'We are making history here today': Six remarkable women and the Treaty debate
Walshe/topical Images Campaign Agency/getty Press 1927) Countess (1868 Picture: Irish During Election Markiewicz The 1922 Constance Georgine
Dressed in black, one by one the six female TDs of the second Dáil stood up to denounce the Treaty.
But these women were not simply the grieving mothers, sisters and wives of the heroic dead that many of their male colleagues tried to paint them as. They were political forces in their own right, who had arrived at a strongly held position on the Treaty after careful consideration.
Neither could they be considered ordinary women, even if they liked to stress they were speaking on behalf of all the women of Ireland.
Of the six female TDs, Countess Markiewicz is undoubtedly the best-known. Her frequent heckling and interruptions during the many days of debate, not to mention her direct questioning of Éamon de Valera on why she was not among those sent to negotiate the deal, made her contributions memorable at the time.
However, the other five – Ada English, Kathleen Clarke, Mary MacSwiney, Kathleen O'Callaghan and Margaret Pearse – were also exceptional in their own right, the fact that they had been elected to Dáil Éireann alone proves this.
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"All the women, bar I would say Mrs Pearse, were actually highly educated relative to ordinary women – Ada English was a doctor, for example. They were highly ideological, they were political, they were active in the suffrage movements and in Cumann na mBan," gender and politics researcher Claire McGing said.
"None of them are working-class women, per se, they are middle-class republican, political, educated women," said Dr Mary McAuliffe, historian and director of the Gender Studies programme at UCD.
"They would have been the leaders in many of those movements. Most of them supported not just the Republican cause, but a lot of them had been engaged in campaigning for rights for women, particularly rights for women workers," she said, citing Markiewicz's involvement in the soup kitchens of the 1913 lockout.
Four of the six women had suffered deep personal loss.
Mary MacSwiney, a teacher, who spoke for almost three hours amid heckles and jeers from her male counterparts, had kept vigil by her brother Terence's side in Brixton Jail, where he eventually died on hunger strike.
Kathleen O'Callaghan, also a teacher, had lost her husband Michael, who had been lord mayor of Limerick. He had been shot dead at his home in March 1921, probably by members of the Black and Tans or Auxiliary Division of the RIC.
Kathleen Clarke used part of her speech to recount the last moments with her husband Thomas before he was shot for his role in the Easter Rising.
"Between 1 and 2 o'clock on the morning of May 3rd, I, a prisoner in Dublin Castle, was roused from my rest on the floor, and taken under armed escort to Kilmainham Jail to see my husband for the last time."
She went on to say this final encounter only cemented her view on the Treaty: "His head was up; his eyes flashing; his years seemed to have slipped from him; victory was in every line of him. 'Tell the Irish people,' he said, 'that I and my comrades believe we have saved the soul of Ireland. We believe she will never lie down again until she has gained absolute freedom.'
"Though sorrow was in my heart, I gloried in him, and I have gloried in the men who have carried on the fight since; every one of them," she told the Dáil.
Unlike the other women who sought to stress their position had been independently arrived at, Margaret Pearse, the mother of the two Pearse brothers, spoke almost solely on behalf of her dead sons during her speech. She also took aim at others who suggested they knew what the leaders of 1916 would have wanted.
"One deputy mentioned here about rattling the bones of the dead. Remember, the day will come — soon, I hope, Free State or otherwise — when those bones shall be lifted as if they were the bones of saints. We won't let them rattle. No! but we will hold what they upheld, and no matter what anyone says I feel that I and others here have a right to speak in the name of their dead," she told the Dáil.
Dr Ada English was an exception. As she said herself in her Dáil speech, she had "no dead men to throw in my teeth as a reason for holding the opinions I hold". But she went on to hit out at male TDs who assumed and suggested the female TDs had nothing to add beyond their family ties.
On this, Ms McGing said: "I would argue that the women had a very strong understanding of the Treaty. And in most cases, they pushed back on this narrative that they were only holding their opinions because of who their relatives were.
