Election flyers for 1917

The rivalry between the IPP and SInn Féin, as hinted at in the purchasing of graves in Glasnevin Cemetery, became increasingly real and acrimonious throughout 1917. This is graphically illustrated by the highly critical invective directed at the IPP in this Sinn Féin election flyer for the South Longford by-election of 1917. The candidate in question, Joseph McGuinness, was a 1916 veteran who was chosen as the (reluctant) Sinn Féin candidate despite the fact that he was still in British custody during the election. His victory was one of a number of by-election victories for Sinn Féin in 1917 that indicated how Irish nationalist opinion was radicalised after the Easter Rising. The 1917 by-election campaigns, and the funeral of Ashe in Dublin, provided crucial opportunities for republicans to mobilise and organise themselves. McGuinness himself died in May 1922, and was also buried in Glasnevin Cemetery (Glasnevin Trust).