Eamon DeValera: The Father of Modern Ireland

           Eamon DeValera was one of the most important figures in the history of Ireland.  He was a very successful and intelligent Irish Politician and a brave patriotic commander. Without his involvement in the Irish Nationalist movement, the course of Irish history would have been radically different.

            Edward George DeValera was born on October 14, 1882 in New York to a Spanish father and an Irish mother. At the age of two, he moved to Ireland and was brought up by relatives in Limerick. He formally changed his name to Eamon and became a teacher in Mathematics and a huge supporter of the Irish language movement. As an active revolutionary, he became a leader in the 1916 Easter Rising in Dublin with the goal to proclaim an Irish Republic. This skirmish against the British was fought for seven days but ultimately failed. DeValera was the last commander to surrender. He was arrested along with the other commanders who were executed, but DeValera managed to escape a death sentence because of his American citizenship and instead received a prison term. After his release, he became a member of the Sinn Fein party in the 1918 general election, but later was elected as the president of the Dail Eireann party (an independent parliament).

            The Irish Republican Army (part of the Sinn Fein) began a guerrilla war against Crown forces. After two years of violence, a truce was agreed and a treaty with the British negotiated by a Sinn Fein delegation, which DeValera chose not to join. Michael Collins, who led the Sinn Fein negotiating party, described the result as “the freedom to achieve freedom”. However, DeValera opposed the agreement because it involved the partition of Ireland and did not create an independent republic. In 1922, DeValera supported the Republican Resistance in the ensuing Civil War. Even though its Commander Collins was killed, the Sinn Fein was victorious in the Civil War.

DeValera founded the Irish Republican Political Party known as the Fianna Fail, which translates into “soldiers of destiny”. He then went on to write a new Constitution in 1937 asserting greater autonomy for Ireland, although stopping short of declaring the Free State a republic. This eventually occurred in 1948 during a period in which DeValera opposed such designation. He was elected Prime Minister three times and then President of the Republic, a position he held until 1973. Under DeValera’s rule, the cultural identity of the Irish Republic as Roman Catholic and Gaelic was asserted. Complete independence was secured, but a lasting accommodation with the majority Protestant and British Northern Ireland suffered as a result.

            DeValera’s career spanned the dramatic period of Ireland’s modern cultural and national revolution. As an anti-colonial leader, a skillful constitutionalist and a symbol of national liberation, DeValera dominated the Irish political scene in the half century following the country’s independence.

The Irish Struggle for Independence, and Nationalist Leaders

Arthur Griffith

          The Irish struggle for independence was a long and mutually painful process for both England and Ireland.  After passing home-rule bill, after home-rule bill, for decades, Ireland's situation continued to remain to remain the same.  Later, as calls for complete independence began to brew, a schism formed in Ireland between the Catholic Nationalists, and Protestant Unionists.  However, the situation was not so black and white as it seemed.  Within the Nationalists there were those who wanted to resolve the issues violently, some who wanted to peacefully, and others who couldn't agree on how to run Ireland after separating from England. Soon a leader of the Nationalists took center stage, rallying the Nationalists around one ideal.  This man went by the name of Arthur Griffith.  Griffith preached that Ireland should have its own assembly, or parliament, and started a political party known as Sinn Féin (translated "we ourselves").  In ideality he wanted England and Ireland to share a monarch, but have separate governing assemblies.  In its early days Sinn Féin did not have much success at gaining a seat in government, leading some to believe a free Ireland should be won by force.  At last in 1917 and 1918, Sinn Féin began to win elections around Ireland (claiming 73 out of 106 Irish seats in parliament), and Eamon de Valera was voted in as the party's president (Griffith was the Vice President).

