IrElAnD 1911–1923 The negotiations


British Prime Minister Lloyd George passed the Government of Ireland Act in 1920. This divided Ireland into Northern Ireland and Southern Ireland. Carson (leader of the Unionist Party in Westminster) had agreed to a six-county Northern Ireland which would have its own parliament, while Southern Ireland was to get Home Rule in the 26 remaining counties. James Craig was elected as Northern Ireland’s first prime minister.


Sinn Féin would not accept anything less than full independence so negotiations began with Lloyd George. Arthur Griffith, Michael Collins, Robert Barton, Eamon Duggan and George Gavan Duffy led the group to London to negotiate while de Valera remained in Ireland. De Valera believed that because he was President, any final decision would have to be referred back to him before agreement could be reached. He hoped that this would stop the delegates from being rushed by the British into signing anything they did not want. Later historians have argued that de Valera may have chosen not to go to London as he already knew that the British would not agree to a republic. By not going he avoided being seen by the public as having compromised with the British. He may have also wanted to lessen Collins’s growing popularity by having Collins deliver any bad news.


The Irish delegates’ aims were: v Full independence for Ireland v A full 32-county Ireland under Dublin rule


The British wanted: v Ireland to remain within the British Commonwealth (independent but still with the King as the head of the country)


v The partition of the island between Northern Ireland and Southern Ireland


The negotiations continued for two months before Lloyd George put pressure on the delegates to sign an agreement. He told them that if they did not sign, he would begin an ‘immediate and terrible war’. On 6 December 1921 the delegates signed the Treaty.


15


Fig 15.32 Lloyd George was famous as a skilled negotiator and was known as the Welsh Wizard.


Fig 15.33 The Treaty signed by the British and Irish delegates. 423


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