Secret societies have had a greater impact on the history of Ireland than on that of any other country in Western Europe. The Whiteboys, Defenders, Ribbonmen and other oath-bound bodies of peasants who congregated by moonlight in secluded spots to terrorize the surrounding countryside: the politically motivated United Irishmen; the Fenian Brotherhood and the IRB (in America as well as Ireland); the ultra-extremist Invincibles; the post-treaty IRA- organizations such as these have become part of the national folklore, and their leaders are legendary figures. This book sheds new light on the mysterious origins of the societies and describes exactly how they were organized, how they operated, and to what extent they influenced their contemporaries. They also deal with important semi-secret organizations: the Orange Order in the numerous phases of its existence, the Freemasons, and the various radical movements of the inter-war years. Also discussed is the attitude of the church towards secret societies and also the counter-intelligence work of the Dublin Castle authorities and G Division. This book is the first to provide a comprehensive investigation of the internal affairs of Irish secret societies and an assessment of their role in the country's political and social development. In tracing the 200-year-old tradition of subversive activity, it reveals an entirely new 'hidden Ireland'- a submerged political culture embodying the secret aspirations of the Irish people. -- Publisher description.

This Is A New Release Of The Original 1922 Edition.

Excerpt from The Secret Societies of Ireland: Their Rise and Progress For the purposes of this book I have undertaken a considerable amount of research, and have read all the existing books, pamphlets and contemporary journals, germane to the subject, upon which I could lay my hands. In most cases I have indicated, either in foot-notes or in the text, the sources of information quoted. Most of these sources are available in the libraries either of Dublin Castle, the Irish Office, or the British Museum. In all cases where statements of fact appear which are not referred to published books or documents, they have been gleaned from papers which came into the possession of the authorities after raids, etc., or are from confidential official sources. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

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