Michael Collins

          At the same time, a rival party, the Irish Republican Brotherhood, also began to gain popularity.  This group, known colloquially as the IRB, favored freeing Ireland through military action.  In 1916 the IRB had spearheaded a rebellion known as the Easter Rising, where IRB members took control of the country for a week, before being taken down by the British.  In 1917 a man named Michael Collins took over the IRB, and created a freedom fighting force known as the Irish Republican Army.
          While the IRB & IRA continued to plan a violent partition from Britain, the Sinn Féin MPs (members of Parliament) officially met, and declared themselves as the Dåil Eireann - The Irish Parliament.  Through this process, Ireland was unofficially independent from Britain, and technically de Valera was the Irish president.  However, Collins, supported by his own party and elected Finance Minister of Ireland, was just as powerful.

Eamon de Valera

          As the Dåil continued to run Ireland, the British continued to dismiss them as a illegitimate governing body.  The Irish became more and more desperate to show the world that in fact they were their own sovereign country.  While these tensions continued to grow, de Valera was abroad in the USA, so Collins assumed power over the country and began to launch the guerilla war against England he had long been planning.  In 1920, using the IRA he had established two years earlier, Collins began raiding all of Ireland, looking for British soldiers, spies, and policemen.  These attacks were bloody, fierce and occurred extremely quickly, prompting the British to put all of Ireland under martial law.  The British sent in more troops and both armies continued to fight, with neither side gaining an upper hand. On July 9, 1921 the two sides signed a truce.

          Ireland, once again under the control of de Valera who had returned home, began to draft a treaty with the British, establishing an Irish Free State.  On January 7, 1922 both sides reached an agreement by signing the Anglo/Irish Treaty. The North of Ireland would remain British, while the South would form its own, sovereign parliamentary republic.  In the years that followed de Valera became increasingly irrelevant, once again leaving Griffith and Collins to control the country.  However, this period didn't last for long as Griffith suddenly died of natural causes in 1922, and Collins was later assassinated while touring the country.

Post-Imperial Era Government in Ireland

          After Great Britain relinquished its hold on the southern portion of the isle, the Republic of Ireland was born- as well as the country of Northern Ireland, which the United Kingdom maintained its sovereignty over.  The two countries have highly contrasting forms of governance, due to the fact that one is a Republic while the other has allowed a Constitutional Monarchy to rule over it.


           The Republic of Ireland identifies itself as a Constitutional Republic, defined by a Parliamentary system.  The President serves as head of state, is elected for a seven-year term and may be re-elected once. The Local Government Act of 1898 defined the terms for local government in the Republic.  It divided the country into a "first tier" of 34 councils of cities and counties, as well as a second tier of 5 borough councils and 75 town councils.  The counties of the state are divided into eight regions, each with an elected official similar to a Governor presiding over them.

           This all stands in stark contrast to the Government of Northern Ireland which, being a peripheral extension of the United Kingdom itself, shares its political systems.  Likewise, it is overseen by the Prime Minister and the Monarch of Great Britain.  However, one similarity between the two governments of Ireland is that both are headed by a Parliament.  Nevertheless, Northern Ireland's Parliament is the United Kingdom Parliament, which is responsible for reserved and excepted matters within the northern half of the isle.
   Despite this, Northern Ireland's legal jurisdiction is distinct from those of England and Wales and Scotland, with laws that develop from the Partition of Ireland, which divided Ireland into two countries in 1921. Consequently, Northern Ireland retains a legal system that has elements of the former Parliament of Northern Ireland and the Parliament of Ireland.

The Modern Emerald Isle and her Culture

   After such a long time under Great Britain's rule, the people of post-colonial Ireland were left with many British cultural idiosyncrasies, some of which died less easily than others.   From the accents of the indigenous peoples to their economies, the two are to this day inextricably intertwined.  Nevertheless, through a microcosm of divergent evolution, the people of Ireland have indeed diverged culturally from the stereotypically polite mannerisms of their sister state Britain.