"There's no doubt about it, their personal stories were important, their linkages to these men were key, they definitely played on the mourning women narrative, but in actual fact those women had very strong opinions of their own."
This was echoed by Dr McAuliffe, who said they were speaking from a place of "both principle but also experience".
She pointed to Kathleen Clarke who lost her husband and brother, but who had been a political activist before the Rising.
"Certainly, after the Rising she was instrumental in reorganising and re-funding many of these revolutionary groups like the Irish Volunteers through the different funding organisations she was involved in, very much part of Cumman na mBan and what was going on then," she said.
The oath is an important thread which weaves through the speeches and is often a key reason cited for dismissing the Treaty.
"They gave their oath the proclamation of 1916 that is the Republic to which they swore allegiance and that is the oath that they would not break," said Dr McAuliffe.
The very fact that these women had to fight back against a narrative that they were overly emotional and and were not logical in a way that men could be logical, only bolstered the unwavering stance they took.
Dr English said her position had strengthened after listening to the many pro-Treaty speeches: "My position is not the same as when I came to Dublin. I came up opposed to the Treaty. I am 10 times more opposed to it since I have heard the speeches in favour of the Treaty in this Dáil."
While privileged in their backgrounds, the women, especially Markievicz, wanted to ensure the voices of all social classes were heard during the debate.
Equally, Dr English and Ms O'Callaghan made a point of referring back to the consultation they had with their own constituents and what the people they represented expected of them.
"The women themselves claim to know women of Ireland, it's a very prominent theme, to quote one of the: 'I know the hearts and souls of women in Ireland', and they claim to have known the woman voter," Ms McGing noted.
But it was perhaps Kathleen O'Callaghan who summed up the combined views of the six elected women, when in her closing remarks, she said: "We are making history here today, and our decision will have a far-reaching effect. If there is any deputy here who has not yet made up his mind, I would ask him for God's sake, before he does, to think well and stand for principle and against the Treaty."
Dr Ada English graduated from Royal University of Ireland in Dublin and was one of the earliest women at the school of medicine. Born in Kerry, she became interested in the Gaelic League after moving to Dublin and even became a fluent Irish speaker, attending Irish classes given by her friend Patrick Pearse.
Unlike many of the other women, she had not suffered direct family loss in the years leading up to the Treaty, and used her Dáil speech to lash out at those who claimed female politicians were simply led by their dead patriots.
"I have no dead men to throw in my teeth as a reason for holding the opinions I hold."
The oath was a major issue raised by her: "I have heard about oaths until my soul is sick of them, but if this Treaty were forced on us by England — as it is being forced — and that paragraph 4, the one with the oath in it were omitted, we could accept it under force; but certainly, while those oaths are in it, oaths in which we are asked to accept the king of England as head of the Irish State, and we are asked to accept the status of British citizens —British subjects — that we cannot accept. "
In parts, her contribution was witty, but backed up by a thoughtful, informed understanding: "For the last 700 centuries, roughly [laughter] — I mean seven centuries — time does seem to be long here [laughter]. However, for a jolly long time, anyway, Ireland has been fighting England and, as I understood it, the grounds of this fight always were that we denied the right of England's king to this country ["No! no!"]."
She also rejected claims the Treaty would deliver peace.
"The country wants peace and desires peace. So do we. We all want peace, but we want a peace which will be a real peace and a lasting peace and a peace based on honour and on friendship and a peace which we can keep, a peace that we can put our names to and stand by.
"Peace is a good thing, but in the days of the famine the people were also told that they should be peaceful and submissive and quiet, and accept what the English chose to give them — the rotten potatoes — and let the corn and food be exported out of the country. There were people then, republicans and revolutionists, who encouraged the people to fight for the country in spite of the men with the streak, and free themselves and keep the food in the country. But some of the influences that are working against the country to-day were working against it then and advised peace."
She ended by stating she had listened "most carefully and attentively to see if I could find any way in which I could reconcile my conscience to vote for the Treaty".
"My position is not the same as when I came to Dublin. I came up opposed to the Treaty. I am 10 times more opposed to it since I have heard the speeches in favour of the Treaty in this Dáil."
