Saor Éire facts for kids

Saor Éire (pronounced "Seer Air-uh"), which means 'Free Ireland', was a political group formed in September 1931. It was created by members of the Irish Republican Army (IRA) who believed in communist ideas. The leaders of the IRA supported its creation. A key founder was Peadar O'Donnell, who was a well-known left-wing figure in the IRA and editor of a newspaper called An Phoblacht. Saor Éire said it was an organization for "workers and working farmers."

Some people believe that Moss (Maurice) Twomey, who was the IRA chief at the time, helped a lot in setting up the group. However, others say he was unsure about it. He worried about the group getting involved in elections and being too influenced by communist ideas.

While it existed, Saor Éire used the republican newspaper An Phoblacht to share its news. Frank Ryan was the editor of the paper at that time. The group used the paper to promote its left-wing republican views.

History of Saor Éire

Saor Éire held its first big meeting in Dublin on September 26-27, 1931. About 150 people from both the Irish Free State and Northern Ireland attended. This meeting happened even though police were raiding homes and offices connected to Saor Éire. Seán Hayes was the chairman, and David Fitzgerald was the secretary.

The group was formed by a socialist part of the IRA in the late 1920s and 1930s. They based their ideas on the writings of James Connolly and Liam Mellows.

The conference chose a group of leaders, including Seán Hayes, David Fitzgerald, Sean McGuinness, Helena Molony, Sheila Dowling, Sheila Humphreys, Seán MacBride, Peadar O'Donnell, George Gilmore, and Frank Ryan.

The group's rules explained its goals, which had two main parts. The first part was about organizing people and spreading their message. They wanted to create a strong group to resist those they saw as "oppressors." This would involve daily actions against things like high rents, evictions, and low wages. They believed this challenge would lead to power moving from the "imperialists" (like the British) to the ordinary people. The second part was about keeping that power. This meant organizing the economy and creating a republic run by workers and farmers.

Saor Éire followed the ideas of Irish socialist republicanism, which were developed by James Connolly and Peadar O'Donnell. Because Peadar O'Donnell had a big influence, Saor Éire strongly supported bringing back Irish language and culture. They also wanted poorer people in the countryside to be involved in any fight against Irish businesses and British rule.

Seán MacBride described the group's launch like this:

Saor Éire was founded to organize and strengthen the Republic of Ireland. This would be based on workers and farmers owning and managing the land, factories, and ways of buying and selling goods. It also aimed to bring back and support the Irish language and culture. They planned to achieve this by forming action groups among workers and farmers. These groups would lead daily struggles for the working class and farmers. They would also gather many Irish people to support a revolutionary government. This government would overthrow British rule in Ireland and create a Republic for Workers and Farmers.

Newspapers that supported center-right views and the Catholic Church criticized Saor Éire. They called it a dangerous communist group. The government of the Irish Free State quickly banned it. The strong opposition against the group stopped it from becoming a powerful political organization. Peadar O'Donnell and his supporters tried a similar idea two years later when they started the Republican Congress in 1933.

What Saor Éire Wanted to Achieve

The group's rules listed its main goals:

• To create an independent revolutionary leadership for workers and farmers. This leadership would aim to overthrow British rule and its partner, Irish capitalism.
• To organize and strengthen the Republic of Ireland. This would be based on workers and farmers owning and managing the land, factories, and ways of buying and selling goods.
• To bring back and support the Irish language, culture, and traditional games.

See also

• Republican Congress
• Connolly Column