The War of Independence Flashcards
When did the War of Independence begin? Why?
It began on 21 January 1919 when a Royal Irish Constabulary patrol was ambushed in Soloheadbeg Co. Tipperary. Two RIC constables were killed by the group of volunteers who were lead by Dan Breen and Sean Treacy
What name did the Irish Volunteers change to?
What had the Dail declare about them?
-Irish Republican Army
-They declared that the IRA were the Irish republic’s official army
What were the methods of the IRA?
-Guerrilla warfare tactics
-The Squad and the intelligence network of spies
-Flying columns
Explain guerrilla warfare tactics?
They were surprise, hit-and-run tactics used to ambush the British forces
Intelligence network of spies:
-Who set it up?
-What did they do?
-Set up by the Director of Intelligence, Micheal Collins
-They gathered information from a wide range of people
The Squad:
-Who set it up?
-What did they do?
-Set up by Micheal Collins
-Their job was to assasinate spies and British detectives to prevent the British from gaining information.
What were flying columns?
They were local units of the IRA that took part in large-scale ambushes, raided local polices stations and helped organise the IRA in rural areas. They were hidden and fed by local people which made them hard for the British to locate.
What were the methods of the British?
-Black and Tans
-Auxiliaries
-Reprisals
Black and Tans:
-When?
-Who were they?
-Why?
-What were they named after?
-Spring of 1920
-They were ex-British soldiers
-They were brought in as reinforcements to help the RIC
-They were names after their mix of army and RIC uniforms
The Auxiliaries:
-Who were they?
-Why?
-They were ex-army officers who were more ruthless than the Black and Tans
-They were recruited as reinforcement to help the RIC
By the end of 1920, how many were in the British police force and army and how many were in the IRA?
The British police force and army outnumbered the IRA by thousands. The British had 40,000 people, compared to the IRA’s 10,000
What were reprisals?
They were acts of retaliation against the Irish public in revenge for the attacks on British organisation. These made people support the IRA more.
Key events of the War of Independence (6)
-20 March 1920: The Lord Mayor of Cork, Tomas MacCurtain, was murdered by British forces as he led Cork Volunteers in the Rising
-25 October 1920: Terence MacSwiney (Lord Mayor of Cork after Tomas MacCurtain) died in Brixton Prison, London after 74 days on hunger strike
-1 November 1920: 18-year-old, Kevin Barry, was hanged for participating in an ambush in Dublin where a British soldier was killed
-21 November 1920: The Squad killed 13 British Intelligence agents. In retaliation, the Auxiliaries entered Croke Park during a Dublin vs Tipperary football match and shot at the crowd. 12 people were killed, including Tipperary player Micheal Hogan. This event was later named Bloody Sunday
-28 November 1920: Tom Barry and the West Cork Brigade ambushed and killed 18 Auxiliaries in Kilmicheal, Co. Cork. In retaliation, Auxiliaries burned Cork city centre
-25 May 1921: The IRA set Dublin’s Custom House on fire, which lasted for five days and destroyed records going back for centuries. Eighty IRA men were killed or captured
End of the War of Independence:
-When/How?
-Why?
-Eamon de Valera and Lloyd George agreed on a truce, which began on 11 July 1921
-The war was costing Britain £2o million a year and people were heavily criticising the British government for the actions of the Black and Tans and Auxiliaries against civilians. The Irish were also running out of arms, ammunition and money.
