Explores the Fascist movement in Ireland in the 1930's and its effect on Irish politics and the government of De Valera.

When Fine Gael entered a coalition government with Fianna Fáil in 2020 the party did what would have been unthinkable for its forefathers, who had fought and won a bitter civil war to establish the institutions of an independent Irish state almost a century earlier. Saving the State is the remarkable story of Fine Gael from its origins in the fraught days of civil war to the political convulsions of 2020. Written by political journalist Stephen Collins and historian Ciara Meehan, Saving the State draws on a wealth of original historical research and a range of interviews with key political figures to chart the evolution of the party through the lens of its successive leaders. From the special place occupied by Michael Collins in the party's pantheon of heroes to the dark era of the Blueshirts, and from its role as the founder of the state to its claim to be the defender of the state, the ways that members perceive their own history is also explored. Saving the State is essential reading for anyone interested in understanding how Fine Gael came to be the party it is today, the ways in which it interprets and presents its own history, and the role that it played in shaping modern Ireland.

The most original and stimulating interpretation of the politics of the Irish Free State to be published in decades." Ronan Fanning, Sunday Independent "This is an excellent study, firmly grounded in original research, which sheds new light on this period." Fearghal McGarry, Irish Historical Studies

Explores the Fascist movement in Ireland in the 1930's and its effect on Irish politics and the government of De Valera.

About the history of Ireland from 1912 to 1985, focusing on political, social and revolutionary events.