The Blueshirts
Encyclopedia
The Army Comrades Association (ACA), later named the National Guard and better known by the nickname The Blueshirts , was a right-wing Irish
political organisation active in the 1930s.
The Blueshirts are sometimes described as "quasi-fascist"
, and the extent to which they can be seen as the Irish equivalent of Hitler
's Brownshirts and Mussolini
's Blackshirts
continues to be debated. They employed paramilitary-style uniforms, greeted each other with the Roman salute
, and participated in street fights against the IRA.
However some historians have argued that the members of the Blueshirts, generally speaking:
The historian R. M. Douglas has suggested that "those who have sought to find in the Blueshirts an Irish manifestation of fascism have been looking in the wrong place".
Since the 1970s, "Blueshirt" has also been used as a derogatory nickname for Fine Gael
, the mainstream right-wing political party, into which the Blueshirts were subsumed in 1933. It has also been adopted by members and supporters of that party as a self-deprecating nickname.
army members, to defend conservative interests and to halt what they perceived as an emerging threat coming from their political opponents, the Irish Republican Army
and Fianna Fáil
.
In March 1932, Éamon de Valera
became President of the Executive Council of the Irish Free State
. One of his first acts was to repeal the ban on the IRA. He also released many republican
prisoners from jail. Following these moves, the IRA became increasingly active in disrupting the activities of the opposition party, Cumann na nGaedheal. The Blueshirts felt that freedom of speech was being repressed, and began to provide security at Cumann na nGaedheal events. This led to several serious clashes between the IRA and the Blueshirts. In August 1932, Thomas F. O'Higgins
, a Cumann na nGaedheal Teachta Dála
(TD; member of Parliament) became the leader of the ACA.
In January 1933, de Valera called a surprise election, which Fianna Fáil won comfortably. The election campaign saw a serious escalation of rioting between IRA and ACA supporters. In April 1933, the ACA began wearing the distinctive St. Patrick's Blue
shirt uniform.
was a guerrilla leader in the Irish Republican Army
during the Irish War of Independence
; an Irish Army
general during the Civil War
, and the Irish police commissioner
in the Irish Free State
from 1922 to 1933. After de Valera's re-election in February 1933, he dismissed O'Duffy as commissioner, and in July of that year, O'Duffy took control of the ACA and re-named it the National Guard. He re-modelled the organisation, adopting elements of European fascism, such as the Roman straight-arm salute
, uniforms and huge rallies. Membership of the new organisation became limited to people who were Irish
or whose parents "profess the Christian faith
". O'Duffy was an admirer of Benito Mussolini
, and the Blueshirts adopted corporatism
as their chief political aim.
, stopping briefly on Leinster lawn in front of the Irish parliament, where speeches were to be held. The goal of the parade was to commemorate past leaders of Ireland, Arthur Griffith
, Michael Collins
and Kevin O'Higgins
. It is clear that the IRA and other groups representing workers, republicans and socialists intended to confront the Blueshirts if they did march in Dublin.
De Valera banned the parade, remembering Mussolini's March on Rome
, and fearing a coup d'état
. Decades later, he told Fianna Fáil
politicians that in late summer 1933, he was unsure whether the Irish Army
would obey his orders to suppress the perceived threat, or whether the soldiers would support the Blueshirts (who included many ex-soldiers). O'Duffy accepted the ban and insisted that he was committed to upholding the law. Instead, several provincial parades took place to commemorate the deaths of Griffith, O'Higgins and Collins. De Valera saw this move as defying his ban, and the Blueshirts were declared an illegal organisation.
merged to form a new party, Fine Gael
, on 3 September 1933. O'Duffy became its first president, with W. T. Cosgrave and James Dillon acting as vice-presidents. The National Guard changed into the Young Ireland Association, and became part of a youth wing
of the party. The party's aim was to create a corporatist
United Ireland
within the British Commonwealth
. Following disagreements with his Fine Gael colleagues, O'Duffy left the party, although most of the Blueshirts stayed in Fine Gael.
