The Anglo-Irish War

Reasons for the Truce in the Anglo-Irish War (1919-1921)

When were the first shots fired in the Anglo-Irish War?

21st January 1919

Where were the first shots fired in the Anglo-Irish War?

Soloheadbeg

How many RIC constables were killed at Soloheadbeg on 21st January 1919?

2

What was the reward offered for information on the Soloheadbeg shootings?

£1000

When was District Inspector Hunt killed in broad daylight?

23rd July 1919

What does the Volunteer Journal declare after the Soloheadbeg shootings?

A “state of war”

When did the British place martial law in Co. Clare, causing public backlash?

1919

What was the name of Collins’ assassination group?

The Squad

How many barracks did the RIC abandon within six months in 1919?

400

When was the “Year of Terror”?

1920

When did the IRA start using flying columns?

1920

IRA flying columns were made up of groups of approximately _____ guerilla fighters

30

When was Bloody Sunday?

21st November 1920

How many suspected British agents were killed as part of Bloody Sunday?

11

When did the IRA begin to target public roads and bridges?

1921

When did De Valera order the IRA to attack Dublin Custom House?

25th May 1921

How many men did De Valera order to attack Dublin Custom House?

100

What was MacCready’s position in the British Army?

Commander-in-Chief

When did MacCready become Commander-in-Chief of the British Army?

March 1920

MacCready said that the British soldiers were suffering from ______________

“Psychological fatigue”

MacCready recommended that an additional _______ men were needed to secure victory

250,000

How did MacCready describe his hatred for the Irish?

“Deeper than the sea”

Who was the leader of the Black and Tans?

Tudor

When were the Black and Tans introduced to Ireland?

1920

How many British soldiers were killed in 1921?

96

How many Black and Tans were sent to Ireland in 1920?

7000

How many policemen were killed in 1921?

228

Lloyd George was preoccupied by a “crisis of empire” in which two countries during this time?

Egypt and India

When was the Paris Peace Conference?

January 1919

When was a cabinet committee created to oversee the conflict?

October 1919

How does Townsend describe the alternative administration created by Sinn Fein during this time period?

“Counter state”

When was the Dail established (with its own constitution)?

21st January 1919

Who pioneered a new local government system for Sinn Fein?

Cosgrave

How many county councils supported Cosgrave’s new local government system?

29/33

When did De Valera become President of the Dail?

1920

How much money was raised for the Sinn Fein state through American bonds?

£500,000

When did Sinn Fein create its own police force?

1920

How does Rees describe the new Irish administration?

“Irish alternative”

How many civilians were killed in Croke Park on Bloody Sunday (21st November 1920)?

12

When was Cork city centre burned by British auxiliary forces?

November 1920

On average, how many reprisals were occurring every day by the end of the war?

One

What was the name of the 18-year-old boy executed by the British in 1920?

Kevin Barry

Kevin Barry was executed on the day of the funeral of _______

MacSwiney

How many days did MacSwiney last on hunger strike?

74

Which prominent member of the Church of England vocally opposed the British reprisals?

The Archbishop of Canterbury

King George V argued that in attacking the IRA, the government was inflicting…

“Punishments no less severe on the innocent”

King George V encouraged the abolishment of which group?

The Black and Tans

Lloyd George said that British policy was pushing the Irish…

“Into the arms of Sinn Fein”

When did the Labour and Liberal parties announce that the evidence was “more than sufficient” to condemn the actions of the government?

December 1920

What was the name of Sinn Fein’s newspaper (which was popular in Great Britain)?

The Irish Bulletin

Which newspaper described the reprisal policy as “a return to sheer barbarism”?

The Daily Express

Which Catholic priest reached out to Lloyd George imploring peace?

Father O’Flanagan

When did Father O’Flanaghan telegram Lloyd George asking for peace?

December 1920

How does Boyce describe the role of public opinion in securing the truce?

“Instrumental”

When was a truce declared in the Anglo-Irish War?

11th July 1921

What did Churchill say in relation to the influence of the war on Anglo-American relations?

“We are poisoning our relationship with the United States”

Approximately how many IRA men were fighting in the war?

3000

Approximately how many British troops were fighting in the war?

40,000

When did the British establish “Special Military Areas” in Ireland?

1917-1919

What act did the British use to implement Special Military Areas in Ireland?

1914 Defence of the Realm Act

Which area was made a Special Military Area after the Soloheadbeg shootings?

South Tipperary

How many British soldiers were stationed in Clare in August 1919 following the assassination of two RIC constables?

7000

When was there a failed assassination attempt on the life of Viceroy French?

19th December 1919

How many men were arrested following the failed assassination attempt of Viceroy French?

57

Which act was used by the Black and Tans to justify their violence?

1920 Restoration of Order in Ireland Act

Who was Chief Secretary for Ireland at this stage?

Greenwood

What did Lloyd George say in 1920 which highlighted British domination over the IRA?

“We have murder by the throat”

When De Valera ordered 100 men to attack Dublin Custom House on 25th May 1921, how many of these men were killed?

6

When De Valera ordered 100 men to attack Dublin Custom House on 25th May 1921, how many of these men surrendered?

70

How does Rees describe de Valera’s attack on Dublin Custom House?

“A military disaster”

How many members of the IRA were interned in 1921?

300

How does Rees describe the violence of the war?

“Sporadic”

According to Collins, the IRA was ___________ by the end of the war

“Counting bullets”

Which historian says that the truce let Sinn Fein “off the hook”?

Jeffrey

What percentage of the electorate voted for Sinn Fein in the December 1918 election?

47%

Who dismissed Irish independence as a British issue at the 1919 Paris Peace Conference?

President Wilson

When do IRA commanders report growing hostility from the public?

1921

Which Catholic bishop excommunicated Catholics in his diocese who commit murder in the name of the IRA?

Dr Cohalan

Which Catholic archbishop met with Lloyd George to discuss a potential truce?

Archbishop Clune

Which member of Sinn Fein was openly critical of the assassinations ordered by Collins on Bloody Sunday (21st November 1920)?

Sweetman

When did the British outlaw Sinn Fein, the Volunteers, and the Gaelic League as “dangerous associations”?

July 1919

When did the British outlaw the Dail?

September 1919

An average of ___ deputies attended each Dail meeting from this point

20

According to Jackson, the Sinn Fein courts were _____________ by 1920

“Thoroughly crushed”