''The Irish Press'' (

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

: ''Scéala Éireann'') was an

national daily

newspaper A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as politics, business, sports a ...

published by Irish Press plc between 5 September 1931 and 25 May 1995.

Foundation

The paper's first issue was published on the eve of the 1931 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final between Kilkenny and Cork; other newspapers did not cover

Gaelic games Gaelic games ( ga, Cluichí Gaelacha) are a set of sports played worldwide, though they are particularly popular in Ireland, where they originated. They include Gaelic football, hurling, Gaelic handball and rounders. Football and hurling, the ...

in any detail at the time.

Margaret Pearse Margaret Pearse (; 12 February 1857 – 22 April 1932) was an Irish politician. She was the mother of Patrick Pearse and Willie Pearse, who were both executed after the 1916 Easter Rising. She was later elected to Dáil Éireann. Early life M ...

, the mother of Padraig and

Willie Pearse William James Pearse ( ga, Uilliam Seamus Mac Piarais; 15 November 1881 – 4 May 1916) was an Irish republican executed for his part in the Easter Rising. He was a younger brother of Patrick Pearse, a leader of the rising. Background Willie ...

, pressed the button to start the printing presses."Still mourning for the Press", ''The Kingdom'', 13 June 2002. The initial aim of its publisher was to achieve a circulation of 100,000 which it quickly accomplished. It went on to list a subscribership of 200,000 at its peak. Irish Press Ltd. was officially registered on 4 September 1928, three years before the paper was first published, to create a newspaper independent of the existing media where the

Independent Newspapers Independent Newspapers Limited (INL) was a newspaper publisher in New Zealand. Started as the Wellington Publishing Company in 1906 to publish ''The Dominion'', it began taking over other newspapers in the 1970s and was renamed Independent New ...

group was seen as supporting

Cumann na nGaedheal Cumann na nGaedheal (; "Society of the Gaels") was a political party in the Irish Free State, which formed the government from 1923 to 1932. In 1933 it merged with smaller groups to form the Fine Gael party. Origins In 1922 the pro-Treaty G ...

Fine Gael Fine Gael (, ; English: "Family (or Tribe) of the Irish") is a liberal-conservative and Christian-democratic political party in Ireland. Fine Gael is currently the third-largest party in the Republic of Ireland in terms of members of Dáil � ...

, and ''

The Irish Times ''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is considered a newspaper ...

'' being pro-union, and with a mainly middle-class or Protestant readership. The ''Irish Press'' founder

Éamon de Valera Éamon de Valera (, ; first registered as George de Valero; changed some time before 1901 to Edward de Valera; 14 October 1882 – 29 August 1975) was a prominent Irish statesman and political leader. He served several terms as head of governm ...

said the paper's objective was: "To give the truth in the news, that will be the chief aim of ''The Irish Press''. ''The Irish Press'' will be a truthful journal and a good newspaper". The founders planned to produce an evening and Sunday edition of the paper if the daily was successful, and they did.

Initial financing

The money to launch ''The Irish Press'' was raised in the United States during the

Irish War of Independence The Irish War of Independence () or Anglo-Irish War was a guerrilla war fought in Ireland from 1919 to 1921 between the Irish Republican Army (IRA, the army of the Irish Republic) and British forces: the British Army, along with the quasi-mil ...

by a bond drive to finance the

First Dail First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and reco ...

. The amount raised was $5 million ($55 million adjusted for inflation as of 2011). However, 60 percent of this money was left in various banks in New York. Nobody has been able to explain why Éamon de Valera ordered the bulk of the money to be left in New York when he returned to Ireland in late 1920.''Tim Pat Coogan: A Memoir'' p. 252 In 1927, as a result of legal action between the

Irish Free State The Irish Free State ( ga, Saorstát Éireann, , ; 6 December 192229 December 1937) was a state established in December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921. The treaty ended the three-year Irish War of Independence between th ...

government and de Valera, a court in New York ordered that the bond holders be paid back outstanding money due to them. However de Valera's legal team had anticipated the ruling and had prepared for the outcome. A number of circulars were sent to the bond holders asking them to sign over their holdings to de Valera. The bond holders were paid 58 cents to the dollar. This money was then used as start up capital to launch ''The Irish Press''. Following the

1933 Irish General Election The 1933 Irish general election was held on Tuesday, 24 January. The newly elected members of the 8th Dáil assembled at Leinster House on 8 February and President of the Executive Council and the 7th Executive Council of the Irish Free State ...

de Valera used his Dáil majority to pass a measure allowing the bond holders to be paid the remaining 42 percent of the money still owed.

