“ ’Twas better to die ’neath an Irish Sky, than at Suvla, or Sud-el-Bar”

Abstract

This chapter demonstrates the significance of the First World War in the partial successes of Irish republicanism and Ulster unionism. The run-up to the 1916 Rising was preceded by significant evidence of declining support for Redmond’s Irish Parliamentary Party. The 1916 Rising, British wartime policy, and the elections of 1918 are examined to demonstrate the weakening of British authority in Ireland. The Rising itself was more rational and less romantic than it is typically portrayed. The British decision to ignore the election outcomes in Ireland at the end of the First World War led militant republicans to return to armed combat, conducting a guerrilla war of independence. The partition of Ireland and the war of independence are surveyed before a puzzle is addressed: why did the English prove incapable of federalizing their dominions and their dependencies in the Isles? The development of Irish nationalism and Ulster unionism are examined in their comparative European context. The UVF’s significance is emphasized in blocking Ireland’s comprehensive secession and in the formation of Northern Ireland.