Sir, —In your entertainingeditorial on the perils of putting names to places in Ireland, you saythat nationalists find obnoxious the use of ‘Ulster’ for NorthernIreland (‘Up the Republic/Commonwealth!’, HI 17.3, May/June 2009). Butthat was not always the case. De Valera, for example, in August 1921,when questioned in the Dáil about possible talks between Sinn Féin … Read more
Sir, —Although delighted to see my book A history of the Northern Ireland Labour Party: democratic socialism and sectarianism reviewed in the last issue (HI 17.4, July/August 2009), permit me to address some of the points raised by Dr Brian Feeney in his highly selective critique. Dr Feeney claims that ‘the NILP could never … Read more
Sir, —Tara Keenan-Thomson’s description (HI 17.4, July/Aug. 2009) of New York’s Mayor John Lindsay as ‘an American Republican’ strikes an odd note, particularly in the context of an essay that pushes the theme of Irish-American support for ‘conservative hegemony’ and ‘racist attitudes’. Technically speaking, Lindsay was still a Republican when he honoured Bernadette Devlin with … Read more
Sir, —I have recently returned from a visit to the Imperial War Museumin London. The display on the Home Front during the 1914–18 warincluded items relating to the Easter Rising. One of the items ondisplay was a banner belonging to Na Fianna Éireann. It was taken fromthe home of Constance Markiewicz in the aftermath of … Read more
Sir, —It is unfortunate that Paul Bew’s article in the last issue (HI17.4, July/Aug. 2009) should be entitled ‘The Blind Leading the Blind’.In it he says that, unlike Bernadette Devlin, he ‘did not see anydelighted policemen’ at Burntollet where he was present in January1969. Everyone else who was there did. In the account published … Read more