A study of the later years and writings of Michael Davitt, the "Father of the Land League."
Michael Davitt's story of suffering and self-sacrifice, childhood eviction and exile, youthful radicalism, harsh imprisonment, and eventual triumph over adversity ensures his memory in the pages of history. His early life and role in the Land League have been well-served by historians; however, his mature years remain largely in the shade. This book uncovers Davitt above and beyond the Land League.
Michael Davitt: After the Land League brings Davitt's later story back into the light by exploring his career in the twenty-four years between his leadership of the Land League and his death in 1906. Davitt expert Dr. Carla King unveils the leading themes in Davitt's life post Land League: education, nationalism and democracy, prison reform, imperialism, international affairs, the women's question, and the labor movement. His continued dedication to the land question and Irish affairs are demonstrated through his focus on Home Rule, the Plan of Campaign and the United Irish League. His extensive travels abroad from Western Europe to the United States, the Middle East, Russia, Australia, and beyond reveal an awakening internationalist outlook. His passion for international affairs from Anglo-American relations, British imperialism to the Boer War and Russia's treatment of its Jewish population are all here, rich in the telling. King thoroughly delves into the role of Davitt as a public intellectual, assessing how his books, journalistic writing, and participation in many of the leading debates of his time gave voice to a strand of radical, Secular, anti-imperialist nationalism-that put him in many respects ahead of his time.
Without considered attention to his later years, King asserts, we fail to grasp the extensive scale of Davitt's deep imprint on the evolution of modern Ireland. With extensive archival research including Davitt's own papers, Michael Davitt: After the Land League demonstrates that while the formation and leadership of the Land League was a vital contribution to Ireland, it was far from being Davitt's only legacy.
Show moreA study of the later years and writings of Michael Davitt, the "Father of the Land League."
Michael Davitt's story of suffering and self-sacrifice, childhood eviction and exile, youthful radicalism, harsh imprisonment, and eventual triumph over adversity ensures his memory in the pages of history. His early life and role in the Land League have been well-served by historians; however, his mature years remain largely in the shade. This book uncovers Davitt above and beyond the Land League.
Michael Davitt: After the Land League brings Davitt's later story back into the light by exploring his career in the twenty-four years between his leadership of the Land League and his death in 1906. Davitt expert Dr. Carla King unveils the leading themes in Davitt's life post Land League: education, nationalism and democracy, prison reform, imperialism, international affairs, the women's question, and the labor movement. His continued dedication to the land question and Irish affairs are demonstrated through his focus on Home Rule, the Plan of Campaign and the United Irish League. His extensive travels abroad from Western Europe to the United States, the Middle East, Russia, Australia, and beyond reveal an awakening internationalist outlook. His passion for international affairs from Anglo-American relations, British imperialism to the Boer War and Russia's treatment of its Jewish population are all here, rich in the telling. King thoroughly delves into the role of Davitt as a public intellectual, assessing how his books, journalistic writing, and participation in many of the leading debates of his time gave voice to a strand of radical, Secular, anti-imperialist nationalism-that put him in many respects ahead of his time.
Without considered attention to his later years, King asserts, we fail to grasp the extensive scale of Davitt's deep imprint on the evolution of modern Ireland. With extensive archival research including Davitt's own papers, Michael Davitt: After the Land League demonstrates that while the formation and leadership of the Land League was a vital contribution to Ireland, it was far from being Davitt's only legacy.
Show moreAbbreviations; Acknowledgements; Prologue; CHAPTER 1: The end of the Land League, 1882-3; CHAPTER 2: Richmond Prison and continued activism, 1883-4; CHAPTER 3: Travels in Europe and the Middle East, 1885; CHAPTER 4: Political developments and the first Home Rule Bill, 1885-6; CHAPTER 5: America and marriage, 1886-7; CHAPTER 6: The Plan of Campaign, 1886-91; CHAPTER 7: The Times Special Commission on Parnellism and crime, 1887-90; CHAPTER 8: The Labour movement, journalism and The Labour World; CHAPTER 9: The Parnell Split and its aftermath, 1890-1; CHAPTER 10: Parliament and the politics of the split, 1893-5; CHAPTER 11: The lecture tour in Australia and New Zealand, 1895; CHAPTER 12: Parliament again, 1896-9; CHAPTER 13: Renewed agitation: the United Irish League and the Land Question, 1898-1904; CHAPTER 14: Davitt and the Boer War, 1899-1902; CHAPTER 15: Travel and writing, 1903-5; CHAPTER 16: The last years, 1905-6; Conclusion; Notes; Bibliography; Index.
First full-length biography of Michael Davitt's life after the Land League. Based on extensive and detailed research, including full access to the Davitt Papers, offering a deep understanding of variety and depth Davitt's later years.
Carla King was for many years a Lecturer in Modern History at St Patrick's College, Drumcondra (now Dublin City University). She has published various works relating to Davitt, including Michael Davitt: Collected Writings, 1868-1906 [2001); Michael Davitt, jottings in Solitary (2003); Lives of Victorian Political Figures, Part ll, Vol. 4: Michael Davitt (2007]; and co-edited with W. I. Mc Cormack, John Devoy's Michael Davitt: From the Gaelic American [2008). She has also contributed articles on Davitt to scholarly and popular journals.
'[Davitt's] aims were ambitious and often unfeasible, but it is impossible not to be impressed by [his] incredible drive and humanity, not to mention his curiosity and sense of anticipation about events around him. All of this is vividly brought to life in this full and wonderful biography by Carla King, which has been the fruition of almost 10 years' research ... This is a tremendous story, engagingly told with judicious empathy but also fair objectivity.' Eamon Delaney, Irish Independent, 3 December 2016 'Carla King's large-scale study finally and exhaustively completes the picture [of Davitt's life] ... The Davitt papers in Trinity College Dublin form the basis for this enormous and immensely detailed study ... it is crammed with fascinating insights and the scale of activity covered is immense, from American lecture tours to fact-finding missions on behalf of the Boers in South Africa and persecuted Jewish communities in Russia.' Roy Foster, The Irish Times, 19 December 2016 'Masterpiece on the life of Davitt ... it represents one of the most comprehensive studies ever undertaken on a man who exercised such an integral role in shaping his country ... [King] brilliantly unveils the leading themes in Davitt's life post Land League ... It's a book that deserves to find a place on the bookshelves of all history-loving Mayo people at home and abroad.' The Connaught Telegraph, 29 November 2016 'King's brilliantly researched, finely written, and extremely readable biography proves, beyond doubt, there is much more to Davitt's achievements that him simply being the "Father of the Land League".' Sunday Independent, 15 January 2016 'Davitt was still only 36 years old when the League was suppressed. His last 24 years, between the winding-up of the League and his death in 1906, have received far less attention from historians. Now this lacuna is well and truly remedied in the present excellently detailed work of over 700 pages by Carla King. Years of scrupulous research have resulted in a remarkably impressive contribution to Irish historical studies ... This is a book which should engage the attention of every reader of Irish history.' Donal McCartney, The Irish Catholic, March 2017
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