Known as the mother of the two 1916 leaders, Dubliner Margaret Pearse worked at a stationer's shop before marrying James Pearse, a monumental sculptor.
Following the execution of her two sons, she adopted their cause wholeheartedly and saw it as her purpose to perpetuate their memory.
She used much of her Dáil speech to speak on behalf of her two slain sons, claiming that if she accepted the Treaty "the ghosts of my sons would haunt me".
"It has been said here on several occasions that Pádraig Pearse would have accepted this Treaty. I deny it. As his mother, I deny it, and on his account I will not accept it. Neither would his brother Willie accept it, because his brother was part and parcel of him.
"I also wish to say another reason why I could not accept it is the reason of fear.
"From 1916 until we had the visits from the Black and Tans, I had comfortable, nice, happy nights and happy days because I knew my boys had done right, and I knew I had done right in giving them freely for their country; but when the Black and Tans came — then no nights, no days of rest had I. Always we had to be on the alert. But even the Black and Tans alone would not frighten me as much as if I accepted that Treaty; because I feel in my heart — and I would not say it only I feel it — that the ghosts of my sons would haunt me."'
Similar to some of the other women, the oath was a massive stumbling block for her and she told the Dáil she would see it as "perjury" to take the proposed oath to the king.
"An oath to me is a most sacred vow made in the presence of Almighty God to witness the truth, and the truth alone."
She relayed a conservation between a priest and her son in Kilmainham jail, just 20 minutes before his death, which she said "will let you know what he thought of a word of honour, much less an oath".
The priest told Pearse he could not deliver a note to his mother as he had given his word to take nothing out of the prison.
She told the Dáil that Pearse had then told the priest that if he had given his word of honour he shouldn't break it.
Mrs Pearce ended her speech, to applause, by stating: "Pádraig Pearse would not have accepted a Treaty like this with only two-thirds of his country in it. In the name of God, I will ask the men that have used Pádraig Pearse's name here again to use it in honour; to use it in truthfulness. One deputy mentioned here about rattling the bones of the dead. I only wish we could recall them. Remember, the day will come — soon, I hope, Free State or otherwise — when those bones shall be lifted as if they were the bones of saints. We won't let them rattle. No! but we will hold what they upheld, and no matter what anyone says I feel that I and others here have a right to speak in the name of their dead."
Kathleen, or Kate, O'Callaghan, was born Lissarda, Co Cork, and went on to become a teacher, having received a diploma in education from Cambridge University. In 1912, she moved to Limerick, where she succeeded her sister, Mary O'Donovan, as senior lecturer in education at Mary Immaculate College of Education. Two years later, she married Michael O'Callaghan, who served as mayor of Limerick in 1920. He was shot dead at his home in March 1921, probably by members of the Black and Tans or Auxiliary Division of the RIC.
She used her speech to stress that the elected women TDs were strong personalities in their own right and were not simply the widows, sisters and wives of patriots as had been suggested:
"When it was found that the women deputies of An Dáil were not open to canvass, the matter was dismissed with the remark: 'Oh, naturally, these women are very bitter.' Well, now, I protest against that. No woman in this Dáil is going to give her vote merely because she is warped by a deep personal loss."
She said she had been a separatist since girlhood and wanted to see an independent Ireland, outside the British empire.
"The women of Ireland so far have not appeared much on the political stage. That does not mean that they have no deep convictions about Ireland's status and freedom. It was the mother of the Pearses who made them what they were. The sister of Terence MacSwiney influenced her brother, and is now carrying on his life's work. Deputy Mrs Clarke, the widow of Tom Clarke, was bred in the Fenian household of her uncle, John Daly of Limerick. The women of An Dáil are women of character, and they will vote for principle, not for expediency.
"For myself, since girlhood I have been a separatist. I wanted, and I want, an independent Ireland, an Ireland independent of the British Empire, and I can assure you that my life in Limerick during 1920, culminating in the murder of my husband last March — my life and that event have not converted me to dominion status within the British Empire."
