The IRB and GAA & Post 1891

"The GAA must remain true to its roots, promoting sport above all else." - Maurice Davin

"Our goal is to see an Ireland free, and the GAA is a means to that end." - P.N. Fitzgerald

"The IRB's involvement nearly tore us apart, but we emerged stronger." - Patrick Hoctor

• The Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB) and the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) share the goal of promoting Irish nationalism and culture.
• However, their intertwined relationship nearly led to the GAA's downfall in the late 19th century.
• The IRB, a secret revolutionary organisation, saw the GAA as a vehicle for its political agenda. It aimed to use the association's widespread influence to further its cause of Irish independence.
• P.N. Fitzgerald and Patrick Hoctor were key IRB members who played significant roles within the GAA. Fitzgerald, an ardent nationalist, became the GAA's second president in 1887.
• His leadership, however, was controversial due to his overt IRB affiliations, which alienated some GAA members who feared the association was becoming too politicised.
• Patrick Hoctor, another influential figure, similarly pushed the IRB's agenda within the GAA, exacerbating internal divisions.
• Tension peaked in the early 1890s, when the GAA faced declining membership and financial difficulties, partly due to its perceived politicisation.
• This culminated in the resignation of Maurice Davin, the GAA's founding president, in 1889.

• Davin, a sportsman dedicated to the GAA's original mission of promoting Irish sports, opposed the IRB's influence. His departure signalled a crisis for the GAA, which struggled to maintain its non-political stance.
• Despite the turmoil, Davin eventually rejoined the GAA, recognizing the need to stabilise the association and refocus on its sporting objectives.
• His return marked a turning point, helping to steer the GAA away from political entanglements and back towards its core mission of fostering Irish athletics and culture.

The Parnellite Split: Causes and Consequences

• The Parnellite Split was a major division within Irish nationalism in the late 19th century. It was centred around the leadership of Charles Stewart Parnell, a prominent Irish politician and leader of the Irish Parliamentary Party (IPP). The split profoundly impacted Irish politics and the quest for Home Rule.

• The split occurred in 1890 after Parnell was named as a co-respondent in a divorce case involving Katharine O'Shea, the wife of a fellow MP, Captain William O'Shea.

  

• This scandal caused a political and moral crisis, as many members of the IPP, along with the Catholic Church and segments of Irish society, could not reconcile Parnell's leadership with the moral expectations of the time.

• Parnell's refusal to resign from the IPP leadership led to a division within the party. His supporters, known as Parnellites, remained loyal to him, believing in his vision and leadership despite the scandal.

• On the other hand, the majority faction, known as the Anti-Parnellites, argued that his continued leadership would undermine the Home Rule movement by alienating crucial support from the British Liberal Party and moderate Irish nationalists.

• The split severely weakened the Irish Parliamentary Party. The once cohesive party fragmented, losing its unified front in the British House of Commons.

• This division allowed the British government to delay progress on Home Rule, as the fractured IPP could no longer effectively advocate for Irish self-governance.

• The split also had broader social implications. It exposed deep rifts within Irish society, particularly between rural and urban areas, different social classes, and religious groups.

• The Catholic Church's opposition to Parnell illustrated the significant influence of religious morality on Irish politics.

• The aftermath of the split saw the rise of new political dynamics in Ireland. The IPP eventually reunited in 1900 under John Redmond, but it never fully regained the strength it had under Parnell.

  
  • The party's weakened state contributed to the emergence of more radical nationalist movements, such as the Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB) and, later, Sinn Féin, which would play crucial roles in the fight for Irish independence in the early 20th century.

The GAA After 1891

• The GAA did survive, and a revival of the association began in the 1900s. The GAA now focused on organising sports and stayed clear of controversies regarding national politics. It managed to incorporate elements of the Gaelic League, with prizes being presented in Irish.

• By 1914, the GAA was clearly an enormous success. In 1913, around 35,000 spectators attended the All-Ireland football final, a record for a sporting occasion in Ireland.

  • That year, the GAA also began work on its national stadium, Croke Park, in Dublin.
  • Of all the cultural nationalist movements, the GAA proved to be the most successful and popular. It revived games such as hurling, football, and handball.

• It also helped to further the shift away from the anglicisation of Ireland by creating an Irish identity on the sports field.

• This was most clearly seen with the ban on members playing foreign games, which was reintroduced in 1905 (and would remain until 1970).

• Perhaps the greatest legacy the GAA created was restoring people's pride on a local and national level.

• After years of agricultural depression and social upheaval, people could now focus on something that was enjoyable and distinctively their own.