‘This tragic and most intractable problem’: the Reaction of the Department of External Affairs to the Outbreak of the Troubles in Northern Ireland

Abstract:This paper looks at the immediate reaction of the Irish Department of External Affairs to the outbreak of the Troubles in Northern Ireland in August 1969. It examines and analyses the responses of Irish diplomats to a circular letter from Hugh McCann, the secretary of the department, asking for suggestions on the development of future Northern Ireland policy. The paper shows that External Affairs was poorly prepared in terms of policy options for the outbreak of the Troubles and that its officials had little understanding of developments in Northern Ireland. In the medium term the responses to the circular letter led to the formation of a dedicated Anglo-Irish section in External Affairs. This section was to play a crucial role in the development of Dublin's Northern Ireland policy from 1970 up to and beyond the Good Friday Agreement of 1998.National Archives of Ireland (hereafter NAI), 2000/5/15, Joseph Biggar to Seán Ronan, 7 October 1969.