The Irish Republican Army, or the nationalistic face of terrorism. A theoretical context and selected examples
The Irish Republican Army, or the nationalistic face of terrorism. A theoretical context and selected examples

Summary/Abstract: The name the Irish Republican Army(IRA) first appeared in the news on August the 30th, 1919. This is when the sworn armed groups fighting in the Irish Warof Independence 1919-1921, first, with the British police forces, and then with the regular army, were given that name. The organisation of the IRA of that time can be described, as seen from the perspective of the experiences of the 20th century, as an armed partisan structure, and oriented towards the national independence aspect, practically the first such organization in 20th century Europe.However, a considerable number of British, but also Irish, academics, journalists, and especially politicians, considered the IRA as a terrorist organisation. This statement, however, practically ends any discussion. It means disregarding the individual motivations of the armed Republicans, but, especially, ignoring the political-legal context of the acts of violence. Indeed, it is very difficult to distinguish terror, based on the ideological and political criteria, from the struggle for national liberation par excellence. This distinction has no chance of receiving a fully objective interpretation, especially by the politicians. However, the supporters, and/or performers of these actions, always use the ideological arguments, overusing them intentionally. The substantive coverage of the considerations presented here is characterized by two deliberately selected approaches, namely the chronological and the factual ones. Thus the last one hundred years’ epoch remains a background for the proposed narration regarding the facts and events which remain the objects for reflections put forward in the article. The narration focuses on research issues which refer to the analysis of, successively: 1/ interdependencies of Nationalism and Republicanism in the Irish tradition, 2/ the violence perceived as partisan or terrorist activeness in historical, contemporary, and spatial contexts, 3/ the Irish nation’s alterations in chronological perspective, 4/ the author’s typology of premises for military resistance and its exemplification.

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