Addressing the many jeers that were hurled at the female TDs, she rejected any questioning of her "right to stand here and criticise and condemn this Treaty".
"I want it to be understood here and now that I have the clearest right in the world. I paid a big price for that Treaty and for my right to stand here."
Ending her contribution, she encouraged those who had yet to make up their minds to vote against the Treaty.
"We are making history here today, and our decision will have a far-reaching effect. If there is any deputy here who has not yet made up his mind, I would ask him for God's sake, before he does, to think well and stand for principle and against the Treaty."
Kathleen Clarke was a member of the Daly family, who were prominent Republicans from Limerick.
Educated locally, she started her own dressmaking business and by 1901 she was manager of a thriving dressmaking company in Limerick. She met Tom Clarke, a close friend of her uncle, in 1899, the couple married and travelled to America before returning to Ireland. She was a prominent member in the republican cause and attended the first meeting of Cumann na mBan.
While her speech was short compared to some of the other women, it was not lacking in impact.
She said the Treaty was a "simple question of right and wrong".
She told the Dáil she had listened carefully to all the arguments in favour of the Treaty "but the only thing I can say of them is: maybe there is something in them; I can't see it".
"If this Treaty is ratified, the result will be a divided people; the same old division will go on; those who will enter the British Empire and those who will not, and so England's old game of divide and conquer goes on."
The importance of the oath to the Irish Republic, to her was stressed as something that she could "never go back from" having taken it "solemnly, reverently, meaning every word".
"I heard big, strong, military men say here they would vote for this Treaty, which necessarily means taking an oath of allegiance, and I tell those men there is not power enough to force me, nor eloquence enough to influence me in the whole British Empire into taking that Oath, though I am only a frail scrap of humanity."
But it was perhaps the personal details of her final moments with her husband that was the most powerful point she made during her speech.
"I too can go back to 1916. Between 1 and 2 o'clock on the morning of May 3rd, I, a prisoner in Dublin Castle, was roused from my rest on the floor, and taken under armed escort to Kilmainham Jail to see my husband for the last time.
"I saw him, not alone, but surrounded by British soldiers. He informed me he was to be shot at dawn. Was he in despair like the man who spoke of him on Tuesday? Not he. His head was up; his eyes flashing; his years seemed to have slipped from him; victory was in every line of him. 'Tell the Irish people,' he said, 'that I and my comrades believe we have saved the soul of Ireland. We believe she will never lie down again until she has gained absolute freedom.' And, though sorrow was in my heart, I gloried in him, and I have gloried in the men who have carried on the fight since; every one of them.
"I believe that even if they take a wrong turn now they will be brave enough to turn back when they discover it. I have sorrow in my heart now, but I don't despair; I never shall. I still believe in them."
Mary MacSwiney, a teacher, is probably best known as the sister of Cork lord mayor Terence MacSwiney, however, she was a strong political force herself.
At two hours 40 minutes, her speech in the Dáil on December 21, 1921, was the longest during the Treaty debates and was viewed by many as a tirade against compromise.
She began by stating that many other deputies had told the Dáil they would try to keep their time as short as possible and she would also aim to do that.
But then immediately warned: "I am sorry that I cannot promise that it will be very short, for I rise to speak with the deepest and fullest sense of my responsibility, not only to those who sent me here, but to the whole Irish nation which now is to make a decision fateful — far more fateful than was the decision made in 1800, for with all the allusions made to Grattan's parliament, one thing has not been said: that is that it wasn't the parliament of the people."
When she finally sat down, Éamon de Valera said they would have to sit again the following night, before remarking: "We wish to try to have the debate ended before Christmas."
Limerick City TD Michael Colivet then asked if it was necessary for every member to make a speech, to which Arthur Griffith quickly remarked: "I feel that every member will not speak for three hours".
"The whole business was held up this evening by one member who spoke for two hours and 40 minutes. Any person in this assembly can express what he wishes to express in from 10 to 15 minutes," he added.
As for the substance of her speech, she picked up on a number of elements not touched upon by the other women TD, including the language being used to describe the deal.
