Irish Civil War

Irish Civil War, conflict in Ireland in 1922-1923, which followed a division in the Sinn Féin movement over the acceptance of the Anglo-Irish Treaty, signed in London on December 6, 1921. Opposition to the Treaty inside Sinn Féin came from the uncompromising Republican elements. Led by Eamon De Valera, they argued that the Treaty did not deliver the independent Gaelic republic they had fought for during the Irish Revolution. The Treaty stipulated that the new Irish Free State would be part of the British Commonwealth, with the same status as the Dominion of Canada. Furthermore, the British Crown would be represented in the new Irish Free State by a governor-general, and members of parliament would also have to swear an oath of allegiance to the British Crown. Although the Treaty made the partition of Ireland inevitable, it was the objection to the symbols of the British monarchy which formed the core of the anti-Treaty argument.

Supporters of the Treaty, led by Arthur Griffith and Michael Collins, argued that it offered the best terms available. The Free State would have its own parliament and government, full control over its finances, and its own army. While they conceded that the Treaty did not deliver all that had been fought for during the war against the British, it did offer an opportunity to achieve greater freedom at a later date. Rejection of the settlement, they argued, would result in renewed war with the British, which they claimed the Irish Republican Army (IRA) could not win. The Treaty was debated by the Sinn Féin parliament, the Dáil Éireann, between December 14, 1921 and January 7, 1922, when it was accepted by just 64 votes to 57.

The Treaty issue split the Sinn Féin movement and the IRA into pro- and anti-Treaty factions. Negotiations towards reunification continued for six months, but the respective positions continued to prove irreconcilable, and civil war broke out at the end of June.

The six months following the acceptance of the Treaty were marked on the Treaty side by a consolidation of the Treaty position. Griffith and Collins set up two parallel and complementary governments. Griffith replaced De Valera as president of the Dáil Éireann and formed a pro-Treaty Sinn Féin government. Meanwhile, Collins established a provisional government to accept the departments and institutions of the British regime. The two governments met together and worked in effect as one body from April 1922; by June, they had taken over the old regime's civil service, and were building an army and police force.

On March 26, 1922, the anti-Treaty IRA rejected the authority of the Dáil and elected its own military executive, seizing the Four Courts building in the centre of Dublin on April 13. The need to assert its authority in southern Ireland, coupled with pressure from the British government to remove the military threat to the Treaty, compelled the Treatyite government to attack the anti-Treaty forces on June 28. The battle for Dublin lasted a week and was a decisive victory for the Treatyites. From Dublin, Treatyite forces radiated out into the surrounding country, recording a number of further victories in July. In early August the anti-Treatyites were outflanked in the south-west of the country by a series of sea landings, and by the end of August most of the major towns and cities in southern Ireland were under the control of Treatyite forces.

On August 12, Arthur Griffith died suddenly. Ten days later Collins, commander-in-chief of the Treatyite forces, was shot dead in an ambush in western Cork, while on a tour of inspection; he was succeeded by William Cosgrave. The conflict, lasting from September 1922 to its conclusion in May 1923, can be best described as a war of attrition. From September the anti-Treatyites reverted to the guerrilla warfare they had used successfully against the British. The anti-Treaty IRA attacked both the Treatyite military and the country's infrastructure by bombing bridges and roads and disrupting the railways. In October the Treatyite government introduced a Special Powers act which gave the army wide-ranging powers, including trial by military court and the death penalty for anyone found in possession of arms or making war against the Treatyite government. In retaliation, the anti-Treatyite commander-in-chief, Liam Lynch, issued an order for the shooting on sight of leading Treatyite supporters. The first assassinations took place on December 7, the day after the Irish Free State came into being. In retaliation, the Free State government ordered the executions of four anti-Treaty officers who had been in their custody since June. The anti-Treaty assassination policy was not resumed.

By early 1923 the superior numbers and resources of the Treatyites, and the continuation of executions, 77 in all, were beginning to tip the balance of the war in their favour. Lynch steadfastly refused to accept the hopelessness of the anti-Treatyite military position, and prolonged the war until he was shot dead in April by Treatyite troops. Lynch was replaced as commander-in-chief by Frank Aiken, who wished to end the war. Aiken and De Valera, the military and political anti-Treaty leaders, called for a ceasefire, to take effect from April 30. The Free State government refused to recognize the ceasefire, and the initiative was followed by a ceasefire and order to dump arms issued by Aiken on April 24. This in effect ended the war; however, the Free State government continued its military campaign against anti-Treatyites for some months afterwards.