This ground-breaking book reveals the fascinating and pioneering life of Eva Gore-Booth
- The first dedicated biography of the Irish poet and radical political activist Eva Gore-Booth (1870-1926)
- A significant contribution to the history of Anglo-Irish politics; social justice campaigns; women’s suffrage, trade union movements and the establishment of the British Labour Party
- Reveals Gore-Booth’s instrumental role in forcing Winston Churchill out of his Manchester constituency
- Provides a new insight into the early political career of Gore-Booth’s sister, the iconic Irish nationalist, Countess Markievicz
- Timely publication covering key issues nearing centenary commemorations including, the Dublin Lockout, World War One, the sinking of the Lusitania, the Easter Rising, first votes for women and the Irish War of Independence.
Eva Gore-Booth’s life story is at last
being told in this landmark book, Eva
Gore-Booth: An Image of Such Politics. Gore-Booth was a prolific and
vibrant writer who enjoyed a place within W.B. Yeats’ literary circle. She dramatically
rejected her aristocratic heritage in the West of Ireland leaving her ancestral
home of Lissadell House. She crossed class boundaries moving to the industrial
quarters of smog bound Manchester where she lived and worked amongst the
poorest classes.
The story of Gore-Booth’s life is
captivating and provides new insights into key political issues of early twentieth
century Ireland and Britain. This book explores Gore-Booth’s experiences of
militant pacifism during the Great War; her campaign for the reprieve Roger
Casement’s death sentence; her determination to organise the defeat of Winston
Churchill and her unwavering struggle for Irish independence. Her pioneering
work on behalf of those marginalised in society such as barmaids, circus
performers, flower sellers and pit-brow lasses and her instrumental role in the
fight for gender equality in the workplace is examined using meticulous research.
The author’s dedication to her subject
is confirmed by an international peer reviewer for Manchester University Press who
notes how –‘Tiernan’s historical research in various archives has been
exemplary, her access to the papers of Eva Gore-Booth and her selection of
material and her interpretation, has rendered a narrative of great originality
and interest. It really engages the reader in the life of Eva Gore-Booth,
capturing the intensity and excitement of her life and the broader historical
period.’
This book presents the reader with a
life story, heretofore largely overlooked, of a remarkable woman, who was a key
figure during several major periods and events in Anglo-Irish cultural and
political history. Renowned academic,
Professor Maria Luddy, states that ‘this book illuminates the fascinating life
of Eva Gore-Booth. Historian Sonja Tiernan has written an exciting and vibrant life
of this extraordinary woman, at once an intrepid feminist, pacifist and advocate
for social justice.’
Author Sonja Tiernan says,
‘the
story of Eva Gore-Booth’s revolutionary life shows a person devoted to the
ideal of a free and independent Ireland and a woman with a deep sense of how
class and gender equality can transform lives and legislation. Her campaigns to
achieve fundamental change in these areas were often at odds with the ideals of
mainstream organisations and were almost always ahead of public opinion. In
some cases her behaviour was deemed to be “unlawful” by authorities but this
only served to make her more determined.’
Six Key Dates in the life of Eva Gore-Booth
1879: Famine
re-visits the West of Ireland and Gore-Booth witnesses the devastation
inflicted on tenant farmers on her family’s land in Sligo.
1908: In opposition
to the Liberal party’s proposed Licensing Bill Gore-Booth orchestrates the
defeat of Winston Churchill at a Manchester by-election. Her campaign to
protect the employment of barmaids is supported in the House of Commons.
1914: During World
War One Gore-Booth becomes an active member of the No Conscription Fellowship
supporting conscientious objectors. She writes pamphlets condemning the war and
documents accounts of military tribunals.
1916: Gore-Booth is
deeply affected by the Easter Rising, her friend Frances Sheehy Skeffington is
murdered and her mentor, James Connolly executed. Her sister, Markievicz is
sentenced to death for her part in the rebellion. Gore-Booth leads a high
profile campaign for the reprieve of Roger Casement’s death sentence securing
an audience with King George V.
1918: Women over the
age of 30 receive the vote in general elections for the first time. Gore-Booth’s
sister, Constance Markievicz, is the only woman elected though she refuses to
take her seat in line with nationalist policies.
1926: Eva Gore-Booth dies and is buried at St.
John’s Churchyard, Hampstead. Her life-long partner Esther Roper died 12 years
later and they are buried together under a Celtic cross adorned with a fragment
of Sappho’s poetry.
About the author
Sonja Tiernan is a
Lecturer in Modern History at Liverpool Hope University