O'Duffy then founded the National Corporate Party
, and later raised an "Irish Brigade"
that took General Francisco Franco
's side in the Spanish Civil War
. They were once fired upon by mistake by Franco's troops, after which they returned to Ireland. In December 1934, O'Duffy attended the Montreux Fascist conference
in Switzerland
.
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...
political organisation active in the 1930s.
The Blueshirts are sometimes described as "quasi-fascist"
Fascism
Fascism is a radical authoritarian nationalist political ideology. Fascists seek to rejuvenate their nation based on commitment to the national community as an organic entity, in which individuals are bound together in national identity by suprapersonal connections of ancestry, culture, and blood...
, and the extent to which they can be seen as the Irish equivalent of Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
's Brownshirts and Mussolini
Benito Mussolini
Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini was an Italian politician who led the National Fascist Party and is credited with being one of the key figures in the creation of Fascism....
's Blackshirts
Blackshirts
The Blackshirts were Fascist paramilitary groups in Italy during the period immediately following World War I and until the end of World War II...
continues to be debated. They employed paramilitary-style uniforms, greeted each other with the Roman salute
Roman salute
The Roman salute is a gesture in which the arm is held out forward straight, with palm down, and fingers touching. In some versions, the arm is raised upward at an angle; in others, it is held out parallel to the ground. The former is a well known symbol of fascism that is commonly perceived to be...
, and participated in street fights against the IRA.
However some historians have argued that the members of the Blueshirts, generally speaking:
- shared an opposition to the Irish Republican ArmyIrish Republican ArmyThe Irish Republican Army was an Irish republican revolutionary military organisation. It was descended from the Irish Volunteers, an organisation established on 25 November 1913 that staged the Easter Rising in April 1916...
, the governing Fianna FáilFianna FáilFianna 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...
party, and contemporary economic policiesAnglo-Irish Trade WarThe Anglo-Irish Trade War was a retaliatory trade war between the Irish Free State and the United Kingdom lasting from 1932 until 1938...
., rather than a fascist ideology; - were defensive rather than offensive in outlook, and;
- unlike their counterparts in other countries, were not known to engage in political terrorism.
The historian R. M. Douglas has suggested that "those who have sought to find in the Blueshirts an Irish manifestation of fascism have been looking in the wrong place".
Since the 1970s, "Blueshirt" has also been used as a derogatory nickname for 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...
, the mainstream right-wing political party, into which the Blueshirts were subsumed in 1933. It has also been adopted by members and supporters of that party as a self-deprecating nickname.
History
The Army Comrades Association was formed in February 1932, to promote the interests of ex-National ArmyIrish National Army
The Irish National Army or National Army was the army of the Irish Free State from January 1922-1 October 1924. Michael Collins, its Chief of Staff from June 1921 until his death in August 1922, was the last Chief of Staff of the IRA that had fought the Irish War of Independence...
army members, to defend conservative interests and to halt what they perceived as an emerging threat coming from their political opponents, the Irish Republican Army
Irish Republican Army
The Irish Republican Army was an Irish republican revolutionary military organisation. It was descended from the Irish Volunteers, an organisation established on 25 November 1913 that staged the Easter Rising in April 1916...
and 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...
.
In March 1932, Éamon de Valera
Éamon de Valera
Éamon de Valera was one of the dominant political figures in twentieth century Ireland, serving as head of government of the Irish Free State and head of government and head of state of Ireland...
became President of the Executive Council of the Irish Free State
President of the Executive Council of the Irish Free State
The President of the Executive Council of the Irish Free State was the head of government or prime minister of the Irish Free State which existed from 1922 to 1937...
