Ailtirí na hAiséirghe
| Ailtirí na hAiséirghe | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Founder | Gearóid Ó Cuinneagáin |
| Founded | 1942 |
| Dissolved | 1958 |
| Ideology |
Fascism Irish nationalism Religious nationalism Gaelic particularism |
| Political position | Far-right |
| Religion | Roman Catholicism |
| Colours | Dark Green |
|
Politics of the Republic of Ireland Political parties Elections | |
Ailtirí na hAiséirghe (Irish pronunciation: [ˈalʲtʲiːɾʲi na ˈhaʃeːɾʲjə], meaning "Architects of the Resurrection") was a minor radical nationalist and fascist political party in Ireland, founded by Gearóid Ó Cuinneagáin in 1942.[1][2] The party sought to form a totalitarian Irish Christian corporatist state. Its objectives included the creation of a one-party state under the rule of an all-powerful leader; the criminalisation of the public use of the English language; discriminatory measures against Jews; the building-up of a massive conscript army; and the conquest of Northern Ireland. In the longer term, Aiséirghe aimed to make a fascist Ireland into a "missionary-ideological" state spreading its combination of totalitarian politics and Christian social principles worldwide.
An "organised group of anti-Semites",[3] its sympathies were with the Axis powers. It was one of a wave of minor far right parties in 1940s Ireland that failed to achieve mainstream success, like the Monetary Reform Party.[4]
The party obtained no seats in the 1943 and 1944 general elections.[5] In the 1945 local government elections, however, Aiséirghe candidates won nine seats (out of 31 contested), gaining a total of more than 11,000 first-preference votes. Put in context, this comprised less than 1% of the then electoral roll of 1,803,000.
Its supporters included former Cumann na nGaedheal government ministers Ernest Blythe and James Joseph Walsh (Blythe had also been a leading member of the Blueshirts), and Monetary Reform Party TD Oliver J. Flanagan.[6] Seán Treacy,[7] the future Labour Party TD and Ceann Comhairle of Dáil Éireann, was a party member in the 1940s, as were the novelist Brian Cleeve,[8] the philosopher Terence Gray[9] and the broadcaster and author Breandán Ó hEithir.[7] Although never a member, Seán South was familiar with the group's publications.[10]
After an internal split in late 1945, Aiséirghe's influence weakened. It was in some respects overtaken by the radical Clann na Poblachta, which shared some of its economic and cultural theories but without the anti-democratic and anti-Semitic elements.[11] It held its last formal meeting in 1958, though the party newspaper, Aiséirghe, continued to appear until the early 1970s.
References
- ↑ Douglas, R. M. (2009). Architects of the Resurrection: Ailtirí na hAiséirghe and the Fascist 'New Order' in Ireland. Manchester University Press. ISBN 0-7190-7998-5.
- ↑ British Spies and Irish Rebels, Paul McMahon
- ↑ Ó Drisceoil, Donal (1996). Censorship in Ireland, 1939-1945. Cork: Cork University Press. ISBN 978-1-85918-074-7.
- ↑ Manning, Maurice (1972). Irish Political Parties: An Introduction. Dublin: Gill and Macmillan. ISBN 978-0-7171-0536-6.
- ↑ Defending Ireland: the Irish state and its enemies, Eunan O'Halpin
- ↑ Eoin O'Duffy, Fearghal McGarry
- 1 2 Douglas (2009), p. 250
- ↑ Douglas (2009), p. 163
- ↑ Douglas (2009), pp. 154-5
- ↑ Douglas 2009, pp. 285-7
- ↑ Douglas, R. M. "Ailtirí na hAiséirghe: Ireland’s fascist New Order". History Ireland. Retrieved 6 January 2015.
Further reading
- Wills, Clair (2007). That neutral island: a cultural history of Ireland during the Second World War. London: Faber and Faber. pp. 364–369. ISBN 978-0-674-02682-7.
- Gallagher, Michael (1985). Political parties in the Republic of Ireland. New Hampshire: Manchester University Press. pp. 107–109. ISBN 978-0-7190-1742-1.
- McMahon, Paul (2008). British spies and Irish rebels: British intelligence and Ireland, 1916-1945. Woodbridge, Suffolk: Boydell Press. p. 389. ISBN 978-1-84383-376-5.