New book investigates parallel remembrance of Easter Rising and Battle of the Somme

A new book charting the relationship between the memory of the Easter Rising and the Battle of the Somme has been jointly edited by academics from Goldsmiths, University of London and Queen’s University Belfast.

The work explores the two events which took place in 1916 – and which would profoundly shape both politics and commemoration in Ireland over the course of the following century.

'Remembering 1916: The Easter Rising, The Somme and the Politics of Memory in Ireland', edited by Professor Richard Grayson from Goldsmiths and Fearghal McGarry from Queen’s University Belfast, published by Cambridge University Press, is the first detailed study to explore the impact of both events together.

The title acknowledges that although the Easter Rising and the Battle of the Somme were important historical events in their own right, their significance also lay in how they came to be understood as iconic moments in the emergence of Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic.

It also considers how the Rising and the Somme have functioned as foundational myths for Republicanism and Nationalism and how their legacy has evolved over time.

Professor Grayson, from the Department of History at Goldsmiths, said: "The Easter Rising and the first day of the Battle of the Somme were part of two very different conflicts, the First World War and Ireland's struggle for independence. 

“However, they are inextricably linked because of the roles they played in the foundation stories of the two states on the island of Ireland. As such, their commemorations in 2016 are inseparable, and will play a crucial role in the development of relations between the two.”

Dr Fearghal McGarry from the School of History and Anthropology at Queen’s University Belfast, said: “We have analysed how the Rising and the Somme have functioned as foundational myths for Republicanism and Unionism.

"Our aim is not merely to understand how they came to exert a central place in how the past is viewed in Ireland. We are also exploring wider questions about the relationship between history, commemoration and memory.”

Adopting an interdisciplinary approach drawing on history, politics, anthropology and cultural studies, an international array of contributors explore how the memory of these two foundational events has been constructed, mythologised and revised over the course of the past century.

The book offers a unique comparative study of parallel remembrance of the Easter Rising and the Battle of the Somme.