. One of his first acts was to repeal the ban on the IRA. He also released many republican
Irish Republicanism
Irish republicanism is an ideology based on the belief that all of Ireland should be an independent republic.In 1801, under the Act of Union, the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Ireland merged to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland...
prisoners from jail. Following these moves, the IRA became increasingly active in disrupting the activities of the opposition party, Cumann na nGaedheal. The Blueshirts felt that freedom of speech was being repressed, and began to provide security at Cumann na nGaedheal events. This led to several serious clashes between the IRA and the Blueshirts. In August 1932, Thomas F. O'Higgins
Thomas F. O'Higgins
Thomas F. O'Higgins was an Irish politician. He grew up in Stradbally, County Laois, one of sixteen children of Dr. Thomas Higgins and Anne Sullivan. He was first elected to Dáil Éireann in a 14 March 1929 by-election for Dublin North as a Cumann na nGaedheal Teachta Dála , and in the 1932 general...
, a Cumann na nGaedheal Teachta Dála
Teachta Dála
A Teachta Dála , usually abbreviated as TD in English, is a member of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas . It is the equivalent of terms such as "Member of Parliament" or "deputy" used in other states. The official translation of the term is "Deputy to the Dáil", though a more literal...
(TD; member of Parliament) became the leader of the ACA.
In January 1933, de Valera called a surprise election, which Fianna Fáil won comfortably. The election campaign saw a serious escalation of rioting between IRA and ACA supporters. In April 1933, the ACA began wearing the distinctive St. Patrick's Blue
St. Patrick's Blue
St. Patrick's blue is a name applied to several shades of blue considered as symbolic of Ireland. In British usage, it refers to various sky blue shades associated with the Order of St. Patrick. In modern usage in the Republic of Ireland, it may be a darker shade. While green is now the usual...
shirt uniform.
Eoin O'Duffy becomes leader
Eoin O'DuffyEoin O'Duffy
Eoin O'Duffy was in succession a Teachta Dála , the Chief of Staff of the Irish Republican Army , the second Commissioner of the Garda Síochána, leader of the Army Comrades Association and then the first leader of Fine Gael , before leading the Irish Brigade to fight for Francisco Franco during...
was a guerrilla leader in the Irish Republican Army
Irish Republican Army
The Irish Republican Army was an Irish republican revolutionary military organisation. It was descended from the Irish Volunteers, an organisation established on 25 November 1913 that staged the Easter Rising in April 1916...
during the Irish War of Independence
Irish War of Independence
The Irish War of Independence , Anglo-Irish War, Black and Tan War, or Tan War was a guerrilla war mounted by the Irish Republican Army against the British government and its forces in Ireland. It began in January 1919, following the Irish Republic's declaration of independence. Both sides agreed...
; an Irish Army
Irish Army
The Irish Army, officially named simply the Army is the main branch of the Defence Forces of Ireland. Approximately 8,500 men and women serve in the Irish Army, divided into three infantry Brigades...
general during the Civil War
Irish Civil War
The Irish Civil War was a conflict that accompanied the establishment of the Irish Free State as an entity independent from the United Kingdom within the British Empire....
, and the Irish police commissioner
Police commissioner
Commissioner is a senior rank used in many police forces and may be rendered Police Commissioner or Commissioner of Police. In some organizations, the commissioner is a political appointee, and may or may not actually be a professional police officer. In these circumstances, there is often a...
in the Irish Free State
Irish Free State
The Irish Free State was the state established as a Dominion on 6 December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty, signed by the British government and Irish representatives exactly twelve months beforehand...
from 1922 to 1933. After de Valera's re-election in February 1933, he dismissed O'Duffy as commissioner, and in July of that year, O'Duffy took control of the ACA and re-named it the National Guard. He re-modelled the organisation, adopting elements of European fascism, such as the Roman straight-arm salute
Roman salute
The Roman salute is a gesture in which the arm is held out forward straight, with palm down, and fingers touching. In some versions, the arm is raised upward at an angle; in others, it is held out parallel to the ground. The former is a well known symbol of fascism that is commonly perceived to be...
