The Condition of Ireland and Anglo-irish Relations 1939-64 (comeplete) Flashcards
When did the friction between Northern Ireland and the Irish Free State become gradually less severe?
Towards the end of the 1930s
To what extent was there acceptance of the partition?
There was still desire among the Irish Nationalists for Ireland to be united but there was a gradual acceptance of the partition among the majority in the South
How was the the Republic of Ireland declared?
-The Irish Premier De Valera’s main issue w/ the British gov was achieving complete independence
-In 1949, Attlee’s gov endorsed partition via the Government of Ireland Act; declared Eire a republic, the Republic of Ireland, w/ complete independence from Britain
What cultural differences did De Valera introduce in the Irish Republic?
-Cultural identity of the Irish Republic as Roman Catholic and Gaelic was asserted
-Censorship laws banned ‘unwholesome literature’, largely mainstream British
-Compulsory teaching of Gaelic in Irish schools in 1930s
-Divorce & contraception illegal from mid-1930s
What was the impact of the compulsive teaching of Gaelic in Irish schools?
-Created further barrier between north & south
-Alienated Protestant population
-Brought unwelcome familiarity & Irish themselves lost interest in their language
How did the economy of Ireland look after it was declared a republic/post-ww2?
-De Valera’s economic war w/ GB, although settling 1939, badly damaged economy of South
-Some Protestants in Ulster believed united Ireland was preferable to divided one; for process of economic integration. This became less & less viable as time passed
-Irish economy was too dependent on land & little else
-Post-war, Ireland was struggling w/ stagnant economy
How did Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland differ post-war in terms of economy & society?
-Ireland; struggling w/ stagnant economy & demoralised society, lacking in vitality
-Northern Ireland; economy booming, standard of living rising but lesser extent in Catholic communities. Ulster embraced new welfare state, all citizens could enjoy benefits
What was the impact of Sean Lemass emerging as Taoiseach/successor to De Valera in 1957?
-Brought some improvement in the economy of the Republic
-Embraced foreign capital investment
-Increased state expenditure
-Established Programme for Economic Development
-Realised potential for tourism in south & encouraged its expansion
-Was altogether more outward-looking
What was the impact of the position that Eire adopted during WW2?
Damaged its relationship with Britain & Ulster
Why was Britain faced with a potential enemy on its western flank when WW2 broke out?
-Although Eire declared its wish to remain neutral, it was well known in gov & diplomatic circles De Valera was in contact w/ Nazi Germany
-In 1938, a few months earlier, w/ compliance of Ulster PM Sir James Craig, GB conceded Irish Treaty Ports to De Valera in a gesture of goodwill; GB exposed & vulnerable to possible German attack from West
What did Britain do to try and strike a deal with the Irish Free State to gain its support against Hitler?
-Was prepared to scrap partition treaty & allow Ireland to re-unite w/ north
-Offer of united Ireland was made to De Valera on 28 June 1940
What was Sir James Craig’s reaction to Britain’s proposal of scrapping the partition and why?
-There was little democratic discussion w/ Ulster
-Craig was summoned to London & instructed to get on w/ sorting out details of deal
-He was incensed & accused GB gov of betrayal, & fed info back to gov that De Valera wasn’t to be trusted & that he was already deeply involved w/ Hitler + Nazis
What were the reasons for De Valera not accepting the revoking of the partition?
-Rumours the IRA had become involved in a complex Nazi plot to attack GB via Northern Ireland may have been spread to unsettled De Valera; this would’ve left Eire in uncertain position
-Was assumed that Germany wouldn’t interfere w/ Eire to not alienate America, w/ its close links to Ireland
-By 1940, Hitler was triumphant in Europe & GB was struggling to survive; De Valera’s greatest fear was joining war on losing side
What happened as a result of De Valera again refusing a deal of unity with Britain from Churchill in 1941?
-He continued to insist on Eire’s neutrality
-Due to Eire’s refusal to allow British navy to use Irish ports, they lost approx 368 ships & 5070 lives
-British gov left with poor view of Eire’s behaviour
How did Ulster act contrastingly to Eire during WW2?
-Acted w/ loyalty + courage
-Hard at work in Harland & Wolff shipyards to replace ships sunk by German torpedoes
-Giving essential shelter to naval vessels
What happened when De Valera came forward with a proposal for a united Ireland in 1947?
It was rejected
When + how was Stormont established and who dominated it?
-Stormont, the NI parliament, had been established as part of the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921
-From its inception, the Unionist party remained in majority & in control
Who was PM of Northern Ireland from Stormont’s creation?
-In 1938, Sir James Craig was elected PM of NI for 5th successive time
-He’d held post since 1921, although by 1938 election, several close associates felt it was time for younger replacement
How did Craig and the Protestants regard the minority Catholics and why?
