In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:

1 1. Politics, Religion and Science, 1840s–1874 Catholic Under-representation in Science In his seminal essay, ‘Irish Thought in Science’, Gordon L. Herries Davies observed that the top tier of the scientific profession in nineteenthcentury Ireland was very much the domain of Protestants, despite their minority status. In a survey of fifty eminent scientists, Davies discovered only seven were Roman Catholic.1 The work of James Bennett led to a similar finding. In his survey of scientists of ‘significant standing’, he found that only about 10 per cent were Roman Catholic and that a very large majority of Protestant scientists were members of the Church of Ireland.2 Catholics were clearly under-represented in science in nineteenth -century Ireland.3 Why did this occur? It might be assumed that there was something in Irish Catholic culture which was inherently antiscientific . In her essay, ‘Catholicism, Nationalism and Science’, Greta Jones argued that there was nothing predetermined or inevitable about the marginalised status of science in Catholic nationalist Ireland. That strange collective entity, ‘the Irish psyche . . . literary and intuitive rather than scientific and positivist’ – created ex nihilo by some commentators on Irish culture – did not create the problem nor contribute to it.4 This finding is supported by Juliana Adelman. She concluded in her Communities of Science in Nineteenth-Century Ireland (2009) that Irish Catholics were not averse to science. Although science did not feature strongly in the rhetoric and aspirations of the Irish nationalist movement – which became more and more associated with Catholicism – this was not due to a campaign by the Catholic Church in Ireland against science.5 Published works on, or relating to, the history of science in Ireland indicate that there were a number of interconnected social, economic and political reasons for the weakness of science in Irish Catholic culture. Catholic Ireland was predominantly rural, and lacking a strong and 2 Irish Catholicism and Science diverse industrial base, did not have the resources to produce substantial numbers of scientists and engineers.6 The central importance of agriculture in the economy would suggest that agricultural science would prosper. This did not occur. Faculties of agriculture were closed down in the Queen’s Colleges in 1865 and in the Royal College of Science for Ireland a few years later because of the failure to attract sufficient numbers of students. Those who could afford to send their children to college did not generally have a high opinion of agriculture in terms of career prospects or as a way of life. Farm work was not held in high esteem relative to professions such as law. Furthermore, it seems that memories of the Great Famine of the 1840s worked against an interest in agriculture.7 The Great Famine had a devastating effect on lower-income Catholics, in particular. The constant struggle for survival and economic security would have made it extremely difficult to cultivate an interest in science. Those who were relatively affluent had much greater opportunities to pursue scientific study and research.8 Privileged members of the Anglo-Irish Ascendancy had their ‘places of knowledge’ – such as libraries, observatories, botanical gardens and private museums;9 and they engaged in intellectual debates taking place in England rather than in Ireland.10 Davies argued that Catholic under-representation in science could not be explained on the basis of a lack of good educational opportunities open to them. In support of this contention, he gave examples of English and Scots of ‘humble origins’ who had risen to eminence in science.11 Nicholas Whyte, in his Science, Colonialism and Ireland (1999), took issue with Davies on this point. He argued that the poor educational opportunities open to Catholics, arising from their relatively poor economic status, needs to be considered in conjunction with the fact that Irish society was sharply divided at the time.12 This social divisiveness worked against the progress of Catholics in science because the practice of science was carried out mainly in institutions dominated by the Protestant Ascendancy, such as Trinity College Dublin (the only college of the University of Dublin)13 , the Royal Irish Academy and the Royal Dublin Society. Whyte found that Catholics suffered discrimination at the hands of Protestants in these institutions.14 Furthermore, the interest of many Catholics with the financial means to pursue higher education was probably diminished by their perception of science as an activity strongly linked to Protestantism and foreign influence.15 There would have been considerable justification for opinions about foreign influence [3.133...

Share