Drawing on an impressive array of sources, author Pat McCarthy has
produced the first comprehensive history of County Waterford during the
turbulent and extraordinary years of the Irish Revolution. He reveals
what life was like for the ordinary men, women, and children of city and
county during a period that witnessed world war and domestic political
and social strife. As the home constituency of John Redmond, leader of
the Irish Parliamentary Party, Waterford city shared in his apparent
triumph between 1912 and 1914 when he was on the cusp of achieving home
rule. The city faithfully supported his wartime policies and benefited
from the consequent economic boom. On Redmond's death, that loyalty was
transferred to his son amid bitter political violence. After the general
election of 1918, Captain William Redmond described his Waterford city
constituency, the only one outside Ulster to return an Irish Party MP,
as 'an oasis in the political desert that is Ireland.' Waterford city's
allegiance to the Redmonds, its support for the British war effort, and
a strong labor movement combined to make the city a social and political
battleground. By contrast, County Waterford reflected the nationwide
trend and was swept along by the rising Sinn Fein tide. It also
participated actively in the War of Independence. In 1922 and 1923, both
city and county were convulsed by the Civil War and bitter labor
disputes. This wide-ranging study offers fascinating new perspectives on
Waterford during the Irish Revolution. (Series: Irish Revolution,
1912-23) [Subject: History, Irish Studies, Politics]
