Fianna Eireann was a success

By AM Thursday, June 6, 2013

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Guest writer Padraig O'Deorain with his thoughts on Na Fianna Eireann.

Mol an oige agus tiocfaidh sí.
Praise the youth and they will blossom.

In terms of impact on the struggle for freedom, few organisations can claim a similar level of success as na Fianna Eireann. Since it's inception in 1909, volunteers in the Fianna have been involved in some of the most formative actions of key periods over the past century. The level of activity of the Fianna itself between 1909 and 1914, in fact, was one of the main factors behind the creation of the Irish Volunteers, and later on the Irish Republican Army.

For the most part, the Fianna Eireann was a success in its most basic aim. Volunteers learned about Irish history, Irish culture and were expected to learn their own language. They were given a level of self respect, but were also taught how to treat others properly through the Fianna code. Volunteers in the Fianna often led the line in the fight against the British. During the Easter Rising, they were brave enough to stand shoulder to shoulder with the men of the ICA and the Volunteers, and the women of the cumann na mbhan. In 1919, the first RIC officer to be killed, arguably, in the War of Independence, died at the hands of a young Fian and his hurl. In 1969, Fian Gerard McCauley was murdered by Loyalists attempting to help his neighbours flee as Bombay street was burnt to the ground. Many more fianna have perished at the hands of the British State in Ireland.

Many of the exploits of the Fianna have passed into folklore. In 1914, the Fianna, using hand carts, managed to spirit away the guns landed at Howth, an incident now immortalised in Irish history. The bravery of the volunteers of the Fianna in 1916 will forever be remembered. During the war of Independence, two companies of the Dublin Brigade of the IRA were stood down and replaced with Fianna units, more active and better organised than the men of the IRA. On a few occasions too, the Fianna has been better armed than local IRA units, much to the chagrin of the local volunteers!

Na Fianna Eireann was the starting point for many men who went on to become leading IRA men. However, as part of the gradual wind down of the Armed Struggle in the late 80's, it was decided by the powers that were that the Fianna had served it's purpose. The leadership of the Fianna, as was their prerogative, decided otherwise, but the vast majority of the Fianna left to join Ogra Sinn Fein, the new political youth wing of SF at the time. But had na Fianna Eireann served it's purpose?

Today, we have seen a moral collapse in Irish society, especially within the youth section of our society. Drugs, often stigmatised and shunned by the community, have become something of a status symbol, or a fashionable accessory. Ever increasingly, any distinguishable Irish feature of our communities is being swallowed by the ever growing monster that is globalism, as our streets begin to resemble inner city London. The promise of a bright future made, brashly, in 1998, rings hollow as unemployment and listlessness leave Irish youth in a constant state of flux. Fortunately, we are fairly insulated here in Belfast, the city were the Fianna was born. In cities like Dublin and Limerick are suffering under the weight of this moral malaise . This is the failing of the Irish Republican movement.

We, as Irish Republicans, have the tools and the vehicles there to give back to the Irish youth a sense of purpose and a sense of pride. The ideals and rules that Fianna were given in their handbook taught not only Irish history, but also essential life skills that the state schools failed to provide them. There is a certain level of detachment from Irish identity existing within Irish youth today. Republicans need to address this and fast, because the next generation of Irish Republicans are to be found among them. So we must ask ourselves once more, has na Fianna Eireann served its purpose?

The old Irish proverb says it best. Mol an oige agus Tiocfiadh sí.