Laois

Cormac Moore

• Publisher: Four Courts Press
• Year: 2026
• Topic: History
• eBook ISBN:
  9781801512558
• Subtopic: 20th Century History
• Index: History

The turbulent revolutionary period in modern Irish history from 1912 to 1923 had a profound impact on the political, economic and social make-up of Laois. The issue of land that had dominated the landscape of Laois from the late nineteenth century onwards, continued to do so during the Irish revolutionary years, often intertwined with the major political developments of the era. Cormac Moore' s book explores how seismic national events from the Third Home Rule Crisis, through to the First World War, the 1916 Easter Rising, the War of Independence and the Civil War affected Laois. Moving beyond looking at the Irish Revolution just through the prism of political violence, the book shows how the independence movement in Laois played its part in contributing to the Revolution through the creation of Sinn Fé in' s counter-state, by taking control of local government and inaugurating republican courts. Given Laois' s central location, its extensive transport network was used either to curb the movement of troops and supplies or to gather intelligence that was used nationally. The frequently used tool of boycotting in Ireland was adopted extensively in Laois against members of the Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC), against traders conducting business with Belfast-based firms, and against loyalists, sometimes due to land disputes rather than for political reasons. The boycotting of loyalists intensified during the Truce period and the Civil War in Laois, with the latter conflict causing far more bloodshed in the county than had been experienced beforehand. Moore' s book provides a comprehensive extensively researched account of how the Irish Revolution impacted on all sections of Laois society at the time, with its effects reverberating for years after.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Also Available In This Series
• Title Page
• Copyrights
• Contents
• Illustrations
• Abbreviations
• Acknowledgments One
• Dedication
• Acknowledgments Two
• The Irish Revolution, 1912-23 series
• 1. County Laois in 1912
• 2. 'A seed which, once planted, would grow': the third home rule crisis, 1912-14
• 3. A detached sympathetic interest: the First World War, 1914-18
• 4. 'In all probability the first shot fired': the 1916 Easter Rising in Laois, 1915-16
• 5. 'To hell with England; to hell with its rotten Empire': the ride of Sinn Féin, 1917-18
• 6. The War of Independence in Laois, 1919-21
• 7. A year of uneasy peace: truce and Treaty, 1921-2
• 8. 'The war of brother against brother in Ireland has reached Leix': the Civil War, 1922-3
• 9. Laois in 1923
• Notes
• Select bibliography
• Index