The Irish National League was founded by Charles Stewart Parnell on the 17th of October 1882. It was intended that this party would be the successor to the Irish National Land League. The aim of the National League was to achieve Home Rule for Ireland.
The party was quick to grow, reaching numbers of over 1,000 branches throughout Ireland. Issues in the party arose over Parnell's involvement with Kitty O'Shea, as she was in the process of divorcing her husband. The National League was backed by the Catholic Church and therefore could not be seen to condone divorce. The party split into two factions, those who supported Parnell and those who did not.
In 1900, the Irish National League amalgamated with the United Irish League and the Irish National Federation in recognition of their common goals.
