General Eoin O'Duffy : the political life of an Irish firebrand /

"Although most of the prominent figures from Ireland's revolutionary generation have been endlessly profiled and commemorated, the controversial General Eoin O'Duffy remains a pariah. Despite reaching the towering heights of leadership in the republican movement during the Irish revolutionary period...

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Bibliographic Details

Main Author:	Traynor, Jack, 1998- (Author)
Format:	Book
Language:	English
Published:	Jefferson, North Carolina : McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers, [2024]
Subjects:	O'Duffy, Eoin. Revolutionaries > Ireland > Biography. Fascists > Ireland > Biography. Generals > Ireland > Biography. Ireland > History > Civil War, 1922-1923. Ireland > Politics and government > 1922-1949. 1922-1949 Generals. Revolutionaries. Politics and government. Fascists. Ireland. Biographies. History.
Summary:	"Although most of the prominent figures from Ireland's revolutionary generation have been endlessly profiled and commemorated, the controversial General Eoin O'Duffy remains a pariah. Despite reaching the towering heights of leadership in the republican movement during the Irish revolutionary period and subsequently becoming a key state-builder in early independent Ireland as head of the national police force, O'Duffy's legacy retains a whiff of sulphur. It has been undoubtedly tarnished by his controversial political career in the 1930s, including his leadership of the fascistic Blueshirts and his pro-Franco involvement in the Spanish Civil War. Using a blend of well-charted and previously overlooked or unavailable material, this study examines the tumultuous periods of Ireland's struggle for independence and the early Irish Free State by utilising a biographical lens. It foregrounds O'Duffy's place within pro-Treaty Irish nationalism, as a militarist and supporter of Michael Collins who became a safe pair of hands relied upon to rescue the pro-Treaty regime during crises. It offers new interpretations on his involvement within international fascism and provides much needed nuance on the prevalence of crypto-fascist outlooks in the 1930s. It seeks to blow away the cobwebs of mythology and recalibrate our understanding of this most controversial Irishman."--