Cultural and Political Nationalism in Ireland: Myths and Memories of the Easter Rising
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Cultural and Political Nationalism in Ireland: Myths and Memories of the Easter Rising Jonathan Githens-Mazer Submitted for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy The London School of Economics and Political Science University of London 2005 1 UMI Number: U206020 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. Dissertation Publishing UMI U206020 Published by ProQuest LLC 2014. Copyright in the Dissertation held by the Author. Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. ProQuest LLC 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 LiDrbiy. British UWwy w eoiracai I and Economic Science ____________ J T H - e £ € % F S<f 11 101*1 f a Abstract This thesis examines the political transformation and radicalisation of Ireland between the outbreak of the First World War, August 1914, and Sinn Fein’s landslide electoral victory in December 1918. My hypothesis is that the repertoire of myths, memories and symbols of the Irish nation formed the basis for individual interpretations of the events of the Easter Rising, and that this interpretation, in turn, stimulated members of the Irish nation to support radical nationalism. I have based my work on an interdisciplinary approach, utilising theories of ethnicity and nationalism as well as social movements. With these theoretical tools, I go on to categorise the Easter Rising as a ‘cultural trigger point’: an event or series of events that creates a sense of agency and urgency in the face of what is perceived by the members of the nation as an injustice. These perceptions were reflected through the prism of Irish national myths, memories and symbols of the preceding three hundred years, including the Penal Laws and the Famine. My method here is to compare the condition of popular Irish nationalism before and after the Easter Rising in order to assess the impact of this event and its aftermath on the Irish nation. I trace, in particular, the impact of the Great War on cultural and religious nationalism and its role in the decline of moderate nationalism and the rise of radical Irish nationalism. The analysis of this process of radicalisation is accomplished through an examination of various contemporary sources such as personal journals, letters, Government Intelligence Reports, Episcopal letters, Diocesan Archives and Newspapers. 2 Acknowledgements While the writing of a PhD is a singular experience, it would be absolutely impossible without a ‘support team* of valued colleagues, esteemed friends, and loving family. In particular, my experience has benefited greatly from the symbolic rubric of the LSE, in so far as I have found myself surrounded by an ever present core of junior and established scholars who express a keen interest in the study of ethnicity and nationalism. This is a function of one organisation - the Association for the Study of Ethnicity and Nationalism (ASEN) - and one dedicated and generous individual - Professor Anthony D. Smith. This thesis would not have been possible without Professor Smith’s sage and patient advice, both at the LSE and in his home, and I am eternally indebted to him and his family for his help, constant encouragement and intellectual guidance. While at the LSE, I have also been lucky enough to be a student and friend of another scholar of ethnicity and nationalism, and an expert in Irish nationalism as well - Dr. John Hutchinson. Dr. Hutchinson has consistently given me excellent advice, and helped to rein in my occasional ‘romantic’ tendencies, and for all his help I am also very grateful. My life during the PhD has had various ups and downs, but there have been three individuals who provided constant love and support. I am so grateful for all the help and support of my mother, Dr. Marianne Githens, who has not only provided ‘motherly love* but also acted as an intellectual sounding board for my ideas, and provided a variety of support while writing this thesis. My wife, Gayle, has also gone through this entire process with me - seeing the highs and the lows, and the thesis would have been quite impossible without her love, her help, and especially her patience. Lastly, this thesis would not have been possible without the love and help of my Father, Dr. Stanley Z. Mazer, who sadly passed away before its completion. While I know that he loved me and was proud of me, I think he would have been especially pleased to see its completion. For this reason, I dedicate this thesis to him. 3 Table of Contents Introduction 9 Chanter 1: Ethno-Svmbolism. Memory and Social Movements 18 Introduction 19 Definitions: Nation, Nation-State, Nationalism 21 Defining Nationalism: A Social Movement? 