Ireland and the End of the British Empire

In 1949, Ireland left the Commonwealth and the British Empire began its long fragmentation. The relationship between the new Republic of Ireland and Britain was a complex one however, and the traditional assumption that the Republic would universally support self-determination overseas and object to 'imperialism' does not hold up to historical scrutiny. In reality, for economic and geopolitical reasons, the Republic of Ireland played an important role in supporting the Empire- demonstrated clearly in Ireland's active involvement in the Cyprus Emergency of the 1950s. As Helen O'Shea reveals, while the IRA formed immediate links with EOKA and the Cypriot rebels, the Irish government and the Irish Church supported the British line- which was to retain Cyprus as the Middle-Eastern base of the British Empire following the loss of Egypt. Ireland and the End of the British Empire challenges the received historiography of the period and constitutes a valuable addition to our understanding of Ireland and the British Empire.

Helen O'Shea is Tutor in British social and political history at the University of Strathclyde and the University of Edinburgh. She completed her PhD in Modern History at the University of Edinburgh in 2009.

Long Shadows
1. The Evolution of Enosis and the Irish Interaction with British
Cyprus, 1878-1954
i. 'Accidental' Irishmen or Erin's 'Gallant Sons'? The Early Years of 'British' Cyprus
ii. Growing Analogies: T.P. O'Connor, Michael Collins and 'British Fairplay' in Cyprus
iii. 'Enosis and Only Enosis': The 1931 Riots, World War II and the Greek Civil War
Unlearned Lessons
2. The Irish Press Response to the Cyprus Emergency: A Comparative Analysis
i. Hesitant Beginnings: Irish Anti-communism and the Cyprus Question
ii. Civil War Ghosts: Historical Constraints on Irish Press Opinion
iii. Reflecting the National Synthesis? The Irish Times and the Cyprus Question
3. Insurgent Compatriots: Irish Republicanism and the EOKA Campaign
i. A Marriage of Motives: Greek-Cypriot Nationalism and the National Student Council
ii. The NSC and International Student Anti-colonialism in Dublin
iii. 'The Enemy of my Enemy is my Friend': The IRA-EOKA Joint Prison Escape Effort
iv. The United Irishman Debate: Northern Ireland, Cyprus and the British Armed Forces
Walking the Tightrope
4. The Irish Religious Response to Cypriot Self-Determination
i. The Irish Catholic, the Standard, Irish Partition and the Cyprus Question
ii. Cyprus, Communism and Irish Catholicism
iii. Catholic-Greek Orthodox Tensions and the Cyprus Question
iv. The Church of Ireland's Relationship with the Greek Orthodox Church
v. The Irish Churches' Response to the Anti-Greek Pogroms and the Deportation of
Archbishop Makarios
5. Irish UN Foreign Policy and the Cyprus Question
i. The Second Inter-Party Government, UN Membership and the Cyprus Question
ii. The Formation and Execution of Liam Cosgrave's Irish UN Policy
iii. 'Bloody Mavericks?' The Return of Fianna Fáil
iv. Irish Partition, the Cyprus Question and the Thirteenth UN Session
6. Ireland, Cyprus and the Council of Europe
i. James Crosbie, Seán MacBride and the Consultative Assembly
ii. Crosbie, the European Court of Human Rights and the Greek Application 176/56
iii. MacBride, Makarios and Misconceptions
iv. Friend or Foe? Britain, Ireland and the Greek Application 176/56
Hidden Histories
7. Ireland, the Colonial Legal Service and Emergency Legislation
i. Chief Justice Sir Eric Hallinan
ii. Nicosia Special Court: Charles Vesey Boyle and James Trainor
iii. Chief Justice Sir Paget John Bourke
iv. Attorney-General James Holmes Henry
8. The Irish Involvement in British Counter-Insurgency in Cyprus
i. 'Taking the Shilling': Irish Recruitment to the British Army and Service in Cyprus
ii. The Cyprus Emergency and the Anglo-Irish Military Tradition
iii. The Irish Involvement in the Deportation of Archbishop Makarios
iv. Ireland, Cyprus and the Suez Crisis
v. Coercion and Conciliation in Cyprus: The Case of Michael Boyd
Conclusion