An Phoblacht
Encyclopedia
An Phoblacht is the official newspaper
of Sinn Féin
in Ireland
. It is published once a month, and according to its website sells an average of up to 15,000 copies every month and was the first Irish paper to provide an edition online and currently having in excess of 100,000 website hits per week.
Following the split in the Republican Movement
in January 1970, one of the urgent tasks facing their leadership was producing a new republican newspaper. The first issue of the monthly paper, An Phoblacht, under the editorship of Seán Ó Brádaigh, appeared on 31 January 1970.
, one of the founders of the Dungannon Clubs, set out their aims:
A year later the paper merged with a Dublin title called The Peasant, however the title An Phoblacht was again used from 1925 with Patrick Little
(P.J Little) as editor and continued until 1937 with a tumultuous history of internal splits and constant state oppression. From 1925 into 1926 Sean Lemass
wrote a number of articles advocating the engagement into politics prior to the establishment of Fianna Fáil
. Peadar O'Donnell
took over as editor in April 1926 following a split in the republican movement (Little became on of the founding members of Fianna Fáil). Frank Ryan
also edited the paper for some time other contributors were Maurice Twomey
, Seán MacBride
, Frank Gallagher
(who became the first editor of The Irish Press
), Hanna Sheehy-Skeffington
and Fr Michael O'Flanagan
, were just some of the prominent contributors during this time.
The title appeared again in 1966 as the paper of a small IRA splinter group based in Cork. Its modern version was again refounded immediately following the Sinn Féin split by Jimmy Steele in January 1970, An Phoblacht supporting the group led by Ruaírí O'Bradaigh that became the Provisional IRA when the split with the Official Irish Republican Army occurred.
In 1970, An Phoblacht was at first circulated only in the South with another republican paper also established in Northern Ireland
in 1970, Republican News, under the editorship of veteran republican Jimmy Steel. It supported the campaign of the Provisional Irish Republican Army
and published a weekly column titled "War News", which outlined IRA actions and conflict with the British Army, and provided in depth analysis of the policies being formulated by the Republican Movement. An Phoblacht began with a circulation of 20,000 per month.
Located at 2a Lower Kevin Street in Dublin’s south inner city, it moved to the northside of the capital, to Kevin Barry
House, 44 Parnell Square, in August 1972. And in that October it became a fortnightly publication under the editorship of Éamonn MacThomáis
, a writer and historian who instituted changes in layout and general improvements so that it became a weekly publication. After 1976, the then Minister for Post and Telecommunications, Conor Cruise O'Brien
, a Labour Party
minister in the Fine Gael
/Labour coalition, strengthened Jack Lynch
’s original 1971 Section 31 censorship directive banning members of the IRA or its political wing Sinn Féin from the airwaves. However this ban did not extend to the print media.
Section 31 produced a climate where many career journalists engaged in self-censorship
to avoid official opprobrium.
An Phoblacht became more important in disseminating the republican message and highlighting what it saw as the naked state oppression by the Unionist Party
and the Royal Ulster Constabulary
in Northern Ireland. However, it was the southern Irish government which harassed An Phoblacht most stridently, with regular Garda
Special Branch
investigations into the publication's links (both real and alleged) to the IRA. Mac Thomáis was arrested and charged with IRA membership and sentenced to 15 months’ imprisonment having been found guilty of the offence. The paper continued under the stewardship of Dublin journalist Deasún Breathnach
until Mac Thomáis resumed duties on his release in July 1974. Within two months, Mac Thomáis was again arrested and sentenced to another 15 months. Another editor, Coleman Moynihan, who had succeeded Seán Ó Brádaigh
in 1972, suffered a similar fate.
The paper continued on with the succeeding editors being Gerry Danaher (1974-75), Gerry O’Hare (1975-77), and Deasún Breathnach (1977-79).
