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IT WAS A hundred years ago on Friday that Irish citizens went to the polls in the historic 1918 General Election.
The election was a monumental moment in Irish history. Hundreds of thousands of Irish men and women cast votes for the first time.
On the back of that wave, the radical Sinn Féin swept to power, almost completely wiping out John Dillon’s more moderate Irish Parliamentary Party (IPP), which had ruled the Irish political landscape for years.
Ireland was still part of the United Kingdom at that point, Éamon de Valera’s Sinn Féin refused to take their seats in Westminster, instead setting up a parliament in Dublin and declaring Ireland an independent Republic.
Meanwhile, in the north of the country, Edward Carson’s unionists took the most seats, reflecting the Protestant majority there.
The events of the election would set Ireland on a collision course with England, which refused to recognise Ireland’s claim. This would lead to the Irish taking up arms in the War of Independence.
Programme
To commemorate the centenary of the election, RTÉ will air a programme on Friday at 7pm.
Election 18 will be a reimagining of the events of the 1918 election, with coverage mirroring that of a contemporary election count.
The idea is to present it as though television existed at the time – with presenters in a studio reporting on the counts, cuts to count centres in different constituencies, and interviews with key political figures from the day.
RTÉ’s David McCullagh and TheJournal.ie‘s Sinead O’Carroll will present the action from the main studio, cutting to interviews, analysis and mini documentary-style clips to give context.
There will be interviews with key figures and analysis given from studio as the shocking results are announced in real-time.
The show is a Loosehorse production, and will be directed by Ruan Magan, the man behind the IFTA winning documentary 1916- The Irish Rebellion.
Loosehorse has form in this type of historical programming. It was behind the Trial of the Century programme, which saw Irish revolutionary Patrick Pearse in the dock defending his actions in an imagined trial.
Taking a risk
Programme producer Cormac Hargaden spoke to TheJournal.ie ahead of the programme airing on Friday. He said that in terms of Irish history, the election was massively significant, but received relatively little attention when compared with the events that came before and after.
“In the space of 24 hours Ireland went from being part of the United Kingdom to an independent state. I thought it in many ways it was the forgotten story of the Irish revolution was 1918 General Election,” he said.
Despite its significance, the election took place after the 1916 Rising and before the War of Independence – two periods upheaval and violence.
“It probably got a bit crowded out then by the blockbuster events of the Rising and the War of Independence,” said Hargaden.
The well-behaved child often doesn’t get as much attention as the screaming child in the corner.
Hargaden hopes to bring the election alive for viewers, hoping that the unique way in which its presented will capture people’s imagination.
“I’d like to think that it’s quite and entertaining watch and that by transporting it into a real time world I hope that we would be able to capture audiences that wouldn’t necessarily watch a more traditional dry documentary that might be on at 10pm at night,” he said.
That would be nice if people came to it unexpectedly and stuck around… that they enjoyed the hour and a half of television and learned something too. That would be good.
A lot or work has gone into the production, and Hargaden is hoping that it will resonate with viewers. But, as with all shows, it will undoubtedly have naysayers or traditionalists taking issue with what he terms the “elasticity” of the telling.
“I think if you’re trying to please all of the people all of the time you wouldn’t be working in television,” he said.
So I’ve no doubt that some traditionalists might have a difficulty with the elasticity of our creatives.
“But at the same time there is I think form a historical accuracy point of view underneath what is quite a high concept project we’ve got really robust historical accuracy.
I’d rather be making something and taking a bit of a creative risk to try and find a new audience rather than just phoning it in.
Election 18 will air Friday at 7pm on RTÉ One.
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“Meanwhile, in the north of the country, Edward Carson’s unionists took the most seats, reflecting the Protestant majority there.”
A lot of it was gerrymandered. Unionists only had a majority in 4 of the 9 counties of Ulster.
@Seán Ó Briain: After 1922 both sides of FFG decided to execute anyone who continued to fight for freedom in the North.
@Seán Ó Briain: France is one whole country. yet divided by the gap between rich and poor.
@Sean Conway:
As is every country on the planet
@Cal Mooney: A stupid ignorant statement, go home or go back to school and learn a bit of history.
@Seán Ó Briain: South Armagh, South Down and Derry City also had a Nationalist Catholic majority but they carved it away to set up their own protestant state for a protestant people.
