|
How accurate is it to see Peel’s Irish Policies as a coherent policy of Constructive Unionism?
Personally I would have to say it would not be very accurate to say that Peel’s Irish policies were a coherent policy of constructive unionism, as his policies towards constructive unionism do not remain consistent, especially considering he was against Catholic emancipation and had to be forced into it by O’ Connell. Added to this, constructive unionism amounted to little in practice except for land reform, and, given that Peel managed no land reform, the argument that his policies amounted to a coherent policy of constructive unionism seems a little thin.
Constructive unionism, was basically Peels attempt at unifying Ireland and Britain, and he did a number of things in an attempt to win the Irish over to the idea, but he was, in my view, inconsistent in his actions, and did not get much done, so was not successful in doing so. His aim with his policies after his acceptance of the emancipation was to win Catholic Ireland over as aforementioned.
Approximate Word count = 894 Approximate Pages = 3.6 (250 words per page double spaced)
|
|