Overview

This is the first book to comprehensively examine the shifts that have informed republican tradition and transformation from the beginning of the "Troubles" in Northern Ireland until the final stages of the peace process. Using a combination of empirical research and literature, the book addresses Northern Irish republican identity through the influences of imagination, history and Catholicism before it charts the processes of decision-making and management that shaped the transition from militarism to politics. Drawing from interview material from a wide range of actors and key players the book considers the challenges that political republicanism has worked to overcome and concludes that ongoing political development will require a less acute, more ambiguous communication of values based on pragmatism and compromise, rather than the continued articulation of principles and convictions that sustained the armed struggle.

A unique work, From Armed Struggle to Political Struggle is essential for students and researchers in Irish politics, conflict resolution, and security studies.