Robert Emmet, Irish Patriot, Is Executed in Dublin

Robert Emmet, Irish patriot and revolutionary, was executed on September 20, 1803, in Dublin. He was only 25 years old.

Emmet had led a failed uprising against British rule, known as the 1803 Rebellion, which was poorly coordinated and swiftly suppressed. After being captured, he was tried for high treason.

He is best remembered not for the rebellion itself, but for his powerful and emotional speech from the dock, delivered after his sentencing. In it, he refused to plead for mercy and concluded with the immortal lines:

“Let no man write my epitaph… When my country takes her place among the nations of the earth, then, and not till then, let my epitaph be written.”

Emmet was hanged and beheaded near St. Catherine’s Church on Thomas Street. His speech and martyrdom left a lasting legacy and inspired later generations of Irish nationalists in the struggle for independence.