Reviving and Even Inventing Tradition Was a Major Aspect of Irish Nationalism
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- Category: History: European
- Date Submitted: 06/23/2013 06:19 AM
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What we know of history is only what we are told and shown. The idea of reviving and inventing tradition in Ireland shows us how history can be manipulated by its tellers in order to suit their cause.
Inventing tradition as described by Eric Hobsbawm is ‘A set of practices, normally governed by overtly or tacitly accepted rules and of a ritual or symbolic nature which seek to inculcate certain values and norms of behaviour by repetition, which automatically implies continuity with the past’ – Hobsbawm, Reading 5.1 p176, Tradition and Dissent.
It also includes preserving or showing only specific aspects of a history that align with the individual or groups specific cause and encourages specific beliefs about the past that it wants people to have.
The British conquest of Ireland was a gradual process which began in 1169, and by 1603 the whole of Ireland was under British rule. It was the belief of the Irish nationalists that Ireland should rule itself. After many years the Irish nationalists won independence from Britain in 1922.
Reviving and Inventing tradition was important both prior to gaining this independence, and after gaining independence.
Throughout the century prior to Ireland gaining its independence the nationalists were united in the goal to establish that the country of Ireland had a rich and ancient culture.
Thomas Davis was an Irish Nationalist who lived from 1814 until 1845. He dedicated a large portion of his short life to Irish nationalism. Davis and others (collectively known as ‘Young Ireland’) founded the newspaper ‘The Nation’ in 1842, its main aim being to promote, encourage and preserve Irish folk culture. Young Ireland looked beyond religion and looked to unite people based on a vision of Irelands past that everyone could share.
At around the same time George Petrie (1790 – 1866), believed that Irish culture had been destroyed by England. In order to prove that Ireland had a rich history of its own he spent much time studying...
Inventing tradition as described by Eric Hobsbawm is ‘A set of practices, normally governed by overtly or tacitly accepted rules and of a ritual or symbolic nature which seek to inculcate certain values and norms of behaviour by repetition, which automatically implies continuity with the past’ – Hobsbawm, Reading 5.1 p176, Tradition and Dissent.
It also includes preserving or showing only specific aspects of a history that align with the individual or groups specific cause and encourages specific beliefs about the past that it wants people to have.
The British conquest of Ireland was a gradual process which began in 1169, and by 1603 the whole of Ireland was under British rule. It was the belief of the Irish nationalists that Ireland should rule itself. After many years the Irish nationalists won independence from Britain in 1922.
Reviving and Inventing tradition was important both prior to gaining this independence, and after gaining independence.
Throughout the century prior to Ireland gaining its independence the nationalists were united in the goal to establish that the country of Ireland had a rich and ancient culture.
Thomas Davis was an Irish Nationalist who lived from 1814 until 1845. He dedicated a large portion of his short life to Irish nationalism. Davis and others (collectively known as ‘Young Ireland’) founded the newspaper ‘The Nation’ in 1842, its main aim being to promote, encourage and preserve Irish folk culture. Young Ireland looked beyond religion and looked to unite people based on a vision of Irelands past that everyone could share.
At around the same time George Petrie (1790 – 1866), believed that Irish culture had been destroyed by England. In order to prove that Ireland had a rich history of its own he spent much time studying...