The Irish in the Resistance

In June 1940, the fall of France prompted General Charles de Gaulle to make an impassioned rallying call to his fellow citizens to fight back against the Germans. His famous radio speech, broadcast from the BBC in London, was later credited with igniting a spark of resistance which eventually grew into a vast underground network of civilians who took a stand against Nazi occupation in Europe. Join Clodagh Finn and John Morgan as we meet the forgotten Irish men and women who joined the Resistance.

Clodagh Finn is a journalist and the author of Through Her Eyes: a history of Ireland in 21 women and A Time to Risk All, a biography of Mary Elmes  (who is known as ‘The Irish Oskar Schindler’). She has a degree in French and Archaeology from UCD and is particularly interested in writing about overlooked stories from history.  

John Morgan is a lawyer with a longstanding interest in the history of World War ll, particularly in relation to Allied Resistance and Escape Lines. John is a trustee of the Escape Lines Memorial Society (UK) and co-founder of the Basque Pyrenees Freedom Trails Association.

Dr Deirdre Foley is a historian of modern Ireland with a particular interest in birth control, maternity care, and the legal status of women in 20th century Ireland. She has a PhD in History from Dublin City University, and previously studied at Trinity College Dublin (MPhil) and University College Dublin (BA). She is the membership secretary of the Women’s History Association of Ireland. In 2019 she was awarded the Mac Curtain / Cullen essay prize by the Women’s History Association of Ireland, and the Maureen Murphy Award from the American Conference for Irish Studies.