Scottish Irish and Welsh Nationalism - Assignment Example

Running Head: Nationalism Nationalism of Nationalism The definition of nationalism has haunted researchers since the nineteenth century. It is an ever changing subject that cannot be pinned down within one nation or person. Nationalism roughly refers to the sense of pride and caring which a people share for the particular culture, language, and history within a specific geographical area. The people see themselves as a nation with specific characteristics that form its identity. This paper studies the similarities and differences between Irish, Scottish and Welsh nationalism. Nationalism arose in the nineteenth century in Europe because of several influences. During the Enlightenment, many intellectuals discussed the idea of individualism versus the group. This view of the world which was constructed stated that individuals belonged to nations or groups. This provided an identity for individuals within groups. The print media was crucial in the development of nationalism as it allowed people to imagine themselves as being part of a larger group. These ideas led to the growth of modernization of society and its industrialization. Many people migrated to cities which increased the middle class and literacy rates. The rise of these intellectual and economic preconditions created a healthy environment for nationalism to spread. Nationalist development was characterized by the establishment of upper middle class elite who began to push for having their groups recognized as separate entities. Scotland was home to many Enlightenment thinkers and ideas which had generated nationalism. The Scottish people had a long established awareness of their difference from other groups like the English and Welsh (Craig 14, 1989). After 1707, England and Scotland were forged into one government which allowed separate cultural establishments. The loss of self determination created a push for Scottish character and identity. The characteristics which were held to be part of the Scottish identity were preserved in Scottish institutions. There were cultural traditions, church, laws and education system. The nineteenth century witnessed push for small political reforms with the works of people like Sir Walter Scott. However Scottish nationalism was weak and did not have a potent national voice. Scotland had no grievances against the English. Nationalism was not a strong force in Scotland simply because society had been weakened with the right and left divided. The leadership and ideology were not present to give nationalism popular demands (Bruce 52, 1985).The revival of the Romantic Movement and demand for Home rule were not in any way remarkable to that of nationalism. Nationalism was not seen as a strong force because of the effects of industrialization, urbanization and Empire. Scotland was able to develop its trade and modernize society by joining with England. It was able to improve its own economic position. Scotland was on the way to becoming a strong industrial country. This led to a suspension of Scottish political nationalism. The middle class has economic prosperity which prevented them from seeking nationalist claims. Scottish society was allowing the increased participation of different sections. The institutions which had been the guardians of Scottish culture were finding it difficult to adopt to the strains of modernization and industrialization (Cusick 36, 1994). The new middle class was becoming increasingly critical of institutions. They viewed these institutions as preserving the status quo of the old middle class backed by the aristocracy. This sense of power and ability to condemn existing social conditions was because of economic prosperity. Industrialization helped to curb the appeal of nationalism to the Scottish middle class. The middle class was not interested in nationalism as they were satisfied with their economic gains. They were able to turn away from the traditional symbols of Scottish nationalism which prevented nationalism from flourishing. The process of modernization led to the development of two distinct Scotlands. One was the pre modern Scotland and the other was the newly industrialized Scotland. Nationalism also was weak because the middle class was satisfied with the Union when the Reform Bill of 1832 was passed. After the bill, all middle class white males were given the right to vote (Harvie 52, 1994).The expansion of the vote provided a larger representation within parliament. This gave Scotland the sense of duty, power and freedom with assimilation. This allowed the middle class to demand more access to aristocratic privileges. They wanted to abolish the old institutions and patronage. They wanted to become prominent members of society with the ability to express their opinions. As these demands were met, the institutions were subordinated to British issues. Assimilation with England helped to tear down the old bastions of Scottish identity. Most middle class Scots supported the Liberal party which helped to encourage the deflection of nationalism. By addressing the issues of the middle class, they were satisfied with the Union (Harvie 55, 1994). They had no desire to separate Scotland or to create political nationalism. Welsh nationalism has been a political and cultural mvoement that has sought independence from the United Kingdom. The French revolution influenced a small minority of Welsh people who sympathsized with revolutionary ideas. The rapid rise of industrialization in parts of Wales created powerful and radical working class movements which led to several uprisings in the ninteenth century. The growth of radicalism and politicization of Welsh life did not witness any successful attempt to establish a separate poltiical platform for achieving Welsh nationalism. However there were calls for the extension of the franchise and support of Welsh nonconfirmity (Morgan 62, 1971). The majority of the people of Wales were nto concerned with independence or self government. They wanted to break links with the Church of England. However this non political nationalism was strong enough to establish national institutions like the University of Wales and National Museum of Wales. Michael D. Jones and Emrys ap Iwan had a deep influence on Welsh nationalism. They were also inspired by Irish nationalism as they saw Wales different from England with its own language and nonconformist form of Christianity (Williams 34, 1996). Welsh nationalism was also characterized by a belief that moral or normative principle about Wales. It was the source of the concept of the nation state which demanded that governments correspond to nations and justify states. Welsh nationalism sought to unify its people across borders or solidify the divisions between populations of countries. It provided the basis for the formation of Welsh society in the ninteenth century. Irish nationalism was a movement which sought to create a unified political and social order for Irish based on a common Irish culture, language and sense of pride. It referred to a desire for greater autonomy or independence of Ireland from Great Britain. Ireland remained under the control or influence of Britain for many centuries. The 1790s witnessed the