Events of the Irish Civil War 1922-'23 Flashcards
How did Churchill push Collins into asserting his authority over Four Courts?
By threatening that if the Provisional Government didn’t, the British Army would
When did Free State troops attack Four Courts?
28 June 1922
What were the pro-Treaty forces called
Regulars or Free State Troops
What were anti-treaty forces called
Irregulars
The Irregulars abandoned key towns early, but remained strong in — and —-
Cork and Limerick
How many Free State troops were there in August 1922
14 000
What were one of the reasons for Regulars troops recruitment soaring
high unemployment
The anti-treaty side lost valuable time in what time period
The 6mts between the ratification of the Treaty Jan 1922 and the outbreak of open hostilities end June 1922
While the PG prepared for the coming conflict, what did the Irregulars waste time doing
appealing for unity
The clear lack of aggression from the Irregulars had a demoralising effect on them. Which historian said that “No army acting purely on the defensive can hope to succeed.”
Neeson
Despite being difficult to defend, how many irregulars occupied the Four Courts
200
Why were anti-treaty operations directed largely by the whim and convenience of local commanders without reference to an overall plan
Communication was bad. Commanders were instructed by HQ to operate within their own territories, thus without the intricate and continuous communication essential in modern warfare
When was the Special Powers Act passed by the Daíl
September 1922
What did the Special Powers Act do
sanctioned the execution of prisoners in reprisals for Irregulars attacks, such as assassination Sean Hales
By July 1922, Collins takeover of command of the Free state Army and its success in —– proved pivotal
Munster
When did Griffith die
12 Aug 1922
When did Collins die
22 Aug 1922
Who filled the political role PG after Griffith dies
Cosgrave and O’Higgins
Who filled the role or army commander after Collins dies
Mulcahy
The number of Free State troops reached
60 000
Where were Regulars able to borrow war materials from
British Garrisons remaining in Ireland
Give two examples where the Regulars used combined sea and land attacks
Tralee and Cork
When was the ‘Public Safety Resolution’ by Mulcahy sanctioned
28 Sep 1922
What did the ‘Public Safety Resolution’ do
enabled the Free State army to hold military courts and impose the death penalty for a wider variety of offences, incl possession of a weapon
In total, how many Anti-Treaty IRA men did the Free State execute
77
Name 3 leading Anti-Treaty IRA men that the Regulars executed
Erskine Childers, Liam Mellows and Rory O’Connor
When was Childers executed
24 Nov 1922
How was Childers executed
He was summoned from South by Irregulars to work in new govt w/ DeV president and himself as Minister of Publicity, but was captured 10 Nov in possession of a weapon so executed
Who was the chief of staff of the Anti-treaty forces
Liam Lynch
Who led the more extreme faction of the Anti-treaty forces
Rory O’Connor
When was the Anti-Treaty forces meeting at which a majority supported a motion by Tom Barry to declare war on Britain
18 June 1922
Give 3 prominent examples of people who opposed Tom Barry’s motion to declare war on Britain
Lynch, Deasy and Seán Moylan
Give 2 prominent examples of people who supported Tom Barry’s motion to declare war on Britain
O’Connor and Mellows
Who did the extreme elements of the Anti-Treaty forces elect as their chief of staff
Joe McKelvey
When did DeValera and Mulcahy have their fruitless discussions
6 September 1922
When was a government formed on the Anti-treaty side under De Valera
25 Oct 1922
The Anti Treaty Government’s —— was a powerless body
Council of State
Even when the Irregulars had formed a govt, De Valera could do little more than —-
issue statements on anti-treaty policy from time to time
Despite the Anti-treaty govt being formed, absolute control of anti-treaty policy remained with —
the army council
How did Lynch view De Valera
as a tiresome civilian representative
What event caused De Valera’s plea to end the Irregulars’ campaign to be heeded
the death of Lynch
Who replaced Lynch as Chief of Staff
Frank Aiken
When did the Anti-treaty forces suspend their campaign
24 May 1923
What was the benefit of the Pro-Treaty forces having the PG
provided a clear, concrete centre around which its supporters could rally and also which could take responsibility for the actions of its armed forces
What were the results of the treaty election of June 1922
Pro treatyites won 239 193 votes
Anti treatyites won 133 864 votes
Were the majority of Irish people pro or anti treaty
Pro treaty
The Irregulars campaign brought the wheels of —- and —— to a standstill
trade and commerce
Give an example of economic hardship in Munster resulting from Civil war
In Munster, unemployment, which had already been high, rose rapidly. Workers and office staff were dismissed form their employment with production and distribution coming to a halt
People heard of boom conditions in —–
Dublin
People heard of revival, and often expansion due to military contracts, in places that had changed hands from anti- to pro-treaty forces such as in —– and ——
Waterford and Limerick
Where was an attempt by the Irregulars to levy income tax from merchants met with open resistance
Cork
A loss of how much occurred in the butter trade due to disruption in trading
£1 million
What % of Cork became unemployed
40%
Civilians were commandeered by Irregulars for manual labour such as —-
road blocking
PG had support of important sections of the community such as (give 4 eggs)
finance, trade, the press and, critically, the Roman Catholic Church
When did Bishops from the RCC solemnly condemn Anti-Treaty forces for setting up their army executive and opposing PG
April 1922
When did bishops accuse Irregulars of causing the ruination of the country and order the general excommunication of Irregulars who continued to fight on
October 1922
Which historian said “Pro-Treaty troops almost became crusaders.”
Neeson
Even when the Civil war was over, Republican forces refused to what
- recognise the legitimacy of the state
- hand over weapons
Where was Collins ambushed and killed
West Cork
