John Coakley – författare

Negotiating a Settlement in Northern Ireland: From Sunningdale to St Andrews uses original material from witness seminars, elite interviews, and archive documents to explore the shape taken by the Irish peace process, and in particular to analyse the manner in which successful stages of this were negotiated. Northern Ireland's Good Friday Agreement of 1998 marked the end a 30-year conflict that had witnessed more than 3,000 deaths, thousands of injuries, catastrophic societal damage, and large-scale economic dislocation.This book traces the roots of the Agreement over the decades, stretching back to the Sunningdale conference of 1973 and extending up to at least the St Andrews Agreement of 2006. It describes the changing relationship between parties to the conflict (nationalist and unionist groups within Northern Ireland, and the Irish and British governments) and identifies three dimensions of significant change: new ways of implementing the concept of sovereignty, growing acceptance of power sharing, and the steady emergence of substantial equality in the socio-economic, cultural, and political domains.As well as placing this in the context of an extensive social science literature, the book innovates by looking at the manner in which those most closely involved understood the process in which they were engaged. The authors reproduce testimonies from witness seminars and interviews involving central actors, including former prime ministers, ministers, senior officials, and political advisors.They conclude that the outcome was shaped by a distinctive interaction between the conscious planning of these elites and changing demographic and political realities that themselves were, in a symbiotic way, consequences of decisions made in earlier years. They also note the extent to which this settlement has come under pressure from new notions of sovereignty implicit in the Brexit process.

The Good Friday Agreement of 1998 ended a protracted violent conflict in Northern Ireland and became an international reference point for peace-building. Negotiating a Settlement in Northern Ireland, 1969–2019 traces the roots and out-workings of the Agreement, focussing on the British and Irish governments, their changing policy paradigms, and their extended negotiations, from the Sunningdale conference of 1973 to the St Andrews Agreement of 2006. It identifies three dimensions of change that paved the way for agreement: in the evolution of elite understanding of sovereignty, in the development of wide-ranging and complex modes of power-sharing, and in the interrelated emergence of substantial equality in the socio-economic, cultural, and political domains. The book combines wide-ranging analysis with unparalleled use of witness seminars and interviews where the most senior British and Irish politicians, civil servants, and advisors discuss the process of coming to agreement. In tracing the processes by which British and Irish perspectives converged to address the Northern Ireland conflict, the book provides a benchmark against which the ongoing impact of Brexit on the Good Friday Agreement can be assessed.

In Women, Men, and Spiritual Power, John Coakley explores male-authored narratives of the lives of Catherine of Siena, Hildegard of Bingen, Angela of Foligno, and six other female prophets or mystics of the late Middle Ages. His readings reveal the complex personal and literary relationships between these women and the clerics who wrote about them. Coakley's work also undermines simplistic characterizations of male control over women, offering an important contribution to medieval religious history. Coakley shows that these male-female relationships were marked by a fundamental tension between power and fascination: the priests and monks were supposed to hold authority over the women entrusted to their care, but they often switched roles, as the men became captivated with the women's spiritual gifts. In narratives of such women, the male authors reflect directly on the relationship between the women's powers and their own. Coakley argues that they viewed these relationships as gendered partnerships that brought together female mystical power and male ecclesiastical authority without placing one above the other.Women, Men, and Spiritual Power chronicles a wide-ranging experiment in the balance of formal and informal powers, in which it was assumed to be thoroughly imaginable for both sorts of authority, in their distinctly gendered terms, to coexist and build on each other. The men's writings reflect an extended moment in western Christianity when clerics had enough confidence in their authority to actually question its limits. After about 1400, however, clerics underwent a crisis of confidence, and such a questioning of institutional power was no longer considered safe. Instead of seeing women as partners, their revelatory powers began to be viewed as evidence of witchcraft.

Non-territorial autonomy is an unusual method of government based on the notion of the devolution of power to entities within the state which exercise jurisdiction over a population defined by personal features (such as opting for a particular ethnic nationality) rather than by geographical location (such as the region in which they live). Developed theoretically by Karl Renner in the early twentieth century as a mechanism for responding to demands for self-government from dispersed minorities within the Austro-Hungarian empire, it had earlier roots in the Ottoman empire, and later formed the basis for constitutional experiments in Estonia, in Belgium, and in states with sizeable but dispersed minorities. More recently, efforts have been made to apply it in respect of indigenous communities. This approach to the management of ethnic conflict has attracted a small literature, but there is no comprehensive overview of its application. The intention of this volume is to fill this gap, for the first time offering a comparative assessment of the significance of this political institutional device. Authors of case studies follow a common framework.This book was published as a special issue of Ethnopolitics.

