Joining the Movement: Tradition and Ideology in the IRA 1948 – 1962

With the ending of the Civil War in 1923 and the defeat of the Anti-Treaty Forces, the Irish Republican Army (IRA), over the next the next twenty five years, remained on the periphery of Irish political life. This period also saw a steady decline in membership, while the organization struggled to define its relevance in wider society. The years between 1948 and 1962 saw the re-emergence of a new generation of young people who joined the organization. In 1956 it embarked on a military campaign in Northern Ireland that ended in failure in 1962. The objective of the campaign was to end partition and create a thirty-two county unified state in Ireland. Sinn Féin became the political front for the IRA and both organizations, which are regularly referred to as the republican movement within this thesis, attracted a renewed level of support and membership. This thesis examines the role that tradition and ideology played in the re-growth of the movement during the 1950s.

Name dc:type.qualificationname

phd

Level dc:type.qualificationlevel

doctoral

Grantor dc:publisher.institution

National University of Ireland Maynooth

Year dc:date.issued

2013

Author dc:creator

• Browne, David

Language dc:language

en