MEATH PEACE GROUP and the MEATH ARCHAEOLOGICAL AND HISTORICAL SOCIETY JOINT SEMINAR<\/p>\n
\u201cHISTORY IN MODERN IRELAND\/NORTHERN IRELAND\u201d<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Saturday, 13<\/span><\/span>th<\/span><\/span><\/sup> September 2014<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n St Columban’s College, Dalgan Park, Navan, Co. Meath<\/span><\/p>\n \n Session I. <\/span><\/span>\u201c<\/span><\/span><\/span>The Socio\u2013political importance of History in Modern Irish\/NI Society particularly in this Decade of Centenaries<\/span><\/i><\/span>\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n \n Mary Ann Lyons<\/i><\/span><\/strong> (Head of History Dept, Maynooth University), <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Gordon Lucy<\/i><\/span><\/strong> (Belfast historian) <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Thomas Byrne<\/i><\/span><\/strong> (Fianna F\u00e1il Senator)<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n \n Chaired by <\/span><\/i><\/span>John Clancy<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Report includes:<\/p>\n Session I presentations <\/p>\n 1.<\/span><\/span><\/span>Mary Ann Lyons <\/b><\/span><\/span>(Professor of History, Head of History Department, <\/span><\/span>Maynooth University)<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI would like to thank Julitta for her very kind invitation to participate in this seminar. I want to speak about the socio-political importance of history in modern Irish society particularly in this decade of centenaries. Most of my comments will focus on the Republic of Ireland, as I know Gordon will be referring to Northern Ireland in his presentation<\/span><\/span><\/span>.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n ‘States have long had an interest in how key events in their past are commemorated, and historians have equally long been complicit in promoting dominant political mythologies. Since the development of professional academic history, however, its practitioners have tended to view commemorations more as opportunities for attempting new interpretations, and for critiquing the official version. Yet, when the event commemorated has clear implications for ongoing conflict and attempts at reconciliation, historians can come under intense pressure \u2026 to prioritise contemporary political concerns over their primary duty to engage critically with the sources’.<\/span><\/span><\/span>1<\/sup><\/a><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/sup><\/p>\n Historian <\/span><\/span><\/span>Tom Dunne<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span> from UCC contends that this is what happened in Ireland during the late 1990s when the bicentenary of the 1798 rebellion coincided with the final stages of a complex peace process aimed at ending the conflict in Northern Ireland. Dunne claims that the bicentenary as a result was based \u2018in large part on a blurring of historical memory\u2019<\/span><\/span><\/span>2<\/sup><\/a><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/sup> since the Irish Government was eager to find a way of commemorating the rebellion that did not emphasize the sectarianism and violence that were also at the heart of The Troubles in Northern Ireland during the 1990s. The government, he contends, found this in the idealism of the rebellion\u2019s ostensible organizers, the United Irishmen, whose Belfast origins and commitment to a union between Catholic and Protestant were especially helpful. But as Dunne also points out, regrettably the role of the United Irishmen and the relevance of their ideals in Wexford were unclear in the historical record in contrast with accounts of the sectarian conflict and violence which absolutely dominate contemporary sources.<\/span><\/span><\/span>3<\/sup><\/a><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/sup><\/p>\n What Dunne found particularly regrettable was the regressive step for historical scholarship that this involved on the grounds that <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n ‘In the decades prior to the bicentenary a highly complex picture of Irish politics and society during the 1790s had been developed, yet [in publications to mark the bicentenary] many historians of the period appeared to endorse the state\u2019s idealistic, one\u2013dimensional approach to the rebellion as a \u2018United Irish Revolution\u2019.’<\/span><\/span><\/span>4<\/sup><\/a><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/sup><\/p>\n In light of this relatively recent experience of contentious commemoration, with this decade of anniversaries now under way, it is timely to reflect on some of the challenges and opportunities facing historians and commemorators alike. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n To this end, I propose to present you with a very general overview of some of the major issues that leading historians working in the field have highlighted as worthy of reflection and debate.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n It is worth remembering that we in Ireland are by no means alone in facing the challenge of interpreting the contentious events of 100 years ago. Tom Dunne has sought to contextualize our decade of commemorations by reminding us that historians the world over are grappling with how to interpret and write the history of difficult chapters in their respective lands. Citing three ongoing situations of historically inflected conflict or controversy, namely the treatment of Jews by their Polish neighbours during World War Two; Turkey\u2019s responsibility for the massacre of Armenians during the World War One, and the legacy of the wars in former Yugoslavia, he points to historians from across national and ethnic divides who are attempting to write \u2018shared narratives\u2019 of these past events in an attempt to contribute to present\u2013day conflict resolution.