CHAPTER 9
Irish Resistance to
Assimilation in Europe
We
hold the
More than the land
our eyes have seen,
And love the goal for which we start,
More than the tale
of what has been
– AE (George Russell)
HOPE OF RETURN AND
ÉMIGRÉ AMBIVALENCE
Although
their Celtic heritage gave the Irish a penchant for migration, when they began
to emigrate from Ireland in considerable numbers in the 1500's to escape
English oppression, they emigrated with the hope that they might one day return
to Ireland. The monks of the late Middle
Ages had been inspired to leave Ireland by the concept of the White Martyr,
which was based on the pangs of leaving brethren and countrymen for missionary
work in foreign lands. Although
motivated by the concept of the White Martyr, the monks left Ireland
voluntarily and accepted that they were never to return. But the later émigrés were not devout
religious persons following a divine calling, but were individuals from all
walks of life seeking to escape political and religious oppression. They were farmers, craftsmen, merchants,
dispossessed nobles, teachers, physicians and others from all parts of Irish
society.
By the
1100's, Celtic society had been long established in Ireland, and it had
prospered removed from the imperialism of Rome, barbarian invasion and other
historical currents flowing across continental Europe. Not only was there no place left to emigrate
to once Celts reached Ireland, but the fertility and small population of the
island allowed Celtic culture to flourish.
With Celtic culture finding space to grow distant from any threats to it
and the Celtic people of Ireland becoming more attached to it with each
generation, the migrating penchant of the Irish abated. For the Irish, Celtic culture and the land of
Ireland became intertwined in a way that was new in Celtic culture. Thus when the English came in force to
conquer Ireland in 1169, rather than emigrate, the Irish responded
militarily. For three centuries
afterwards, the Celtic Irish and the English struggled for political and
cultural supremacy over Ireland. Only in
the 1500's when England fully subjugated the Celtic Irish did migration of the
Irish resume. Many of these later
émigrés were among the Irish who resisted English domination; and when the
Irish were defeated in battle, they were among the first to emigrate. Many of them left relatives and other family
members behind. Rather than submit to
defeat and compromise their Irish culture under English oppression, the later
Irish emigrated - but it was under the duress of oppression.
This phase
of emigration did not arise solely from the migratory tradition of the Celts or
from a practical motive such as avoiding a threat by establishing Celtic
culture elsewhere - for there was nowhere to emigrate to where Celtic culture
could be re-established. Ireland was the
only place the Irish felt they could enjoy their culture as they had been
accustomed to it. This later emigration
prompted by English oppression was regarded as a way to preserve Irish culture
so that it could be re-established in Ireland when English domination was overthrown. The yearning for an Ireland free of English
domination tempered by the émigrés' understanding of their position in the
countries they went to. As long as they
held the hope that they or their descendants would return to Ireland in the
near future, they did not become reconciled to becoming entirely integrated
into their new countries.
This hope
was not unfounded. It was based not only
on the intentions of the members of each generation of émigrés, but on changing
historical conditions in Ireland. Ever
since England had instituted its rule over Ireland, there had been recurring
rebellions and other types of subversion.
In the 14th century, the Irish had rallied behind Edward the Bruce's
attempt to drive out the English and create an independent Irish kingdom. The near success of the 16th-century Irish
rebellions which became known as the Geraldine Wars and the Nine Years War and
the 17th-century rebellion of the Confederation of Kilkenny encouraged the émigrés
to believe that someday a rebellion might be successful.
The hope of
returning to an Ireland free of English oppression was also bolstered by
historical events in England and Europe.
After Charles I was deposed and beheaded by Oliver Cromwell in 1648, his
sons, Charles and James, lived in exile in France. They promised to change English policies
oppressing Irish Catholics in return for the support of Irish émigrés in the
efforts of the royal brothers to regain the English throne for Charles. After the Restoration of Charles II in 1660,
he ended some of the oppressive Irish policies established by his
predecessors. When he died in 1685,
James II accelerated the process of restoring Irish-Catholic civil
liberties. For a brief time, it seemed
to many émigrés that the hope of returning to an Ireland free of repressive
laws might become a reality. In 1688,
however, William of Orange deposed James II and three years later, defeated
James' Irish-French army at the Battle of the Boyne. James then established a court-in-exile in
France. Since James had already
demonstrated that he favoured religious and political equality for the Irish,
the émigrés remained loyal to his cause.
For the next fifty years, the Stuart Pretenders to the English throne
encouraged the Irish émigrés to believe that conditions in Ireland would
improve enough to allow them to return to their homeland if the Stuarts could
regain the English throne. In 1745, the
grandson of James II, Charles Stuart, invaded Scotland as a prelude to
conquering England. He was accompanied
by elements of the Irish Brigade, and the expedition was partly financed by
wealthy Irish émigrés such as Anthony Walsh and the Routledges. Although the Highlanders of Scotland flocked
to Charles' banner, his army was defeated at the Battle of Culloden in
1746. This defeat marked the end of the
Stuart cause, yet the Irish émigrés continued to hope that historical events
would eventually free Ireland of English rule.
