ABSTRACT
The geographical position of Ireland, its size, and the absence of critical resources place it among nations that are destined for lesser roles on the world stage. Ireland's physical insularity was matched by its insular foreign policy from 1922 until the 1960s. After 1922 the fledgling Irish state slowly began to expand its representation abroad, beginning with its delegation to the League of Nations in Geneva and a High Commissioner to London in 1923. Neutrality was at least problematic because Article 224 of the Treaty of Rome specifies that the European Economic Community could take common action during war, which would clearly imply actions that could ultimately be inconsistent with Irish neutrality. The Irish arts, once shunned in the United States by the doyens of culture, have enjoyed a broad wave of support well beyond an Irish-interest audience. Perhaps more than any other medium, music has been a major exponent of Irish culture to the world.
