'The people would be like sheep without a shepherd'

In our forthcoming book from Merrion Press on the past century in Kerry politics, we include some of the best quotes and spoken words of those who represented the county in the Dáil and Seanad over the past century. Here is a short selection:

‘There are some places in this country where the duty of compiling the Parliamentary Register devolves on the Civic Guards. Kerry is one of these places. My experience is that they work in a very partial manner. They disfranchised hundreds of Fianna Fáil voters in Kerry at the last election and they went so far as to tear down Fianna Fáil posters from the gates at some of the polling booths. I can only come to the conclusion that they are a semi-political body, and I leave it at that.’

Kerry South Fianna Fáil TD Thomas O’Reilly in the Dáil in 1928.

‘Are you following the de Valera who fought in Easter Week or the de Valera who put the Special Powers Act into operation one day after the British Ambassador in Dublin cracked his whip? … Repression only intensifies resistance and so surely as one republican is interned there will be five others to take his place.’

Kerry South Sinn Féin TD John Joe Rice speaks in Firies in 1957 in opposition to the Special Powers Act, which was used to intern suspected IRA members in the 1950s.

‘Without me in the Senate, the people would be like sheep without a shepherd.’

Fianna Fáil’s Kit Ahern speaking during the 1969 general election campaign.

'A Century of Politics in the Kingdom: A County Kerry Compendium' by Owen O'Shea and Gordon Revington will be published by Merrion Press in October 2018.

New book to chart highs and lows of a century of politics in Kerry

'A Century of Politics in the Kingdom - A County Kerry Compendium' 

By Owen O'Shea and Gordon Revington

Publishing in autumn 2018 with Merrion Press

In the 100 years since the establishment of Dáil Éireann, rarely has politics been so divisive, turbulent, engaging and entertaining as in County Kerry. 

A Century of Politics in the Kingdom captures the exhilarating highs and lows of politics in Kerry, featuring tales of scandal, punch-ups, election-campaign shenanigans, bitter inter-dynastic contests, as well as the stories of the ground-breaking Kerry politicians who made their mark on the national stage and beyond.

This fascinating book draws on new material from the political parties’ archives, original research and candid interviews. 

Featured are comprehensive biographical details of every Kerry Teachta Dála and senator since the foundation of the Irish State, seminal debates and discussions, rivalries and resentments, and good old-fashioned fun and games – all of which has characterised the political cauldron in the county over the last century.

Stay tuned for publication and launch details … 

Owen O’Shea, from Milltown, Co Kerry is Communications Officer with Kerry County Council. A former Labour Party press officer and election candidate, he was journalist with Kerry’s Eye and Radio Kerry. He is the author of Heirs to the Kingdom: Kerry’s Political Dynasties (2011). 

Gordon Revington is a journalist from Tralee, Co Kerry, who writes on Irish political history, rural affairs and sport. He contributed to Kerry 1916: Histories and Legacies of the Easter Rising – A Centenary Record (2016)