-He’d been effective in early days in calming anti-Catholic feelings, but did nothing in longer term to heal deep divisions in Ulster betw Protestant majority + Catholic minority & to promote fair gov
-There was reluctance to accept most Catholics were loyal citizens & in most areas there was mutual respect betw Catholics + Protestants
-Unfortunately, Protestant majority remained too concerned about maintaining their dominant position rather than acting w/ greater tolerance towards Catholic minority
-Although Craig got on well w/ individual Catholics, he ultimately regarded them w/ suspicion
-In 20 years of leadership of Ulster he never gained their confidence, nor take proper measures to protect them from Protestant discrimination & died suddenly in office in November 1940
Who succeeded Craig and how did they regard Catholics and why?
-From 1943, head of NI gov was Sir Basil Brooke
-Came from a traditional Protestant Anglo-Irish landowning family & carried much of that tradition w/ him throughout his career
-He was unbending in his Unionist beliefs + openly anti-Catholic, regarding Catholics as nationalists who lacked commitment to Northern Ireland
-Believed Catholics deliberately didn’t engage fully in Ulster institutions + were encouraged in this by successive governments in South
What action by Brooke helped perpetuate sectarian divides in Northern Ireland?
-After war, Brooke couldn’t/wouldn’t accept changing social & political attitudes in NI, esp among Catholic population
-He ignored advice of more liberal-minded Unionists to find common ground w/ Catholic population, ignoring fact that they would not stay silent for ever, thus helping to perpetuate long-standing & ultimately fatal sectarian divide in NI politics
What was ‘Orange terror’ and how did it solidify sectarian divides?
-In Aug 1943, a publication, ‘Orange Terror, appeared, written by young Catholic teacher from Belfast’s St Malachy’s College, James Joseph Campbell, under pen name ‘Ultach’
-Became ‘classic Catholic nationalist critique’ of way Unionist regime
-He suggested Protestant administration deliberately persecuted Catholic population & had much in common w/ Nazi + Soviet regimes
-Likened Unionist positioning of Catholics (as subversive group & constant underlying threat to peace + security) to way in which Jews were portrayed in Nazi Germany
-Psychology behind this was the state could justify any coercive measures as self-defence against dangerous enemies
-Later in 1960s, when serious attempts were being made to heal rift betw Catholics & Protestants by leaders of north + south, Campbell, who by then became well-known broadcaster & journalist, modified his views
What were the threats towards Ulster Unionist supremacy by late 50s/early 60s?
-By late 1950s there was growing threat to Ulster Unionist supremacy from extremist Protestant groups, eg Ulster Protestant League, which emerged in late 1930s
-By early 1960s Ulster Unionists were also losing support to NI Labour Party
-Unionists became fearful that if vote was split betw diff Protestant groups, it’d allow nationalists to squeeze into power
-There was another threat to Unionist domination; how long Westminster gov would tolerate Unionist sectarian prejudices against Catholic minority
Who succeeded Brooke and how were his ideologies different towards Catholics and why?
-In 1963 Brooke was replaced by new more progressive PM Captain Terence O’Neill, who believed it was time to cultivate better relations w/ Ulster Catholic community
Believed building closer relationships w/ south would help to achieve that
Strategy coincided w/ positive developments occurring across border in south, where aim of Taoiseach, Sean Lemass, was to modernise economy & Republic. Lemass also favoured rebuilding links w/ north & encouraging greater cooperation with Ulster
Why was the 1965 meeting between Lemass and O’Neill significant and what occurred?
-First such meeting in 40 years
-Although it caused unease, had some positive outcomes
-Nationalist Party in Stormont accepted position of official opposition party, which they’d previously spurned as acceptance of permanent partition
What did O’Neill ultimately fail in and what did this result in?
-Neglected to carry through reforms necessary to address grievances of Catholic community in Ulster when he’d the opportunity & alienated nationalists
-His outline plans concentrated on minor points eg abolishing business vote in elections & didn’t deal w/ issues at root of Catholic resentment
+In failing to do so, he was repeating errors of his predecessors & storing up trouble for future
-He also upset Unionists who, spurred on by lan Paisley accused him of becoming too close to Rome & Republicans
How did ‘the troubles’ in Northern Ireland begin?
-Although progress was being made towards building warmer relationship betw north & south, real problems concerning minority Catholic nationalist community were on Ulsters doorstep
-After years of relative peace in NI, riots that occurred in Sep 1964 were precursor to era of terrible violence
-It lasted for nearly 3 decades, became known as ‘the troubles’
How did the September 1964 riots begin and what occurred during them?
-Rioting broke out in Belfast on evening of Mon 28 Sept 1964
-Detachment of Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) had been detailed by Home Affairs Ministry to remove Irish tricolour from Divis Street headquarters of Republican Party in West Belfast
-Incident took place during UK general election campaign, in which Republican Liam McMillan, was contesting West Belfast seat
-Home Affairs Minister Brian McConnell issued order to appease the Rev. Ian Paisley, the outspoken, anti-Catholic leader of Free Presbyterians, who had threatened to march through Divis Street w/ his supporters and remove flag themselves. Event was preceded by series of anonymous threats to burn Republican HQ unless flag was taken down. The Unionist candidate had also objected to it
Why did flying a flag over private premises excite such an aggressive, authoritarian reaction?
