The National League was a

political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular area's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific political ideology, ...

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

. It was founded in 1926 by William Redmond and Thomas O'Donnell in support of the

Anglo-Irish Treaty The 1921 Anglo-Irish Treaty (), commonly known in Ireland as The Treaty and officially the Articles of Agreement for a Treaty Between Great Britain and Ireland, was an agreement between the government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain an ...

, a close relationship with the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, continued membership of the

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and conservative fiscal policy. Its broadly

Anglophile An Anglophile is a person who admires or loves England, its people, its culture, its language, and/or its various accents. In some cases, Anglophilia refers to an individual's appreciation of English history and traditional English cultural ico ...

stance brought it the support of many Unionists. Supporters of the former

Irish Parliamentary Party The Irish Parliamentary Party (IPP; commonly called the Irish Party or the Home Rule Party) was formed in 1874 by Isaac Butt, the leader of the Nationalist Party, replacing the Home Rule League, as official parliamentary party for Irish nati ...

were also a natural target group, given that the party's leader was the son of

John Redmond John Edward Redmond (1 September 1856 – 6 March 1918) was an Irish nationalism, Irish nationalist politician, barrister, and Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), MP in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom. He was best known as leader ...

, who had himself been leader of the nationalist party. A third group to which it sought to appeal, according to Manning (1972), comprised middle-class economic sectoral interests whose members were alienated by the policies of the

Cumann na nGaedheal Cumann na nGaedheal (; ) was a political party in the Irish Free State, which formed the government from 1923 to 1932. It was named after the original Cumann na nGaedheal organisation which merged with the Dungannon Clubs and the National Co ...

government, such as licensed vintners. These groups would not benefit from the more statist economic approach of the

Fianna Fáil Fianna Fáil ( ; ; meaning "Soldiers of Destiny" or "Warriors of Fál"), officially Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party (), is a centre to centre-right political party in Ireland. Founded as a republican party in 1926 by Éamon de ...

or Labour parties. However, all these efforts were largely ineffectual. The contemporary political scientist Warner Moss described the League as "a party of malcontents representing nothing fundamental in Irish political divisions."Manning (1972) In the June 1927 general election, the National League won eight seats in

Dáil Éireann Dáil Éireann ( ; , ) is the lower house and principal chamber of the Oireachtas, which also includes the president of Ireland and a senate called Seanad Éireann.Article 15.1.2° of the Constitution of Ireland reads: "The Oireachtas shall co ...

and entered opposition. In August it supported Fianna Fáil's

motion of no confidence A motion or vote of no confidence (or the inverse, a motion or vote of confidence) is a motion and corresponding vote thereon in a deliberative assembly (usually a legislative body) as to whether an officer (typically an executive) is deemed fi ...

in the Cumann na nGaedheal government, in an attempt to form an alternative government under Labour leader Thomas Johnson, with the National League as the junior partner and Fianna Fáil supporting the resulting minority government. However, two League TDs opposed this tactic— Vincent Rice, who defected to Cumann na nGaedheal, and John Jinks, who was absent from the vote. As such the motion failed, and the National League was portrayed as politically opportunist in its attempt at an alliance with two very different parties; National League supporters would have been far more likely to favour a continued Cumann na nGaedheal government than to allow the quasi-revolutionary Fianna Fáil to influence government policy. The political discord associated with the Cumann na nGaedheal minority government prompted the September 1927 general election. Only two National League TDs, Redmond and

James Coburn James Harrison Coburn III (August 31, 1928 – November 18, 2002) was an American film and television actor who was featured in more than 70 films, largely action roles, and made 100 television appearances during a 45-year career.AllmoviBi ...

, were elected. The financial strain of two general elections in four months took its toll on the small parties, and the National League declared bankruptcy in 1928. It was disbanded in 1931.

General election results

References

;Sources * Barberis, Peter, John McHugh and Mike Tyldesley, 2005. Encyclopedia of British and Irish Political Organisations. London: Continuum International Publishing Group. , * Manning, Maurice, 1972. Irish Political Parties: An Introduction. Dublin: Gill and Macmillan.

General election results

References

See also