A Makeshift Majority is the first full length study of one of the most intriguing governments in Irish history. The first interparty government, which held power from 1948 to 1951, was not only Ireland's first coalition, it was also the most diverse, made up of five parties and a group of Independents. It's easy to see why Sean Lemass dismissed it contemptuously as a "makeshift majority" - but despite that, the government managed to last for three and a half years.
The government is best known for two controversial episodes in its history - the declaration of the Republic and the Mother and Child Crisis. The author delves deeper, explaining the forces which brought this first coalition into being, the strategies employed to make the partners stick together, and the reasons for its final collapse.