, uniforms and huge rallies. Membership of the new organisation became limited to people who were Irish
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
or whose parents "profess the Christian faith
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
". O'Duffy was an admirer of Benito Mussolini
Benito Mussolini
Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini was an Italian politician who led the National Fascist Party and is credited with being one of the key figures in the creation of Fascism....
, and the Blueshirts adopted corporatism
Corporatism
Corporatism, also known as corporativism, is a system of economic, political, or social organization that involves association of the people of society into corporate groups, such as agricultural, business, ethnic, labor, military, patronage, or scientific affiliations, on the basis of common...
as their chief political aim.
March on Dublin
The ACA planned to hold a parade in Dublin in August 1933. It was to proceed to Glasnevin CemeteryGlasnevin Cemetery
Glasnevin Cemetery , officially known as Prospect Cemetery, is the largest non-denominational cemetery in Ireland with an estimated 1.5 million burials...
, stopping briefly on Leinster lawn in front of the Irish parliament, where speeches were to be held. The goal of the parade was to commemorate past leaders of Ireland, Arthur Griffith
Arthur Griffith
Arthur Griffith was the founder and third leader of Sinn Féin. He served as President of Dáil Éireann from January to August 1922, and was head of the Irish delegation at the negotiations in London that produced the Anglo-Irish Treaty of 1921.-Early life:...
, Michael Collins
Michael Collins (Irish leader)
Michael "Mick" Collins was an Irish revolutionary leader, Minister for Finance and Teachta Dála for Cork South in the First Dáil of 1919, Director of Intelligence for the IRA, and member of the Irish delegation during the Anglo-Irish Treaty negotiations. Subsequently, he was both Chairman of the...
and Kevin O'Higgins
Kevin O'Higgins
Kevin Christopher O'Higgins was an Irish politician who served as Vice-President of the Executive Council and Minister for Justice. He was part of early nationalist Sinn Féin, before going on to become a prominent member of Cumann na nGaedheal. O'Higgins initiated the An Garda Síochána police force...
. It is clear that the IRA and other groups representing workers, republicans and socialists intended to confront the Blueshirts if they did march in Dublin.
De Valera banned the parade, remembering Mussolini's March on Rome
March on Rome
The March on Rome was a march by which Italian dictator Benito Mussolini's National Fascist Party came to power in the Kingdom of Italy...
, and fearing a coup d'état
Coup d'état
A coup d'état state, literally: strike/blow of state)—also known as a coup, putsch, and overthrow—is the sudden, extrajudicial deposition of a government, usually by a small group of the existing state establishment—typically the military—to replace the deposed government with another body; either...
. Decades later, he told 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...
politicians that in late summer 1933, he was unsure whether the Irish Army
Irish Army
The Irish Army, officially named simply the Army is the main branch of the Defence Forces of Ireland. Approximately 8,500 men and women serve in the Irish Army, divided into three infantry Brigades...
would obey his orders to suppress the perceived threat, or whether the soldiers would support the Blueshirts (who included many ex-soldiers). O'Duffy accepted the ban and insisted that he was committed to upholding the law. Instead, several provincial parades took place to commemorate the deaths of Griffith, O'Higgins and Collins. De Valera saw this move as defying his ban, and the Blueshirts were declared an illegal organisation.
Fine Gael and the National Corporate Party
In response to the banning of the National Guard, Cumann na nGaedheal and the National Centre PartyNational Centre Party (Ireland)
The National Centre Party, initially known as the National Farmers and Ratepayers League, was a short-lived political party in the Irish Free State...
merged to form a new party, 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...
, on 3 September 1933. O'Duffy became its first president, with W. T. Cosgrave and James Dillon acting as vice-presidents. The National Guard changed into the Young Ireland Association, and became part of a youth wing
Youth wing
A youth wing is a subsidiary, autonomous or independently-allied front of a larger organization that is formed in order to rally support and allegiance for that organization's campaigns from members and potential members of a younger age...
of the party. The party's aim was to create a corporatist
Corporatism
Corporatism, also known as corporativism, is a system of economic, political, or social organization that involves association of the people of society into corporate groups, such as agricultural, business, ethnic, labor, military, patronage, or scientific affiliations, on the basis of common...