24 Ethno-Symbolism 27 Nationalism as a Social Movement 29 Myths and Symbols of the Nation 32 Explaining ‘Resonance’: Elites vs. Masses 34 Collective Memory 36 The Existence of the Social? 38 Collective Memory as Causal Factor 39 The Purpose of Collective Memory 41 Selective Memory? 43 Accounting for the Cultural Trigger Point 44 The Argument 46 Chapter 2: Reactions to the Outbreak of War 49 Introduction 50 Irishmen in the British Army 51 Recruitment 55 Recruiting Propaganda in Ireland 60 Redmond’s Strategy 66 Wavering Enthusiasm 68 The Response of the Catholic Church 70 Conscription 72 Conclusion 75 Chapter 3: Radical Politics in Ireland Prior to the Rising 11 Introduction 78 The Ulster Volunteers, Landing of Guns at Lame, and the Curragh Mutiny 79 Sinn Fein and Radical Nationalism 88 The Irish National Volunteers and the Landing of Guns at Howth 98 The Bachelor’s Walk Incident 104 The Split of the Irish National Volunteers 108 Conclusion 117 Chapter 4: Religion and Cultural Nationalism 120 Introduction 121 Religion and Cultural Themes 121 Degeneration, Debauchery and the Nation 126 Part I: Cultural Nationalism 127 Irish Cultural Nationalism 129 The Three Stages of Irish Cultural Nationalism 130 Cultural Nationalism and O ’Connell’s Legacy 132 4 The Role of the Famine in Cultural Nationalism 134 Institutional Dissemination 135 Famine, Land, and the Myth of the Golden Age 138 Part II: Religious Nationalism 140 Catholicism and Distinctiveness 143 Religious Nationalism in Action 147 Religion and Education 150 Religion and Language 152 Conclusion 155 Chapter 5: The Rising as Cultural Trieeer Point 157 Introduction 158 Precis of the Rising 160 Context 160 Planning the Rising 161 The Castle Document and the Rising Commences 163 Casement and German Guns 165 Belligerents Under Pressure 169 Executions, Internment, and Aftermath 172 Contemporary Interpretations 176 Conclusions 187 Chapter 6: The Transformation o f Perspectives on the Rising 190 Introduction 191 Part I: Sectarianism and ‘Organic Distinctiveness’ 192 Popular Beatification 199 Part II: Trigger Action 205 War, Famine and Popular Radical Nationalism 213 Conclusion 219 Chapter 7: The End o f Moderate Nationalism 221 Introduction 222 The End of the Irish Party 222 Castle Rule Reinstated 237 The Price of Failure 238 The Final Failure of Home Rule 242 The Military Service Bill 248 Conclusion 250 Chapter 8: The Rise o f Sinn Fein 252 Introduction 253 Burgeoning Radicalism: The Irish Nations League 253 The West Cork By-election 258 Release of the Frognoch Internees 260 The Roscommon By-election 263 The Reorganisation of Sinn Fein 268 The South Longford By-election 271 The East Clare By-election 273 The Content of Sinn Fein 275 de Valera’s Rise to Prominence 279 5 The Conscription Crisis 281 Epilogue 285 Conclusion 287 Conclusions 289 Appendix I: Timeline 297 Appendix II: Crime Statistics 300 Bibliography 303 6 List of Tables Table 1: Recruits into the British Army, 1915 57 Table 2: Religious Denomination of British Army Recruits, 1915 58 List of Figures Figure 1 Recruits, by Volunteer affiliation in the British Army, 1915 58 Figure 2 Religious Affiliations amongst British Army Recruits, 1915 58 Figure 3. Ulster Volunteer Members in Ireland, Jan 1913 - Feb 1915 86 Figure 4. Redmondite vs. Radical Sections of the Irish Volunteers 112 Figure 5. National Volunteers vs. Irish Volunteers and ICA, May 1914-Apr 1916 112 Figure 6. Percentage of Radicals as a Segment of Irish Volunteer Movement, October 1914 - April 1916 114 Figure 7. Crime Statistics Totals, 1907-1919 301 Figure 8. Sample of Agrarian Crimes in Ireland, 1907-1919 302 List of Maps Map 1. Partitioned Ireland 8 7 Map of Ireland Map 1. ‘Partitioned Ireland’ Present-day boundary Ulster of the six counties Ulster of the nine counties ^Londonderry 0 Miles 50 1 i 11 i1 i *i i 1 i I w M m 0 Km 80 Belfast Emskillen 'Dundalk Drogheda1 Lough Mask lough Ree Lough Corrib tAthlone Dublim Wicklow Lough Derg • Kilkenny Limerick Tralee Wexford' Waterford Source: http://www.historv-compass.com/map.asp?section=5 8 Introduction I vividly remember sitting as a six year old in my Grandmother’s upstairs parlour, in Cedarhurst Long Island in front of the television. The news came on, and the main story was about the Republican Hunger Strikers. My Grandmother called me over, and told me a story about her parents who had emigrated from West Cork and outside of Athlone in the 1870’s. When they did not bow or curtsy deep enough to the local Landlords they were beaten with the riding crop. She would later elaborate on these stories with tales of family members forced to flee from West Cork after vigorous acts of ‘agitation,’ distant ancestors who had been Ribbonmen, replete with bloody descriptions of severed ears, and of a Grandmother she had herself never met.