ANALYSIS:The British royal visit reflects the maturity of the British-Irish relationship
ONE HUNDRED years after the last British royal visit to this part of Ireland, Queen Elizabeth is about to follow in her grandfather’s footsteps.
Comparing the two occasions involves a crash course in Irish history and charts the transformation of the British-Irish relationship over that period.
King George V was accompanied by a fleet of battleships and cruisers which sailed into what was then known as Kingstown – now Dún Laoghaire – in a massive display of naval power by an empire on which the sun never set.
If anyone had suggested that the king’s granddaughter would come here a century later and lay a wreath at a memorial site in honour of “all those who gave their lives in the cause of Irish freedom”, the reaction would probably have been incredulity, accompanied by serious doubts as to the sanity of the individual advancing such a proposition.
Although successive governments helped in bringing about next month’s historic visit, most of the credit is due to President Mary McAleese and her predecessor, Mary Robinson.
It was Mrs Robinson who broke the mould into which British-Irish relations had set when she made the first visit by an Irish head of State to her British counterpart in May 1993. It took a certain amount of courage at the time and she broke another and possibly more important mould a few weeks later on a visit to Belfast when she shook hands with Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams.
Mrs McAleese continued along the path set by Mrs Robinson, maintaining regular contact with Buckingham Palace and developing a friendly personal relationship with her British counterpart as part of her agenda to build bridges between the two islands and among the communities in Ireland itself.
The 1998 Belfast Agreement was the moment that was to transform the relationship between the two governments. The deal in turn generated the setting up of the Police Service of Northern Ireland – a force acceptable to both communities and both governments.
Various other developments helped create the environment for the visit, including trips here by members of the British royal family and the celebrated rugby match between Ireland and England at Croke Park.
There were other, less highly-publicised building blocks, such as the private work done over the years by the President’s husband, Martin McAleese, in reaching out to the loyalist community in the North, which had very little political clout.
Insiders say the entire process “took longer than some had anticipated” – after all, it is 18 years since Mrs Robinson went to the palace. But nobody was disposed to rush things, although it was seen as both fitting and important that the Queen should visit before Mrs McAleese’s time in office came to an end this year.
Ironically, the fatal attack by dissident republicans on a Catholic member of the PSNI last weekend has enhanced the prospect of a successful visit. Intended to be a warning against nationalists joining the police force it seems to have had the opposite effect, especially with the high-profile participation by the GAA in Constable Kerr’s funeral.
The measured language employed by Sinn Féin when the visit was announced has also contributed to the general atmosphere of reconciliation.
Should any unionists feel discommoded by the wreath-laying ceremony at the Garden of Remembrance, supporters of the visit can point to the fact that their Queen will also be commemorating Irish soldiers of a different allegiance at the Irish National War Memorial Gardens in Islandbridge.
But of equal, if not greater, symbolic importance with her Garden of Remembrance visit will be her attendance at Croke Park, Ireland’s “field of dreams”.
It was here, on Bloody Sunday in November 1920, that crown forces, enraged by the deaths of British intelligence officers earlier that day, fired indiscriminately into the crowd, killing 14 spectators as well as Tipperary’s football captain, Michael Hogan.
It is expected the Queen will observe groups of schoolchildren playing hurling and football and will be entertained by Irish dancers and singers on an occasion intended to portray the maturity of the friendship between two peoples who have endured a frequently tormented 800-year relationship.
On a lighter note, the royal party will visit the Guinness Storehouse, and although it could not be ascertained whether the Queen will imbibe a pint of the black stuff, a source conceded that “she will no doubt admire the way it is poured”.
The Queen, who will be accompanied by her husband the Duke of Edinburgh, is also due to visit Trinity College, founded in 1592 by her predecessor and namesake, Queen Elizabeth I.
Outside Dublin, they will travel to the Irish National Stud in Kildare as well as the Rock of Cashel and venues in Cork city.
The relatively quiescent atmosphere in Northern Ireland as well as the friendly interaction between the two governments should ensure there is little by way of protest against the visit, apart from the odd demonstration.
The fact the visit is being “sold” as a tourism promotion vehicle should also increase the prospects for a friendly welcome to a high-profile neighbour who has finally decided to come and see us.