<\/span><\/span><\/span>5<\/sup><\/a><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/sup><\/p>\n But such participation in collaborative work with a political goal clearly presents challenges to historians engaged in scholarly research. Whilst acknowledging the validity of Professor John A Murphy\u2019s assertion that an historian\u2019s primary duty is to historical research and not to historical healing<\/span><\/span><\/span>6<\/sup><\/a><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/sup>, at this time it is worthwhile asking whether there might be ways of making that principal duty of the historian compatible with a reconciliation agenda, without compromising the professional integrity of history or of historians.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Dunne is not optimistic. He is wary of the language used by the \u2018Advisory Group\u2019 of historians assisting the Irish Government\u2019s \u2018Consultation Group on Centenary Celebrations\u2019 who have promised to consult widely, \u201cat all times acknowledging the multiple identities and traditions which are part of the historic story of the island of Ireland and Irish people world\u2013wide\u201d.<\/span><\/span><\/span>7<\/sup><\/a><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/sup> He also has concerns in relation to the Northern Ireland Executive\u2019s stance. Commenting on its appointment of two ministers to \u201cjointly bring forward a programme for a decade which will offer a real opportunity for our society to benefit economically and continue its transformation into a vibrant, diverse and enriched place to visit\u201d, Dunne thought it significant that while the Democratic Unionist Party and Sinn F\u00e9in could agree on the tourist potential of the centenary celebrations, if nothing else, and have thus promised commemorations involved \u201cinclusivity, tolerance, respect, responsibility and interdependence\u201d, no reference was made to achieving historical understanding.<\/span><\/span><\/span>8<\/sup><\/a><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/sup><\/p>\n He does, however, commend <\/span><\/span><\/span>Belfast City Council<\/b><\/span><\/span> Subcommittee for its commitment to approaching the decade in a spirit of \u2018Shared History, Differing Allegiances\u2019 which is more in line with the international model of \u2018shared history\u2019, involving cross\u2013community organizations such as \u2018Healing through Remembering\u2019 in projects aimed at promoting a genuine shared history at grassroots level.<\/span><\/span><\/span>9<\/sup><\/a><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/sup><\/p>\n Dunne singled out as significant the endorsement of that approach in an editorial featured in the <\/span><\/span>Irish Times<\/span><\/i><\/span> two years ago, on 29 September 2012, which urged that we all <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n \u201cgo beyond grudging tolerant understanding of the other\u2019s history\u201d by developing a greater understanding of the \u201cinterconnectedness of our stories\u201d, this being the best way of \u201ccelebrating our different narratives\u201d.<\/span><\/span><\/span>10<\/sup><\/a><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/sup><\/p>\n There have been some positive developments in this regard; for example, the change in approach to commemoration of those Irishmen who died during the Great War, notably initiatives by individual politicians in Northern Ireland and in the Irish Republic, followed by the participation in Remembrance Day ceremonies in Northern Ireland by An Taoiseach Enda Kenny and An T\u00e1naiste Eamonn Gilmore in 2012. (Dunne also draws encouragement from the recent attempt by some members of An G\u00e1rda S\u00edochana to commemorate their RIC predecessors.<\/span><\/span><\/span>11<\/sup><\/a><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/sup>) <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n And yet, despite these positive developments, Dunne warns against complacency, remarking that despite World War One becoming a sort of neutral ground in terms of commemoration, there still appears to be a nervousness in the official approach on the part of politicians both North and South around the commemoration of complex events of 100 years ago. He points to how the former Northern Ireland secretary, Owen Paterson, cautioned the Oireachtas Group on Centenary Commemorations about the \u201cdanger that people who do not have such a benign view could hijack them\u201d and also to a TD\u2019s admission that \u201csome of these commemorations may be taken over by hard\u2013line people from both traditions\u201d.<\/span><\/span><\/span>12<\/sup><\/a><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/sup><\/p>\n Dunne has highlighted the significant and relatively unique stance assumed by President Michael D. Higgins who, in a number of addresses, has emphasized the need to commemorate \u201cin a spirit of tolerance and mutual respect\u201d with making \u201chistorical accuracy a cornerstone of commemoration\u201d. In this, Dunne asserts, President Higgins has provided historians with an important lead, in sharp contrast with what he denounces as <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n
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