A Civil War Reflection: Left Republicanism Today

As we are in the middle of Civil War centenaries, it has become apparent as socialists and Republicans to reflect on where we are today and learn from the past. In the 1920’s we saw a rise in radical revolutionary Republicanism across the 32 counties. Today over 100 years later we’re seeing another wave of change. Sinn Féin politically have never been in a stronger position. Irish Unity on the agenda, the first Nationalist 1st Minister in the North and a chance at a first left wing Republican Party coming to power in the Dáil. We should examine how we’ve got to this position on the centenary of the Civil War, and learn from the past. How is it that we are seeing a rise in Republicanism such in areas that we haven’t seen since before the Civil War? Can Irish Republican Socialists learn by looking back to bring forward a hope for the future?

The Irish Civil War, despite being arguably one of the most prolific periods in Irish history, is still mainly ignored by the Irish media and political establishment. Comparing this to Irish involvement in WWI, RTÉ was falling over themselves to reflect it in a “mature way”. A part of Ireland’s past that’s historically been overlooked in some eyes. However, hoping the same focus would come on the Civil War, we’ve found it is in fact not the case. Despite this, politically the Civil War is extremely relevant today. Over 1,600 died in the Civil War. It brought untold violence across the country and created bitter divides in all walks of life. The striking thing is that it does not suit the Irish Political establishment and the main centre right parties (Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael) to talk about this past and their violent hand in it. 

Take Fine Gael. They like to claim the Pro-Treaty side, Griffith & Collins (despite Fine Gael being founded over 10 years after their deaths) as their founding fathers. Men who openly endorsed violence, but there is an attempt to portray them as men of peace despite a war of Independence and the following Civil War. The Free State army (whose forces had many recruits that were former British Army) carried out executions (without trial) of 81 Republicans including formidable leaders such as Liam Mellows and Erskine Childers. Furthermore the violent deaths of Republican heroes Harry Boland and Cathal Brugha to name but a few to Free State forces. We remembered recently the bombing of the Four Courts with British artillery kicking off the viscous Civil War, which was described very well in Micháel Mac Donnacha’s recent article in An Phoblacht “The tragedy of Michael Collins“ . He made the point that “Collins faced the choice of reuniting with his former IRA comrades in meeting the threatened British resumption of the war, or attacking the IRA in the Four Courts”. It’s a fact that the Free State was born out of violent counter measures to the radical Republican revolution that took on the British Empire. For these reasons Fine Gael like to be at best vague on Civil War reflection, they much prefer to discuss setting up state institutions after the Civil War burned out.

For Fianna Fáil, it’s arguably even more vague and complex. Despite traditionally being on the Anti -Treaty side. There is almost a shame to talk about how many early Fianna Fáil members fought against what they saw as an illegitimate state. They saw it as not the Republic proclaimed in 1916. Very much like how the IRA fought an illegitimate state in “Northern Ireland”, the forced British occupation in the North of Ireland and partition of our country. However this does not suit their narrative. They prefer to push the narrative of dangerous Sinn Féin with a violent past unlike themselves. It is conveniently forgotten that the first time Fianna Fáil entered power in the Dáil, they did so armed. Fianna Fáil mainly see the conflict in the North simply as an IRA inflamed situation that they wanted nothing to do with. An armed occupation of 6 counties, a denial of civil rights and partition of our country, it couldn’t be further from the truth. Of course it’s clear the recent conflict was just as complex a situation as the Tan War or the Civil War.

Furthermore it is noted that modern Fianna Fáil don’t want to call out Free State forces for their atrocities. Dev Valera and Fianna Fail themselves went along with executing Republicans such as Paddy McGrath and Thomas Harte, veterans of 1916, in the 1940’s. They also interned many IRA activists in this period which led to two IRA Volunteers Nicky Doherty and John Dwyer dying on hunger strike. This all less than 20 years from a Civil War in which Fianna Fáil’s origin’s were traditionally Anti-Treaty IRA. It is a hidden shame in what’s left (if any) of Republican feelings in the Fianna Fáil party.

Approximately 50 years ago, the more recent Northern conflict kicked off. 50 years previous to that, we had former Taoisigh such as Seán Lemass and De Valera as gun men for the IRA. Lemass of course allegedly part of Collins famous unit of hitmen “The Squad” who carried out assassinations of British spies. This seems to have been conveniently forgotten by the Irish Establishment, particularly on reflection of the Northern conflict when discussing rights and wrongs of armed resistance. The hypocrisy is just stark for anyone to see. I would suggest the reader look up Danny Morrison’s recent book ‘Free Statism and the Good Old IRA’, which delves even deeper into this area.

Where does it link up with today’s politics? Sinn Fein during the War of Independence was in many ways an “umbrella movement” of Republicanism. Sinn Féin then was a broad church with one purpose, to proclaim the Republic. Mainly Radical Republicans and Socialists drove on the fight to the British Empire to proclaim that Republic, their ambition drove on the Republican movement to go toe to toe with colonialism to inspire other independence movements around the world. Republicanism found its new birth from 1916 inspired by Tone. The key strength in that movement was that Irish people across all strands of left wing/ Republican groups rallied under the banner of Sinn Féin. A strength that even the Catholic Church’s hold could not compete with. It was clear to genuine Irish people that this was the movement of hope and justice. In the same way today we have to look at how strong large movements can bring about change. For too long the left and Republicanism have been side lined. In unity, everyone has their part to play.

The movement took a hammer blow in the Civil War, the Anti-Treaty side losing a bitter fight and a once strong Republican movement now broken. De Valera thus set up the Fianna Fáil party so he could participate in Irish Free State politics breaking away from Sinn Féin in 1926. The Republican movement was fractured again. Failed campaigns in the 1940s and 1950s brought Republicans to a weak point. At the dawn of the Civil Rights Campaign, the British and Unionist establishment reacted with violence and shot and beat Nationalists off the streets. Despite the split of Provisionals and Officials in 1969/1970, the Republican movement was reignited and subsequently grew in strength and fought the British Army Occupation physically up to 1998 and where we can look forward to creating the political avenues to get rid of partition once and for all for the first time in our history by solely peaceful means. This left a strong platform to grow Republicanism in the 26 counties once again.

Throughout the 20th century many left / Republican movements sprouted all over the country after the Civil War such as Clann na Poblachta, Workers Party, The Republican Congress, IRSP, Communist Party of Ireland, multiple Trotskyist parties …but failed to capture the same strength of a radical movement to the levels of before the Civil War in the 26 counties. It is clear “micro” movements, although they have a part to play, cannot shift the course of Irish history.

In some ways what we are experiencing today is a realignment of Sinn Féin during the War of Independence of the 1920s. True left Republicanism, radical policies to improve people’s lives. Sinn Féin has always been the strongest Republican party, but now the movement can now claim to be the true strongest left voice in Ireland. Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael have been brought together as one on the centre right. Neither can seriously claim to be following the example of the Republic laid down in 1916. As a side note, the Labour party were shown up to who they were, just mud cards for the right and betraying their previous working class voters. The lesson from the Civil War is Ireland needs a united movement to take on the capitalist establishment. The vision of a Republic is very much alive across the whole country probably for the first time since the Irish Civil War disaster when it was shattered by the Free State and partition. As left Republicans, it’s our duty to not fall short of our ambitions, remain the radical party of change. Ireland historically needs the left and republicans together, the lesson from the Civil War is that once the movements split and break up it can be very difficult to rise again from the ashes. For Sinn Féin it’s to keep pushing on, learn from history and bring the people with us.

le Seán Carey