Written by Peter Bingle, Chairman, Bell Pottinger Public Affairs
If anybody doubted the power of symbolism or the magic of monarchy then the Queen’s visit to Eire will have made them have a rethink. In a four day visit the scars of the past have finally been healed for most Irish men and women. It was all rather like the moment in Wagner’s last opera when Parsifal uses the spear that pierced Christ on the cross to heal Amfortas’s open wound. The visit was a triumph. The words spoken by Her Majesty were clearly influenced by David Cameron but the key factor was the open warmth between Her Majesty and the Irish President. Her Majesty was having a real craic and why not?
As a child I was taught many songs by my mother and grandmother. One of my favourites was “Off to Dublin In The Green” and it was often sung at home. It was only many years later that I came to recognise the significance of the refrain:
“And we're all off to Dublin in the green, in the green
Where the helmets glisten in the sun
Where the bayonets flash and the rifles crash
To the rattle of a Thompson gun.”
Like many Anglo-Irish kids of my generation I was blissfully unaware at that time of the troubled history between our two countries. Every year I would spend a month in Eire. A week in Cork City. Another in Crosshaven. And finally two weeks in Rathmore in County Kerry. It will come as no surprise that I kissed the Blarney Stone more times than I can care to remember.
It was only later that I came to be aware of the troubles. The uprisings in Cork and Dublin. My grandfather was involved in the former. The Civil War. The shooting of Michael Collins. The dreaded Black & Tans. Suddenly I started to realise that behind the smiles there was a great deal of simmering anger and resentment.
At school I was taught about the suppression of Ireland by Elizabeth I and Oliver Cromwell. We should all be ashamed of that legacy. Aspects of it are unfortunately still alive today. More recently, the decision to create a Northern Irish state with an inbuilt Protestant majority added to a deeply felt feeling of resentment amongst the Catholic community.
The irony of course is that the Irish are amongst the happiest people in the world. They have an attitude to life and death which I find very appealing. As a teenager I attended a funeral in Cork. It was something of a surprise to see my deceased uncle in his coffin in the front room of his house. The coffin lid was off and we toasted him to the early hours. He seemed to be enjoying himself.
The recent election in Ireland once again prompted me to delve back into Irish history. The bravery of Michael Collins which cost him his life. The bitterness of the Civil War. The need for reconciliation …
After last week’s visit by Her Majesty there are now grounds for real optimism going forward. The unsung hero in all of this is the former Prime Minister Sir John Major. It was he more than anybody else who started the healing process between our two countries. Last week’s triumphant visit was the culmination of the work that he started all those years ago. He deserves huge praise for his foresight.
David Cameron also deserves praise. His handling of Lord Saville’s inquiry into Bloody Sunday was superb. You could sense his sentiments throughout last week’s four day visit. I hope he develops a really close relationship with the new Taoiseach Enda Kenny. It will be welcomed on both sides of the Irish Sea. Perhaps he will eventually turn his attention to reforming the Act of Succession, a piece of legislation which has no place in a modern, tolerant Britain.
The Irish play a hugely positive role in British society. After last week’s visit that role will hopefully grow still further. There is much more that unites us than separates us.
What was your view of Her Majesty’s visit to Eire? What more can be done to foster Anglo-Irish relations? Should the Act of Succession be reformed?
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