Republic of Ireland

   Religion plays a large part in post-colonial Ireland's culture.  In fact, the island was split into two countries over disagreements that stemmed mostly from Northern Ireland's protestant-dominated sphere of existence as opposed to the south's predominantly Catholic being.  To this day, cultural tensions exist between the two halves of the land based primarily on Protestant-Catholic conflict which often lead to violent clashes between the two factions.

  Having formally declared itself a republic and leaving the British Commonwealth in 1949, the Republic of Ireland does not recognize a monarch as Britain does and therefore has no cultural gravitational pull around any such figures.  The Republic of Ireland is politically represented by a Parliament and a President, and Northern Ireland, being itself an extension of the United Kingdom, is a Constitutional Monarchy and overseen by the Prime Minister as well as the Monarch of its Kingdom.

Northern Ireland

  Culturally, the people of Northern Ireland are typically viewed as British, but identity is a human facet based mostly on personal choice.  For instance, a citizen of Northern Ireland may compete in the Olympic Games as either an Irish or British athlete- but there is no team for Northern Ireland.  Consequently, it could be argued that Northern Ireland as a country has no true cultural identity, rather sharing Great Britain's, and that this is one of many quarrels the mainland Irish have with Northern Ireland.

The Celtic Tiger: Ireland's Economic Miracle

          After the burnout of the Irish economy in the 1980s, a phoenix, known as 'The Celtic Tiger' rose from its ashes, lasting from 1994 through its collapse in 2007 .  This economic juggernaut grew at an average rate of 9.4% between 1995 and 2000, then continued to increase about 5.5% per year until 2007. Unemployment even dipped below 4% at times, a sign of a prosperous economy.  There are an innumerable amount of causes for this explosion of wealth, but the most influential and important are Ireland's corporate tax policy, aid and funding received from the EU, and changing demographics in the Irish population.
          Throughout the 1990s Ireland had an extremely low corporate tax rate.  At its highest rate it hovered around 12.5%, miniscule compared to that of other developed countries.  This low tax rate attracted many businesses and corporations, especially those of the emerging tech industry.  This modern 'industrialization' brought new wealth into the economy, stimulating it and causing growth.

          Ireland's partnership with the EU had also buffered in prosperity.  The aid it provided Ireland in the recession of the 1980s helped construct new infrastructure, and reform the educational system.  As students in these improved schools grew up they added another dimension to the labor force, and helped bring about economic change from and industrial to a service-based economy.  Not to mention the economic partnership of the Eurozone opened Ireland to trade with nearly all of Europe, abandoning its traditional trade-partner, the UK.  This increased trade has brought wealth to the country, as well as fostered international relations destroyed during the violent 70s and 80s.

          The most interesting aspect causing 'The Celtic Tiger' was proposed by two Harvard demographers, David Bloom, and David Canning.  Bloom and Canning wrote a paper named "Contraception and the Celtic Tiger" proposing that the legalization of contraception the 1970s led to a decreased birth rate, and therefore population in Ireland.  Essentially, they've proposed that whenever a smaller generation reaches working age and are productively employed, the economy experiences a boost, with more money falling into the hands of less people.
       

The Good Friday Agreement Restores International Relations

          In 1998, North Ireland aimed to end half a century of violence between Catholics and Protestants by signing the Good Friday Agreement.  In this legislation, also agreed to by the British, the main objective was to facilitate peace agreements between North Ireland's primary religious sects. However, it also began to restore relations between Ireland and the rest of the world.