Censorship by Free State Government

In December 1931, the editor Frank Gallagher was prosecuted by an Irish Free State military tribunal for publishing articles alleging that Gardaí had mistreated the opponents (Anti-Treaty republicans) of the Irish Free State government. This was facilitated by ''Amendment No. 17 of

Constitution of the Irish Free State The Constitution of the Irish Free State ( ga, Bunreacht Shaorstát Eireann) was adopted by Act of Dáil Éireann sitting as a constituent assembly on 25 October 1922. In accordance with Article 83 of the Constitution,

Prominent personalities

The newspaper was controlled by Éamon de Valera and his family, and as a consequence, it supported

Fianna Fáil Fianna Fáil (, ; meaning 'Soldiers of Destiny' or 'Warriors of Fál'), officially Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party ( ga, audio=ga-Fianna Fáil.ogg, Fianna Fáil – An Páirtí Poblachtánach), is a conservative and Christian- ...

consistently throughout its life, expressing the "national outlook" in keeping with the thoughts and sentiments of his party supporters. The paper was aimed particularly at teachers and schools, with strong coverage of GAA games and the

Irish language Irish ( Standard Irish: ), also known as Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Insular Celtic branch of the Celtic language family, which is a part of the Indo-European language family. Irish is indigenous to the island of Ireland and was ...

Cearbhall Ó Dálaigh Cearbhall Ó Dálaigh (; 12 February 1911 – 21 March 1978) was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician, judge and barrister who served as the fifth president of Ireland from December 1974 to October 1976. His birth name was registered in English ...

was the first Irish language editor. The first editor was Frank Gallagher, who fought alongside Éamon de Valera during the

. Its directors included

Robert Barton Robert Childers Barton (14 March 1881 – 10 August 1975) was an Anglo-Irish politician, Irish nationalist and farmer who participated in the negotiations leading up to the signature of the Anglo-Irish Treaty. His father was Charles William Ba ...

Seán Lemass Seán Francis Lemass (born John Francis Lemass; 15 July 1899 – 11 May 1971) was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician who served as Taoiseach and Leader of Fianna Fáil from 1959 to 1966. He also served as Tánaiste from 1957 to 1959, 1951 to 1954 ...

was an early managing director. Major

Vivion de Valera Vivion Laurence de Valera (13 December 1910 – 16 February 1982) was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician, businessman and lawyer who served as a Teachta Dála (TD) from 1945 to 1981. He was the eldest child of Éamon de Valera and Sinéad de Vale ...

, son of the founder, subsequently became managing director. De Valera was noted for courtesy amongst those running the business, which was considered well run. Shareholders came from both Ireland and the United States. It was many years before a dividend was paid. Douglas Gageby worked on each of the press titles, ''The Irish Press'', ''

Evening Press The ''Evening Press'' was an Irish newspaper which was printed from 1954 until 1995. It was set up by Éamon de Valera's Irish Press group, and was originally edited by Douglas Gageby. Its principal competitor was the ''Evening Herald'', which ...

'' (as first editor) and ''

The Sunday Press ''The Sunday Press'' was a weekly newspaper published in Ireland from 1949 until 1995. It was launched by Éamon de Valera's Irish Press group following the defeat of his Fianna Fáil party in the 1948 Irish general election. Like its sister n ...

'', and subsequently was editor of ''The Irish Times''. Tim Pat Coogan, who started working for the ''Evening Press'', became editor of ''The Irish Press'' from 1968 until 1987.

Derry Derry, officially Londonderry (), is the second-largest city in Northern Ireland and the fifth-largest city on the island of Ireland. The name ''Derry'' is an anglicisation of the Old Irish name (modern Irish: ) meaning 'oak grove'. The ...

-born James Patrick (Jim) McGuinness, who was editor from 1953 until 1957, brought in journalists such as

Benedict Kiely Benedict "Ben" Kiely (15 August 1919 – 9 February 2007) was an Irish writer and broadcaster from Omagh, County Tyrone. Early life Kiely was born near Dromore, County Tyrone and was a student at the Christian Brothers School in Omagh. In 193 ...

, Seán J. White, and also

Brendan Behan Brendan Francis Aidan Behan (christened Francis Behan) ( ; ga, Breandán Ó Beacháin; 9 February 1923 – 20 March 1964) was an Irish poet, short story writer, novelist, playwright, and Irish Republican activist who wrote in both English an ...

as a columnist. Others who have written for ''The Irish Press'' include the poet

Patrick Kavanagh Patrick Kavanagh (21 October 1904 – 30 November 1967) was an Irish poet and novelist. His best-known works include the novel '' Tarry Flynn'', and the poems "On Raglan Road" and "The Great Hunger". He is known for his accounts of Irish life t ...

