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At eight years old, Nora saw her father speak at a socialist club in Glasgow, she thereafter became a devotee of socialist politics. Nora moved to Belfast in 1910 for work, and her family followed soon after. Nora participated in her first strike whilst working in Belfast over the conditions in which factory workers were being forced to work under. While Nora was in Belfast she became a founding member of the Young Republican Army and of the girl’s branch of the Fianna. She was also a founding member of Cumann na mBan in Belfast. In 1914, plans were being put in place for a rebellion in Ireland. Nora and her sister helped courier ammunition and arms to hiding places for Erskine Childers and were then rewarded with two rifles. Nora was then sent to America with a message from her father about the rising planned for 1916. When Nora returned to Dublin she met members of the Military Council who were planning the rising. In the days before the rising, Nora was sent back to Belfast to try and convince the leading activist there to join the fight. Under the command of a 23-year-old Nora Connolly, Nora and other members of Cumann na mBan returned to Dublin to take part in the fight and were the only organised group to leave Ulster to take part in the rising. By the time Nora herself arrived back in Dublin, the rising was over and found her father was being held in Dublin Castle and was executed shorty after.

http://www.glasnevintrust.ie/visit-glasnevin/interactive-map/nora-connolly-obrien-1/ She was a founding member of the young republic army and was also a founding member of the girls branch of the Fianna. In 1914 Erskine Childers landed a cache of arms and ammunition in Howth, County Dublin, on his boat, Asgard. Nora and her sister Ina couriered them to hiding places all over Dublin and were rewarded with two rifles. The Rising was planned for Easter 1916 and Nora was sent to America with a secret message from her father. While in America she met Roger Casement, who was there raising money and support for the Irish Volunteers, the force behind the Rising. When Nora returned to Dublin, she met the key members of the Military Council who were planning the rebellion. In the days before Easter she was sent to the Belfast to try to persuade the leading activist there to join in the fight. Her journey back to Dublin was a long one, as she travelled by train, car and foot. By the time she got back, the Rising was over. Her severely wounded father was being held in Dublin Castle and was executed a few days later. After her fathers execution, Nora travelled to the USA under a false name and began a lecturing tour where she publicised the Rising and the cause the rebel leaders had stood for. It was while she was in America that she met Seamus O’Brien, whom she would later marry in 1922. When Nora tried to return to Ireland, she was refused entry, so she travelled to Liverpool instead and made her way back into Ireland as a stowaway on a ship dressed as a boy. She then spent some time on the run and was kept in various safe houses around the country. While working for the ITGWU, she campaigned for Sinn Féin during the 1918 General Election. In 1921 after two years of civil unrest and ongoing guerrilla warfare, a truce was called between the British and Irish and a delegation was sent to London to negotiate an agreement. The Anglo-Irish Treaty was signed on the 6 December 1921. It established an Irish Free State as a self-governing dominion within the British Commonwealth. But it also included an oath of allegiance to the King and agreed to the partition of 6 counties in Ulster, which would remain under British rule. When the Treaty was presented to Dáil Éireann (Irish parliament) it divided not only the government but also the country into those that supported it and those who did not. Civil War quickly followed. Nora was opposed to the agreement and volunteered for the Republican forces. She was sent to Tara Hall in Dublin which was used as a first aid post. She was made paymaster general of the Irish Republican Army (IRA) when Margaret Kinnider was arrested in December 1922. Nora and her husband Seamus were arrested by Free State forces and were held in the North Dublin Union and Kilmainham Gaol. She was released in August 1923, and he was freed 3 months later. After the end of the Civil War, Nora and Seamus rented a flat in Belgrave Square, Rathmines and Seamus worked for Cleeves, the toffee manufacturers. In the 1930s they ran a newsagents shop in Rialto and operated a lending library from the shop, but rationing during World War 2 forced them to close the business. For the remaining years of the war, Nora worked in the Post Office and as a secretary in Rathmines college.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nkBnUQoFcpg  - Video of Nora Connolly O'Brien talking about her father

http://www.anphoblacht.com/contents/15408 In Belfast, Nora became increasingly politically active. She and her sisters joined Cumann na mBan and the Gaelic League. Nora also participated in her first strike while living in Belfast. The deplorable conditions of the factory and of the tenements where many of the workers lived, as well as the exploitation of the workers at the factory, horrified Nora. When the mill workers went on strike against new rules that forbade the workers to sing or to speak to each other, Nora was by their side. This strike was the forerunner to the Linen Strike of 1913, during which James Connolly delivered the manifesto of Irish Textile Workers' Union. This was followed by a meeting of solidarity in Dublin at which he also spoke. After his speech, Connolly introduced Nora as the next speaker. Thus, during this time period, Nora also began her public speaking career.

In 1914, while working for the ITGWU in Dublin, Nora took part in the Howth gun-running operation. In early 1916 she accompanied Liam Mellows from England after he had escaped from Reading Gaol.

Following Mac Neill's orders, Connolly dispatched Nora and the others to deliver the mobilisation order for northern units. In preparation, she memorised the 1916 Proclamation so she could recite it to people in the north. Once the messages were delivered, Nora briefly remained to organise first aid corps.

Nora Connolly was sure however, that whatever happened elsewhere, there would still be a fight in Dublin, so she returned with the other Cumann na mBan members. Thus, nine members of Cumann na mBan, organised under the command of 23-year-old Nora Connolly, became the only organised group to leave Ulster and take part in the Rising.

This book should have info on Nora Connolly O'Brien: http://www.eneclann.ie/cgi-bin/sh000002.pl?REFPAGE=http%3a%2f%2fwww%2eeneclann%2eie%2facatalog%2fSpecial_Offers%2ehtml&WD=connolly&SHOP=%20&PN=Sinn_Fein_Rebellion_Handbook%2ehtml%23aIE0047#aIE0047