@Seán Ó Briain: nah. Most seats were in urban concentrated areas hence Antrim had more seats than Donegal, monaghan Tyrone and cavan combined. Carson himself was mp from Dublin
‘In the space of 24 hours, Ireland went from being part of the United Kingdom to an independent state’. WHAT? First of all, that’s factually and historically nonsense. Secondly, Ireland isn’t even an independent state now. It’s partially independent and partially still a colony of the UK. Even the free state didn’t become a properly independent state till 49
@Paul Devlin: ‘the radical Sinn Féin swept to power’ is not only cack handed English, but it’s also incorrect.
What power did the first Sinn Féin gov have?
None, that’s what.
I’m getting the popcorn out for the comments on this article
@Declan Leonard: #neveragain
At least the author did a little research into this article. The 1918 election was probably the most Important election this country has ever seen. I was the first time that the people as a whole had a vote Men and Women. Up to that point most people did not have that luxury. Voting was confined to householders and ratepayers (male only). The vast majority of Irish people were disenfranchised. The result also gave legitimacy to proclaim independence.
Alot of articles on SF …
Me hole must be about to call time. ..
Fear is in the air again..
@Sean Higgins: You’ll be pleased to note the SF in this article has nothing to do with todays SF. SF in this article became FFG, as you lads so succintly put it. :)
@Clifford Brennan: The same FFG that stood idly by and did nothing while loyalist mobs burned catholics out of their homes with the help of the RUC and B specials, followed by mass murder in Derry and Ballymurphy, not to mention the collusion that was rife between the RUC, army and loyalist terrorists. That FFG?
@Clifford Brennan: The same FFG that sold off almost a third of the North for a few shillings (Read about the proposals from the boundary commission). FFG always lining their own pockets.
@European Bob: The very same FFG, yes. You might acquaint yourself with the plans the Lynch government & our military drew up to invade the North in 1969. Our 8100 troops, with negligible aircover & field artillery, would have been badly beaten by UK forces. Following a highly likely utter defeat, the potential for sectarian violence and ethnic cleansing throughout a destabilised North presented too great a risk. “Operation Armageddeon” was the draft plans name.
@Clifford Brennan: Many said the fight against the British empire in 1918 was a futile effort. No country once colonised by the english had ever won it’s freedom. Yet the Irish fought and against all odds secured a partial reclamation. The cowards in the South at the start of the troubles only cared about their own pockets and considered the Irish in the North as acceptable collateral damage.
@Clifford Brennan: That would have been suicide. The provos had the right idea, guerrilla warfare when facing a superior armed force.
@European Bob: So why criticise saying they did nothing and then agree it would have been suicide? I don’t share your opinion of the Provos beyond their initial street battles. They killed and injured too many of ‘their own’. John Humes ideas won out.
@Paul Smith: Not true. The english army and their proxies murdered more Catholics. Their combined civilian murder rate was over 70 percent civilians vs the IRAs 25 percent. Also the english incarcerated 60 times more Catholics than Loyalists during the troubles in order to demonstrate they were only supporting one side.
@Paul Smith: Did you not comment on an article last week to say the vast majority of Irish wanted to remain in the UK during the war 100 years ago. Not sure if we can genuinely trust one thing you put out here.
@Paul Smith: And now that I come to think of it, you wrote a comment yesterday suggesting it was Ireland’s own fault that millions died or had to leave these shores during the genocide through forced famine in the 1840s.
@Cal Mooney: yes I did say that the majority of Irish people upto 1916 where in favour of home rule and that their was a famine in Ireland cause by the potato blight fungus . It’s a fact the IRA between 1969 and 1995 murder over 400 Catholics . If it wasn’t for the security forces in NI the IRA would have murder thousands more .
@Paul Smith: That potatoe blight hit all of Europe, but you said we were the only ones to suffer to the extent of millions dead or forced to emigrate because we only knew how to grow potatoes. That is sick.
@Cal Mooney: Don’t feed the troll Cal. Waste of time expecting this guy to open his mind.
@Cal Mooney: Cal spare me the fake sympathy. The Famine to you is just a piece of propaganda. A million innocent people died and you exploit their deaths for your own selfish reasons to satisfy your own hate .
@European Bob: you defend the PIRA that in the early 70s attempted to bomb trains carrying Irish people to and from the north . Just out of interest if the security forces in NI failed to prevent the bombing of a train resulting in the loss of life from the Republic what would you view be of PIRA .