United Ireland
United Ireland
A united Ireland is the term used to refer to the idea of a sovereign state which covers all of the thirty-two traditional counties of Ireland. The island of Ireland includes the territory of two independent sovereign states: the Republic of Ireland, which covers 26 counties of the island, and the...
within the British Commonwealth
Commonwealth of Nations
The Commonwealth of Nations, normally referred to as the Commonwealth and formerly known as the British Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of fifty-four independent member states...
. Following disagreements with his Fine Gael colleagues, O'Duffy left the party, although most of the Blueshirts stayed in Fine Gael.
O'Duffy then founded the National Corporate Party
National Corporate Party
The National Corporate Party was a Fascist political party in Ireland founded by General Eoin O'Duffy in June 1935. It split from Fine Gael when O'Duffy was removed as leader of that party, which was originally founded by the merger of O'Duffy's Blueshirts, formally known as the National Guard or...
, and later raised an "Irish Brigade"
Irish Brigade (Spanish Civil War)
The Irish Brigade , fought on the Nationalist side of Francisco Franco during the Spanish Civil War. The unit was formed wholly of Roman Catholics by the politician Eoin O'Duffy, who had previously organised the banned quasi-fascist Blueshirts and openly fascist Greenshirts in Ireland...
that took General Francisco Franco
Francisco Franco
Francisco Franco y Bahamonde was a Spanish general, dictator and head of state of Spain from October 1936 , and de facto regent of the nominally restored Kingdom of Spain from 1947 until his death in November, 1975...
's side in the Spanish Civil War
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...
. They were once fired upon by mistake by Franco's troops, after which they returned to Ireland. In December 1934, O'Duffy attended the Montreux Fascist conference
1934 Montreux Fascist conference
The Fascist International Congress was a meeting held by deputies from a number of European Fascist organizations. The conference was held on 16–17 December 1934 in Montreux, Switzerland...
in Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
.
Sources
- Eunan O'HalpinEunan O'HalpinEunan O'Halpin is an Irish historian. He is Bank of Ireland Professor of Contemporary Irish History at Trinity College Dublin. He received his BA and MA from University College Dublin and received a PhD from the University of Cambridge....
, (1999). 'Defending Ireland: The Irish State and its Enemies since 1922'. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-820426-4. - Mike Cronin, The Blueshirts and Irish Politics
- Michael O'RiordanMichael O'RiordanMichael O'Riordan was the founder of the Communist Party of Ireland and also fought with the Connolly Column in the International Brigades during the Spanish Civil War.-Early life:...
. 1979 Connolly Column. New Books Dublin. ASIN: B0006E3ABG - J. Bower Bell. 1983 The Secret Army: The IRA 1916-1979. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press. ISBN 0-262-52090-7.
- Tim Pat CooganTim Pat CooganTimothy Patrick Coogan is an Irish historical writer, broadcaster and newspaper columnist. He served as editor of the Irish Press newspaper from 1968 to 1987...
. De Valera. - Michael Farrell. 1980. Northern Ireland: The Orange State. London: Pluto PressPluto PressPluto Press is a radical, progressive, independent publisher based in London. Pluto Press specialises in "progressive, critical perspectives in politics and the social sciences", and describes itself as "one of the world’s leading radical publishers". It has published authors such as Noam Chomsky,...
. ISBN 0-86104-300-6. - F.S.L. Lyons. Ireland Since the Famine.
- Maurice ManningMaurice ManningMaurice Manning is a former Irish Fine Gael politician. Manning was a member of the Oireachtas for 21 years, serving in both the Dáil and the Seanad. Since August 2002 he has been President of the Irish Human Rights Commission...
. The Blueshirts.