          To accomplish this task within Ireland a third-party, neutral group was created.  Known as the North-South Ministerial Council, this group was charged with controlling twelve subject areas, that if run correctly would have a mutually beneficial effect on both nations.  Some departments were to be aided by the committee while others were to be unilaterally controlled.  For example, food safety, special EU programs, and international trade are controlled entirely by the Ministerial Council, while agriculture, tourism, and educational sectors are controlled by each country independently, but are advised upon by the council.  Through these this buffer group, Ireland has began to restore its singular national identity.  At last the Irish have once again abandoned civil fighting and adopted the view that together North Ireland and The Republic of Ireland are part of a greater, general Ireland.
          Ireland and Britain have also began to create a more peaceful relationship as compared to their shared history marred by violence.  This was started with the formation of the East-West Council, and the British-Irish International Conference.  Its jobs are inherently similar to that of the North-South Ministerial Council, except it has no actual legislative power.  The sole purpose of this council is to promote harmonious cooperation between both of the Irelands, and all countries on the British Isles.  In addition, each year a British-Irish intergovernmental conference is held, where the leaders of the nations involved touch base and discuss issues of mutual concern and interest.  These measures have eliminated most of the political tension that was formed by British Imperialism.  In fact they have worked so well that in 2011 the Queen of England, once a symbol of imperial power, visited Ireland on a peaceful trip for the first time in her now sixty year reign.

The Irish Military: Keeping the Republic Safe

          The Irish military, or armed forces, are formally known as the Defence Forces. The Defence Forces are made up of three main branches:  the Army, the Naval Service and the Air Corps.  Ireland is fortunate in the fact that its geographical location is off of the northwest coast of Europe and therefore the European Union, which makes any risk of being invaded or attacked unlikely. Its military capabilities are relatively modest, but the country has a long history of involvement in the United Nations peacekeeping operations. Ireland officially became a member of the UN in 1955, and since 1958 it has had a continuous presence on peace support operations and humanitarian missions. The Defence Forces were founded by the Irish Volunteers in 1913.

          The Irish Army consists of 8,500 active personnel and 13,000 Army Reservists.  The country is split up into three areas for administrative and operational purposes with each region containing an Infantry Brigade. The first Brigade has responsibility for operational tasks in the South, the second for operational tasks in the Northeast, and the third for operational tasks in the Northwest. This brigade structure ensures troops can be quickly deployed anywhere on the island within hours. The Army also has nine specialist corps, which are the Infantry Corps, Artillery Corps, Cavalry Corps, Engineer Corps, Ordnance Corps, Medical Corps, Transport Corps, Military Police Corps and Communication and Information Services Corps.  By forming specialist units, the military is able to pinpoint the tasks it wishes to accomplish and to execute those tasks swiftly and efficiently. 

          The Irish Air Corps is the smallest of the branches of the Defence Forces, with approximately 939 personnel.  The primary roles of the Air Corps are to protect Irish and EU air space, support the Army and the Navy, and to provide aid when there is civil unrest, such as during IRA attacks. The Air Corps also has the secondary responsibility to provide aid to Irish citizens in times of need. Essentially, the Air Corps is tasked with many functions beyond the traditional role of solely defending the Irish airspace.
          The Irish Naval Service contains 1,144 personnel, a relatively small sector of the forces.  Its main task is to police all of the Irish territorial waters, including the Irish Conservation Box, which is a large area of sea in which fishing is restricted in order to preserve the fish population and underwater ecosystems. These waters also technically belong to the EU, meaning by patrolling the ocean the Naval Service holds the Union's northern flank. The Naval Services also have other roles, which include protecting fisheries, aiding civilians, drug smuggling interception, maritime safety, diving operations, pollution control and overseas mission support. All of these roles come after the Navy’s primary role, which is defined as “National Security”.