@Cal Mooney: as I said already, you need to learn Irish history, not just the titbits that suits your agenda.
@Liam Mernagh: OK enlightened one, what happened in response to the Boundary commissions report. Please tell everyone.
@Paul Smith: there was no famine in Ireland. In fact we produced more food than the population would have been capable of eating. It was stolen at gunpoint by British soldiers. It was genocide by forced starvation.
@Cal Mooney: if DeValera & his cohorts had accepted the democratic vote in Dáil Éireann regarding the treaty instead of starting a civil war, the question of the boundary would have been resolved in a different manner, as for enlightenment go back to school.
@Liam Mernagh: Funny you should say that the civil war put an end to the Boundary commission. The commission wasn’t killed off until 1926 when FFG agreed to give up Derry, Newry and other large Nationalist town’s in exchange for money.
Rte will rewrite it saying they only won because they didnt believe in violence,they loved the British monarchy & it was a Catholic conspiracy to take us out of the union
Important to mention the leader of SF in 1918 was Eammon DeValera…Several years later he split with SF over recognition of free state parliament….SF did not recognise and take seats in the Dail till 1996….Could say FF are more the secessor of SF in 1918 than any other party….
@iComment: That should be SF first entered Dail and took their Dail seats in 1986…60 years after split from FF on the issue….
@iComment: FF swore the Oath to the British crown when they took their seats in Free Statement parliament. FF and with De Valera as Taoiseach had many Irish republicans executed, and collaborated with the British government to do so.
There is only one SF and “successor” to SF and that is….SF
FF are as much successors as the DUP are.
@Odran Seán Ó Corcráin: To be fair to the DUP, they are willing to take a major impact to their vote and status over Brexit. We don’t agree with them, but that is their partys consistent stance. FF have never and will never do what they promise. They are the slogan party without substance. WB Yeats referred to their ilk a decade before they were founded when he put pen to ink and added the line in the poem September 1913 .. Was it for this the wild geese spread their wings. And specifically foretold FF and FG members fumbling in their greasy tills.
@Odran Seán Ó Corcráin: er… FF and FG are the only successors to SF in 1918. The same way that the Irish army are the *only* successors to the IRA of this time. They even priced it in court after the “new SF/IRA” tried to get access to the pensions of the true patriots. Amazing how many people claiming to base their politics in Ireland 100 years ago, know zilch about our history and get offended by verifiable facts.
@iComment: another ffr who would like to write history to suit the agenda; not possible!
@Gulliver Foyle: Exactly
@Gulliver Foyle: SF is SF. Neither FF or FG have the right to claim to come from the same legitimate and unbroken lineage as SF, FG are not Cumann na nGaedheal, and FF took the Oath, seized money and pensions from SF for their own gain, ans had many Irish Republicans executed in collaboration with British security forces.
About the court case you mentioned, De Valera had the judiciary for that case bought and sold, so he controlled them and the result. Once he seized those funds he embezzled all of it to create the Irish Press which became the mouthpiece for him and FF.
Well at least that’s unlikely to happen again.
@Paul Corcoran: In a United Ireland it’s possible that SF will be the largest party on the islsnd. So not that unlikely at all considering a United Ireland is inevitable.
@European Bob: I hope not.
@Chin Feeyin: Thankfully, you’re in the minority
It’s taking a risk. A risk that RTÉ will confirm that they are the biggest turd peddlers known to mankind. This idiotic format was dragged out in 1969 by them to commemorate 1916 for Jaysus sake. What a compete bunch of knobs.
They might have SWEPT in then but, the Shirkers should be BRUSHED out now.
Only sit in Southern Ireland and won’t take Seats in British Parliament to vote in critical debate which could be a disaster for the Whole of Ireland. SAD
@James Keogh: It’s sad that people are still clueless about Sinn Féin impact on Brexit. May needs between eighty and a hundred votes, Sinn Féin have seven. Many Tories would also refuse to vote with Sinn Féin making things worse. Anyway what this has to do with 1918 is beyond me. Go comment on a relevant thread.
Original SF and all others are splitters who were allowed to make political choices & conscientious objections until Martin & Mc Donald facism came about.
A sad day in many way, as it led directly to the sectarian religious based division of Ireland and this has only happen in two further occasions, in the Indian subcontinent continent and Palestine in 1948. All three sectarian divisions rumble on to various degrees at different levels at different times.
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