had joined up to defend Ireland against America’s European allies. He therefore suggested, in the interest of unity, that the Volunteers drop all discussion about America.40
He stressed the importance of perseverance and proclaimed that ‘if Ireland has not the perseverance sufficient to wrestle for a few years for a free constitution she does not deserve a free constitution’. Once more Drennan tried to finish on a high note, by declaring. ‘Forward armed countrymen – Forward – Be cool and confident, silent and determined, patient and persevering. Blend the prudence and foresight of a citizen with the spirit and sinew of a soldier. Watch your enemies and your friends. Trust only to yourselves.’41
The most significant aspect of Drennan’s second venture into print, was that he suggested that the Volunteers should adopt a test. He took it upon himself to draft what he regarded as a suitable text:
I, A. B. Citizen and Volunteer in the presence of my fellow countrymen, declare my loyalty to the King, my love to my country my obedience to its laws. I am ready to defend my country from foreign and domestic enemies. I declare, and will when called upon with my life and fortune that the right of the Kingdom of Ireland is to be free. I maintain that to be free is to have the power of making our own laws. I maintain that the power of making laws for Ireland assumed by Great Britain is not a rightful power and ought to be renounced by every Irishman. I will also be obedient to all lawful commands of my officers.42
He suggested that this test should be taken annually at a public ceremony. It is not clear if any attention was paid to this test or whether he or anyone else in the Blue Company took it. Even at this relatively early stage of his political involvement, he believed that committing oneself in ceremonial fashion to a set of objectives was an effective way to foster unity of purpose and fellowship amongst comrades. Later, Drennan would compose the United Irish test and vigorously defend it when it was attacked by his friend William Bruce. Drennan took immense pride in his authorship of the United Irish test and took many opportunities to quote it verbatim in his later written work. He was still publicly claiming credit for it years after the organisation for which it had been drafted had been destroyed by torture, suppression, massacre and executions.
Drennan’s correspondence with William Bruce gives us insights into the many controversies which arose within the Volunteer movement in those early years. One controversy which caused Drennan some personal disquiet arose from the government decision to raise Fencible regiments to defend the country against invasion. It was hoped that these regiments would be used to fill the place of the regulars serving in America. They would not be required to serve overseas. Lord Portland’s plan was to use the fencibles as a way of weakening the Volunteers or at least bringing some of them under military discipline.43 Most volunteers saw through the plan and one newspaper suggested the scheme was one of ‘the deepest strokes against the power and consequence of the Volunteer army of Ireland’.44 For his part, Drennan ‘beheld the scheme of fencibles with detestation’ and was greatly concerned that it might succeed.45
The problem for Drennan was that his brother-in-law, Sam, had been reduced to penury after a fire at his tan-yard premises in Belfast. He announced his intention to accept a commission in the fencibles. Several Volunteer corps, including the Blue Company, passed resolutions rejecting the government’s fencible plans. One resolution declared that ‘we consider any volunteer who shall accept a commission in any regiment of Fencibles to be raised in Ireland justly entitled to our severest censure’.46 This led to an acrimonious debate in which Sam found himself isolated within the Company. He resigned his position in the Volunteers and as the government soon dropped its fencible plan, he ended up with the worst of both worlds.
Drennan was fortunate that he was absent from Belfast when this dispute arose. He had taken Martha to Scotland to consult with his former teacher, Professor Cullen, regarding Martha’s poor health. In fact, her condition had improved on the journey over and the professor diagnosed a nervous complaint which would respond well to exercise and a change of air.47 Martha was hurt when she heard from Sam that he was no longer a Volunteer. Yet her support for her beloved husband appeared to be somewhat qualified when she told him:
I am perfectly assured that in such a case you would consider and act right, but be cautious of throwing blame on the company, though you are right it does not prove them wrong. If they are in error, it is an excusable one and what I am inclined more to admire than condemn – perhaps their country may yet thank them for it. I cannot blame them in regard to the Fencibles – although I would never blush for you being one.48
Drennan’s sojourn in Scotland made it possible for him to avoid having either to support or oppose Sam, though he was secretly in sympathy with the majority. He believed that Sam should have resigned from the Volunteers once he had decided to seek the commission in the fencibles.
There was another controversy which shook the unity of the Volunteers and did much damage at this crucial time. A very successful convention of the Ulster Volunteers held in Dungannon in February 1782 passed a number of pro-reform resolutions, including one strongly condemning ‘the legislation for Ireland by any body but the King Lords and Commons thereof’.49 Over the next couple of months, many Volunteer corps throughout the country threw their weight behind the Dungannon resolutions. The American war was going badly for the British and Lord North’s administration fell in March. Henry Grattan, a leader of the opposition in the Irish House of Commons, who had secretly helped to draft the Dungannon resolutions, was hailed as the hero of the hour when the British were compelled to concede repeal of the Declaratory Act in May 1782.
Henry Flood, Grattan’s opposition rival, very quickly declared that Grattan’s triumph was illusory and what was required was for Britain to renounce forever the power to legislate for Ireland. This was to be the cause of division that side-tracked the Volunteers in a crucial year. Most of the Belfast Volunteers supported Flood but Drennan did not trust his motives. He told Bruce: ‘Mr. Flood has certainly gained many converts in this county-amongst the rest Dr Haliday is rather on his side. Bryson the only man in the Company against him except W. Cunningham – I humbly conceive Flood uses his great abilities at present for the worst of all purposes, yet his argument is a strong one.’50
Drennan could see that even if Flood’s ‘strong argument’ was accepted, he would hardly be successful when demanding Great Britain concede something ‘we forgot to ask for at our last meeting together and before we sign and seal you must give us something more’.51 Drennan felt that the dispute about repeal or renunciation was pointless and purely verbal. He could not vote for either Grattan or Flood without reproach to his heart.52 Much more fundamentally, he was concerned that this dispute was diverting attention away from what, for Drennan, was the most important task for the Volunteers. In his view, that task was now to secure a more equal representation of the people in parliament. In June, Sir Edward Newenham gave notice in Parliament of his intention to move a bill to increase the weight of city and county representation in parliament.53 Drennan believed that the repeal renunciation dispute was sapping the energies that should have been supporting Newenham. ‘Let them all talk but I believe Newenham’s Bill for adequate representation of the people is of more importance than the question that is agitating the mind of the public – yet it is scarce heard of and without the backing of the people it can never prevail.’54
One of the driving forces behind the Dungannon Convention and, by extension, the key figure behind Grattan’s success with the Declaratory Act was Francis Dobbs (1750–1811). Dobbs was a barrister possessed of great organising skills. He now attempted to combat Flood by organising a second Dungannon Convention on 21 June, at which he succeeded in getting the Volunteers approval for Grattan’s settlement.55 He had himself represented the Belfast Volunteers at the convention and some of them demanded an explanation about why he had cast their vote without referring to them for a mandate.
Dobbs was summoned to Belfast to answer for his conduct. The Blue Company met in the Market House and Dobbs was asked to account for himself. His long-winded attempt to vindicate his action did not impress