; the broadcaster and journalist

Vincent Browne Vincent Browne (born 17 July 1944) is an Irish print and broadcast journalist. He is a columnist with ''The Irish Times'' and ''The Sunday Business Post'' and a non-practising barrister. From 1996 until 2007, he presented a nightly talk-show ...

, who was Northern Editor from 1970 to 1972;

Damien Kiberd Damien Kiberd is an Irish journalist and commentator. He is one of the four founders of, and was formerly editor of, ''The Sunday Business Post''. He is also a former business editor of ''The Irish Press'', and of the '' Sunday Tribune''. Kiberd h ...

who was business editor; his brother, Professor

Declan Kiberd Declan Kiberd (born 24 May 1951) is an Irish writer and scholar with an interest in modern Irish literature, both in the English and Irish languages, which he often approaches through the lens of postcolonial theory. He is also interested in th ...

, was a columnist with ''The Irish Press'' from 1987 to 1993; the Catholic and feminist campaigner and journalist

Mary Kenny Mary Kenny (born 4 April 1944) is an Irish journalist, broadcaster and playwright. A founding member of the Irish Women's Liberation Movement, she was one of the country's first and foremost feminists, often contributes columns to the ''Irish In ...

; sports writer and founder of GOAL

John O'Shea John Francis O'Shea (; born 30 April 1981) is an Irish professional football coach and former player. He was known for his versatility in playing several positions on either side of the pitch or the centre. Born in Waterford, O'Shea joined Man ...

; the novelist

John Banville William John Banville (born 8 December 1945) is an Irish novelist, short story writer, adapter of dramas and screenwriter. Though he has been described as "the heir to Proust, via Nabokov", Banville himself maintains that W. B. Yeats and Henry J ...

was Chief Sub-editor of the Irish Press - other sub-editors included the poet Hugh McFadden; the historian

Dermot Keogh Dermot Keogh (born 12 May 1945) is Professor of History and Emeritus Jean Monnet Professor of European Integration Studies at University College, Cork University College Cork – National University of Ireland, Cork (UCC) ( ga, Coláiste n ...

, and the Joycean critic Terence Killeen; T. P. O'Mahony (Religious Affairs Correspondent 1967–89);

Maire Comerford Máire Aoife Comerford (2 June 1893 - 15 December 1982) was an Irish republican from County Wexford who witnessed central events in 1916-23 and remained a committed supporter of Cumann na mBan until her death. Early career to 1916 Comerfor ...

; sports writer

Michael Carwood Michael Carwood, was an Irish sports journalist, musician and songwriter. Born in Dublin in 1948, he was educated at Dundrum National School and Oatlands College in Dublin. In 1968, he started working for ''The Irish Press'', becoming a journa ...

; Breandán Ó hEithir (Irish Language editor 1957–1963); Dermot Walsh; Tom O'Dea (television critic 1965–1983); also the renowned sports writer

Con Houlihan Con Houlihan (6 December 1925 – 4 August 2012) was an Irish sportswriter. Despite only progressing to national journalism at the age of 46, he became "the greatest and the best-loved Irish sports journalist of all". Journalism career Over a le ...

. In its early days, it was circulated throughout Ireland by a specially rented train because the rival Independent Newspapers would not rent space on its train to ''The Irish Press''. It sustained itself with its own resources until the ''Sunday Press'' was founded in the 1940s. In its heyday, ''The Irish Press'' had a number of first-rate reporters and columnists. One notable section, ''New Irish Writing'' was edited by David Marcus.

Section 31 and the Troubles

In the 1970s, the

Minister for Posts and Telegraphs The Minister for Posts and Telegraphs ( ga, Aire Poist agus Telegrafa) was the holder of a position in the Government of Ireland (and, earlier, in the Executive Council of the Irish Free State). From 1924 until 1984 – when it was abolished � ...

Conor Cruise O'Brien Donal Conor David Dermot Donat Cruise O'Brien (3 November 1917 – 18 December 2008), often nicknamed "The Cruiser", was an Irish diplomat, politician, writer, historian and academic, who served as Minister for Posts and Telegraphs from 1973 ...

, tried to use and amend The Emergency Powers Act and Section 31 of the Broadcasting Authority Act, to censor coverage of the

Troubles The Troubles ( ga, Na Trioblóidí) were an ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland that lasted about 30 years from the late 1960s to 1998. Also known internationally as the Northern Ireland conflict, it is sometimes described as an " ...

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

. The ''Press'' editor, Tim Pat Coogan, published editorials attacking the Bill. The Fine Gael/Labour Coalition Government tried to prosecute ''The Irish Press'' for its coverage of the maltreatment of republican prisoners by the Garda "Heavy Gang", with the paper winning the case.

