Journal of Liberal Democrat History 33 – Special issue: Liberals and Ireland

Introduction to special issue on Liberals and Ireland

Introduction to special issue on Liberals and Ireland.

Charles James Fox, the Repeal of Poynings Law, and the Act of Union

1782 – 1801: the critical period in Irish and British history during which many of the seeds of the present troubles were sown.

Lord John Russell and the Irish Catholics

1829 – 1852: despite the Whig leader Lord John Russell’s efforts to work for justice to Ireland, his policies ended mainly in failure.

Gladstone and Ireland: the legacy

1868 -1974: analysis of Gladstone’s domination of both the Liberal Party and Ireland in the latter part of the nineteenth century.

An intractable problem? Gladstone and Irish home rule

1880 – 1886: Gladstone’s efforts to achieve Home Rule for Ireland.

Asquith, the third home rule bill and the Easter Rising

1910 – 1916: the Liberal Government came close to granting Ireland Home Rule in 1914. This article examines why it failed and what happened after.

Lloyd George and the partition of Ireland

1916 – 1921: analysis of Lloyd George’s answer to the Irish Question after the Easter Rising.

Liberalism and Unionist Northern Ireland

1921 – 1971: despite all the obstacles, Liberalism survived in Northern Ireland after partitition.

Alliance, Liberals and the SDP

1971 – 1985: the Alliance Party of Northern Ireland was born in the midst of the Troubles, in April 1970. This article looks back at the party’s history and its relationships with the Liberal Party and the SDP.

Legacy of famine

Review of Peter Gray, Famine, Land and Politics: British Government and Irish Society, 1843-50 (Irish Academic Press, 1999).

Eloquence, energy and execution

Review of David Bebbington and Roger Swift (eds.), The Gladstone Centenary Essays (Liverpool University Press, 2000).

Ireland and the (ab)uses of history

Review of Stephen Howe, Ireland and Empire: Colonial Legacies in Irish History and Culture (Oxford University Press, 2000).

Forgotten hero

Review of Gordon Gillespie, Albert H. McElroy: The Radical Minister (Albert McElroy Memorial Fund, 1985).

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