Besides
these historical events, there were some individual émigrés who kept the hope of
return alive and sought support for an Irish rebellion from various European
monarchs. Such individuals were
especially active during the Reformation when England redoubled its oppression
of the Irish. In the 1570's, James
Fitzmaurice petitioned France, Spain and Pope Gregory XIII for funs to raise an
army to invade Ireland. By 1578, Pope
Gregory granted the petition and helped Fitzmaurice raise an army of 6,000
Italian mercenaries and bandits.
Fitzmaurice dispatched 2,000 soldiers under the command of Thomas Stukeley to Lisbon to set up a staging point for the
invasion of Ireland. But as soon as Stukeley's contingent arrived in Lisbon, King Sebastao of Portugal impressed it into the Portuguese army
and sent them on a disastrous invasion of Morocco. The preparations to invade Ireland collapsed
shortly afterwards when Pope Gregory withdrew his financial support. In 1601, Red Hugh O'Donnell, one of the rebel
leaders of the Nine Years War, went to Spain after the English defeated Spanish
forces that had invaded Ireland at Kinsale. His mission - which was common knowledge
among the Irish émigrés - was to urge Philip III of Spain to mount another
invasion of Ireland. In 1605, Hugh
O'Neill, the rebel leader of the Irish during the Nine Years War, came to Europe
seeking aid from the King of France and the Pope to establish an invasion
force. In 1618, another rebel leader of
the Nine Years War named Donal O'Sullivan Baere was planning to return to Ireland from Spain with a
small contingent of Irish émigré soldiers who would act as the nucleus for an
Irish uprising. But before he could
carry out his plan, he was assassinated in Madrid by John Bathe, an agent of
the English government. As late as the
1790's, Irish émigré generals in the French army - including Generals Charles Kilmaine and Henri Clarke - advocated an invasion of
Ireland in support of an Irish republican rebellion. If successful, such an invasion would serve
both French and Irish interests by freeing Ireland from English rule. A small force under General Humbert landed in County Mayo in 1798, but was quickly
defeated by English troops.
After this
failure of the French invasion of Ireland, the hope of return rapidly faded
among the Irish émigrés in Europe. After
having been sustained for two centuries and with many attempts to fulfil it
having been dashed again and again, the hope of return inevitably waned. Not only the disappointment of each
generation of émigrés, but also changing historical considerations in Europe
played into the waning of the hope. The
rivalry throughout Europe between Catholicism and Protestantism led monarchs
and segments of the populations of Catholic countries to support for the idea
of a return by the émigrés to Ireland.
The monarchs of the Catholic countries deplored the dominance of English
Protestantism over a country that was traditionally strongly Catholic. But with the diminution of the rivalry over
time, the support of the Catholic monarchs correspondingly diminished. Besides, in the growing tides of democracy in
Europe during the 18th century, the monarchs no longer had the standing or
authority to provide meaningful encouragement or support to the Irish in their
wish to return to their homeland. Europe
was being shaped by the tendencies of democracy and secularism. In the changes, the basis of support for the
Irish died away.
The shift
of Irish emigration from Europe to America and Australia in the late 1700's was
another reason for the waning of the hope of return - although there was a
brief resurgence of it in the United States after the Civil War. The much greater distance from Ireland made
the hope seem impracticable. Because of
this shift in the pattern of emigration, the number of émigrés going to Europe
dropped off considerably and no longer helped keep the hope alive.
By the
beginning of the 19th century, the European émigrés' hope of a victorious
return to Ireland had passed away. For
over two centuries it had been sustained because it appealed to the Irish image
of the heroic. But with their penchant
for migration, capacity for adaptation and practical viewpoint, the Irish
eventually abandoned their dreams of returning to free Ireland from English
rule.
Although
the Irish maintained the hope of returning to Ireland in the near future during
the 17th and 18th centuries, they were nevertheless able to have an influence
on their new lands because of their concept of shape-shifting. Shape-shifting was not only a spiritual
experience that was a part of Celtic religion or characteristic of Celtic
mythological figures, but was a principle which was a part of the psyche of
every Irish person. It was this concept
of shape-shifting which allowed them to adapt so readily to new situations and
to become involved effectively in new circumstances while not becoming firmly
rooted in them. Because of the hope of
returning to Ireland held by the émigrés, their understanding of their position
in their new societies was ambivalent.
But because of the concept of shape-shifting which was a part of their
culture, the Irish were suited to acting effectively in new circumstances.
THE IRISH IDEA OF
COMMUNITY
Their ambivalent standing allowed the émigrés to
maintain their Irish identity. This
identity was important to them. Many of
the émigrés had resisted the English invasion and rule; and a prime reason many
of them left Ireland was so their Irish identity would not be threatened or
subverted by English oppression. But
although the Irish had a strong attachment to freedom, this identity was not
based on a sense of individuality. The
basis of this identity was the community an individual belonged to, i.e., his
or her clan. The Irish emigrated in such
numbers not from a desire to maintain their "individuality", but
because the community to which they were attached was being ruined by English
government and English oppression of Irish traditions such as Catholicism, clan
ownership of land and the Celtic system of farming. There was no guarantee, of course, that
émigrés could retain their traditional communities by going to Europe. But no matter what their future held, they
would at least not be accepting English dominance or serving English
masters. With the hope of returning to
Ireland one day, emigration seemed the way to try to preserve this community.
