I have only read a few pages from the hundreds, possibly thousands,of pages from the report commissioned by the Irish government recently about abuses in church-run Irish schools in the past.
Apart from the other abuses and depravities which went on in these institutions, which makes one almost sick to read them, and which is not the subject of this forum, there are many descriptions of the typical, and not so typical, CP that went on in these schools and institutions, like reformatories and orphanages.
Does anyone here have any first-hand, or second-hand, experience or knowledge of these Irish church schools and institutions as regards CP?
In southern Ireland the government essentially handed over the education system to Roman Catholic orders such as The Sisters of Mercy and, mainly, The Christian Brothers. The cane and ferula (commonly known as “The Leather” or Irish Leather”) were regularly used. In secondary schools the leather was more common. A relative of the Scottish tawse, the ferula had no tails and was typically a blade of leather around 18″ long (but varied 16″ to 22″), about 1.5″ to 2″ wide and about 1/4″ to 1/2″ thick. It consisted of one to 3 layers of leather. It featured a shaped handle at one end,some had a metal disc inserted at the striking end to add effect, some were reinforced with whalebone to add stiffness and, other than with the single layer models, stitched around its perimeter. Some were brown leather, some black. Usually carried by the Brother in a pocket inside his cassock and available to be brought out quickly when required. “The leather” was in very regular daily use in most schools and was applied across the pupil’s hand, rather than up the hand as in Scotland. Three strokes across each hand was not an uncommon punishment and it certainly did sting. Some of these straps became supple with use and had to be replaced. The Irish Industrial Schools (similar to a boys borstal in the UK)had leather workshops and manufactured many of the “leathers” supplied to Irelands schools.
Thanks for the information, Nelly. From your description it seems that the Christian Brothers were quite “leather-happy” and that CP was the order of the day in Irish schools. But you mention only boys, was it the same for girls, or were they more lenient with girls? I imagine that girls were taught by nuns, and that boys and girls were separated in secondary schools, as is traditionally with Catholic schools.
It is strange that we hear so little about Irish schools, especially when as you say CP was so rampant there. But I did read an autobiography by I forgot who a long time ago who was brought up in Irish schools and confirms what you say that CP was regular and disipline strict.
Btw, when was school CP banned in Ireland, was it earlier or later than in Britain?
The primary schools were generally mixed sex and, although both sexes were subject to CP, it was more common with boys than with girls. I understand that the nuns would sometimes smack the back of the legs or use a short cane. The leather was also used, depended on the individual teacher.
Secondary schools were single sex. Brothers, Nuns and lay teachers mainly used the leather. Unfortunately I have no direct information on the extend of CP in girls secondary schools in southern Ireland, although a friend who attended a Christian Brothers secondary there assured me that the leather was used in girls secondary schools, although not as frequently as it was used in his all boys school.
Some Irish members of the Christian Brothers moved to Edinburgh to set up a RC boys school there. The Brothers all brought their “Irish leathers” with them, but the lay teachers they engaged (about 50% of the teaching staff)were supplied with 2 tail extra heavy weight Lochgelly school straps. By all accounts this school followed the Irish example with the belt and leather being in frequent use.