"This is the first biographical work of one of the chief policymakers to have served the independent Irish state. It is the only scholarly biography (apart from Sean Lemass) of a senior Fianna Fail minister prominent in every de Valera administration." "Sean MacEntee was in many ways a unique political personality. He was the most senior politician in the independent Irish state to have been born in what became Northern Ireland. Moreover, he was a fiercely independent thinker whose written contribution to the public life of the state was considerable, reflecting his insatiable interest in all aspects of government policy, not merely those for which he bore ultimate responsibility. An assessment of MacEntee's life offers a unique opportunity to convey the full force of ministerial thought over a period of four decades in government and provides a comprehensive record of the main aspects of public policymaking since the foundation of the state." --Book Jacket.
This thought-provoking book retells the 1916 Rising story through previously unavailable first-hand accounts from the protagonists. Illustrated with unpublished and rare photographs, this book also features an introduction by well-known historian and author Dr Margaret Mac Curtain. Witnesses: Inside the Easter Rising is the first book to draw on official witness statements taken over several years from the late 1940s onwards by the government of the time and only released to the public by the Bureau of Military History in 2003. In its judicious use of the statements given by the foot-soldiers and second-line participants in the Rising, the book provides a unique perspective on the events of Easter 1916. From the volunteers walking the Royal canal from Kildare to fight in Dublin (of which the author's father was one) , to the women fighting, smuggling guns and cooking for the insurgents in the GPO, Witnesses transports the reader alongside those taking part in this pivotal event in modern Irish history. Insights into controversial matters such as the decision to countermand the order for the Rising on its eve, the so-called Castle document , as well as the personal affections and jealousies of those involved, are all discussed in detail. There are also previously unpublished photos taken inside the GPO during Easter week.
Employing 286 scholars, this two volume encyclopedia contains entries on post-World War II European political history and groups, significant events and persons, the economy, religion, education, the arts, women's issues, writers, and more.
Born in 1917 into an Ireland torn by nationalist passions, O'Brien was trained as a diplomat and rose to international prominence during the Belgian Congo crisis. As special representative for UN Secretary General Dag Hammarskjold, O'Brien was caught in the middle of big power politics. After resigning in a furor, he wrote To Katanga and Back (1962), a classic in modern African history and still the only book to reveal how the UN works behind its marble facade. O'Brien then became Vice Chancellor of the University of Ghana and waged a battle for academic freedom against one of the most amiable of tyrants, Kwame Nkrumah.
Following the suppression of the Easter Rising in Dublin in 1916, the British Army court-martialled almost 200 prisoners. Around ninety of them received death sentences, but the death penalty was confirmed only for the fifteen men considered to be the leaders. All fifteen were executed. Until 1999, official British records of these fifteen trials were kept a close secret, and in 2001 further material was released, including the trial of Countess Markievicz and important evidence about the shoot to kill tactics used by the British Army. These records, the subject of heated speculation and propaganda for over eighty years, are clearly presented in this important new edition of From Behind a Closed Door, containing previously unpublished material from archive sources, such as the Bureau of Military History witness statements. The complete transcripts are all revealed, together with fascinating photographs of the Rising, the fifteen leaders and the key British players. Brian Barton incisive commentary explains the context of the trials and the motivations of the leaders, providing an invaluable insight into what went on behind closed doors at a defining moment in Irish history.
This is a biography of the great scientist, Erwin Schrödinger (author of What is Life?), which draws upon recollections of his family and friends, as well as on contemporary records, diaries and letters. It aims to reveal the fundamental motives that drove him.
An exceptional man, an extraordinary career – a life of Seán MacBride, Ireland's most distinguished statesman Sean MacBride (1904–1988) was at different times the Chief of Staff of the IRA, a top criminal lawyer, leader of Clann na Poblachta, Irish Foreign Minister, UN Commissioner, and a founding member of Amnesty International. He is the only person to have won both the Nobel Peace Prize (1974) and the Lenin Peace Prize (1977). Seán MacBride, A Life, by accomplished historian Elizabeth Keane, is the first complete biography of this multifaceted, complex and internationally renowned Irish politician. From revolutionary terrorist to conservative constitutional politician to liberal elder statesman and international humanitarian, Seán MacBride uncovers the political and personal story of one of twentieth-century Ireland's most controversial figures. Seán MacBride begins with MacBride's birth in Paris in 1904. With icons of the nationalist movement in Ireland for parents, MacBride's future as a politician was fated: his father John MacBride was a Boer War hero executed for his role in the Easter Rising of 1916; his mother Maud Gonne was an outspoken revolutionary and the lost love and muse of Ireland's most famous poet W.B. Yeats. Seán MacBride then looks at MacBride's membership of the IRA, which he joined as teenager. He fought in both the Irish War of Independence and the Irish Civil War. Seán MacBride charts his rapid rise through the ranks, looking at how he became the Director of Intelligence and later Chief of Staff of the IRA before relinquishing his position and becoming a top criminal barrister. MacBride entered Dáil Éireann for the first time in 1947 as the leader of Clann na Poblachta, and formed the first coalition government in Irish history in 1948. Appointed Minister for External Affairs (Foreign Minister), Seán MacBride considers MacBride's tenure in office, which included overseeing the acceptance of the European Convention on Human Rights, the rejection of NATO and Ireland's exit from the Commonwealth. His refusal to support fellow Clann na Poblachta TD Noël Browne's Mother-and-Child Scheme in the face of the opposition of the Catholic bishops led to the collapse of the coalition. MacBride lost his seat in the 1957 election, retired officially from Irish party politics and entered the third phase of his life: international statesman and human rights activist. Seán MacBride looks at the pivotal role MacBride played in European and international politics and human rights over the course of his later years, including founding Amnesty International, opposing apartheid in South Africa and agitating against nuclear armament. Few Irish politicians have had such an impact domestically and internationally. From MacBride's violent IRA beginnings to his later advocacy of peace in politics, Seán MacBride, A Life captures the twists and turns of a fascinating career. A figure of national and international importance, one of the most distinguished Irish people of the twentieth century, he has found a biographer of authority and assurance in Elizabeth Keane, whose survey of his life and times is astute, insightful and convincing. Praise for Elizabeth Keane: 'A singular voice in Irish history' The Sunday Business Post Seán MacBride, A Life: Table of Contents Preface - Man of Destiny - A Sort of Homecoming - From Chief-of-Staff to Chief Counsel - Fighting Your Battles - The Harp Without the Crown - Rattling the Sabre - Coming out of the Cave - Catholic First, Irishman Second - A Statesman of International Status - Never Lost His Fenian FateConclusion
Murphy argues against the thesis of Tom Garvin and his work, Preventing the Future. In that book, Garvin argues that old culture, old ideas and the repression of the Church held Ireland's development in check through the 1940s and 1950s. Gary Murphy suggests that the Irish government and civil service leaders were in fact open to change and new ideas and this openness led them to adopt outward-looking policies.
Focusing on both Irish government and society, Daly places Ireland's population history in the mainstream history of independent Ireland. Her book is essential reading for understanding modern Irish history."--BOOK JACKET.
