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Repeal was a demand by Irish nationalist leader Daniel O'Connell (6 August 1775 — 15 May 1847) for the repeal of the Act of Union 1800 which had merged the Kingdom of Great Britain and Kingdom of Ireland to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland in 1801. He wanted to see the re-establishment of the Kingdom of Ireland as a separate legal entity, with its own parliament and government, sharing only a joint monarch with Britain. Ireland's kingdom was to be equal to Britain; a similar equality would exist with both their parliaments. To this end, he founded the Repeal Association. His repeal campaign failed, in contrast to his earlier campaign for Catholic Emancipation.

In contrast, later Irish nationalist leaders like Charles Stewart Parnell demanded merely Home Rule, which involved the creation of a subsidiary parliament in Ireland with Ireland remaining part of the United Kingdom. Ireland's parliament would be only a devolved local administration inferior to Westminster in terms of powers, status and influence. It could also be abolished by an Act of the British parliament. The Second Home Rule Bill (1893) differed from the first in the respect that it allowed some Irish MPs to have a seat in Westminster, which meant Ireland would still have a voice in British politics.

Arthur Griffith, the original leader of Sinn Féin, was also opposed to the Act of Union and looked for two independent countries with a dual monarachy. His proposal was simply to regard the Act of Union as invalid and to act as if it did not exist. This policy did not survive the takeover of his party by Irish republicans in 1917.

[edit] See also

• History of Ireland (1801-1922)