Vandaleur's folly
By: Margaretta D'Arcy and John Arden
Contributors: Arden, John, author; D'Arcy, Margaretta
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Published: 2013
Place of publication: London]
Language: eng
Description: John Vandaleur was an estate owner in County Clare in the west of Ireland. In 1831, tired of the outrages committed by some of his tenants in the throes of a violent organisation named 'The Ribbonmen', Vandaleur established a co-operative, known as the Ralahine Commune. A system of commonwealth, it established many innovations, including a co-operative-only currency-system, and even a type of pension fund. 'Vandaleur's Folly' tells the story of this commune, and its, perhaps inevitable, demise after two years. In Arden and D'Arcy's version, the external influences of colonial capitalism and its attendant military force - as well as the wagering caprices of Vandaleur himself - are more than a match for the good intentions of communal farmers in County Clare.
Notes: Previously issued in print: in Plays one. London: Methuen Drama, 2002.