It had become clear that a single paper for the whole of Ireland
was required to provide a clear and coherent line from the leadership and to counter any partitionist
thinking which might flow from the British
division of Ireland. Accordingly, on 27 January 1979, the first issue of the merged publications, under the banner of An Phoblacht/Republican News, appeared under the editorship of Danny Morrison.
The paper focuses on providing a weekly commentary on all aspects of Irish politics, and currently it articulates the political position of Sinn Féin
and supports the peace process
.
The paper was officially relaunched in September 2005 as An Phoblacht.
In 2010, the paper went from a 16-page weekly paper to a 32-page full colour monthly paper. The current editor is John Hedges.
Newspaper
A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...
of Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...
in Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
. It is published once a month, and according to its website sells an average of up to 15,000 copies every month and was the first Irish paper to provide an edition online and currently having in excess of 100,000 website hits per week.
Following the split in the Republican Movement
Republican Movement (Ireland)
The Republican Movement is a collective term used to describe the Irish Republican Army and other political, social and paramilitary organisations associated with it.The term is not restricted to any one movement and can include:...
in January 1970, one of the urgent tasks facing their leadership was producing a new republican newspaper. The first issue of the monthly paper, An Phoblacht, under the editorship of Seán Ó Brádaigh, appeared on 31 January 1970.
History
The original An Phoblacht was founded as the official organ of the Dungannon Clubs in Belfast in 1906 and its first edition was printed on 13 December 1906 under the English language version of the title The Republic. In the first edition, Bulmer HobsonBulmer Hobson
John Bulmer Hobson was a leading member of the Irish Volunteers and the Irish Republican Brotherhood before the Easter Rising in 1916...
, one of the founders of the Dungannon Clubs, set out their aims:
"Ireland today claims her place among the free peoples of the Earth. She has never surrendered that claim, nor will ever she surrender it, and today forces are working in Ireland that will not be still until her claim is acknowledged and her voice heard in the councils of the nations."
A year later the paper merged with a Dublin title called The Peasant, however the title An Phoblacht was again used from 1925 with Patrick Little
Patrick Little
Patrick J. "P. J." Little was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician. A founder-member of the party, he served in a number of Cabinet positions, most notably as the country's longest-serving Minister for Posts and Telegraphs....
(P.J Little) as editor and continued until 1937 with a tumultuous history of internal splits and constant state oppression. From 1925 into 1926 Sean Lemass
Seán Lemass
Seán Francis Lemass was one of the most prominent Irish politicians of the 20th century. He served as Taoiseach from 1959 until 1966....
wrote a number of articles advocating the engagement into politics prior to the establishment of Fianna Fáil
Fianna Fáil
Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party , more commonly known as Fianna Fáil is a centrist political party in the Republic of Ireland, founded on 23 March 1926. Fianna Fáil's name is traditionally translated into English as Soldiers of Destiny, although a more accurate rendition would be Warriors of Fál...
. Peadar O'Donnell
Peadar O'Donnell
Peadar O'Donnell was an Irish republican and socialist activist and writer.-Early life:Peadar O'Donnell was born into an Irish speaking family in Dungloe, County Donegal in northwest Ireland, in 1893. He attended St. Patrick's College, Dublin, where he trained as a teacher...
took over as editor in April 1926 following a split in the republican movement (Little became on of the founding members of Fianna Fáil). Frank Ryan
Frank Ryan (Irish republican)
Frank Ryan was a prominent member of the Irish Republican Army, editor of An Phoblacht, leftist activist and leader of Irish volunteers on the Republican side in the Spanish Civil War....
also edited the paper for some time other contributors were Maurice Twomey
Moss (Maurice) Twomey
Moss ' Twomey was an Irish republican and chief of staff of the Irish Republican Army .-Early life:...
, Seán MacBride
Seán MacBride
Seán MacBride was an Irish government minister and prominent international politician as well as a Chief of Staff of the IRA....
