Some 14 years ago this letter was published in HISTORY IRELAND (May/June 2009 Volume 17.3)
in response to a Book Review. Half a generation has since grown up unaware of the facts within it/
and an older generation may have never known of them, The Custodians of the Decade of Remembrance, if they know the facts, have been sitting on them.
“Editor
History Ireland
In his review of ‘Coolacrease’ (H.I.17.2 March/April 2009) Joost Augusteign attempts to be fair. But
he falls into a trap laid by British politicians and journalists, and noted by Edward MacLysaght in his
diary for 28 January 28 1919, exactly one week after the first meeting of Dail Eireann:
‘In quoting statistics for last year’s general election they give the total votes cast for and against Sinn Fein only in contested elections, ignoring the 25 constituencies where Sinn Fein candidates were returned unopposed, thus presenting an entirely misleading picture.’
In 1918 and for some decades before, it was common throughout the United Kingdom for constituencies to be uncontested.
In Ireland Unionists usually did not put up candidates where they would have no chance. In both 1886 and 1906 Unionists collected most of the votes cast while Nationalists collected most of the seats.
In 1886 Nationalists took 66 uncontested seats, plus many contested ones.
In 1906 Nationalists took 84 uncontested seats.
So saying that Sinn Fein took ‘only 47% of the votes cast’ says nothing for 1918. It is a Red Herring.
Sinn Fein’s relative popularity was reflected by the fact that they took 73 seats to the Unionists’ 26
and the Nationalists’ 6. Sinn Fein supplanted the Nationalists who had thitherto monopolised the
anti-Unionist vote.
In Municipal, county and other local elections (1920) and the General Election 1921 Sinn Fein secured corresponding support.
Since I came to London in 1964 there have been twelve General Elections in the U.K. In only one
did the winning party get as much as 47% of the votes cast. Today’s UK government holds a large majority of Commons seats with but 35% of the votes cast, In all of those twelve elections uncontested seats have not been a significant factor. Of 600 odd seats the outgoing Speaker is sometimes returned unopposed.
It may be a fact that the custodians of International Law take no cognizance of democratic mandates, even on such a scale as Sinn Fein’s in 1918. But such custodians as the United Kingdom trace their authority to the “Glorious Revolution” of 1688, which put the House of Orange on the thrones of Great Britain and Ireland, with much bloodshed in Ireland.
As for the United States, it owes its international recognition to the French landing at Yorktown, and a battle which, if had gone the other way, would have left the rebel George Washington, dangling at the end of a British rope.
As for France, it owes its current place among the custodians of International Law, to Allied attack, which caused 3,000 civilian French fatalities on D-Day alone, not to mention nearly a year’s further
carnage.
Neither de Valera’s appeal to the United States, nor to the Irish Catholic hierarchy could find recognition for the authority of the Irish people and their parliament, Dail Eireann.
Whatever grudging advances were won for Ireland, or wrung from the custodians of International Law, needed more than the ‘X’ Factor of a popular vote – just as did the triumph of the Prince of Orange in his day.”
Donal Kennedy.
Minimal changes to my letter of 2009 are included to clarity, but not change the facts cited.
and an older generation may have never known of them, The Custodians of the Decade of Remembrance, if they know the facts, have been sitting on them.
“Editor
History Ireland
In his review of ‘Coolacrease’ (H.I.17.2 March/April 2009) Joost Augusteign attempts to be fair. But
he falls into a trap laid by British politicians and journalists, and noted by Edward MacLysaght in his
diary for 28 January 28 1919, exactly one week after the first meeting of Dail Eireann:
‘In quoting statistics for last year’s general election they give the total votes cast for and against Sinn Fein only in contested elections, ignoring the 25 constituencies where Sinn Fein candidates were returned unopposed, thus presenting an entirely misleading picture.’
In 1918 and for some decades before, it was common throughout the United Kingdom for constituencies to be uncontested.
In Ireland Unionists usually did not put up candidates where they would have no chance. In both 1886 and 1906 Unionists collected most of the votes cast while Nationalists collected most of the seats.
In 1886 Nationalists took 66 uncontested seats, plus many contested ones.
In 1906 Nationalists took 84 uncontested seats.
So saying that Sinn Fein took ‘only 47% of the votes cast’ says nothing for 1918. It is a Red Herring.
Sinn Fein’s relative popularity was reflected by the fact that they took 73 seats to the Unionists’ 26
and the Nationalists’ 6. Sinn Fein supplanted the Nationalists who had thitherto monopolised the
anti-Unionist vote.
In Municipal, county and other local elections (1920) and the General Election 1921 Sinn Fein secured corresponding support.
Since I came to London in 1964 there have been twelve General Elections in the U.K. In only one
did the winning party get as much as 47% of the votes cast. Today’s UK government holds a large majority of Commons seats with but 35% of the votes cast, In all of those twelve elections uncontested seats have not been a significant factor. Of 600 odd seats the outgoing Speaker is sometimes returned unopposed.
It may be a fact that the custodians of International Law take no cognizance of democratic mandates, even on such a scale as Sinn Fein’s in 1918. But such custodians as the United Kingdom trace their authority to the “Glorious Revolution” of 1688, which put the House of Orange on the thrones of Great Britain and Ireland, with much bloodshed in Ireland.
As for the United States, it owes its international recognition to the French landing at Yorktown, and a battle which, if had gone the other way, would have left the rebel George Washington, dangling at the end of a British rope.
As for France, it owes its current place among the custodians of International Law, to Allied attack, which caused 3,000 civilian French fatalities on D-Day alone, not to mention nearly a year’s further
carnage.
Neither de Valera’s appeal to the United States, nor to the Irish Catholic hierarchy could find recognition for the authority of the Irish people and their parliament, Dail Eireann.
Whatever grudging advances were won for Ireland, or wrung from the custodians of International Law, needed more than the ‘X’ Factor of a popular vote – just as did the triumph of the Prince of Orange in his day.”
Donal Kennedy.
Minimal changes to my letter of 2009 are included to clarity, but not change the facts cited.
Minimal changes to my letter of 2009 are included to CLARIFY, but not change the facts cited.
Edward MacLysaght (1887-1986) Memoir “CHANGING TIMES -Ireland since 1898” a corrective to
what passes for wisdom today.
What he wrote on 28 January 1919 on misleading interpretations of the election results reads IN FULL:
“JUST ONE THING OCCURS TO ME BEFORE I PUT THIS DIARY AWAY: HOW OUR CLAIM
TO SELF-DETERMINATION OF SMALL NATIONS – CHAMPIONED BY BRITAIN IN THE
CASEOF THE CZECHS – IS MISREPRESENTED BY POLITICIANS AND NEWSPAPERS
THERE. INQUOTING STATISTICS FOR LAST YEAR’S GENERAL ELECTION THEY GIVE
THE TOTAL VOTES CAST FOR AND AGAINST SINN FEIN ONLY IN CONTESTED
ELECTIONS, COMPLETELY IGNORING THE 25 CONSTITUENCIES WHERE SINN FEIN
CANDIDATESWERE RETURNED UNOPPOSED, THUS PRESENTING AN ENTIRELY
MISLEADING PICTURE”
I believe I wrote a BLOG on MacLysaght “A Man of Manifest Decency” available online
Brilliant stats Donal as usual
UK GENERAL ELECTIONS SINCE 2009
2010 COALITION OF CONSERVATIVES AND LIB DEBS WITH COMBINED POLL RESULTS
over 60%#
2015 CONSERVATIVE VICTORY with 36.8% of total votes cast
2017 ” ” ” 42.3%
2019 ” ” ” 43.6%