Editing Irish Civil War (section)

==Legacy and memory==
As with most civil wars, the internecine conflict left a bitter legacy, which continues to influence Irish politics to this day. The two largest political parties in the republic through most of its history (except for the [[2011 Irish general election|2011]] and [[2020 Irish general election|2020 general elections]]) were Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, the descendants respectively of the anti-treaty and pro-treaty forces of 1922. Until the 1970s, almost all of Ireland's prominent politicians were veterans of the Civil War, a fact which poisoned the relationship between Ireland's two biggest parties. Civil War veterans include Republicans Éamon de Valera, Frank Aiken, Todd Andrews and [[Seán Lemass]]; and Free State supporters W. T. Cosgrave, Richard Mulcahy and [[Kevin O'Higgins]].<ref name="fn_2">Seán Lemass's brother Noel, a captain in the Anti-Treaty IRA, was abducted and shot by Free State forces in July 1923, two months after the war had ended. His body was dumped in the [[Wicklow Mountains]], near Glencree, where it was found in October 1923. The spot where his body was found is marked by a memorial. O'Higgins was the Minister for Economic Affairs in the Free State government and was hated by Republicans for having been in favour of the execution of prisoners during the Civil War. His elderly father was killed by republicans during the war. O'Higgins himself was assassinated on his way to [[Mass (liturgy)|mass]] in 1927 by Anti-Treaty IRA members. His killing precipitated a government clampdown on the IRA and forced Fianna Fáil to take the Oath of Allegiance in order to contest elections.</ref>{{sfn | Collins | 1993 | p=333b }}

[[File:Juno and the Paycock Movie Poster.jpg|thumb|upright|left|Alfred Hitchock's 1930 [[Juno and the Paycock (film)|film version]] of O'Casey's play]]

Moreover, many of these men's sons and daughters also became politicians, meaning that the personal wounds of the civil war were felt over three generations. In the 1930s, after Fianna Fáil took power for the first time, it looked possible for a while that the Civil War might break out again between the [[Irish Republican Army (1922–1969)|IRA]] and the pro-Free State [[Blueshirts]]. This crisis was averted, and by the 1950s violence was no longer prominent in politics in the Republic of Ireland. However, the breakaway IRA continued (and continues in various forms) to exist. It was not until 1948 that the IRA renounced military attacks on the forces of the southern Irish state when it became the Republic of Ireland. After this point, the organisation dedicated itself primarily to the end of British rule in Northern Ireland. The [[IRA Army Council]] still makes claim to be the legitimate Provisional Government of the Irish Republic declared in 1916 and annulled by the Anglo-Irish Treaty of 1921.<ref>{{cite web | last=Melaugh | first=Dr Martin | title=Events: Text of Irish Republican Army (IRA) 'Green Book' (Book I and II) | website=CAIN | url=http://cain.ulst.ac.uk/othelem/organ/ira/ira_green_book.htm | access-date=2019-08-24 | archive-date=4 March 2016 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304204642/http://cain.ulst.ac.uk/othelem/organ/ira/ira_green_book.htm | url-status=live}}</ref>

===Fictional accounts===
According to  Edward Quinn, the play "[[Juno and the Paycock]]" by [[Seán O'Casey]] is a tragicomedy that criticises the civil war and the foolishness that led to it.  Irish writer [[James Stephens (author)|James Stephens]] says the play's theme is an "orchestrated hymn against all poverty and hate."<ref>Edward Quinn, ''History in Literature: A Reader's Guide to 20th Century History and the Literature It Inspired'' (2004), pp. 184–185.</ref>