A long overdue addition to the bookshelves of Irish history, The Diaries of Kathleen Lynn: A Life Revealed Through Personal Writing was clearly a labour of love and devotion from the editors, Mary McAuliffe and Harriet Wheelock A project that has been decades in the making, the editors were told by publishers in 1998 that the publication of Dr Kathleen Lynn’s diaries would be of little interest to the public. In 2024 that could not be further from the truth. The publication of a selection of the diaries of Lynn, reproduced in this volume exactly as they were written, has generated a buzz of interest from a wide range of historians. Women’s lives and perspectives no longer being defined solely as women’s history, the diaries are a fantastic source for historians of medical history, social history, history of emotions, queer history, networks and relationship history, and of course any historian of modern Ireland.

Lynn was involved in some of the biggest events in twentieth century Irish life. Her involvement in the 1916 Rising as Chief Medical Officer and as a member of the Irish Citizen Army, for which she was later imprisoned, is the starting point for her diary entries. Her first entry reads “Easter Monday. Revolution.”, and goes on to describe the events of the day and her subsequent imprisonment. Her later entries capture the trials and successes of Teach Ultan, the first dedicated infant’s hospital in Ireland that she co-founded in 1919, her actions as a local councillor for Rathmines, and her increasing disillusionment with the developing Irish Free State. As the years progress, meetings with friends often happen at funerals of comrades, commemorative events, or memorial masses, and the growing influence of the Catholic Church and its moral codes on all aspects of Irish life worried and angered her. Following her death on 14 September 1955, aged eighty-one, she was buried in her family plot in Deansgrange Cemetery with full military honours. On the day of her funeral crowds lined the streets of Dublin to pay their respects to a woman whose life had been spent in service to the health and wellbeing of them and their children.

A dedicated diarist, Lynn conscientiously kept diaries for thirty-nine years from 1916-1955. Her entries, concise and often abbreviated, reflect the manner of a busy doctor and social activist. Her diary style reflects her personality, disciplined and restrained but with the ability to express a range of emotions and personal connections within those parameters. Unlike another recent diary publication, Days in the Life: Reading the Michael Collins Diaries 1918-1922 by Anne Dolan and William Murphy, Lynn’s diaries offer more of the woman herself. Momentous events, presented in the clipped, staccato style in which they were written, are both political and personal. The framing of the diaries by the editors reflects this duality – the entries are organised into four sections, three named for revolution and politics, and the final simply titled ‘After Madeleine’, for the final decade of Lynn’s life that she spent without her life partner, Madeleine ffrench-Mullen, who died in 1945.

Throughout the diaries, readers can trace the development of Lynn’s opinions and thinking as they developed. For instance, her initial ambivalence towards Hitler and his rise, followed by a more critical stance as she condemned him, alongside Franco and Mussolini, in her entry of 21 June 1937 as “Xtianity’s gtst. enemies” (Christianity’s greatest enemies). The editors carefully highlight Lynn’s complex and sometimes contradictory views, such as how her personal friendships with Jews contrasted with her expression of antisemitic ideas. Presenting the various facets of Dr Lynn denies the reader the opportunity to simplify her person and forces us to confront the complexities of the people of the past, to acknowledge their faults and failings, and to know them as a complicated human being.

Her staccato style, while authentic, can be disjointed, making the diaries slightly challenging to read. However, the editors have done extensive research, adding notes and context to make the entries more accessible to modern readers. It is here that the combined expertise of a historian and archivist of medical records is utilised, as abbreviations, references to medical terms, and initials of friends or relatives are explained for the benefit of the reader. In undertaking the mammoth task of editing and presenting these diary entries, McAuliffe and Wheelock have created a key to the inner thoughts and daily workings of Lynn.

The editors’ rigorous selection process involved reviewing Lynn’s diaries four times to choose entries that were representative of her varied life. They decided to keep the entries whole and unedited, a decision that offers a comprehensive view of her experiences. However, this approach also raises questions about the entries that were left out and the potential critiques that might arise from such omissions. The accompanying digitisation of the entirety of Lynn’s diaries by the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland, who hold her diaries, is insightful and a welcome addition to the project. It allows for broader access and provides an excellent resource for researchers and readers interested in exploring her life and legacy in greater detail. Undoubtedly influenced by the opening of access to archives and collections which has been a lauded feature of the Decade of Centenaries (2012-23) programme in Ireland, the democratisation of access to historical records is always something to be celebrated.

The editors describe Kathleen Lynn as “a woman worth knowing through, and in, her own words”, and this the edited volume of her diaries offers an invaluable resource for understanding her multifaceted life and the historical context in which she lived. The editors’ meticulous work in selecting, formatting, and annotating the entries makes this a compelling and accessible read. Lynn’s diaries not only shed light on her personal experiences and beliefs but also provide a broader perspective on the social, political, and medical history of her era. This book is a testament to Lynn’s enduring legacy and her significant contributions to Irish history.

BIO:

Dr Caitlín White is an interdisciplinary scholar specialising in public history. She is currently a Research Fellow in the School of Education at Trinity College Dublin, where she is working on the EU Horizon ‘Critical ChangeLab’