Eamon de Valera once declared that he was not a doctrinaire republican. He was described as a firebrand by Britain’s Anthony Eden, when in Geneva at the League of Nations he demanded that
all nations there honour its Covenant and apply effective sanctions against fascist Italy for its
attack on Abyssinia. Mussolini, dubbed a Knight of the Bath by Britain’s King George V, was a
long-time protege of British intelligence. Nevertheless, the Brits did make him pay for the Rape
of Abyssinia, into the coffers of the British-owned Suez Canal Company, for the passage of troops
and equipment, saving them many thousands of miles voyage via Gibraltar and Capetown.
Mussolini’s Irish Imitators, the Blue Shirted Fine Gael fascists said that Dev should have supported
“Catholic” Italy.
I would suggest that Dev was a RED. Not a communist but a Rational Ethical Democrat., He was
cautious but never cowardly, In fact he as courageous as they come. And under Fianna Fail
Ireland played a more constructive role in the world from 1932 until 1968 than any other nation.
It failed in averting the Second World War because virtually all the members of the League of
Nations ratted on Covenanted commitments,
Within Ireland the State remained out of the Second World War, and nobody, North or South;
was conscripted.
By rejecting a policy of inflicting revenge on the “Treatyites” for the atrocities of the Civill War,
and the vengeful persecution of the years 1923-1932, Fianna Fail bound up the nation’s
wounds and by 1937 drafted a republican, sovereign, liberal constitution, enacted by the
electorate, negotiated the evacuation of British forces from Cork Harbour, Bantry Bay and
Lough, Swilly, introduced annual paid holidays for workers (before the Brits did) increased
industrial employment (during the Great Depression). An unprecedented provision of local
authority housing accompanied these reforms.
Within 7 years of coming to power Fianna Fail achieved more politically for Ireland than has been
achieved in the 25 years since the Good Friday Agreement.
At the UN between 1957 and 1968 Ireland’s Frank Aiken pursued the de-colonisation of territories
subject to European imperialism, the discussion of China’s admission to the UN , and the elimination
of nuclear weapons. In 1958 the Soviets advocated their elimination but the USA did not. Ten years
hard work by Aiken bore fruit in the Nuclear Non Proliferation Treaty to which his was the first signature. He signed in Moscow, at the invitation of the Soviets.
Apparently that Treaty is now a dead letter.
It seems that Micheal Martin and his Blueshirt Doppelganger have given back our ports to our perennial enemies and are resolved to see life on earth obliterated in or ex utero.
Oops! Sorry for the TYPO. Should be DEMOCRATIC POLITICS
didn’t mean to drag the Deity in.
He also started the civil war , regardless of the fact that he lost a democratic election which endorsed the treaty by %
I will reply to Eoin’s allegations shortly.
Allegations? The election result was a fact de Valera stated that the result would have been even worse without the pact
How can you justify fighting a war when your actions are against the democratic will of the people , the so called Munster republic was a joke if they felt that strong about the result why didn’t they attack the north ?
80%