GESSICA COSI

Eamon de Valera, the United States and Irish America: 1919-1924.

Supervied by: Professor Mary Daly and Professor Maurice Bric, UCD School of History and Archives.

Overview of Project
This project examines the interplay between Irish, American and Irish American history and analyses the ‘connection’ and the ‘distinction’ between the relevant Irish and Irish American ethnic identities and nationalistic ideologies, particularly as they emerged during and after the visit of Eamon de Valera to the United States in 1919-1920. The project considers the complex interrelation between Ireland and Irish America as the product of two distinct perspectives. In particular, my research investigates the mission of Eamon de Valera to America in order to understand the interplay of Irish and Irish American history and the ways in which it reflected and interacted with these two streams of influence.

Aims
To provide a clear understanding of the controversial relationship between de Valera and prominent Irish American leaders of the period, illuminating the complex interplay of ethnic, nationalistic and political elements that characterized different Irish and Irish American identities and nationalistic ideologies and to provide a new theoretical framework from which Irish and Irish American history can be re-appreciated and understood in the broader context of transatlantic history.

Methodology
The approach is intended to complete different key tasks in three interrelated frameworks of reference: Knowledge and Narrative, Theories and Methods, and Research on primary and secondary sources. The research project will consider the existing historiography on Nationalism, Ethnicity and International Relations as crucial theoretical references.

Photographs reproduced by kind permission of UCD-OFM Partnership.

The research project is supported by the Irish Research Council for the Humanities and Social Sciences (IRCHSS)