One hundred years ago the new state of ‘Northern Ireland’ was being consolidated by the Unionist Party, the Orange Order and the British crown forces by means of sectarian terror against the non-unionist population, especially in Belfast. Free article

A century ago in February 1922 the pogrom against Catholics, nationalists, republicans and anyone else seen as an enemy of Unionism was renewed in the new Orange Six-County state of ‘Northern Ireland’. Free article

One hundred years ago this week Dáil Éireann voted on the Treaty and divided just as the Cabinet had already divided and as the IRA was shortly to do also. It was a division that would lead eventually to armed conflict, but not for another six months, with many other factors contributing to the outbreak of the war. Free article

Dáil Éireann debated the Treaty in December 1921 and early January 1922. One of the most enduring speeches is that of Liam Mellows, senior IRA officer, former envoy in the United States, 1916 Rising leader in Galway, former Fianna Éireann organiser. He argued that the Republic existed and that the Treaty surrendered it. He warned prophetically of what would happen when politicians took power in the Free State and his message was strongly anti-imperialist, pointing to the crimes of the British Empire across the globe. The speech was delivered 100 years ago on 4 January 1922 and we carry key extracts here. Free article

The ‘Articles of Agreement’ commonly known as the Treaty were signed in London in the early hours of the morning of 6 December 1921. They were signed by a divided Irish delegation under threat of an immediate resumption and escalation of the British government’s war of terror in Ireland.  Free article

Book review by Mícheál Mac Donncha:‘On Dangerous Ground - a Memoir of the Irish Revolution’ by Máire Comerford. Published by Lilliput Press. Free article

James Connolly called for the reconquest of Ireland by the Irish people. A mighty effort was made to achieve political reconquest between 1916 and 1921 but, 100 years ago, the British government, through a combination of force and fraud, managed to maintain its grip on Ireland and to recast the conquest. Free article

This is an edited version of an article by Trevor Quinn of Cork SIPTU, first published in An Phoblacht, November 2011 Free article

The Defence of the Realm Act (DORA) introduced by the British government in late 1914 gave the Dublin Castle authorities widespread draconian powers for Ireland. Free article

In July 1921 Commander-in-Chief of the British Forces in Ireland Nevil Maready led the British Army delegation into Dublin’s Mansion House to meet the representatives of the Irish Republican Army to arrange a Truce between the two forces. Free article

The first week of June 1921 saw the last of the 24 prison executions of IRA prisoners by the British regime during the Tan war, which had begun with Kevin Barry on 1 November.

As the number of trials by British military courts increased in the first half of 1921 so also did the number of death sentences. On 4 and 7 June the last three executions were carried out, just a month... Free article

The burning of the Custom House in Dublin on 25 May 1921 was one of the largest operations ever carried out by the IRA. It struck at the centre of British administration in Ireland as the building housed nine separate government departments including tax and local government records. The operation fully achieved its objective, though at a heavy cost to the IRA, and its consequences are still debated today. Free article

100 years ago this week the election to the new ‘Northern Ireland’ Parliament marked the beginning of the Orange state Free article

One hundred years ago this week the British regime carried out further executions of Irish Republican prisoners in Dublin and Cork. As the war intensified under martial law more and more prisoners were being tried by British military courts which handed down death sentences. Free article

Book review: ‘The Irish Munitions Embargo of 1920’ by Peter Rigney, Umiskin Press, Dublin. Free article