Home Rulers in a New Ireland, 1935–49

This chapter examines how such individuals from Irish Party backgrounds coped with the shift from Free State to republic as independent Ireland faced challenges at home and abroad. It charts the struggle of the AOH to reinvent itself as a Catholic social organisation which retained lingering vitality in the border areas while statistical analysis illuminates the home rule legacy in Fine Gael, disclosing that between 30% and 40% of its deputies up to 1949 had traceable Irish Party roots. This chapter analyses responses of such figures to the Spanish Civil War; the introduction of the new constitution, Bunreacht na hÉireann: Irish neutrality during World War II; and the controversial declaration of a republic by Fine Gael Taoiseach John A. Costello — a home ruler in his youth and leader of a government including individuals such as James Dillon, Bridget Redmond, Alfie Byrne, and ex-MP and World War I veteran John Lymbrick Esmonde.

Introduction

The introduction sets out the book’s main arguments—assessing the Irish Party’s rise and fall, the Irish revolution and how members and supporters experienced it, and finally how its leaders and supporters have been remembered. Key findings such as the number of former Irish Party figures who emerged in the Free State and the percentage of them which joined Fine Gael are outlined along with reference to the major features of commemoration. The evolution of writing on the party is also analysed and common perceptions of the party and its leaders are identified alongside themes prevalent later in the book. In so doing, the introduction clearly situates the book within the historiography as well as pointing to the contributions it can make to knowledge in the areas of party politics, Irish political culture; Treatyite history; public memory and commemoration in the Irish state. Finally, the introduction establishes the range of primary sources used and the nature of each as well as the methodologies employed in the book and a brief outline of each chapter.

A Legacy Party? The Irish National League, 1926–7

This chapter provides the first dedicated study of the Irish National League, founded by former MPs Capt. Redmond and Thomas O’Donnell in 1926. Analysing the categorisation of the League as a ‘mobilising’ party, this chapter argues that it was, in fact, a ‘legacy party’, illustrating how the League drew on the old Irish Party personnel, slogans and ephemera. While statistical data highlights the home rule connections of TDs standing for each party, there is also analysis of the League’s controversial actions during the tumultuous summer of 1927, examining two general election campaigns, the aftermath of Kevin O’Higgins’s assassination and the League’s failed attempt to form a coalition government with Labour following the entry of Fianna Fáil into the Dáil. It is argued that despite its short life span, the League was significant in Irish politics as it not only came within a casting vote of government but helped to accelerate the assimilation of former home rule supporters into new parties.

The Place of Home Rulers in Memoir, Commemoration and Public Discourse, 1922–5

This chapter explores the place of the Irish Party in the public memory as well as the views of grassroots supporters in the state up to the formation of the Irish National League in 1926. There is detailed analysis of how the Irish Party and its leaders were remembered, including debate concerning how those from home rule backgrounds commemorated Ireland’s part in the First World War. However, pointing out that Great War commemorations extended beyond merely gatherings of former Irish Party followers, this chapter interrogates the phenomenon of Redmondite commemorations. This chapter argues that these events demonstrated a clear reservoir of support for John Redmond and the Irish Party in a state where it has previously been suggested that the former leader had been forgotten. This chapter also considers the extant networks of Irish Party supporters which persisted into the Free State such as the Ancient Order of Hibernians and the National Club.

Conclusion

The conclusion of this book reflects in particular on the Irish Party legacy and Treatyite politics, but also the presence in all parties of members with home rule roots or the political education and example provided by the pre-revolutionary movement. There is also consideration of how the refusal of many individuals and groupings to adopt the labels of parties with a Sinn Féin derivation affected the dynamics of party politics in this period as well as assessment of the contribution those from Irish Party backgrounds made to debates on the constitutional status of the state. The conclusion affirms that the Irish Party’s role in developing the parliamentary tradition in the country, the proliferation of commemorative events devoted to the Redmond family, the presence of former Irish Party members in politics, and the ways in which they influenced party politics for decades after the IPP’s demise.

‘Why Not Study History!’ Remembering Parnell’s Party v. Remembering Redmond’s Party

This chapter focuses on commemoration and public debates on the Irish Party’s place in history, problematizing the notion that the Irish Party was forgotten in ‘de Valera’s Ireland’. It assesses contemporary historiography, literature, theatre, film and commemoration to ascertain a variety of views on the Irish Party in this period. While the success of chiefly localised memorials to the Redmonds and others are analysed, there is particular focus on the celebrations of Charles Stewart Parnell and Michael Davitt. Examining the commemorative events held for Parnell and Davitt in 1941 and 1946, this chapter demonstrates that the neglect in this period related to the latter day party led by Redmond which could not be separated from the First World War, the Rising and its defeat by Sinn Féin while Parnell’s movement could be subsumed into a nationalist narrative that culminated in the Irish revolution.

The Legacy of the Irish Party in Free State Politics, 1922–5

Chapter One provides the first statistical illustration of individuals from home rule backgrounds who entered representative politics in the early years of the Free State with the number of TDs with home rule heritage in each political grouping detailed in a number of tables. Given the historiographical attention drawn to the character of Cumann na nGaedheal, there is detailed attention devoted to comparisons between the government party and the Irish Party in personnel, policy and organisation. While the Farmers’ Party and Labour are also considered for continuities between membership of both parties and the earlier agrarian and labour associations of the home rule era, there is special assessment of former MPs who were elected as independent TDs such as Capt. William Redmond, Alfie Byrne and James Cosgrave and the persistence of the IPP’s methods. This chapter thus highlights the continuities between pre- and post-independence Ireland, helping to explain the party fragmentation experienced in the early 1920s.

The Blueshirts and the Shadow of the Land League, 1932–4

This chapter examines the Land Annuities dispute and its political consequences through the lens of former home rulers and the legacy of the Land League. It analyses how Dillon and MacDermot tried to remain distinct from Cumann na nGaedheal, but also sought to broaden the appeal of the ostensibly agrarian National Centre Party to include emphases on Irish unity and the state’s constitutional status. Examining the formation of the United Ireland Party/Fine Gael, this chapter argues that individuals from home rule backgrounds played a significant role in the origins of this new party. However, the tensions between defenders of a constitutional tradition, unrest in the countryside and Blueshirt leader Eoin O’Duffy meant that Dillon and MacDermot ultimately failed to straddle the dual Irish Party/Land League legacies of constitutionalism and direct action. It is argued that while MacDermot and Dillon sought to move Irish politics beyond the Civil War divide, the events of 1932-4 actually helped to solidify and mould the ‘Civil War’ cleavage, making it one with clear undertones of the 1930s as well as the original confrontation over the Treaty.

From the National League to Cumann na nGaedheal?

This chapter analyses the period from the National League’s defeat in the September 1927 election to the next great pressure point which forced many old Irish Party followers into new parties: the 1932 general election. It assesses the growing rapprochement between Cumann nan Gaedheal and former Irish Party followers, particularly Capt. Redmond’s decision to join the party in 1931.However, in examining the afterlives of National League politicians, this chapter also scrutinizes the few who joined Fianna Fáil and compares elements of the party’s modus operandi with that of the IPP including de Valera’s leadership style and Fianna Fáil’s remarkable facility for party organisation. Finally, this chapter illustrates why some supporters of the old Irish Party and Ancient Order of Hibernians remained independent, citing economic, organisational and geographic factors and examining the elections of James Dillon and Frank MacDermot.