With their
strong sense of community based on the clan, the Irish had little sense of
identity or of the purpose of action except in relation to the community they
belonged to. Although Irish émigrés went
to Europe in large numbers, their numbers were not so large that they
established ghettos where they could survive largely indifferent to the
surrounding culture. Besides, a good
proportion of émigrés scattered to the countryside where they could continue
the farming or crafts they had been engaged in in
Ireland. Moreover, it was simply not in
the Irish nature to deliberately separate themselves from the larger
communities which they entered by emigration.
It was not
only because of the vestiges of Celtic culture in Europe that the émigrés were
able to have such an influence, but also because they were accustomed to acting
in the context of the extensive community of the clan. Leaving Ireland partly to preserve this
concept of community that was suffering under English rule, once in Europe the
Irish recreated this sense of community as best they could. The best and readiest way they could recreate
it was by giving their loyalty to the monarchs of the countries they went to. The monarchy was seen as a substitute for the
clan an émigré left behind, and the monarch was like the clan chief. By loyally serving a monarch, the Irish
émigrés' actions were meaningful to them.
Besides the
clan tradition accounting for the way the Irish established themselves in their
new countries, there was also the tradition of Irish émigrés becoming involved
in European societies in helpful, constructive ways. This tradition started with Columbanus and his band, the first monks who came to Europe
towards the close of the Dark Ages. The
monks had taught local populations agricultural practices, animal husbandry,
metalworking, and other skills which had improved their lives tangibly and
immediately. Although the emigration of
monks dropped off dramatically when Viking raids increased in northern Europe,
the works of the monks and their place in local culture, and in some cases
individual monks, became a part of the folklore of an area. Moreover, although fewer Irish monks
journeyed to Europe to settle in the late Middle Ages, they continued to have a
regular presence because of attendance at Church councils held in various
places in Europe and pilgrimages to monasteries and holy sites. To reach their destinations, the monks would
have to travel through other parts of Europe, which would also help to keep the
memory of them alive among the people of Europe.
Familiarity
with the Irish continued also by their involvement in the religious
controversies of the early Middle Ages.
Celtic Christianity vied with Roman Christianity to determine the nature
of Christianity in Europe. Roman
Christianity had advantages and resources which left little doubt that it would
win out over Celtic Christianity; among these were a historical affiliation
with Europe from its association with the Roman Empire and its assertion that
its ecclesiastic authority was derived directly from the apostle Peter. Nonetheless, Celtic Christianity did offer
doctrines and practices which appealed to the Europeans, and some of these were
adopted by Roman Christianity. Until the
time of the Carolingian Renaissance, the Irish monks were continually involved
in the councils and convocations debating Christian doctrine. A few individuals from Ireland became leading
figures in this ferment in which the fundamentals of Christian doctrine were
decided. John Eriugena
was widely regarded by scholars as one of the major theologians of the Middle
Ages. Many of the Irish followed the
teachings of Pelagius, although these teachings were considered heretical by
the Roman Christians. Thus, even though
there were no longer large numbers of Irish monks coming to Europe in the late
Middle Ages, the involvement of Irish monks in central doctrinal issues of the
Catholic Church - the dominant cultural force at the close of the Middle Ages -
helped to keep the Irish prominent in Europe.
The long
benign and beneficial presence of monks from Ireland largely erased any
reluctance populations of Catholic European countries might have had to the
Irish being a part of their societies.
Although during the Renaissance there were much larger numbers of Irish
émigrés, there were never so many that they threatened the position of other
groups or political factions. There were
not that many Irish in any one field, such as the military or education, that
they could dominate it; and the ideas and activities of Irish émigrés who
became leaders in certain fields were supported by the country's monarch or
were plainly advantageous to the society.
During most of the centuries that the Irish were emigrating to Europe,
there was no such notion as "immigration" or "national
identity". The Irish became
accepted in a country largely by being accepted by the monarchy and
aristocratic class. This simplified
their involvement in the different societies.
In any event, with their Catholic religion and their activities in
education, the military, and agriculture, the Irish were ordinarily accepted by
the commoners in the various countries where they settled. When national identities began to form in the
1500's and 1600's, the émigrés and their descendants began to be affected by
this movement and became leaders in the different countries. Over the long course of their emigration,
because of their Celtic origin which gave them an affinity with most Europeans,
their adaptability, their practicality, and the qualities and skills they
offered, the Irish émigrés were always able to become a part of the countries
they favoured by relatively simple and natural social processes. This allowed them to sustain their Irish
identities while receiving the appreciation and in many cases the praise of a
country's rulers and leaders and its population.