In the newly independent Irish Free State the Catholic Church was deeply insecure about its role in the new state, which had been born out of violence—a violence, moreover, that had revealed how unstable and volatile its flock could be. The ruthlessness and cruelty of the Civil War had appalled churchmen, and the Catholic Church’s … Read more
Child clerical sexual abuse, denial and cover-up Sir,—I read your editorial (HI 18.3, May/June 2010) with concern because it is upsetting to think of anyone who is usually positive expressing such despair at aspects of present-day life in Ireland. But I have to disagree with your suggestions regarding denial and cover-up of the sexual abuse … Read more
Huge population growth in British cities after the industrial revolution brought with it an increase in the number of public houses. By the turn of the twentieth century British newspapers were heaving with reports of the rise in alcohol-related crime, pauperism and insanity. In Ireland the social problems caused by drunkenness spurred proposed amendments to … Read more
The Great Bengal Famine of 1943–4 resulted in the deaths from starvation and famine-related diseases of over two million people. In pre-partition Bengal it reawakened dim collective memories of Chhiatt?rer monn?ntór, the massive but poorly documented famine that had produced devastation in 1770. In India and Bangladesh both famines are seen as colonial famines: the … Read more
On 17 July 1924, as the mail boat docked at its usual berth in Kingstown, it brought the first head of state to the new Irish Free State. A contingent of the newly formed Irish National Guard and a number of Irish Free State ministers waited on the quayside. After a slight delay, to the … Read more