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Revision as of 22:05, 3 November 2012

College Historical Society
Founded 1770
Home Page TheHist.com
President Professor David McConnell

Officers of the College Historical Society, 243rd Session[1]

Auditor Hannah McCarthy
Treasurer Ruth Hoey
Correspondence Secretary John Doody
Record Secretary Cormac McGuinness
Censor Christopher Rooke
Librarian Briony Somers
Debates Convenor Lorcan Cullen

The College Historical Society (CHS) - popularly referred to as The Hist - is one of the two debating societies at University of Dublin . It was established within the college in 1770, but traces its origins to the society founded by the philosopher Edmund Burke in Dublin in 1747.[2][3][4] It is often cited as the oldest undergraduate student society in the world.

The society occupies rooms in the Graduates' Memorial Building at Trinity College, which it shares with its rival, the University Philosophical Society. Prominent members have included many Irish men and women of note, from the republican revolutionary Theobald Wolfe Tone and the author Bram Stoker, to founding father of the Northern Irish state Edward Carson and first President of Ireland Douglas Hyde, and in more recent times Government Ministers Mary Harney and Brian Lenihan.

History

Foundation

The College Historical Society was founded by Edmund Burke, first meeting on Wednesday, 21 March 1770,[5] with James Reid as its first Auditor, when Burke's Club (founded 1747) merged with the Historical Club (founded 1753). It was a time of great change in Ireland and the Western World, at the height of the Enlightenment and before the American War of Independence and the French Revolution. From its inception it showed itself to be at the forefront of intellectual thought in Ireland, and many of its members later went into politics.

Restrictions and expulsions

Theobald Wolfe Tone, later leader of the United Irishmen, was elected Auditor in 1785, and Thomas Addis Emmet was a member of the committee. The society was briefly expelled from the College in 1794, but readmitted on the condition that "No question of modern politics shall be debated". In 1797, the poet Thomas Moore and the nationalist Robert Emmet were elected as members. Eight members of The Hist were expelled in 1798 in the run-up to the Rebellion, and a motion was later carried condemning the rebellion, against their former Auditor.

Tension between the society and the College flourished in the early nineteenth century with the Auditor being called before the Provost in 1810. In 1812 the Provost, Dr Thomas Elrington, objected vehemently to the motion 'Was Brutus justifiable in putting Julius Caesar to death?'. After a number of members were removed at the request of the College Board, the society left the college in 1815.

The Extern Society

The Society continued from 1815 as the Extern Historical Society. Among its members at this time were Isaac Butt, who tried unsuccessfully in 1832 to have the Society readmitted, Joseph Sheridan LeFanu, Thomas Davis and John Blake Dillon and many other notables of the nationalist cause . In 1843 the Society was refounded within the College after a student petition, again on the condition that no subject of current politics was debated. This regulation remains to this day, however its spirit is often broken by the controversial topics discussed regularly in The Hist.

The 19th century

The Society continued successfully after that with many lively debates, including the motion on June 10, 1857 'That the Reform Bill of Lord Grey was not framed in accordance with the wants of the country', proposed by Isaac Butt and opposed by Edward Gibson. This era was considered by many to be the high point of the Society, with many of its members moving to high political positions. It was common for the Members of Parliament for the University to have served on the Committee of the Hist, such as Edward Gibson and David Plunkett, who were both Auditors, and Edward Carson, who was the Librarian. Bram Stoker, author of Dracula, became Auditor in 1872. In 1864 the Society collected money from its members to erect statues outside the College of Edmund Burke and Oliver Goldsmith.

The Society moved to the Graduates' Memorial Building (GMB) in 1904, which it shares with the University Philosophical Society and the College Theological Society. The College Board relaxed its rules, allowing such motions as 'That the Gaelic League is deserving of the support of every Irishman' in 1905 and 1906.

The 20th and 21st centuries

The society continued well through the twentieth century, although the First World War hit it badly, with 136 of its former members killed. Eoin O'Mahony was elected Auditor in 1930 and faced impeachment when he raised a toast to Ireland instead of the King. Interestingly, Eoin O'Mahony offered Lord Carson the Presidency of the Society in 1931, although Carson declined due to ill health, recommending that the position be offered to former Gold Medallist and future President of Ireland Douglas Hyde, who was elected to the position. The current President is Prof. David McConnell, a former Librarian and Auditor of the Society and a winner of The Irish Times Debating Competition, and now Chairman of The Irish Times Trust and one of Europe's foremost geneticists.

Women had been refused membership of the society until 1969, when the motion "That this House reveres the memory of Mrs Pankhurst" was debated with Rosaleen Mills participating (the motion, however, was defeated). The first female Auditor, future Tánaiste Mary Harney, was elected in 1976. Since then the Society has had four female Auditors. The Society's Bicentennial Meeting in 1970 was addressed by US Senator Edward Kennedy at which he called the Society "The greatest of the school of the orators". Recent developments have seen the re-opening of the Resource Library, operated in conjunction with the Phil, which holds over 200 books and is made available as a general study area and library for the use of the members of the Society. The Society has also extensively re-developed the Conversation Room with the addition of better facilities such as wireless Internet access.

