Setting

Dating back to the Anglo-Norman invasion of 1169, English politics, religion and culture have had a disproportionate influence on Irish affairs. This influence culminated in 1800 with the Act of Union, which meant that for the first time Ireland was under direct English rule. Yet, this development also saw the beginning of the end of the English presence in Ireland.

 

The Act of Union was, in part, a response to the onset of republicanism, based on French and American models in the late eighteenth century. The most serious expression of this republican outlook was the rebellion of 1798. Two strands of resistance emerged from the passage of the Act of Union, both of them nationalist. One was constitutional, the other embodied what is known as “the physical force tradition.” These two strands were supported by the majority of Irish people. Those who supported the Act of Union became known as Unionists, and were largely members of the land-owning class, or Ascendancy, as they were called. As well as being Unionist in politics, this class typically belonged to the Protestant Church of Ireland and in cultural terms were known as the Anglo-Irish. A particularly militant form of Unionism also took hold among working class Protestants of the industrialized north-eastern province of Ulster. In addition, many Catholics worked in administrative and other capacities for the English.

The constitutional approach was the most successful one throughout the nineteenth century. By exerting pressure in the English parliament, substantial land reforms came about, thus improving the lot of the peasantry and diminishing landlords’ power. These changes took place mainly in the 1870s and 1880s, and were spearheaded by the so-called “Uncrowned King of Ireland,” Charles Stewart Parnell. In addition, Parnell also led the campaign for “Home Rule,” whereby Ireland would be in charge of its own internal affairs. Although Parnell himself did not succeed, eventually in 1912 a Home Rule Bill seemed like to be passed. This possibility was resisted by Ulster Unionists. Their armed resistance prompted the physical force tradition to assert itself. And although a Home Rule Bill was passed in 1914, its implementation was suspended for the duration of World War I.

These developments led to the Easter Rebellion of 1916, which although a failure, inspired the final push against English rule. Under the political leadership of Sinn Féin (an Irish-language phrase meaning “ourselves”), elected Irish deputies withdrew from the English parliament and established a government in Dublin. In 1919, hostilities broke out between the new government’s Irish Republican Army and British forces. These led to the War of Independence, a guerilla-style conflict, featuring many outrages by both sides. Particularly offensive to the civilian population were the activities of the British paramilitary force known as the Black and Tans (for the colors of their uniform). A treaty ending this war was concluded in 1921 and ratified by the new Irish parliament. The Irish Free State was born. Also, however, the settlement also partitioned six counties of Ulster to form the new state of Northern Ireland.

Militant republicans refused to accept the treaty, partly because of the Ulster arrangement. In 1922, these militants occupied the main law building in Dublin, the Four Courts, which government forces shelled. The result was Civil War which lasted into the following year. Its chief casualty was Michael Collins, the treaty’s main negotiator. Opposition to the treaty was now led by Eamon De Valera (popularly known as Dev). For many years afterwards, Irish politics was shaped by the two opposing attitudes to the treaty. De Valera was seen as a threat to the Free State government, although his party eventually entered government in 1927. One response to the perceived threat was the formation of the Fascist Blueshirt organization by Eoin O’Duffy. During World War II, Ireland, now under De Valera’s leadership, remained neutral, though a number of republican activists were executed for trying to fight England.

With thanks to Prof George O'Brien, PhD, Department of English, Georgetown University.

Further Reading:

www.en.wikipedia.org/irish_civil_war

www.en.wikipedia.org/county_sligo

www.en.wikipedia.org/michael_collins

The Workshop is sponsored by Frederick Marino (SLL '68) and his Family in honor of his father, Joseph Marino.