Christ and Caesar: The Eucharistic Congress Riots in Northern Ireland, June 1932 - Softcover

Murray, Gabriel

Softcover

ISBN 13: 9798839396241

Publisher: Independently published, 2022

Synopsis

‘Christ and Caesar’
The Eucharistic Congress Riots in Northern Ireland, June 1932.
Gabriel Murray
The purpose of this book is to explore sectarian and political conflict in Ireland during the Catholic Eucharistic Congress of 1932. The Congress revealed the hidden tensions between the Irish Free State and Northern Ireland, when Catholics travelling to the Congress were attacked by Protestant mobs. The dissertation examines the historical context of the Congress and its organisation and the many social and political forces at play. It explores the political, social and economic conditions of the Catholic and Protestant working classes during that year of the great depression of 1932 and examines the modus operandi of the Stormont government. It provides an overview of the sectarian conflict and the various social forces that impacted on society at that time.
Contrary to public historical perception that the Congress was a peaceful one, a sectarian, theological, political conflict existed that created divisions within the country, both north and south. What were the issues within this conflict, and how can a historian interpret them;, in order to examine the various fractures and conditions in that society, that would indicate emerging problems that would later impact on Ireland north and south? I examine the following questions. Why were Unionists aggressive and Catholics passive during the Eucharistic Congress riots? What were the theological, political and ideological forces that caused the Protestant population to be anti-Catholic and to riot against them? Why were Catholics reported to be extremely passive during the riots and attacks?
Many of the points presented have not been examined before, due to the lack of availability of records and a lack of focus on these particular riots. They have been previously regarded as not a subject for investigation, but have some significance in the context of the era they belong to, and the current era.. My approach is to be non-partisan, viewing all the salient points from both perspectives - nationalist and unionist.

Edition details

• Publisher: Independently published
• Publication date: 2022
• Language: English
• ISBN 13: 9798839396241
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 208