8) Who Is To Blame For HR Crisis

Question 1

How are conservatives to blame for the HR crisis? (5)

Answer 1

• Bonar Law had a new confrontational style of tactics e.g Blenheim Palace Speech
• His personal connections to Ulster gave him a strong bias and made him act unlike a politician and sympathetic to violent Ulster means
• He was a part of “Ulster Day” and supporting Ulster unionist tactics, advocating for violence
• Wanted to weaken the liberals for the next general election, therefore the conservatives weren’t considering the best option for HR
• His desire to use Home Rule to reunite the Party exacerbated the tense situation

Question 2

How are Liberals to blame for the HR crisis? (8)

Answer 2

• Asquith and his colleagues lacked any passion for the cause of HR. For them, it was primarily a tactical alliance, shown by their lack of mentioning HR in their 1910 manifesto
• They developed the HR Bill in a ‘leisurely manner’ with no clear provision for Ulster, despite the fact that the previous two home Rule bills had faced strong Ulster Unionist opposition
• the Liberals were more concerned about details of HR finance than Unionists opposition
• Asquith allowed himself to be influenced by Redmond and the Belfast-based IPP MP Joe Devlin, who insisted that Ulster resistance was ‘mere bluff and bluster’
• The liberal government ignored other liberal ministers (Lloyd George and Churchill) who voiced concerns about a peaceful outcome to the crisis and suggested compromises in February 1912
• while Asquith had private doubts and felt that some form of compromise should be made on Ulster, he chose to consistently follow his ‘Wait and See’ policy, which thereby conceded any initiative to unionists and the conservatives
• Additionally as a result of this policy, the government had no clear strategy and merely reacted to events (such as the Curragh Mutiny, as they unfolded)
• chief secretary for Ireland (Augustine Birrell) could have served as a vital link between IPP interests and the British government, but he was marginalised and under assisted by the government

Question 3

How are the IPP to blame for the HR crisis? (4)

Answer 3

• They called unionist opposition “bluff and bluster”
• refused to compromise on ulster until the county option in March 1914, and only gave concessions to the unionists as a result of Asquith and the King’s fear and by convincing himself that Ulster exclusion was ‘only temporary’
• the forming of the IVF undermined the IPP’s “peaceful” and constitutional approach to the HR crisis, and made it appear as if the IPP were losing control of the Nationalist cause, in addition to the Howth gun running incident in July 1914
• Northern nationalists became disenfranchised with the IPP as they continued to compromise on HR and Ulster exclusion

Question 4

How are Ulster Unionists to blame for the HR crisis? (3)

Answer 4

• Edward Carson’s formation of the UVF in 1912 to fight against Home Rule in addition to the Larne gun running incident increased tensions and made peaceful and successful negotiations with their opposition increasingly less likely
• Ulster Unionist intransigence and refusal to compromise over temporary exclusion for unionist dominated counties by claiming it was a, “temporary stay of execution” contributed to the failures of the Home Rule crisis
• Carson and Craig’s role in the creation of the Ulster Covenant and the subsequent “Ulster Day” increased anti-Home Rule feeling and caused political tension to keep increasing, making the Home Rule situation very volatile