Competitive Debating

Irish President and UN Human Rights Commissioner Mary Robinson at the Hist, 2007

Debating in the Society takes two forms — competitive debating and chamber debating.

Competitive debating is the preserve of a minority of members of the Society. The Society's best debaters compete nationally and internationally against other societies in competitions, most usually of the British Parliamentary debating style with the notable exception being the prestigious Irish Times Debate public-speaking competition. The Society regularly fields one of the most successful teams in Ireland having been represented in the Grand Final of The Irish Times Debating Competition in 2006, and winning it in three consecutive years, in 2007, 2008 and 2009, and has now won this competition on both the individual and team positions more times than any other debating society in Ireland. It is also a force internationally, competing regularly at foreign IV's and at both the World and European Universities Debating Championships ( the Society having hosted the former in 1992). The Society jointly hosts the Kingsmill-Moore Invitational and Dean Swift Intervarsity (Trinity IV), the largest and most prestigious Irish Inter-varsity, with the University Philosophical Society, and in 2012 will add to this by hosting the Robert Emmett Invitational competition. The Society also fosters development and competition within itself, running frequent workshops and internal competitions, most notably its Maiden Speaker Competition and the Wolfe Tones's Public Speaking Competition.

It also plays a prominent role in providing Secondary School Level Debating, jointly running the esteemed Leinster Schools' Debating Competition with the Literary and Historical Society and its own Schools' Mace.

Chamber Debating

The main business of the society is the weekly debates held each Wednesday Night during term time. Chamber debating, including the debates (known as Public Business Meetings) with invited guest speakers for which the Society is best known, tends to be less formalised (even if more formal) than competitive debates, and the manner of delivery is closer to public speaking, with audience engagement far more important.

The Weekly Debate forms one half of the Society's weekly Meeting with Private Business taking up the first fifteen minutes of the evening. In this, the internal business of the society is executed by the Committee with an Ordinary Member chairing: thanks and congratulations are given, news is announced, fines are administered, questions are posed regarding the Committee's actions or inaction and various other technical business. The Minutes read at both this and the Public Business Meeting are usually comedic, in which the Record Secretary mocks the previous week's debate and the Committee Members.

The Meeting then moves to Public Business, where a guest chair (usually someone of expertise or involvement in the matter being debated)controls the debate in which he proposition and opposition speaking alternatively with both student and guest speakers on both sides, to whom Points of Information - brief statements or questions - may be offered by the speakers or an audience member from the floor. At the debate's conclusion, the motion is put to the House, allowing the audience to vote on which side made the most persuasive arguments, with the Chair usually offering their thoughts on the debate and the issue generally. The motions are varied and wide-ranging, giving students an opportunity to debate with experts on the specific motion chosen, usually based on an important issue taking place in current affairs. A generous reception follows the debate in which both guests and students continue discussion and debate on the matter.

The Society has seen many figures in recent years with the Northern Ireland debate figuring prominently as one of the consistent highlights of each session. Prominent politicians such as David Ervine, Jeffrey Donaldson and Nobel Peace Prize winner John Hume have spoken at this debate. It is often typical for a Government Minister to address The Hist on a contentious topic. In 2005 the Minister for Justice, Michael McDowell T.D. unveiled proposals for reform of the legal profession at a Hist debate on the matter.

The Society addresses controversial issues. In the 236th Session of the Society, over 500 people attempted to gain access to the Abortion Debate which was targeted by Youth Defence protesters and the Euthanasia Debate was recorded for an upcoming documentary on the pro-Euthanasia group Dignitas for the Canadian Discovery Channel. The Inaugural Meeting of the 236th Session was addressed by Dr. Mary Robinson, a former President of Ireland, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Chancellor of the University of Dublin. The Society has also been addressed by every Taoiseach and President of the State.

In the past year, guests have included Northern Irish First Minister Rev. Ian Paisley, democratically-elected Prime Minister in exile of Burma Sein Win, famed author Sir John Mortimer, Oscar nominee James Cromwell, Taoiseach Bertie Ahern and former British Prime Minister Sir John Major, among others. Recordings of events and speakers are available from the website.

Notable Guests

Sir John Major speaking at the Inaugural Meeting of the 238th Session

Political figures and public intellectuals

Personalities from the arts

Governance of the Society

Logo of 238th Session of the College Historical Society (2007-2008)

The Society is headed by a President, usually a senior academic of the College or respected public figure, who ceremonially presides over the Society such as its Inaugural meeting but is removed from the day-to-day running of the society. As well as the President, there are Vice Presidents - and their numbers vary. Since its inception, the Society has had nearly 200 Vice-Presidents, usually former members who have become public figures or stay heavily involved. However, the Society may offer this privileged position to a person who has become a regular contributor to the affairs of the Society. The Standing Committee of the Society consists of the President of the Society, Auditor, Treasurer, and the Record Secretary, along with six nominees of the President and two of the Auditor. It meets once a year to decide on certain specific functions set in the Laws of the Society and to audit its accounts. Committee.

