An anarchist look at the ideas of James Connolly - the single most important figure in the history of the Irish left

andrew
Sun, 17 Oct 2004 15:36:52 +0000
1913, 1916, Anarchists, James Connolly, Republicanism, Syndicalism, History, The Left, National, Magazine, Analysis, Oisin Mac Giollamoir

James Connolly is probably the single most important figure in the history of the Irish left. He was an organiser in the IWW in the USA but in Ireland is best known for his role in building the syndicalist phase of Irish union movement and for involving the armed defence body of that union, the Irish Citizens' Army in the 1916 nationalist insurrection. This left a legacy claimed at one time or another not only by all the Irish left parties but also by the nationalists of Fianna Fail and Sinn Fein. In this article I will attempt to look at the long neglected anarchistic aspects of Connolly's thought and ask the question was Connolly a libertarian?