Blue Collars, “Red Forts,” and Green Fields: Working-Class Housing in Ireland in the Twentieth Century

Abstract

Planned working-class suburbanization began in Ireland in the early twentieth century, coinciding with a period of labor unrest and serious housing problems. Through a focus on Dublin in the first forty years of the century, this paper illustrates the persistence of debates about the relative merits of central as opposed to suburban housing, which were reflected in the policy oscillation of Dublin Corporation. It also shows an enduring policy bias towards the upper tier of the working class, which led to increasing class and social segregation. While changing policies tended to reflect the influence of political parties in power, the overall political weakness of the working class resulted in a failure to seize control of their own destiny.