It’s been 100 years since Constance Markievicz became the first woman to be elected to the British House of Commons. Though she never took her seat, she may now find a place there.
A painting of Markievicz is due to be presented to the Speaker of the House this week to mark the occasion and here in Ireland, a performance of letters written by Markievicz to her sister Eva during her time in prison will be staged at the Clifden Arts Festival. The author of the piece, Mary Kenny and the actor who will portray Markievicz, Jeananne Crowley both joined Miriam O’Callaghan to discuss a woman they say "should be remembered."
The idea for the performance piece, entitled Dearest Old Darling after Markievicz’s preferred endearment for her sister, came about when Mary found the letters among her sister Ursula’s belongings following her death in 2003. Though they had been published in the ’80s, Mary had not known her sister had owned a copy, as she "wasn’t a particular feminist". In reading them out of curiosity, Mary discovered a Constance that was more three-dimensional than the history books had showed her to be.
"She was a militant Republican and she was a very dramatic person and played such a central role in the 1916 Rising but she did have this other side which she reveals very much to her beloved sister. Her love of gardening, of dogs, feminine things like embroidery…It’s nice to see people in the round and see, you know, different aspects of their personality."
Eva was a pacifist and a "gentle soul", Mary explained. So, while Constance’s letters did contain some political "allusions", they were not polemic.
"I think Constance sort of reigned in a little bit her more militant political side because I think she wanted to kind of protect Eva."
Jeananne told Miriam that her knowledge of Markievicz was limited to "what we all knew" before reading the letters, but she became intrigued by the personality they contained.
"She was something else, in terms of her energy and her enthusiasm...I just thought she was fantastically vibrant, and even though the last 5 or 7 years of her life were tortuous and unpleasant, you don’t get that sense. You get a sense of a woman who took every day and did her very utmost to achieve what she set out to achieve."
Listen back to the whole discussion on Today with Miriam O’Callaghan here.
