped sort out problems in the north, a man ahead of his time.

#49

Locky
20 March 2012, 3.45am

Harry, What are you taking

Harry, What are you taking about, 'an unmarked grave'?? Half a million people lined the streets on the day of his funeral all the way to Glasnevin cemetery. If it was unmarked, they made a bad job of hiding it.

#50

Donal O Neill Dunmanway
20 March 2012, 7.54am

Indeed Mr Collins deserves

Indeed Mr Collins deserves the vote - my Grandfather carried arms for him for Kilmichael Ambush and other minor battles and would have given his life for Tom Barry and the like - I suppose I wouldnt be here now .............. My Grandmother was a memeber of Cumman no Mon and hid fighters in her house on main street in a bunker at the back of the house , got burnt and tossed up by the Black and Tans

Michael Collins

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