, Frank Gallagher
Frank Gallagher (author)
Frank B. Gallagher was an Irish author and Volunteer.-Biography:A Cork native, initially London correspondent of William O'Brien's Cork Free Press, subsequently its final editor, though himself a separatist, personally admired O'Brien.The paper suffered closure in 1916 soon after the appointment...
(who became the first editor of The Irish Press
The Irish Press
The Irish Press was an Irish national daily newspaper published by Irish Press plc between 5 September 1931 and 25 May 1995.-Foundation:...
), Hanna Sheehy-Skeffington
Hanna Sheehy-Skeffington
Johanna Mary Sheehy-Skeffington, was a suffragette and Irish nationalist. Along with her husband and Margaret Cousins and James Cousins she founded the Irish Women's Franchise League in 1908 with the aim of obtaining women's voting rights...
and Fr Michael O'Flanagan
Michael O'Flanagan
Fr. Michael O'Flanagan was an Irish Republican and Roman Catholic priest.-Early life:Born near Castlerea, County Roscommon, O'Flanagan's parents were native Irish speakers. He received his primary education at Cloonboniffe N.S. before traveling to Sligo where he attended secondary school at...
, were just some of the prominent contributors during this time.
The title appeared again in 1966 as the paper of a small IRA splinter group based in Cork. Its modern version was again refounded immediately following the Sinn Féin split by Jimmy Steele in January 1970, An Phoblacht supporting the group led by Ruaírí O'Bradaigh that became the Provisional IRA when the split with the Official Irish Republican Army occurred.
In 1970, An Phoblacht was at first circulated only in the South with another republican paper also established in Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
in 1970, Republican News, under the editorship of veteran republican Jimmy Steel. It supported the campaign of the Provisional Irish Republican Army
Provisional Irish Republican Army
The Provisional Irish Republican Army is an Irish republican paramilitary organisation whose aim was to remove Northern Ireland from the United Kingdom and bring about a socialist republic within a united Ireland by force of arms and political persuasion...
and published a weekly column titled "War News", which outlined IRA actions and conflict with the British Army, and provided in depth analysis of the policies being formulated by the Republican Movement. An Phoblacht began with a circulation of 20,000 per month.
Located at 2a Lower Kevin Street in Dublin’s south inner city, it moved to the northside of the capital, to Kevin Barry
Kevin Barry
Kevin Gerard Barry was the first Irish republican to be executed by the British since the leaders of the Easter Rising. Barry was sentenced to death for his part in an IRA operation which resulted in the deaths of three British soldiers.Barry's death is considered a watershed moment in the Irish...
House, 44 Parnell Square, in August 1972. And in that October it became a fortnightly publication under the editorship of Éamonn MacThomáis
Éamonn MacThomáis
Éamonn MacThomáis was an author, broadcaster, historian, Irish Republican, advocate of the Irish Language and lecturer. He presented his own series on Dublin on RTÉ during the 70s and was well known for guided tours and lectures of his beloved Dublin...
, a writer and historian who instituted changes in layout and general improvements so that it became a weekly publication. After 1976, the then Minister for Post and Telecommunications, Conor Cruise O'Brien
Conor Cruise O'Brien
Conor Cruise O'Brien often nicknamed "The Cruiser", was an Irish politician, writer, historian and academic. Although his opinion on the role of Britain in Northern Ireland changed over the course of the 1970s and 1980s, he always acknowledge values of, as he saw, the two irreconcilable traditions...
, a Labour Party
Labour Party (Ireland)
The Labour Party is a social-democratic political party in the Republic of Ireland. The Labour Party was founded in 1912 in Clonmel, County Tipperary, by James Connolly, James Larkin and William X. O'Brien as the political wing of the Irish Trade Union Congress. Unlike the other main Irish...
minister in the Fine Gael
Fine Gael
Fine Gael is a centre-right to centrist political party in the Republic of Ireland. It is the single largest party in Ireland in the Oireachtas, in local government, and in terms of Members of the European Parliament. The party has a membership of over 35,000...
