This week: The new TV Series 'The Silent Civil War'; a new comprehensive history of The Irish Defence Forces; and the life of Irish writer Robert Tressell.

The Silent Civil War

We begin this evening with The Silent Civil War. That's the two-part series currently airing on RTÉ One television, in which a group of historians and archivists seek out first-hand testimonies, from family members of the people involved in the Irish Civil War between 1922 and 1923.

Myles is joined by historian Liz Gillis, one of the contributors and interviewers in the documentary.

You can catch up on the first episode of The Silent Civil War now on the RTÉ Player. The second episode will be on RTÉ One television this Wednesday the 3rd of May at 9:35PM.

The Irish Defence Forces, 1922–2022

The Irish Defence Forces remain something of an enigma to the public, one of the most frequently discussed yet least understood elements of the public sector and of Irish foreign policy.

Yet the Defence Forces have a long history, whose origins lie in the formation of the Irish Volunteers in 1913, and the political and military revolution that preceded the emergence of the Irish Free State in 1922.

The Defence Forces fought through the subsequent Irish Civil War and later faced the challenge of protecting a neutral state during a time of global conflict. In the decades after the Second World War, the Defence Forces engaged in its first international peacekeeping missions, while the outbreak of the Troubles in Northern Ireland required it to counter the activities of republican and loyalist subversives.

It is a remarkable history and one that is explored in a new book by our guest, Dr Eoin Kinsella of the Royal Irish Academy.

The book is called The Irish Defence Forces, 1922-2022, it's published by Four Courts Press.

Robert Tressell

Born in Dublin in 1870, Robert Noonan – far better known under his pen name of Robert Tressell – was the author of The Ragged-Trousered Philanthropists.

That book, which remained unpublished during Tressell's life, would become a pivotal text for generations of trade unionists and socialists after it became widely available in the second half of the 20th century.

A forthcoming festival will explore the life and legacy of Tressell, a figure who is often overlooked in discussions of Irish writers. To learn more, Myles is joined by Mary Muldowney, festival organiser and Historian in Residence with Dublin City Council.

The Robert Tressell Festival will be held at Liberty Hall on Saturday the 6th of May. Details can be found here at tressellfestival.ie