"I have not got anybody to tell me whether this is a Treaty or whether it is articles of agreement. You call it a Treaty. Not a single official of the British government has called it a Treaty anyhow, but let that pass."
She also used her time to take aim at Lloyd George, who had promised that the army would withdraw if the Treaty was ratified.
"Now watch Lloyd George. He will take some watching. He is known in every chancellery in Europe as the most unscrupulous trickster that has ever occupied an honourable office. As far as we in Ireland are concerned, the office which he holds never has been an honourable office, but in his own country it is supposed to be so. And never has a more unscrupulous scoundrel sat in the seats of the mighty than Lloyd George. There is no government in Europe that trusts his word," she said.
Another theme touched upon was the fact the public were not fully aware of the deal presented.
"I know myself of several instances where people seeing the names of those signatories to that document threw up their hats in the air and cried, 'Hurrah, peace at last', without ever knowing that there was an oath to the English king in it."
Later in her speech she mentioned the mere fact that Michael Collins had backed the Treaty held major sway over people: "His name alone will make that thing acceptable to many people in this country, as he made it acceptable to many of the young men of this Dáil — 'What is good enough for Michael Collins is good enough for me'," she said, which sparked applause.
But there were then cries of "yes" and "no" when she went on to ask: "If Mick Collins went to hell in the morning, would you follow him there?"
Ending what can only be described as an epic saga of a speech to applause, she said: "I know the women of Ireland, and I know what they will say to the men that want to surrender, and therefore I beg of you to take the decision to throw out that Treaty.
"Register your votes against it, and do not commit the one unforgivable crime that has ever been committed by the representatives of the people of Ireland."
As one of the leaders of the Easter Rising, Constance Markievicz needs little introduction.
Describing it as a "Home Rule bll covered over with the sugar of a Treaty", she was vehement in her rejection of the proposals.
Her fiery spark was evident when she bluntly used her speech to ask Éamon de Valera why she had not been chosen to be part of the delegation that was sent over to hammer out an agreement.
In a statement that prompted laughter she said: "Now you all know me, you know that my people came over here in Henry VIII's time, and by that bad black drop of English blood in me I know the English — that's the truth. I say it is because of that black drop in me that I know the English personally, better perhaps than the people who went over on the delegation. Why didn't you send me?"
She stressed her distrust of the English and like some of her female colleagues, spoke out strongly against the oath.
Using a witty comparison to make her point, she said: "I say, what do Irishmen think in their own hearts? Can any Irishman take that oath honourably and then go back and prepare to fight for an Irish Republic or even to work for the Republic? It is like a person going to get married plotting a divorce.
"I would make a Treaty with England once Ireland was free, and I would stand with President de Valera in this, that if Ireland were a free Republic I would welcome the king of England over here on a visit. But while Ireland is not free I remain a rebel, unconverted and unconvertible."
It was clear her speech was well-researched, quoting from everything from a letter sent by Arthur Griffith to southern unionists, to speeches made in the House of Commons by Lloyd George and Winston Churchill.
She also took issue with the establishment and composition of a special agreement with southern unionists regarding the Seanad.
"That is one of the biggest blots on this Treaty; this deliberate attempt to set up a privileged class in this, what they call a Free State, that is not free.
"I would like the people here who represent the workers to take that into consideration — to say to themselves what can the working people expect in an Ireland that is being run by men who, at the time of the Treaty, are willing to guarantee this sort of privilege to a class that every thinking man and woman in Ireland despises."
Her final sentences were full of passion, which reading back, leaps from the page: "There is the other stony road that leads to ultimate freedom and the regeneration of Ireland; the road that so many of our heroes walked, and I, for one, will stand on the road with Terence MacSwiney and Kevin Barry and the men of Easter Week.
"I stand here today to make the last protest, for we only speak but once, and to ask you read most carefully, not to take everything for granted, and to realise above all that you strive for one thing, your allegiance to the men who have fought and died.
"Stand true to Ireland, stand true to your oaths, and put a little trust in God."