Some of what I write here was touched on in my BLOG – “I MET A TRAVELLER
FROM A DISTANT LAND” in 2016.
I now believe that Eamon de Valera was the greatest statesman of the 20th Century, that he combined the cool calculation of a mathematician, with ethical
principles, caution and courage in ideal proportions and served his country
and the wider world better than many canonised saints
He didn’t have the landlord arrogance of Parnell who declared himself Master of his Party
De Valera was content to serve, to guide and not to dictate.
He was at all times a devoted Democrat, never a Doctrinaire Republican.
Two examples. When he resigned the Presidency of Dail Eireann in January 1922 and
offer himself for reelection he declined to vote for himself, unlike his rival, Arthur Griffith.
When in 1937 the electorate were offered a plebiscite (drafted by Dev) which would
make themselves the Sovereign Power in the State, exercising the power which thereto
had been exercised by the Usurping Imperial Parliament in London, Fianna Fail was offering itself (on the same day) for re-election for office.
De Valera made it clear that the Plebiscite and the General Election were two distinct
issues for voters to decide on their meits as they judged them. The voters approved
the draft constitution making themselves the supreme law of the state. Separately
they returned Fianna Fail to office but they took Dev’s advice on distinguishing between the two issues.
I’ll return to Dev’s record shortly
I believe the only individual to better his record in over one thousand years was Brian (son of Kennedy) Boru.
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