His sister Louise Gavan Duffy came to Ireland in 1907, he taught in Patrick Pearse's St Ita's school for girls "Scoil Íde", was, with Mary Colum first Secretary of "Cumann na mBan", was out in the Easter Rising of 1916, in the GPO and Jacob's garrisons. She founded and ran "Scoil Bhríde", a bilingual school in Dublin, which is still in operation. Louise came originally to Dublin, as her mother died in 1889. George was raised by three half-sisters travelling from Austria and Germany, at Guilloy, Nice, France. He spoke fluent Italian and French received education from "Petit Seminaire". From there he was sent to Stonyhurst College.