beginning of democratic aspirations by the Society of United Irishmen. A bloody rebellion in 1798 was ruthlessly crushed by the British government. The ninteenth century gave rise to Irish Republicanism which called for the use of armed struggle to create a secular and egalitarian Irish republic. The other moderate form of nationalism called for non violent means to achieve concessions from the British government. The Catholic Church in Ireland represented the more moderate form of nationalism. It opposed the repunlican separatism because of its violent methods and secular ideology (Cronin 48, 1980). The late ninteenth century Irish nationalism become the dominant ideology of Ireland as a major parliamentary party was present in the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The Irish Republic Brotherhood or Fenians was also formed as militant Irish republican movements. The Great Famine of 1845-49 caused bitterness among Irish people as they believed that British government had failed to avert the deaths of up to a million people. Social issues were raised by the Irish nationalists especially on the question of land reforms. Many people began to agitate for the rights of tenants in Ireland (Delanty 78, 1998). Militant Irish nationalism was characterized by linking social issues with Irish self government. Irish nationalism was characterized by the creation of a broad intellectual movement which called for the Celtic Revival in the late nineteenth century. It attempted to promote Gaelic football and handball at the expense of English sports like cricket and football. Irish nationalism was politically organized as witnessed by the growth of several organizations. There were moderate factions which advocated the use of non violence means to accomplish social reforms. Militant organizations like the Fenians called for the establishment of an Irish state which was secular and egalitarian. They believed in the use of force to achieve their goals of self government or independence. Several uprisings were launched in the nineteenth centuries which were all crushed by the British government (Delanty 78, 1998). This did not end Irish nationalism as it only served to radicalize the moderate sections of society. The reasons for the presence of a strong Irish nationalist movement was the historical grievances towards Britain. Ireland had been under the influence of Britian for a long time with its political, economic and social systems remaining backward. The Irish famine in the mid nineteenth centuries was one of the natural disasters which further created a hatred of the British rulers. Irish nationalists in the late ninteenth century called for Home Rule which was a form of self government within the British Empire. However World War I would disrupt efforts to impose Home Rule. The aftermath of World War I witnessed a struggle by the Irish Republican Army against the British (Delanty 78, 1998). Scottish, Irish and Welsh nationalist movements have been characterized by an identity with a common language, culture, religion, social habits within their geographical areas. They have demanded political freedom or self government within the British government. Nationalism in these countries was influenced by the events of the French Revolution. The revolution created the concept of nationalism as a group of people living within a geographical area with a shared language, culture, religion and social customs. The national movements in the three countries took hold of urban societies as people began to transfer their allegiance to the country and placed national interests above all considerations. It provided the people with a sense of belonging and power as well as a connection to the state without the use of a singular representative like a king. Nationalist movements were similar as they were associated with liberal ideas, urban workers and memebrs of the middle class having the potential to establish a republicanized country. Nationalist movements were pitted against democratic and revolutionary concepts. The Enlightment played an important role in influencing the nationalist movements in Scotland, Wales and Ireland. Thjese values challenged the fundamental and practical principles of the monarchy. There were other similiarities between the three national movements as each was characterized by new ideas and writings created by citizens. Nationalists in the three countries also called for political concessions, constitutional reforms and autonomy. Nationalism in Scotland, Ireland and Wales also faced stiff opposition from the colonial authorities and conservative factions. However there were many important differences between the three nationalist movements. Nationalism in Scotland was a weak force and not politically organized as compared with Irish and Welsh nationalism. Irish nationalism was the most politically organized as evidence by the history of their nationalist movements. The Irish also used force extensively to support the idea of an independent Ireland. Many militant Irish adopted an anti British stance which helped to draw many recruits for their cause. The Irish were also the most successful of the nationalist movements as they achieved as form of independence after World War I. Irish nationalists were divided into republicans and moderates. The republicans called for the use of armed struggle to create a secular and progressive Irish state. The moderates called for political concessions without the use of force. Welsh nationalists were better organized than the Scottish nationalists but they were not concerned with self rule or independence. They sought to rid themselves of the Church of England. They wanted an independent and nonconformist practice of Christianity. A few uprisings launched by the Welsh were brutally crushed. They did not make any attempts to create an independent Welsh state. The upper middle class in Scotland were not concerned with nationalism as assimilation with England brought economic benefit for them. They were highly critical of the traditional Scottish institutions like the church and laws which supported Scottish nationalism. Economic prosperity and increased political participation was considered more beneficial for the Scottish as compared with nationalism. References: Beveridge, Craig & Ronald Turnbull. The Eclipse of Scottish Culture. Edinburgh: Polygon, 1989. Bruce, Steve. No Pope of Rome; Anti-Catholicism in Modern Scotland. Edinburgh: Mainstream Publishing Company, 1985. Cusick, Linda. "Scottish Inferiority." Scottish Affairs, no. 9, Autumn 1994, pp.143-70. Devine, T.M. The Scottish Nation: A History 1700-2000. New York: Penguin, 1999. Harvie, Christopher. Scotland and Nationalism: Scottish Society and Politics 1707-1977. London: Routledge, 1994. Morgan, K. O. (1971), Radicalism and nationalism. In A. J. Roderick (Ed.), Wales through the ages. Vol II: Modern Wales. Llandybïe: Christopher Davies (Publishers) Ltd. Williams, G. A, When Was Wales?: A History of the Welsh. London. Black Raven Press, 1996 Cronin, Sean. Irish Nationalism: A History of Its Roots and Ideology. Dublin: Academy Press, 1980. Delanty, Patrick OMahony and Gerald. Rethinking Irish History: Nationalism, Identity and Ideology. New York: St. Martins Press, 1998 Read More