About me

Who's behind the podcast?

The History of Ireland podcast is put together by Kevin Dolan. That's me! I'm not a historian, but rather just a bit of a history nerd who realised I didn't know nearly enough about my home country's history.

I'm currently living in Australia* and I had lots of people asking me questions about Ireland. Why is it Northern Ireland and the Republic? Why is there a border? Why is Brexit a big deal? Basically what’s going on there? Initially I thought it was a little ignorant, but then I realised that I also only had a vague idea of what had caused it all.

So, I ended up going down a bit of a rabbit hole, studying and reading anything I could about the founding of the Irish State. From there, I started telling anyone who would listen about the fascinating stories from the time.

While down the rabbit hole, I started looking for Irish history podcasts, and unfortunately couldn't find a single one that chronicled the War of Independence. So rather than continuing to corner people at parties, I decided to start my own in the style of the awesome History of Rome podcast. And that's how we got here.

*This is my excuse for the diminished brogue, the odd Australianism that sneaks in, and the odd sentence that goes up in pitch at the end. Tá brón orm.

References

A few of the key references so far.

Between armed rebellion and democratic revolution: the Irish Question in 1917 | Century Ireland [WWW Document], n.d. URL https://www.rte.ie/centuryireland/index.php/articles/between-armed-rebellion-and-democratic-revolution (accessed 6.20.19).
Bowden, T., 1973. The Irish Underground and the War of Independence 1919-21. Journal of Contemporary History 8, 3–23.
Broin, L.Ó., 1989. W.E. Wylie and the Irish Revolution 1916-1921. Gill and Macmillan.
Campbell, F., O’Shiel, K., 2003. The Last Land War? Kevin O’Shiel’s Memoir of the Irish Revolution (1916-21). Archivium Hibernicum 57, 155–200. https://doi.org/10.2307/25484207
Costigan, G., 1968. The Anglo-Irish Conflict, 1919-1922: A War of Independence or Systematized Murder? University Review 5, 64–86.
De Valera’s begrudging attitude to “The Big Fellow” [WWW Document], n.d. . The Irish Times. URL https://www.irishtimes.com/opinion/de-valera-s-begrudging-attitude-to-the-big-fellow-1.410958 (accessed 6.20.19).
Fanning, R., 2015. Éamon de Valera: A Will to Power. Faber & Faber.
Ferriter, D., n.d. Sinn Féin and the conscription crisis [WWW Document]. The Irish Times. URL https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/heritage/sinn-f%C3%A9in-and-the-conscription-crisis-1.3451617 (accessed 6.20.19).
Gallagher, C., n.d. How two lawyers ended up on opposing sides in 1916 [WWW Document]. The Irish Times. URL https://www.irishtimes.com/news/crime-and-law/how-two-lawyers-ended-up-on-opposing-sides-in-1916-1.1781582 (accessed 6.20.19).
Hart, P., 1999a. The Social Structure of the Irish Republican Army, 1916-1923. The Historical Journal 42, 207–231.
IRA GHQ, 2013. . History Ireland. URL https://www.historyireland.com/20th-century-contemporary-history/ira-ghq/ (accessed 6.20.19).
Kautt, W.H., 2010. AMBUSHES AND ARMOUR IN THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE: Kilmichael reconsidered. History Ireland 18, 36–38.
Lowe, W.J., 2016. Irish Constabulary Officers, 1837–1922: Profile of a Professional Elite: Irish Economic and Social History. https://doi.org/10.1177/033248930503200102
Lowe, W.J., Malcolm, E.L., 1992. The Domestic Ation of the Royal Irish Constabulary, 1836–1922. Irish Economic and Social History 19, 27–48. https://doi.org/10.1177/033248939201900102
McConkey, L., 2013. The challenges facing the Irish Advertising and Marketing industry. Irish Marketing Journal 39.
Mulcahy and Collins—a conjunction of opposites, 2013. . History Ireland. URL https://www.historyireland.com/20th-century-contemporary-history/mulcahy-and-collins-a-conjunction-of-opposites/ (accessed 6.20.19).
Mulcahy, R., 2009. My Father, the General: Richard Mulcahy and the Military History of the Revolution. Liberties Press Limited.
Opinion: Did the ambush at Soloheadbeg begin the Irish War of Independence?, 2019. . The Irish Story. URL http://www.theirishstory.com/2019/01/21/opinion-did-the-ambush-at-soloheadbeg-begin-the-irish-war-of-independence/ (accessed 6.20.19).
Reynolds, J., n.d. When the RIC was no longer seen as a benign force [WWW Document]. The Irish Times. URL https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/heritage/when-the-ric-was-no-longer-seen-as-a-benign-force-1.3744480 (accessed 6.20.19).
Roxborough, I., 2015. The Military: The Mutual Determination of Strategy in Ireland, 1912-1921, in: Duyvendak, J.W., Jasper, J.M. (Eds.), Breaking Down the State, Protestors Engaged. Amsterdam University Press, pp. 133–156.
Saturday, September 16, 2017, 2017. The Irish Revolution: A dirty war where the cycle of violence was self-perpetuating [WWW Document]. URL https://www.irishexaminer.com/analysis/the-irish-revolution-a-dirty-war-where-the-cycle-of-violence-was-self-perpetuating-459123.html (accessed 6.20.19).
Says, seachranaidhe1, 2012. “An tOglach The Official Organ of the Irish Volunteers” from October 21 1921. Irish Election Literature. URL https://irishelectionliterature.com/2012/08/14/an-toglach-the-official-organ-of-the-irish-volunteers-from-october-21-1921/ (accessed 6.20.19).
The Irish War of Independence – A Brief Overview, 2012. . The Irish Story. URL http://www.theirishstory.com/2012/09/18/the-irish-war-of-independence-a-brief-overview/ (accessed 6.20.19).
Time to remember place of the RIC in the history of Ireland [WWW Document], n.d. . The Irish Times. URL https://www.irishtimes.com/opinion/time-to-remember-place-of-the-ric-in-the-history-of-ireland-1.587156 (accessed 6.20.19).
Today in Irish History – The First Dáil meets and the Soloheadbeg Ambush – 21 January 1919, 2016. . The Irish Story. URL http://www.theirishstory.com/2016/01/21/today-in-irish-history-the-first-dail-meets-and-the-soloheadbeg-ambush-21-january-1919/ (accessed 6.20.19).
Townshend, C., 2013. The Republic: The Fight for Irish Independence, 1918-1923. Penguin UK.
Tuesday, September 19, 2017, 2017. Atlas of the Irish Revolution: Michael Collins and the Intelligence War [WWW Document]. URL https://www.irishexaminer.com/analysis/atlas-of-the-irish-revolution-michael-collins-and-the-intelligence-war-459217.html (accessed 6.20.19).
What saved Dev from firing squad? - Independent.ie [WWW Document], n.d. URL https://www.independent.ie/au/irish-news/1916/the-rising-explained/what-saved-dev-from-firing-squad-34385779.html (accessed 6.20.19).

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