Reframing the "Irish Question": The role of the Irish co-operative movement in the formation of Irish nationalism, 1900-22

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Abstract

This article examines the role of the Irish co-operative movement in the early twentieth century and argues that it played a crucial role in shaping a popular understanding of the "Irish Question". This mass-membership movement impacted upon the development of the Irish state and population. By taking this rural, social movement as a lens to analyse Irish society in the early twentieth century, social and economic issues re-emerge as central components to a contemporary understanding of Ireland's increasingly contested position within the Union. As the expectation of some kind of political resolution to demands for political independence grew during the First World War, radical nationalism absorbed a social and economic discourse that originated within the co-operative movement in its critique of the British state as it operated in Ireland. Irish co-operation represented a sophisticated form of political economy that provided an influential ideological platform for Irish nationalists as they anticipated some form of political independence.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)267-284
Number of pages18
JournalIrish Studies Review
Volume22
Issue number3
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Jul 2014
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Irish political economy
  • co-operation
  • nationalism
  • rural
  • social movements

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