Irish Catholic Diaspora

Although a small cohort, often deemed insignificant, the Irish in South Australia developed an extensive network of social, business and political connections with the wider colonial society which aided them in their support of the long constitutional struggle for self-government taking place in Ireland during the four decades from 1870. Through the lens of the colonial press and an investigation of the support given to Irish nationalists this study shows the extent to which that small cohort extended its influence to the wider South Australian community to the benefit of the Home Rule movement. This was no mean feat considering the established view of scholars that the group faced the ‘unquestionable primacy of Anglo-Scottish colonisation’.1 Looking at the visits of the envoys of the Irish Parliamentary Party which took place between 1883 and 1912, this study, through a consideration of fundraising, the reputation of the Irish in the colony, the colonial press’ treatment of Irish issues and a lack of Orange opposition to Home Rule, investigates the impact and reach of this small Irish community during the years of Ireland’s foremost constitutional political movement. In its conclusion the research shows that underlying the long assumed quiet assimilation of this ethnic group into the general ‘Britishness’ of the colony, the Irish, from the outset, were aware of and consistently
1 Eric Richards. "Irish Life and Progress in Colonial South Australia " Irish Historical Studies 27, no. 107 (1991): 21
‘Yet we are told that Australians do not sympathise with Ireland’
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maintained a separate cultural identity and, during the period under consideration, this was augmented by an increased politicisation amongst the group – a world development which affected the Irish at both the macro and micro level. This thesis further reveals that in South Australia the Irish Home Rule movement garnered strong support in a colony where the majority of the inhabitants were neither Irish nor Catholic and this was due to a number of factors. Amongst these were factors which contrast sharply with characteristics of the Irish and the Home Rule movement in other Australian colonies, particularly the size, unity and nature of South Australian Irish nationalists, the lack of a structured opposition to Home Rule, the colony’s natural affinity with the notion of self-government and the fraternal bonds which came about through the issue of land ownership and control. While fundraising was the prime object of a series of visits to Australia by Irish MPs between 1883 and 1912, acceptance of the Irish claim for Home Rule amongst Australians in general proved equally important. Despite the small community of Irish people residing in South Australia during the most active years of the movement the colony subscribed generously to the cause. While the loyalty and support of the Irish-born and perhaps even the next generation might be expected more surprising is the widespread involvement of the non-Irish and non-Catholic citizens of the colony.

Anáil an Bhéil Bheo brings together a stimulating range of interdisciplinary essays considering the connections between orality and modern Irish culture. From literature to song, folklore to the visual arts, contributors examine not only the connections between oral and textual traditions in Ireland, but also the theoretical concept of “orality” itself and the corresponding significance of oral texts in Irish society. Featuring work by emerging scholars in the fields of history, literature, folklore, music, women’s studies, film and theatre studies and disciplines contributing to Irish Studies, this multifaceted volume also includes contributions from scholars long engaged with issues of orality such as Gearóid Ó Crualaoich and Henry Glassie.

Collection of edited Spanish documents relating to inter-Irish political rivalry at the Spanish court between the Gaelic Irish and the Old English, principally during the second decade of the seventeenth century that culminated in the assassination of the Gaelic Irish chief, Donal Cam O'Sullivan Beare in July 1618 by the Old English noble, John Bath.

A major statement in both historical and cultural sociology,Constructing Irish Nationalist Identity: Ritual and Discourse during the Land War, 1879-1882, provides a theoretical and methodological model for analyzing symbolic and social transformation in major historical events. Synthesizing the strong program in cultural sociology with eventful temporality, Anne Kane demonstrates the construction of political alliance and the emergence of a counter hegemonic cultural structure over the course of a political movement and campaign. Through deep analysis of the discursive struggles of contentious participants--tenant farmers, nationalists, and the Irish Catholic Church--in the multitudinous enchained ritualistic events of the Irish Land War, Kane illuminates the construction of a reconfigured Irish Nationalist Identity.

"This long-awaited masterwork brings together a searching inquiry into the structures and dynamics of political culture and a careful, painstaking examination of a pivotal episode in the forging of Irish nationalist identity. Engaged in fruitful dialogue with studies of political contention and social movements, nationalism and collective identity formation, ritual process, and historical change, it will take its place alongside such classics of the genre as William Sewell, Jr.’s Work and Revolution in France." - Mustafa Emirbayer, University of Wisconsin at Madison

"Anne Kane illuminates brilliantly the transformations of Irish national identity in the ‘Land War’ of 1879 to 1882. Her theoretically informed analysis of the Land War’s contentious and ever-changing political discourse is subtle and fascinating. The book combines theoretical novelty, exhaustive archival research, and compelling narrative. It is a splendid contribution both to Irish history and to cultural and historical sociology." - William H. Sewell, Jr., University of Chicago