/Labour coalition, strengthened Jack Lynch
Jack Lynch
John Mary "Jack" Lynch was the Taoiseach of Ireland, serving two terms in office; from 1966 to 1973 and 1977 to 1979....
’s original 1971 Section 31 censorship directive banning members of the IRA or its political wing Sinn Féin from the airwaves. However this ban did not extend to the print media.
Section 31 produced a climate where many career journalists engaged in self-censorship
Self-censorship
Self-censorship is the act of censoring or classifying one's own work , out of fear of, or deference to, the sensibilities of others, without overt pressure from any specific party or institution of authority...
to avoid official opprobrium.
An Phoblacht became more important in disseminating the republican message and highlighting what it saw as the naked state oppression by the Unionist Party
Unionist Party
-United Kingdom:In the United Kingdom the term "unionist' may indicate support for either;* the 1707 Act of Union between Scotland and England or,* the 1800 Act of Union between Ireland and Great Britain....
and the Royal Ulster Constabulary
Royal Ulster Constabulary
The Royal Ulster Constabulary was the name of the police force in Northern Ireland from 1922 to 2000. Following the awarding of the George Cross in 2000, it was subsequently known as the Royal Ulster Constabulary GC. It was founded on 1 June 1922 out of the Royal Irish Constabulary...
in Northern Ireland. However, it was the southern Irish government which harassed An Phoblacht most stridently, with regular Garda
Garda Síochána
, more commonly referred to as the Gardaí , is the police force of Ireland. The service is headed by the Commissioner who is appointed by the Irish Government. Its headquarters are located in the Phoenix Park in Dublin.- Terminology :...
Special Branch
Special Branch
Special Branch is a label customarily used to identify units responsible for matters of national security in British and Commonwealth police forces, as well as in the Royal Thai Police...
investigations into the publication's links (both real and alleged) to the IRA. Mac Thomáis was arrested and charged with IRA membership and sentenced to 15 months’ imprisonment having been found guilty of the offence. The paper continued under the stewardship of Dublin journalist Deasún Breathnach
Deasún Breathnach
Deasún Breathnach was an Irish writer and journalist. He wrote Irish poetry, non-fiction, and translations. He was a journalist and sub-editor at the Irish Independent. He used the pseudonym "Rex McGall" for his writing in English at the Irish Independent. He worked as a features editor for the...
until Mac Thomáis resumed duties on his release in July 1974. Within two months, Mac Thomáis was again arrested and sentenced to another 15 months. Another editor, Coleman Moynihan, who had succeeded Seán Ó Brádaigh
Seán Ó Brádaigh
Seán Ó Brádaigh , is an Irish republican activist.Like his brother, Ruairí, Seán joined Sinn Féin at an early age....
in 1972, suffered a similar fate.
The paper continued on with the succeeding editors being Gerry Danaher (1974-75), Gerry O’Hare (1975-77), and Deasún Breathnach (1977-79).
It had become clear that a single paper for the whole of Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
was required to provide a clear and coherent line from the leadership and to counter any partitionist
Partitionism
In Ireland, partitionism refers to views on Irish politics, culture, geography or history that treat Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland as distinct. Partitionists may emphasise the perceived differences between the two jurisdictions and the people who live within them...
thinking which might flow from the British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
division of Ireland. Accordingly, on 27 January 1979, the first issue of the merged publications, under the banner of An Phoblacht/Republican News, appeared under the editorship of Danny Morrison.
The paper focuses on providing a weekly commentary on all aspects of Irish politics, and currently it articulates the political position of Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...
and supports the peace process
Northern Ireland peace process
The peace process, when discussing the history of Northern Ireland, is often considered to cover the events leading up to the 1994 Provisional Irish Republican Army ceasefire, the end of most of the violence of the Troubles, the Belfast Agreement, and subsequent political developments.-Towards a...
.
The paper was officially relaunched in September 2005 as An Phoblacht.
In 2010, the paper went from a 16-page weekly paper to a 32-page full colour monthly paper. The current editor is John Hedges.