The role of external powers and international bodies in efforts to break patterns of conflict and to install stable and durable peace settlements is well known. This book focuses on an unusual case where the sovereign state and a neighbour state help broker an agreed settlement in a disputed and conflictual region. It analyses the roles of the British and Irish governments in pursuing political stability in Northern Ireland, a disputed region of the United Kingdom over which the Irish state has had a territorial claim.The book focuses on the changes in the British state, whose writ extends over Northern Ireland, but also the Irish state, which surrendered a strong formal but ineffective claim to jurisdiction over Northern Ireland for the reality of a significant voice in its political future. These changes ultimately facilitated the process of settlement leading to the 1998 Good Friday Agreement, and the later transformation of institutions and political relations in Northern Ireland and between the UK and Ireland. It innovates by using a new oral archive of elite interviews built up over the past decade.The authors of the various chapters address a range of dimensions in which these changes are reflected. These include new interpretations of the dynamics of the Northern Ireland conflict and in particular of the evolving British-Irish relationship, new perspectives on the positions of governments and parties, and new analyses of the contribution of cross-border contacts in two areas where consequences are likely to be indirect but profound: television broadcasting and business cooperation.This book was published as a special issue of Irish Political Studies.

The book begins with an agenda-setting introduction which will provide an overview of the central question being addressed, such as the circumstances associated with the move towards a political settlement, the parameters of this settlement and the factors that have assisted in bringing it about. The remaining contributions will focus on a range of cases selected for their diversity and their capacity to highlight the full gamut of political approaches to conflict resolution. The cases vary in:the intensity of the conflict (from Belgium, where it is potential rather than actual, to Sri Lanka, where it has come to a recent violent conclusion); in the geopolitical relationship between the competing groups (from Cyprus, where they are sharply segregated geographically, to Northern Ireland, where they are intermingled); in the extent to which a stable constitutional accommodation has been reached (ranging from the Basque Country, with a large range of unresolved problems, to South Africa, which has achieved a significant level of institutional stability).This book ranges over the world’s major geopolitical zones, including Asia, the Middle East, Africa and Europe and will be of interest to practitioners in the field of international security.This book was published as a special issue of Nationalism and Ethnic Politics.

The book begins with an agenda-setting introduction which will provide an overview of the central question being addressed, such as the circumstances associated with the move towards a political settlement, the parameters of this settlement and the factors that have assisted in bringing it about. The remaining contributions will focus on a range of cases selected for their diversity and their capacity to highlight the full gamut of political approaches to conflict resolution. The cases vary in:the intensity of the conflict (from Belgium, where it is potential rather than actual, to Sri Lanka, where it has come to a recent violent conclusion); in the geopolitical relationship between the competing groups (from Cyprus, where they are sharply segregated geographically, to Northern Ireland, where they are intermingled); in the extent to which a stable constitutional accommodation has been reached (ranging from the Basque Country, with a large range of unresolved problems, to South Africa, which has achieved a significant level of institutional stability).This book ranges over the world’s major geopolitical zones, including Asia, the Middle East, Africa and Europe and will be of interest to practitioners in the field of international security.This book was published as a special issue of Nationalism and Ethnic Politics.

The object of this book is to look at the manner in which states attempt to cope with ethnic conflict through territorial approaches. This revised edition has new chapters covering Northern Ireland, South Africa and Yugoslavia.

The object of this book is to look at the manner in which states attempt to cope with ethnic conflict through territorial approaches. This revised edition has new chapters covering Northern Ireland, South Africa and Yugoslavia.

This book is a volume in the Penn Press Anniversary Collection. To mark its 125th anniversary in 2015, the University of Pennsylvania Press rereleased more than 1,100 titles from Penn Press's distinguished backlist from 1899-1999 that had fallen out of print. Spanning an entire century, the Anniversary Collection offers peer-reviewed scholarship in a wide range of subject areas.

