Saor Alba a Nis!

In the third article in our series on the Celtic countries' struggles for independence Domnhail MacAindreas, Organiser, Scottish Republican Socialist Movement, responds to Ruairí Ó Brádaigh's article (SAOIRSE, August 1999) ‘A Vision of the future: Celtic identity and co-operation.'

Having read and been moved by Ruairí Ó Brádaigh's article in the August edition of SAOIRSE and vision of the future for Celtic identity and cooperation I can only write in endorsement of all he said.

I had the honour of first meeting Ruairí in the mid-1970s when Sinn Féin met with massive international support to march through Dublin in protest at RTÉ's cringing censorship. It was my first time in Ireland and we marched with the Glaschú James Connolly Fife and Drum band.

I was a wee bittie worried that our Scottish saltire flag may not be appreciated, in view of the behaviour of some of the so-called "Scotttish" regiments in their role as native auxiliaries for Smother England.

I needn't have worried. The enthusiasm from total strangers in the street as well as political activists made me feel as though I had never left home and was still in the land of the Gael. This was how Robert Bruce described Scotland and Ireland as one Gaeltact in struggle against the Sassunach, when he was invited by Irish chieftains to become King of Ireland.

There was nothing new in this. Irish chiefs often married their daughters to Scots chiefs in return for a dowry, often of 300 warriors, now known as Scots Bonnachts or Gallowglasses: gall-óglaigh, foreign warriors, usually from the Hebridean Islands or Western Highlands.

They first appeared in Tyrconnell in 1258. Families such as the MacSweenys, MacDonnells, etc provided an hereditary corps d'elite in the service of Irish chiefs. They played an important part in halting the spread of the English conquest.

Scotland has been granted Devolution, but "power devolved is power retained", as Enoch Powell rightly said. The Scottish parliament was described by Tory Blair as just another English parish council, in a bid to allay Middle English fears in his desperate delaying tactic against the inevitable — Scottish independence.

The link to Ireland covers much more than stony myths. The very Gaelic language, the key to Scottish as well as Irish culture, was still called the Irish language at the time of Culloden and well into the 19th century and the Gaelic, or the "Yirish" was still spoken in Galloway and South Ayrshire in the time of the Republican poet, Robert Burns.

The Tartan, war pipes, clarsach (harp) Gaelic language and highland broadcoats and weapons were all proscribed in 1746, just as the Irish Linen cloak was before. Probably the only piece of cloth to be proscribed under pain of death, imprisonment and deportation in the world.

The Scottish Highlands suffered directly during the Highland Clearances, leaving the now empty landscapes. Marx described these Clearances, saying that in Ireland whole villages were cleared but in Scotland whole areas the size of German principalities were cleared.

Irish seasonal migration began in the late 18th century to the Scottish farming areas and with the invention of the screw propeller in the 1830s, providing cheap steam transportation mass migration to toil in the Industrial Revolution sweeping the Scottish Lowland deposits of coal and iron needed for heavy engineering and shipbuilding.

At first starving Irish agrarian labourers were brought by unscrupulous Irish gangers and Scottish sea captains and used as strike breakers in order to lower wages even further.

Whilst the Irish migrated to Scotland Catholic landlords often encouraged Scottish Lowland farmers to settle, especially in the North, where they drained bogs and "improved" the land. During the Ulster Plantations Scots were sent to Ireland against their will.

When King Shaumus the VI of Scotland and 1st of England took his fat frame to England an English Border Lord suggested he clear the troublesome (to him) Border Clans to Ulster the King was only too happy to oblige and tried to settle, unsuccessfully, the Western Highlands and Islands with English speaking Lowland Scots, whose pickled heads were sent home in barrels.

At first the Presbyterian Scots, mainly Gaelic speakers themselves were persecuted by the Anglicans, and had their farm lintels proclaiming "Scots" so as the rebels would by pass them. The United Irishmen were mainly led by the Presbyterians, though many left for the Americas selling themselves into slavery or indentureship for six or seven years with the promise of land.