The vast majority of the society's operation and management is conducted by the General Committee, made up of the President, ex-Auditor and the Officers of the session (Auditor, Treasurer, Correspondence Secretary, Record Secretary, Censor, Librarian and the Debates Convenor), ex-officio, and eight other Members of the Society (with the positions of Deputy Correspondence Secretary and the Senior Member of Committee directly elected from these since 2008). The Roles of these Officers are as follow: The Auditor leads the Committee, is responsible for the final accounts of the society and yearly delivers the Society's Inaugural address on a subject of their choosing. The Treasurer manages the society's expenditure and income, is responsible for seeking sponsorship, membership subscriptions, fines and the GMB's Snooker and Billiards rooms. The Correspondence Secretary organises the Society's Wednesday night debates, and the invitation of guests. The Record Secretary is charged with the keeping of the Society's Records and maintaining relations with the Society's Honorary Members, including an annual dinner and debate. The Censor publicises of the Society's activities both to College and its Members, and organises the writing and publication of the Society's annual magazine, the HistOracle. The Librarian runs the Society's library and rooms, as well as the School Competitions.

All but one of these positions is directly elected: the Debates Convenor, whose role is to encourage and develop competitive debating within the society with specific responsibility for co-hosting the Trinity IV (comprising the Kingsmill-Moore Invitational and Dean Swift IV) with the University Philosophical Society. The Convenor is appointed by the new Committee of the society following each annual election. The position was added in the 234th Session, having existed previously for two years off committee.

Presidents and Vice-Presidents

Presidents of the Society since 1843

1843–1851 The Rev. Franc Sadleir, D.D., Provost of Trinity College
1852–1854 The Rev. Richard MacDonnell, D.D., Provost of Trinity College
1854–1883 The Rt. Hon. Sir Joseph Napier, LL.D., Lord Chancellor
1883–1913 The Rt. Hon. Lord Ashbourne, LL.D., Lord Chancellor
1913–1925 The Rt. Hon. Sir John Ross, Lord Chancellor
1925–1931 The Rt. Hon. Lord Glenavy, LL.D., Lord Chancellor, Chairman of the Senate of the Irish Free State, Vice-Chancellor of the University
1931–1949 His Excellency, Douglas Hyde, LL.D., Litt.D., President of Ireland
1950–1953 Sir Robert W. Tate, M.A., Litt.D., S.F.T.C.D.
1953–1983 Frederick Boland, LL.D., Irish Representative at the UN, President of the UN General Assembly, Chancellor of the University, Medallist
1983–2003 Dr. Conor Cruise O’Brien, M.A., Ph.D., Litt.D., M.R.I.A., T.D., Medallist
Incumbent Prof. David John McConnell, M.A., Ph.D., F.T.C.D., M.R.I.A., F.Z.S.I. ex-Auditor, Medallist

Current Vice-Presidents

  • John N. Ross, LL.B., ex-Auditor, Medallist, former Senator for the University of Dublin.
  • Stephen G. Harris, B.A.
  • Mary Robinson, M.A., LL.d., H.F.T.C.D., S.C., Chancellor of the University of Dublin, former President of Ireland,
  • Professor Gary H. Holbrook, B.A., M.A., Professor of Argumentation, Metropolitan State College Denver.
  • Micheal J. Cameron, M.A., ex-Auditor, Medallist
  • Shane Ross, M.A. T.D., ex-Record Secretary,
  • Senator David Norris, M.A., Senator for the University of Dublin.
  • Mary Henry, M.D., former Senator for Dublin University.
  • Eric Lowry, M.A., ex-Auditor
  • The Hon. Mr. Justice Declan N. O. Budd, M.A., LL.B., ex-Record Secretary, Justice of the High Court
  • David O’Sullivan, M.A., ex-Auditor, Medallist, Auditor General of the European Union
  • Dr. Patrick Geoghegan, B.A. F.T.C.D., F.R.H.S.
  • Professor Ivana Bacik, LL.B., LL.M., F.T.C.D., Senator for the University of Dublin
  • The Hon. Mr. Justice Michael Hanna, ex-Auditor
  • Dr.Sean Barret, F.T.C.D, Senator for the University of Dublin
  • Professor David Ford, ex-Auditor, M.A., B.D., PhD., D.D., S.T.M.[7]

Notable Auditors

Other notable members

References

  1. ^ Committee of the 243rd Session
  2. ^ Martin Cullen speech
  3. ^ Bertie Ahern speech
  4. ^ Burke Statue
  5. ^ The Hist Page, CSC
  6. ^ http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2010/1211/1224285303520.html
  7. ^ [1],
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