Building on the success of previous editions, Politics in the Republic of Ireland continues to provide an authoritative introduction to all aspects of government and politics in this seventh edition.Written by some of the foremost experts on Irish politics, it explains, analyses and interprets the background to Irish government and contemporary political processes. It devotes chapters to every aspect of contemporary Irish government and politics, including the political parties and elections, the constitution, deliberative democracy, referendums, the Taoiseach and the governmental system, women and politics, the position of the Dáil, and Ireland’s place within the European Union.Bringing readers up to date with the very latest developments, especially with the upheaval in the Irish party system and the implications of recent liberalising referendums, the seventh edition combines substance with a highly readable style, providing an accessible book that meets the needs of all those who are interested in knowing how politics and government operate in Ireland.

Building on the success of previous editions, Politics in the Republic of Ireland continues to provide an authoritative introduction to all aspects of government and politics in this seventh edition.Written by some of the foremost experts on Irish politics, it explains, analyses and interprets the background to Irish government and contemporary political processes. It devotes chapters to every aspect of contemporary Irish government and politics, including the political parties and elections, the constitution, deliberative democracy, referendums, the Taoiseach and the governmental system, women and politics, the position of the Dáil, and Ireland’s place within the European Union.Bringing readers up to date with the very latest developments, especially with the upheaval in the Irish party system and the implications of recent liberalising referendums, the seventh edition combines substance with a highly readable style, providing an accessible book that meets the needs of all those who are interested in knowing how politics and government operate in Ireland.

In the early modern period, both legal and illegal maritime predation was a common occurrence, but the expansion of European maritime empires exacerbated existing and created new problems of piracy across the globe. This collection of original case studies addresses these early modern problems in three sections: first, states’ attempts to exercise jurisdiction over seafarers and their actions; second, the multiple predatory marine practices considered ‘piracy’; and finally, the many representations made about piracy by states or the seafarers themselves. Across nine chapters covering regions including southeast Asia, the Atlantic archipelago, the North African states, and the Caribbean Sea, the complexities of defining and criminalizing maritime predation is explored, raising questions surrounding subjecthood, interpolity law, and the impacts of colonization on the legal and social construction of ocean, port, and coastal spaces. Seeking the meanings and motivations behind piracy, this book reveals that while European states attempted to fashion piracy into a global and homogenous phenomenon, it was largely a local and often idiosyncratic issue.

The role of external powers and international bodies in efforts to break patterns of conflict and to install stable and durable peace settlements is well known. This book focuses on an unusual case where the sovereign state and a neighbour state help broker an agreed settlement in a disputed and conflictual region. It analyses the roles of the British and Irish governments in pursuing political stability in Northern Ireland, a disputed region of the United Kingdom over which the Irish state has had a territorial claim.The book focuses on the changes in the British state, whose writ extends over Northern Ireland, but also the Irish state, which surrendered a strong formal but ineffective claim to jurisdiction over Northern Ireland for the reality of a significant voice in its political future. These changes ultimately facilitated the process of settlement leading to the 1998 Good Friday Agreement, and the later transformation of institutions and political relations in Northern Ireland and between the UK and Ireland. It innovates by using a new oral archive of elite interviews built up over the past decade.The authors of the various chapters address a range of dimensions in which these changes are reflected. These include new interpretations of the dynamics of the Northern Ireland conflict and in particular of the evolving British-Irish relationship, new perspectives on the positions of governments and parties, and new analyses of the contribution of cross-border contacts in two areas where consequences are likely to be indirect but profound: television broadcasting and business cooperation.This book was published as a special issue of Irish Political Studies.

Non-territorial autonomy is an unusual method of government based on the notion of the devolution of power to entities within the state which exercise jurisdiction over a population defined by personal features (such as opting for a particular ethnic nationality) rather than by geographical location (such as the region in which they live). Developed theoretically by Karl Renner in the early twentieth century as a mechanism for responding to demands for self-government from dispersed minorities within the Austro-Hungarian empire, it had earlier roots in the Ottoman empire, and later formed the basis for constitutional experiments in Estonia, in Belgium, and in states with sizeable but dispersed minorities. More recently, efforts have been made to apply it in respect of indigenous communities. This approach to the management of ethnic conflict has attracted a small literature, but there is no comprehensive overview of its application. The intention of this volume is to fill this gap, for the first time offering a comparative assessment of the significance of this political institutional device. Authors of case studies follow a common framework.This book was published as a special issue of Ethnopolitics.