The good low land was already taken by English, Dutch and German settlers and the daft Scotch-Irish, as they were called, were forced to settle in the Appalachian hills bringing their Hill Billy Mountain music, fuedin', whiskey rebellions, etc culture to America. These Scottish Border/Irish Borderers made ideal "frontiersmen" in the Americas. Eventually many of them moved further west and south to Texas, etc. When Washington was doing badly he retreated to his "Scotch-Irish", who fought the Redcoats hardest. Half his Cabinet were of this stock, as were many US Presidents and well known figures such as the Crocketts, Jacksons, Bowies, Boons, Jamess Daltons, Youngers etc.

Irish immigration to the States really occurred en masse in the 1840s, when Irish and Scots fought on both sides of the Civil War, including the kilted New York Cameron Highlanders, who at first refused to serve under an English commander when their own was killed at the first battle of Bull Run.

Presbyterians were not allowed into the Anglican Orange Order till the 1840s, when the Brits decided to use marginal privileges to win them over. Presbyterian lawyers used to defend Catholic evictions and Presbyterians of Armagh and South Down used to take in evicted Catholic families from Armagh, etc. In the East End of Glasgow Irish Marist Brothers helped form a football team, Glasgow Celtic, to raise funds for the poor. Glasgow Rangers started off in the East End as a boys team on Glasgow Green. The majority of the boys were Gaelic speakers from the Ardnamurchan area whose families worked in the nearby Gaelic speaking Tempelton's carpet and McPhail's print factories. They were moved to Ibrox in Govan by local businessmen. Ibrox means "place of the Badger".

Nearby Ulster Harland and Wolff workers adopted the local team in opposition to the East End fermenting sectarian bigotry which has been promoted by the City Fathers in times of industrial unrest, calling an "Old Firm" match to have the proles fighting among themselves again. Recently the Old Firm PLC united in calling for a "No" vote in the Scottish Devolution referendum and have constantly opposed Scottish Independence.

The English owned "Scottish" Daily Record used Old Firm Players and management to support Unionism in Scotland and Celtic Board members have not shied away from Brit Knighthoods and Orders of the Brutish Empire and the like. Celtic fans sing about the bold IRA whilst voting for the Forces of the Crown, Her Majesty's Royal, Loyal, Imperial Lumpen [Labour] Party, in the mistaken belief that Rangers fans and Orangies vote for the official Conservatives. "Orange" areas like Bridgeton and Larkhall have always traditionally weighed in the Labour vote, which is no threat to their beliefs. Not only the British Right plays this divisive game. The BNP are largely unsuccessful in recruiting round the Terraces and the lodges, but the Great British Yookay "left" tried hanging around Celtic fans, not in a bid to teach Clydesiders socialism, but to teach them British nationalism in the false name of "internationalism".

Most of the English educated middle class "Workers" this and "Revolutionary" that tourist groupies support Labour each election. All are opposed to Scottish independence and try to tell Celtic fans and Scottish Catholics of nth generation Irish that they are racially pure Irish and therefore should oppose Scottish Independence. They often invent phoney "Irish" front groups and papers, based in London -- which is akin to the PLO basing its headquarters in Tel Aviv.

The trouble though with forming formal links with Irish parties dates back to the Official/Provo/IRSP splits when Irishmen were shooting each other, making it a little difficult to support either. I was at the Ard Fheis when Ruairí and the rest walked out. I understood the reasons but wished it weren't so and that Ruairí was still at the helm of a United Republican Movement and maybe Ireland would not be caught in the Brit morass fiddling and rewriting rules and treaties. Another reason for lack of visits is the difficulty we face here trying to form a Movement.

It is easy to raise cash in Glasgow pubs for Irish Republicanism and Ulster Unionism, but damn near impossible to raise funds and workers for ourselves. At the moment we have had to vacate our office and shop and have been poinded by sheriff officers and face a warrant sale. I am sure I could collect easier in Irish pubs for our cause as my experience selling our publications in Ireland has taught me. Any Irish Sheen Canary's want to give us a large cheque?

As Ruairí says, it is important, tactically as well as for reasons of principle, for oppressed nations to unite and especially important for Pan Celtic resistance to British rule. More so when the Scots and Irish share the same culture and the same rulers.
Britain Out of Ireland!
Scotland Out of Britain!
Saor Éire! Saor Alba a Nis!
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