THE RELATIONSHIP between English and Irish Catholics was “another intricate tangle in the general relationship” between the two countries, and had not improved since the days of Henry VIII, according to one official at the British Foreign Office.
The official, Mr A Turner, had discussed this issue months before over lunch with Fr John Magee, former private secretary to popes Paul VI, John Paul I and John Paul II, and who later became bishop of Cloyne.
Turner produced a document in January 1979 describing the “inferiority felt by Irish Catholics with regard to English Catholicism”. Leaving aside “the vexed though topical question of red hats” , he put together a list of “provoking statistics” to support his view. These included the greater proportion of Catholic cathedrals in the UK than in Ireland and the fact that England had 42 canonised martyrs, to Ireland’s one.
“And if one turns from quantity to quality,” Turner continued, “who is the Irishman equal to such internationally renowned and influential figures as St Thomas More and Cardinal Newman? Certainly not St Oliver Plunkett, brought to his death only as a result of a sordid squabble within the Irish Catholic community. And which Irish family can be classed with the Welds, the Actons, the Howards, or Stuarts, each of whom has quietly given the Roman Curia an English or Scottish cardinal?”
Another British file, on “Irish Nomenclature”, suggests that even the smallest details could disrupt Anglo-Irish relations. Officials from the Department of Environment sought the advice of the foreign office on the appropriate language to use in discussion with Irish officials. A minor diplomatic dispute had arisen at the EEC, after Irish officials had objected to the use of the term “British Isles” on a newly published map on European vegetation. The map had been drawn up by an unrepentant Italian cartographer who insisted that it was “phytogeographically correct”.
In a light-hearted note, one British official suggested “Albio-Hibernian Archipelago” as an alternative. “We should not wish the Irish to see us as modern-day geographic imperialists!”
Before meeting Jack Lynch, prime minister Margaret Thatcher was advised on correct pronunciation and protocol. The Irish leader was to be referred to as “Tea-Shock” and she should be aware he faced a growing challenge from Charles Haughey (“Hockey”). Lynch was “well disposed but, like most Irish politicians, feels obliged to don a ‘green jersey’ from time to time.”
Thatcher was warned that Anglo-Irish relations were “dominated by the Northern Ireland problem and by a ‘big-brother’ complex on the Irish side”.
According to the British ambassador in Dublin, Robin Haydon:
“Talking to Irish people is a confusing if usually diverting pursuit. Some speak of Irish unity but do not believe it is attainable, others talk about it and believe it is. Some will say that the only solution is for the British to withdraw, with or without an advanced date; others throw up their hands in horror at the merest hint we might go.”