This exciting new book is the first to offer a truly comprehensive account of the vibrant topic of nationalism.

Packed with a series of rich, illustrative examples, the book examines this powerful and remarkable political force by exploring:

- Definitions of nationalism

- Language and nationalism

- Religion and Nationalism

- Nationalist history

- The social roots of ideologies and the significance of race, gender and class

- Nationalist movements, from dominant majorities to peripheral minorities socio-economic and sociological perspectives

- State responses to nationalism

Supported by a number of helpful illustrations, tables and diagrams, the text is both engaging and highly informative.

Nationalism, Ethnicity and the State: Making and Breaking Nations will prove an insightful read for both undergraduate and postgraduate students and researchers in the area of Politics and International Relations.

This exciting new book is the first to offer a truly comprehensive account of the vibrant topic of nationalism.

Packed with a series of rich, illustrative examples, the book examines this powerful and remarkable political force by exploring:

- Definitions of nationalism

- Language and nationalism

- Religion and Nationalism

- Nationalist history

- The social roots of ideologies and the significance of race, gender and class

- Nationalist movements, from dominant majorities to peripheral minorities socio-economic and sociological perspectives

- State responses to nationalism

Supported by a number of helpful illustrations, tables and diagrams, the text is both engaging and highly informative.

Nationalism, Ethnicity and the State: Making and Breaking Nations will prove an insightful read for both undergraduate and postgraduate students and researchers in the area of Politics and International Relations.

This volume explores in detail the theme of change within the major political traditions of Ireland. It adopts a dual approach, in which a set of leading politicians examines the theme of change within particular traditions, followed by a corresponding set of contributions from academic observers. Change has been especially marked in the constitutional nationalist tradition within Northern Ireland, which is examined from different perspectives by Alban Maginess and Jennifer Todd. It has been even more pronounced in the republican tradition, however, which is discussed from the standpoints of politician and academic commentator by Mitchel McLaughlin and Paul Arthur. Two strands of unionism are analysed using the same formula. Thus Dermot Nesbit and Richard English focus on the complex and fascinating pattern of change within Ulster unionism. Then the even more remarkable shift in direction within militant loyalism is assessed by one of its main architects, David Ervine, and by academic analyst James McAuley. Finally, Desmond O'Malley and Tom Garvin examine the pattern of change in the south.John Coakley provides a detailed introduction to constitutional innovation and political change in 20th-century Ireland, and the appendix contains selected political documents outlining the various perspectives on the future of Northern Ireland.

From Political Violence to Negotiated Settlement has as its starting point the strategic shift on the part of both loyalist and republican militants that became obvious in the mid-1990s. In both cases, political violence was foresworn in favour of a new strategy of inter-group bargaining and compromise. The political standpoints have deep historical roots, and this book examines them systematically. It brings together Ireland's leading specialists in the area - drawn from historians, political scientists and sociologists - and seeks to provide historical depth to the debate about contemporary paramilitary violence. The book is structured along a mixture of chronological and thematic lines, starting with an analysis of the circumstances at the beginning of the twentieth century that brought the issue of violence as an agent of change to the centre of the Irish stage. This is carried further by means of an analysis of the perpetuation of lessons learned in the pre-1922 period for subsequent political development, and by more detailed studies of the interplay between strategies of violence and the parliamentary path on the unionist and republican sides.The contemporary relevance of the issues raised is underscored in a contribution from the chair of the arms decommissioning body.

"Renovation or Revolution" - opens a new field of British/Irish studies, beyond devolution studies in the United Kingdom, and beyond Northern Ireland conflict studies. It examines the redistributions of power and the new networks of policy making on these islands. It analyses the extent to which they represent the emergence of a new regional British/Irish political arena within a European and international context. It asks whether we are seeing an emergent revolution in the territorial politics of these islands or whether the changes are simply renovations of an older territorial pattern. This book discusses in detail the implementation of constitutional reforms in Scotland, Wales, England, Northern Ireland and in British, North/South, British/Irish, European and international perspectives.