Editors
- 1925: Patrick LittlePatrick LittlePatrick J. "P. J." Little was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician. A founder-member of the party, he served in a number of Cabinet positions, most notably as the country's longest-serving Minister for Posts and Telegraphs....
- 1926: Peadar O'DonnellPeadar O'DonnellPeadar O'Donnell was an Irish republican and socialist activist and writer.-Early life:Peadar O'Donnell was born into an Irish speaking family in Dungloe, County Donegal in northwest Ireland, in 1893. He attended St. Patrick's College, Dublin, where he trained as a teacher...
- 1930: Frank RyanFrank Ryan (Irish republican)Frank Ryan was a prominent member of the Irish Republican Army, editor of An Phoblacht, leftist activist and leader of Irish volunteers on the Republican side in the Spanish Civil War....
- 1933: Sighle Humphreys O'Donoghue
- 1937: Tadhg Lynch
- 1970: Seán Ó BrádaighSeán Ó BrádaighSeán Ó Brádaigh , is an Irish republican activist.Like his brother, Ruairí, Seán joined Sinn Féin at an early age....
- 1972: Coleman Moynihan
- 1972: Éamonn MacThomáisÉamonn MacThomáisÉamonn MacThomáis was an author, broadcaster, historian, Irish Republican, advocate of the Irish Language and lecturer. He presented his own series on Dublin on RTÉ during the 70s and was well known for guided tours and lectures of his beloved Dublin...
- 1973: Deasún BreathnachDeasún BreathnachDeasún Breathnach was an Irish writer and journalist. He wrote Irish poetry, non-fiction, and translations. He was a journalist and sub-editor at the Irish Independent. He used the pseudonym "Rex McGall" for his writing in English at the Irish Independent. He worked as a features editor for the...
- 1974: Éamonn MacThomáisÉamonn MacThomáisÉamonn MacThomáis was an author, broadcaster, historian, Irish Republican, advocate of the Irish Language and lecturer. He presented his own series on Dublin on RTÉ during the 70s and was well known for guided tours and lectures of his beloved Dublin...
- 1974: Gerry Danaher
- 1975: Gerry O'Hare
- 1977: Deasún BreathnachDeasún BreathnachDeasún Breathnach was an Irish writer and journalist. He wrote Irish poetry, non-fiction, and translations. He was a journalist and sub-editor at the Irish Independent. He used the pseudonym "Rex McGall" for his writing in English at the Irish Independent. He worked as a features editor for the...
- 1979: Danny MorrisonDanny Morrison (republican)Daniel Gerard Morrison , known generally as Danny Morrison is an Irish republican writer and activist...
- 1982: Mick Timothy
- 1985: Rita O'HareRita O'HareRita O'Hare is the General Secretary of Sinn Féin and the current Sinn Féin Representative to the United States .She was born Rita McCulloch and raised in Belfast, Northern Ireland, the daughter of a Catholic nationalist mother and a Protestant Socialist father...
- 1990: Mícheál MacDonncha
- 1996: Brian Campbell
- 1999: Martin Spain
- 2005: Seán Mac Brádaigh
- 2010: John Hedges
Notable contributors
- Gerry AdamsGerry AdamsGerry Adams is an Irish republican politician and Teachta Dála for the constituency of Louth. From 1983 to 1992 and from 1997 to 2011, he was an abstentionist Westminster Member of Parliament for Belfast West. He is the president of Sinn Féin, the second largest political party in Northern...
- Bobby SandsBobby SandsRobert Gerard "Bobby" Sands was an Irish volunteer of the Provisional Irish Republican Army and member of the United Kingdom Parliament who died on hunger strike while imprisoned in HM Prison Maze....
- Danny MorrisonDanny Morrison (republican)Daniel Gerard Morrison , known generally as Danny Morrison is an Irish republican writer and activist...
(former editor)
External links
- An Phoblacht/Republican News — website of the newspaper.