The Easter Rising was a seminal event in the history of Ireland. He inspired change in the social and political system that had a direct correlation with the moderation of the nation. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Taking place between 24 April 1916 and 29 April 1916, the Easter Rising took place mainly in Dublin and was the first major uprising against the English ruling in Ireland for over 200 years. The rebellion caused a massive increase in resentment among the Irish towards the English, especially following the mass arrests, executions, and martial law imposed in its aftermath. These changes led Ireland to become a modern nation through significant changes in both social and political aspects, with the inclusion of women being the first and a huge step towards gender equality in the state. Equality is an important aspect of whether a nation is “modern.” The Easter Rising became the first phase of the War of Independence which led directly to the formal declaration of an Irish Republic in 1949. The extreme world tension during the First World War was very evident in Ireland. The Liberal government had made the decision to grant Home Rule, which caused a stalemate between the Ulster Protestant Unionists, led by Sir Edward Carson, and the Catholic nationalist supporters of Home Rule led by John Redmond's Irish Parliamentary Party. This led to the further development of the extremists, who were the group responsible for starting the Easter Rising. Many people argue that the Easter Rising was the first real step towards Ireland becoming a democratic Irish state, as it was the first instance of the Irish having rebelled against British rule since 1798. Much of Dublin, including the general post office, Boland's Mills, Stephen's Green, Four Courts and Jacob's Factory, were captured by the Irish rebels and were defended for six days. This occurred in the midst of World War I, an era in which considerable social change occurred anyway. There was fear among the rebels that this was “the last chance to save the Irish,” as already 150,000 Irish soldiers were serving alongside the English. This was significant as it meant that given the timing of the event, a greater impact would be felt. It may also have meant that, given the extremely negative change in social climate caused by the First World War, people would be more likely to support Ireland becoming a republic. The Irish people had no say in the politics of the conflicts in which they were involved. A major social repercussion of the Easter Rising was that large numbers of Irish people, previously indifferent to British rule, changed their views and began to support Irish independence. This was done by seeing the utter contempt the English had for Irish life, a direct result of the unsuccessful nature of the military aspect of the rising. During the six days of the uprising, 2,000 poorly armed and reasonably untrained rebels faced the full might of the British Empire. The initial public reaction, much to the dismay of the protesters, was sorely lacking. It was only after the surrender and execution of 18 political leaders directly involved in the event, later heralded as "martyrs", that public opinion changed. Ninety of the main protagonists and leaders of the rebellion were found guilty of treason and sentenced to death by firing squad..