Economic Troubles

          Ireland currently has a very advanced economy, with 76% of the labor force employed in the tertiary economic sector (services).  This area of its economy accounts for 69% of Ireland's GDP (221.7 billion dollars), and keeps its economy running.  Meanwhile, 19% of the labor force is employed in industry, and the remaining 5% in agriculture, Ireland's traditional method of employment.  Ireland does maintain a fairly strong economy when compared to the rest of the world, but it has not always been, and at this moment isn't entirely smooth sailing.  In its post-imperial history Ireland has experienced two major economic recessions, that of the early 1980s, and the economic collapse of 2008 coupled with the current Eurozone crisis.
          During the early 80s, Ireland economy became increasingly sluggish.  The economy grew only 2.3% a year, inflation hurt the common man, unemployment skyrocketed, and government expenditure was over 50% of the GDP.  Whilst this period continued (1980-1986), Ireland greatly underperformed almost all other members of the EU.  In fact, the economy was so poor that over 200,000 Irish citizens emigrated the country between 1980 and 1990.  To end this period of recession and jump-start the economy the Irish government implemented public sector reforms, and they received aid from the EU.  Ireland's economy quickly reacted to these measures, becoming one of this best in the EU.  During the next decade (1994-2007), Ireland's economy was so strong that it was dubbed 'The Celtic Tiger' (see "The Celtic Tiger: Ireland's Economic Miracle").
          After a decade of boom, Ireland and the rest of the world, hit a bust in the mid 2000s.  During the collapse of many of its financial institutions, Ireland's economy took a beating, with banks losing around 106 billion Euros (in the US's perspective that'd be 10 trillion dollars).  Since 2008, the economy has actually shrunk over 10%, housing prices have lowered 47%, and unemployment has risen to 14% (compared to the sub-4% unemployment during the 'Celtic Tiger' years).  This recession, along with that of Greece, Portugal, and a handful of other EU nations, has hurt the Euro and threatens to bring down even more European countries.  In a last-ditch effort to save Ireland's economy they received an 112 billion Euro bailout package from the EU and the IMF.  Ireland is currently ramping up austerity measures in an effort to save themselves, and the rest of the EU, from total economic failure.

For more reading on the current crisis click here to read an article written by Michael Lewis (will redirect you from this page).

Religious and Political Tension and Conflict in Northern Ireland

          While Northern Ireland is primarily Protestant (60%), Northern Irish Catholics have long wanted to rejoin their brothers to the South. Throughout the Post-War Era, they have felt discriminated against, as if they were second-class citizens. In the 1960s, these frustrated feelings led the Catholics to form the Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association (NICRA), in order to peacefully demonstrate for equal rights for Catholics. Their actions were successful, forcing the hand of Northern Irish Prime Minister, Terence O’Neill, to institute measures making life more bearable for the members of NICRA and other Northern Irish Catholics. However, these measures were not enough for the Catholics. On the other hand, the Protestants were furious. Soon tensions rose to a boiling point and fighting broke out on the streets of prominent Northern Irish cities such as Belfast and Londonderry; Britain sent in troops to quell the violence.
          These rising tensions, coupled with a desire to reunite the two Irelands, led Catholics in Northern Ireland to adopt more extreme measures to gain equal rights, and possibly freedom from Britain. In an act of desperation they reformed the Irish Republican Army (IRA), an incarnation of the fighting force that had gained The Republic of Ireland its freedom in the early 20th century.
          Late in the 1960s and early in the 1970s violence concerning religion continued to escalate. One of the most infamous events concerning this conflict occurred on January 30, 1972. At the time, a couple hundred Republican Catholics were being held in the city of Derry without trial. In protest, NICRA planned to march on the city in a non-violent demonstration. The government denounced this act, but NICRA went ahead with its plans anyway. In response, British soldiers open fired into the crowd, killing 13 and wounding 14 of the demonstrators. This event came to be known as “Bloody Sunday” and was a rallying point for Northern Irish extremists.
          In a counterattack to “Bloody Sunday” and a half-century of mistreatment, the IRA began to exact revenge on the British and other Northern Irish Protestants by executing terrorist attacks. They planted bombs across England for the next twenty years, killing thousands and wounding many more. At the same time, the British maintained a military presence in Northern Ireland hoping to suppress any possible violence. The British stayed in Northern Ireland until the late 1980s, and peace was finally reached in 1998 with the Good Friday Agreement, which created Northern Ireland's own assembly and began to restore its international relations.