Irish-German relations 1929-39: Irish reactions to Nazis

This article examines Irish-German diplomatic relations between 1929 and 1939, focusing on how Irish decision-makers responded to the rise of Nazism during the Weimar-to-Third Reich transition. The analysis centres on the stark contrast between two Irish diplomatic representatives in Berlin: Professor Daniel A. Binchy, who provided astute critical analysis of Hitler and the Nazi ideology, and his successor Charles Bewley, whose pro-Nazi sympathies and unreliable reporting compromised Ireland's diplomatic assessment of German developments. While Bewley's sycophantic admiration for the regime operated largely without official sanction, he offer an apologia for Nazi actions during key events—from the 1934 Night of the Long Knives to Kristallnacht in 1938—undermining Irish understanding of the Third Reich's true character. Despite the Irish Government's serious concerns about Nazi religious policies toward the Catholic Church, its persecution of Jews, and the ideological capture of German youth, these moral objections did not translate into opposition to German revisionist foreign policy in the 1930s. Under Eamon de Valera's leadership, Ireland adopted an appeasement strategy, viewing Germany as a fellow victim of Versailles injustice deserving of nationalist rectification—a perspective shaped by Irish anti-imperialism and republican principles. The article underscores how the early professionalisation challenges of the Irish diplomatic corps, combined with ideological sympathies for German nationalist grievances, undermined Ireland's ability to form coherent policy responses to Nazism prior to World War II.