This chapter discusses the family life stage of ‘grandparenthood’ and addresses topical questions about flows of help and support between older and younger generations, and the increasing significance of grandparents in the lives of children and young adults. Ireland’s ‘new’ grandparents are distinctive, in part because many started their own families at comparatively younger ages and because of the ‘longevity revolution’ – the increased duration of healthy ageing - making them available to contribute to the family lives of their children and grandchildren to an unprecedented extent. The chapter uncovers compelling evidence that grandparents have consistently been held in high regard in Irish families and that they continue to play a central part in facilitating family connectedness and providing a sense of family continuity over time. It argues that power in inter-generational relationships shifted in favour of parents during the last century, and that the grandparental role remains an ambivalent one, despite parents growing need for help with childcare and other resources. As grandparents age, the flow of resources changes direction. The chapter concludes with a discussion of the challenges faced by Irish families and the Irish state as they plan to meet a growing demand for elder care.

This chapter describes how both sociological and lay understandings of family change have been informed by the belief that modern families are fundamentally different from traditional families. It reveals the origins of this idea in nineteenth century evolutionary thinking and shows how it was developed by twentieth century sociologists. The chapter introduces some of the iconic studies on Irish families from this period and evaluates them in light of recent scholarship. It describes how qualitative research on contemporary families and new findings on historical households, together with the growing influence of feminism, prompted the development of more critical perspectives in the second half of the twentieth century. The chapter introduces some of the concepts and theories that are essential for understanding family change, including kinship and family systems and the demographic transition.

In this chapter, the author juxtaposes three disparate projects to show the levels of work and analysis civil organisation staff regularly confronted. These projects consist of civil movement organisation job titles, a personal project to create Green Life theory, and a large, government-led land reclamation called Saemangeum. In this context, discourse ethnographically emerges as ‘less than theory, smaller than ideology.’

After the Second World War, George Orwell looked back on the murder cases that had 'given the greatest amount of pleasure' to the British public. The Beatrice Annie Pace case fell just outside Britain's 'great period in murder', and since it ended in an acquittal it should perhaps not even be counted a 'murder' at all. The case's sensational quality in 1928 was a product of two broader factors during the 'great period in murder': an expanding sensationalist press and a declining acceptance of domestic violence. Opinions about accused killers often varied across the press spectrum, and they might, over time, shift as new information came to light. Although clear press preferences often emerged, it is often possible to find quite divergent views running parallel to one another: press unanimity of the sort found in the Pace case has probably been the exception rather than the rule.

William Willcox, who had provided so much forensic testimony in the Beatrice Annie Pace case, wrote a medical opinion for the court that depicted the novel as obscene and dangerous. Despite a conclusion to the Pace case that was, from the police perspective, distinctly unsatisfying, Chief Inspector George Cornish was officially 'highly commended' for 'ability in a difficult case of alleged murder'. After 1928, newspaper articles might list other cases in which Cornish was involved, but they tended to avoid mentioning his dogged efforts to convict Beatrice Pace. After the Pace trial, William Willcox remained active in the field of toxicology. By the end of the 1930s, Beatrice was living in Stroud, Gloucestershire, where she bought a semi-detached house in which she would spend the remainder of her life.

This chapter traces the lives of some of the First Aid Nursing Yeomanry (FANY) after the war and summarizes the organizational development of the FANY through the Second World War. By the 1970s many of the First World War FANY had died. When Baxter-Ellis resigned after the Second World War she lived with her partner 'Tony' Kingston Walker. Grace McDougall inquired directly with the FANY-Auxiliary Territorial Service (ATS) about renewing her service commitment and was told she was over age. Perhaps motivated by Enid Bagnold's The Happy Foreigner, the novel begins with the demobilization of a beautiful 'khaki-clad English girl' who is identified as a FANY and named Marion O'Hea. The FANY were to be involved in all motor driving companies for the Army and the Women's Legion was to work with the Royal Air Force.

Having heard the suspicions of Harry Pace's family, the inquest turned to four other categories of evidence: testimony from three of the Pace children (Dorothy, Doris, and Leslie), the police, family friends and acquaintances, and medical experts. One of these categories of evidence related to medical views on Harry's illness and forensic analysis gleaned after his death. Much of the testimony of the doctors who treated Harry served as the basis for the description of his illness. Sir William Willcox, a pioneer in forensic analysis, agreed with the post-mortem diagnosis of acute arsenical poisoning and found the timing of doses offered by Walker Hall largely correct. Finally, the court would hear from the woman at the centre of the matter: the 'tragic widow' herself. The inquest jury would have much to consider, and when it finally reached its decision, the result would be both dramatic and controversial.

This chapter introduces the approach and plan of the book. It describes the distinctiveness of sociological perspectives on family life and locates the book in its contemporary context. Readers are invited to reflect on their own understanding of ‘family’ and to think about what is interesting about the Irish experience of family change. The chapter includes a description of the archived qualitative longitudinal data that are referenced throughout the book: Life Histories and Social Change (2007) and Growing Up in Ireland Wave 1 at 9 years (2008). Through a comparative analysis of these data the authors tracked the diverse family experiences of Irish people born in different historical periods.

Much of the inquest for Pace case considered circumstantial evidence: the state of the Pace marriage, the rumours of Beatrice Annie Pace's affairs, the course of Harry Pace's illness and the care he received. Inquest juries not only declared a cause of death but also, if relevant, named a suspect or suspects. Their charge would lead to a trial at what was then the main court for dealing with serious crime: the centuries-old, semi-annual circuit court known as the 'assizes'. Beatrice was represented by G. Trevor Wellington from the Gloucester firm of Wellington, Clifford and Matthews. The evidence presented at the inquest fell roughly into many categories. One of the categories include that there was testimony from the Pace family. This chapter considers the vivid testimony given by the Pace children, the police, family friends and forensic experts.