Ireland, History, Conflict, Republicanism
Despite the involvement of radical socialists like James Connolly and the
Irish Citizen Army in the 1916 Rising and the unanimous passing of the
Democratic Programme (a socialist manifesto for the new Government) by
the First Dáil in 1919, the Irish state has since its inception exhibited a highly
conservative approach to social and economic policy, and politics generally
in Ireland, North or South, have never faced a serious challenge from those
seeking radical change.
Several factors have played a part in this and this article focuses on
one of these –the power and conservatism of the Catholic Church and
its influence in shaping the political landscape. Despite a decline in recent
years, the Church remains influential north and south of the Border in
education provision, the current debates in relation to abortion and in
culturally important aspects of life—baptism, communion and burial.2 In
the past the Church’s political influence among Ireland’s majority Catholic
community had been even more pronounced. The article begins by looking
at the Church’s attitude to revolutionary change in Ireland historically before
focusing on its influence in the North during the Stormont years and during
the more recent ‘Troubles’—1969–98. It shows how the Church attempted
to influence political thought and discourse in Ireland when it was at the
height of its power. Whilst it is true that the Church was not a monolith, and
there have always been individual priests who have adopted a more radical
approach, the general thrust of the Church was conservative, attempting to
ally itself with the power elites of the day where possible. It is this influence
which appears to have stood the test of time despite attempts in past
generations to radicalise the Irish population.