Additional titles

Later, the ''Irish Press'' started two further newspapers, the ''Evening Press'' (1954), and the ''Sunday Press''. The ''Evening Press'' was aimed at an urban readership and achieved a daily circulation of 100,000. Terry O'Sullivan, the pen name of Tomas O'Faolain, father of writer and journalist

Nuala O'Faolain Nuala O'Faolain (; 1 March 19409 May 2008) was an Irish journalist, TV producer, book reviewer, teacher and writer. She became well known after the publication of her memoirs ''Are You Somebody?'' and ''Almost There''. She wrote a biography of I ...

, was provided with a car and driver and wrote a social column. The new newspapers subsidised ''The Irish Press'' when its circulation sagged. Its adoption of a tabloid format did not rescue its declining circulation. Formerly one of the main daily newspapers in

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

, its business failure left the ground clear for its old rivals, ''

'' and the ''

Irish Independent The ''Irish Independent'' is an Irish daily newspaper and online publication which is owned by Independent News & Media (INM), a subsidiary of Mediahuis. The newspaper version often includes glossy magazines. Traditionally a broadsheet new ...

'', to dominate the daily market for some years until other competitors were introduced.

Digital archive

The newspaper is available online on

Irish Newspaper Archives The Irish Newspaper Archives is a commercial online database of digitised Irish newspapers, and claims to be the world's oldest and largest archive of Irish newspapers. Subscription-free access to the archive is available to users in Irish publi ...

Final days

The final issue of the ''Irish Press'' and ''Evening Press'' was on Thursday, 25 May 1995. The newspapers closed ostensibly because of a bizarre industrial dispute over the sacking of the group business editor, Colm Rapple, but in fact, the company was insolvent with accumulated losses of €19m and the company applied to liquidate with a few days of the dispute starting. The group had not been in a healthy financial state for several years. When it eventually closed, with indebtedness of £19 million, 600 people lost their jobs. A relaunch in 1988 of the ''Irish Press'' as a tabloid did not help matters. In 1989, Ralph M. Ingersoll Jr. took a 50 percent stake in Irish Press Newspapers. Several efforts were made to relaunch the newspapers but these failed. Independent Newspapers invested £1.1 million for a 24.9 percent stake in Irish Press Newspapers and had made loans of £2 million when the titles ceased publication. It recouped £1 million arising from a charge against a loan when the ''Irish Press'' office in

Burgh Quay The Dublin quays () refers to the two roadways and quays that run along the north and south banks of the River Liffey in Dublin, Ireland. The stretches of the two continuous streets have several different names. However, all but three of the ...

was sold in 1996. The final editor from 1987 to 1995, Hugh Lambert died after a short illness on 26 December 2005.

Irish Press plc today

The company, Irish Press plc, remained in existence after cessation of printing of the main titles. Irish Press bought '' Thom's Directories'' for £355,000 in October 1999. The directors of the company are Éamon De Valera (grandson of the former Irish president that founded the newspaper) and Jimmy A. Lehenan.

Vincent Jennings Vincent Jennings (1937–2010), was an Irish Journalist, and who served as editor of ''The Sunday Press'' from 1968 until 1986, before becoming part of the management of The Irish Press. Born in Dublin in 1937, he grew up in Clontarf. Vincent wa ...

was Chairman 1992–2005. The company experienced mixed success with its ''Thom's Directory'' venture. Since getting out of the newspaper business, the company has struggled on occasion to produce profits. The company entered voluntary liquidation in 2017 following the sale of all its remaining assets except Thoms Directory, which had ceased printing in 2012 and moved to an online directory format afterwards. No buyer was found for Thoms, which was then itself liquidated. The Irish Press group sponsored a trophy for the

All-Ireland Minor Hurling Championship The GAA Hurling All-Ireland Minor Championship (known for sponsorship reasons as the Electric Ireland GAA Hurling All-Ireland Minor Championship) is an annual inter-county hurling competition organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA). I ...

in 1949, the winners ever since, being awarded the ''Irish Press Cup''.Whats in a Name Trophies Reveal Intriguing Histories
by Denis Hurley, Irish Examiner, www.irishexaminer.com, July 14, 2012.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Irish Press, The 1931 establishments in Ireland 1995 disestablishments in Ireland

Press Press may refer to: Media * Print media or news media, commonly called "the press" * Printing press, commonly called "the press" * Press (newspaper), a list of newspapers * Press TV, an Iranian television network People * Press (surname), a fam ...

Defunct daily newspapers Defunct newspapers published in Ireland Newspapers published in the Republic of Ireland Political newspapers published in Ireland Publications established in 1931 Publications disestablished in 1995