Religion and Revolt

Abstract

Despite the scarce research on the topic the eight-year Tithe War represents an important moment in the development of Irish-Catholic nationalism and a pivotal change in Irish-British relations. This investigation into the Tithe War uses discourse analysis to reveal how Irish-Catholics exerted an intense degree of agency against the Anglo-Protestant ascendancy during a time in which they possessed seemingly little recourses against the increasingly hegemonic powers of the British state. Understanding the importance of the Tithe War helps to develop a deeper understanding of Irish-British state relations within the larger timeline of Irish-British relations into the twentieth century. The Tithe War also demonstrates the role of religious identity in shaping collective action and nationalism. This paper highlights how the violence of war grabbed both media and government attention and led to the gradual disestablishment of the Anglo-Irish Protestant Church in 1869. This short article provides insight into the actions of everyday Irish-Catholics and how their actions led to critical changes in Irish-British relations. It also highlights how the British media and British officials understood, disregarded, and navigated the increasingly hard-to-ignore “Irish problem.”