-The Flags and Emblems (Display) Act 1954, passed by NI parliament, forbade display of flags on public/private buildings where it was likely to cause breach of peace, but exempted Union Flag
-As far as Republicans were concerned Act was designed to undermine them & suppress their national identity
Unionists complained flying of tricolour in contravention of Act was designed to provoke + insult loyalists of Belfast
Why was the Public Order Act of 1961 invoked?
To restrict Paisley’s protest march to an area away from Divis Street
What happened when word went out that the RUC would remove the Irish flag?
-2000 Republican supporters, many of them young lads waving tiny tricolours, came out to block the way
-Heavily-armed police reinforcements were called out, but presence of young flag-waving protestors made it appear that authorities had overreacted
-RUC detachment smashed their way into Republican HQ & removed flag, to loud jeering from crowd
What did Paisley do at the City Hall and what was the impact of this?
-Called off ‘loyalist’ march, but held crowd spellbound w/ prayers & Bible readings + anti-Catholic & anti-Republican rants
-Set tone & character of future Paisleyite meetings, which became feature of years of ‘the troubles’ that dominated Ulster politics for following decades
What events occurred following the flag being removed?
-Almost inevitably Republicans replaced their flag w/ another the following day & again RUC arrived w/ crowbars & pickaxes to confiscate that one
-Real violence didn’t break out until night of Wed 30 Sep, when Republicans, frustrated & angered by what they perceived as RUC’s violence against democracy, sanctioned by NI gov took to streets around Divis Street w/ stones, petrol bombs & bottles
-30 people including 18 RUC members, were quite seriously injured
What happened after order in Divis Street was restored?
-Many accusations of blame were laid at door of the Rev. Ian Paisley
-It was felt that he stirred up entire event by making persistent complaints to authorities about flag
-He lambasted O’Neill’s gov for weak leadership at every opportunity
-Every attempt by O’Neill to engage w/ Republic was portrayed by Paisley as endangering Protestantism in Ulster
-He campaigned just as vigorously againstUlster Republicans, generating alarm in otherwise peaceful population
How were the Catholic minority in Ulster treated after the partition of Ireland?
-Treated poorly by Protestant majority; not accorded same rights & benefits as Ulster Protestants
-In spite of situation having hallmarks of religious persecution, which was unpalatable to vast majority of GB people, the GB gov failed to take any firm line against Unionist sectarian prejudices
What discriminations against Catholics were reinforced under Brooke?
-Unemployment rate x3 higher among Catholics than Protestants
-Some employers refused to take on Catholic workers. One eg workforce was the Harland & Wolff shipyard, where 90% of workforce was Protestant
-Majority Civil Service jobs (94%) given to Protestants & 90% of RUC were Protestant
-Menial local authority jobs were reserved for Catholics
-Catholics were discriminated against in allocation of council housing
-Many Catholics were disenfranchised in local authority elections, as they couldn’t meet property qualifications to vote
-Welfare reforms of Attlee gov weren’t distributed fairly to Catholics. Eg, family allowance wasn’t available for 4th & next children; affected Irish Catholic families as generally didn’t practise contraception
-1944 Education Act entitled all children to free secondary education, but Catholic children were often unable to find work when they left school
Why was the civil rights movement formed?
-Rapprochement betw north + south developed by O’Neill & Lemass gave added encouragement + confidence to Catholic population in north to press for equal treatment by Gov
-Began to organise themselves & formed various groups to campaign for greater civil rights
-Intention was non-violent campaign
When was the Campaign for Social Justice formed and what were their aims & impact?
-17 Jan/1964
-The organisation could claim to be forerunner of civil rights movement
-Objective was to draw attention to claims that NI Catholics continued to be discriminated against by Protestant-dominated Unionist gov
-Published damning document called ‘Northern Ireland, the Plain Truth’, in Feb that year, detailing allegations of discrimination
-It suggested Catholics were often forced to leave as were denied jobs + houses & in this way, ruling Protestants controlled % of Catholics living in Ulster, never allowing it to rise to point where it might jeopardise Protestant majority
-Document highlighted job discrimination & voting injustices. It condemned continuation of Special Powers Act since 1922 & used almost exclusively against Catholics, who could be arrested w/out warrant & imprisoned w/out charge/trial
What was the aim of the Race Relations Act of 1965 in Britain and what did it result in?
-To protect rights of immigrant population in GB
-Stirred fair-minded Ulster Protestants to reflect on discrimination practised against Ulster Catholics & at last were prepared to take part in peaceful demonstrations on streets of Belfast + other towns, w/ Catholics, to seek equal representation & equality of access to social welfare; rights taken for granted everywhere else in UK
-When there was a violent response from Protestant extremists; for most part Paisleyites & members of Ulster Loyalist association, effect was to arouse sympathy for civil rights campaign from majority of GB people
What did appeals to take action from groups like the Social Justice Campaign do?
-British government sent encouraging messages in response
-Urged O’Neill to push through reforms to settle outstanding Catholic grievances, over which he & Stormont were dragging their feet
