South Tipperary 1570-1841: Religion, Land and Rivalry (review)

David J. Butler's book South Tipperary 1570-1841: Religion, Land and Rivalry explores and analyzes the relationship between Protestants and Catholics in South Tipperary from the time of the Reformation to the achievement of Catholic Emancipation. It is an excellently researched book. Butler covers an extensive period in the history of South Tipperary (1570-1841), during which period the themes of religion, land, and rivalry were real and emotive issues in the county and in the country in general. Butler writes in a style that is engaging and accessible. It is evident from the outset that Butler has an empathy with his subject area, and both the vastness of his knowledge regarding this period and his attention to detail are evident in every chapter.

The book is divided into three judiciously entitled parts. Part 1: "Carving out Spaces of Dominion: Reformation, Re-conquest and Rebellion, 1570-1649"; Part 2: "Consolidating Territorial Control: Power, Identity and Difference, 1650-1730"; and Part 3: "Contesting Hegemony: Confrontation and Resistance 1731-1841," which give a flavor of the topics covered in this volume. A fine conclusion forms the final chapter. The appendices, bibliography, and index are worthy of this publication.

At the beginning of the book, Butler includes the following quote from R. Miliband: "hegemony is actually a process of struggle, a permanent striving, a ceaseless endeavour to maintain control over 'hearts and minds' of subordinate classes. The work of hegemony, so to speak, is never over." In the last line of his concluding chapter Butler states: "It may be seen in this study that on the one hand, even to the end, the ruling Protestant minority establishment never ceased to struggle to retain the hegemony to which it had grown accustomed and without which it could see no purpose for itself: on the other hand, the Roman Catholic majority continually strived for the religious, social and economic ascendancy it saw as its God-given right" (p. 268).

Throughout his book, Butler uses many examples to flesh out Miliband's thesis on hegemony. For example, one of the instruments used by the minority establishment in its pursuance of hegemony was tithes which Catholics were required to pay to the Established Church. Catholics viewed this tax as exorbitant and unfair. Commenting on tithes, Butler says: "These extractions were inflated by the machinery of collection, which constituted a corps of tithe-protectors and tithe-farmers who at a price administered the system on behalf of the clergy" (p. 220). The Whiteboys dealt with these middlemen and often did so in a violent manner. The Government of the day enacted the Whiteboy Act of 1765 to deal with the Whiteboy menace. It could be argued that Parliament colluded with the established minority in its hegemonic agenda. This was a period when Catholics lost their lands , did not have their rights vindicated in law, and felt their religion being belittled by a minority who believed it was their God-given right to govern as they saw fit.

Early on in his book, Butler states a sound rationale for his area of study: "The study of an Irish county, such as South Tipperary, opens up many interesting perspectives and aims to contribute to the literature by combining geographic concepts with archival work and interdisciplinary material" (p.17). This methodology subtends his whole approach to his field of study. Butler's work will be of interest to Tipperary people, to historians, to students of Irish history, to ecumenists, and to anyone interested in understanding the impact of religion, land, and rivalry between the late sixteenth and mid-nineteenth century in South Tipperary. Dr. Butler is to be congratulated on this fine piece of research which has established him as a he¯gemo¯n in this area of expertise.