Aodh de Blácam facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Aodh de Blácam
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| Born | Harold Saunders Blackham 16 December 1891 London, England |
| Died | 16 January 1951 (aged 59) |
| Occupation | Author, journalist, and editor |
| Nationality | Irish |
| Literary movement | Irish nationalism |
| Notable works | The Ship That Sailed Too Soon and Other Stories |
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Harold Saunders Blackham (also known as Aodh Sandrach de Blácam) was an Irish writer, journalist, and editor. He was born in London, England, on December 16, 1891. He became a strong supporter of Irish nationalism in the 20th century. He was involved with political groups like Sinn Féin, Fianna Fáil, and Clann na Poblachta. He passed away on January 16, 1951.
Contents
About His Life
Growing Up
Harold Saunders Blackham was born in London, England. His father, William George Blackham, was a Protestant from Newry, Ulster. His mother was English. One of his uncles, Robert J. Blackham, was a top doctor in the British Army in Ireland.
Harold's family was very religious. He was taught to believe the Bible literally. But when he realized his school teachers didn't, it caused him some confusion. He also found it hard to become an adult, especially after his father died young.
For a while, Harold was interested in socialist ideas. This was partly due to the influence of Robert Wilson Lynd. However, he later learned that his father had supported Irish home rule and had some republican sympathies. This discovery led Harold to become interested in Irish Nationalism.
Becoming an Irish Nationalist
While living in London, de Blácam joined the Gaelic League. This group worked to promote the Irish language and culture. He changed his name to Aodh Sandrach de Blácam (or Hugh de Blácam). He learned Irish from Robert Wilson Lynd.
During this time, de Blácam wanted to connect with his Irish roots. He was also influenced by the Catholic writer G. K. Chesterton. This influence helped him decide to become Catholic. Many Protestant Irish Nationalists also converted to Catholicism in the early 1900s. Another reason for his conversion was his wish to marry Mary McCarville, who was Catholic. She was from County Monaghan.
In May 1914, de Blácam moved back to Ireland. He started working as a freelance journalist. In 1915, he joined the Enniscorthy Echo newspaper.
Writing for Ireland
During the Irish War of Independence, he wrote articles to support the Irish cause. He worked with Arthur Griffith and Herbert Moore Pim. In 1919, the British government held him as a prisoner. While imprisoned, de Blácam wrote two political books. These books were Towards the Republic (1919) and What Sinn Féin stands for (1921).
De Blácam did not support the Anglo-Irish Treaty. This treaty created the Irish Free State. He then helped the Anti-Treaty IRA during the Irish Civil War. Because of this, the new Irish Free State government imprisoned him in 1922.
After he was released, de Blácam continued to support Éamon de Valera. He joined de Valera's new party, Fianna Fáil. De Blácam believed that de Valera's ideas matched his own political beliefs.
In the 1920s, de Blácam worked for The Irish Times. He later left to become the editor of the Catholic Standard. For 17 years, he wrote a popular column called "Roddy the Rover" in the Irish Press. This newspaper was linked to Fianna Fáil.
De Blácam moved to Dublin in the 1920s. There, he met famous writers like George Bernard Shaw, George Russell, and W. B. Yeats. De Blácam hoped they would become Catholic, but they did not.
In 1938, de Blácam published a book called The Black North. Éamon de Valera wrote the introduction for it. In the book, de Blácam suggested that Protestants in Ulster were actually Irish and Catholic in spirit, even if they didn't realize it.
De Blácam was very concerned about people leaving rural areas. He wanted to stop this and supported ideas like economic autarky (a country being self-sufficient) and cultural protection. He believed these would help keep people in rural Ireland.
He was a member of the Fianna Fáil executive committee until 1947. Then, he joined a new party called Clann na Poblachta. Because of this move, he was fired from the Irish Press. He ran for election in 1948 but was not elected.
When Clann na Poblachta was in government for a short time, de Blácam worked for the Department of Health. He also wrote speeches for the Minister for Health, Noel Browne.
De Blácam died on January 16, 1951, while working. Many important people, including Taoiseach John A. Costello and former Taoiseach Éamon de Valera, attended his funeral. He was buried in New Mellifont Abbey, County Louth.
His Political Ideas
De Blácam was interested in socialist ideas early in his life. After becoming Catholic, he believed that Ireland's social problems could be solved using ideas from the papal encyclical Rerum novarum. This is a letter from the Pope about social issues.
In the 1920s, de Blácam praised Benito Mussolini, a leader in Italy. He saw Mussolini as someone who could bring national renewal. However, he felt Mussolini was not Catholic enough. In the 1930s, de Blácam often wrote in support of certain governments in Europe. He defended leaders like Engelbert Dollfuss in Austria and António de Oliveira Salazar in Portugal. He believed they upheld Catholic social teachings.
During the Spanish Civil War, de Blácam strongly supported the Nationalist side. He worked with Cardinal Joseph MacRory to help Franco's forces. He also organized a boycott of publications that supported the other side. He was surprised to find that some of his Irish Republican friends supported the Spanish Republicans.
What People Said About Him
The journalist Michael Joseph McManus described de Blácam as a very talented person. He said:
Of the men and women with whom I have had an intimate acquaintance none had such a varied or striking array of talents as Aodh de Blacam. He was historian, novelist, playwright and poet.... As a journalist, he was the most versatile I have ever known and the most industrious. Only the most fluent of pens could have achieved his output which at times was breath-taking.
However, historian Patrick Maume had a different view. He said de Blácam was sincere in his beliefs. But he felt that de Blácam's vision of Ireland was not realistic.
His Family Life
De Blácam married Mary McCarville, who was from County Monaghan. They had two sons. One of his wife's brothers, Patrick MacCarvill, was involved in the War of Independence and was a politician for Fianna Fáil.
