Irish War of Independence

Casualties

upright|thumb|left|Monument to IRA fighters in [[Phibsborough, Dublin]]

According to The Dead of the Irish Revolution, 2,346 people were killed or died as a result of the conflict. This counts a small number of deaths before and after the war, from 1917 until the signing of the Treaty at the end of 1921. Of those killed, 919 were civilians, 523 were police personnel, 413 were British military personnel, and 491 were IRA volunteers (although another source gives 550 IRA dead). About 44% of these British military deaths were by misadventure (such as accidental shooting) and suicide while on active service, as were 10% of police losses and 14% of IRA losses. About 36% of police personnel who died were born outside Ireland.

Post-war evacuation of British forces

thumb|Soldiers of a British cavalry regiment leaving Dublin in 1922

By October 1921 the British Army in Ireland numbered 57,000 men, along with 14,200 RIC police and some 2,600 auxiliaries and Black and Tans. The long-planned evacuation from dozens of barracks in what the army called "Southern Ireland" started on 12 January 1922, following the ratification of the Treaty and took nearly a year, organised by General Nevil Macready. It was a huge logistical operation, but within the month Dublin Castle and Beggars Bush Barracks were transferred to the Provisional Government. The RIC last paraded on 4 April and was formally disbanded on 31 August. By the end of May the remaining forces were concentrated in Dublin, Cork and Kildare. Tensions that led to the Irish Civil War were evident by then and evacuation was suspended. By November about 6,600 soldiers remained in Dublin at 17 locations. Finally on 17 December 1922 The Royal Barracks (now housing collections of the National Museum of Ireland) was transferred to General Richard Mulcahy and the garrison embarked at Dublin Port that evening.

Compensation

In May 1922 the British Government with the agreement of the Irish Provisional Government established a commission chaired by Lord Shaw of Dunfermline to examine compensation claims for material damage caused between 21 January 1919 and 11 July 1921. The Irish Free State's Damage To Property (Compensation) Act, 1923 provided that only the Shaw Commission, and not the Criminal Injury Acts, could be used to claim compensation. Originally, the British government paid claims from unionists and the Irish government those from nationalists; claims from "neutral" parties were shared. After the 1925 collapse of the Irish Boundary Commission, the UK, Free State and Northern Ireland governments negotiated revisions to the 1921 Treaty; the Free State stopped contributing to the servicing of the UK national debt, but took over full responsibility for compensation for war damage, with the fund increased by 10% in 1926. The Compensation (Ireland) Commission worked until March 1926, processing thousands of claims. The republican socialist Irish Citizen Army promoted gender equality and many of these women—including Constance Markiewicz, Madeleine ffrench-Mullen, and Kathleen Lynn—joined the group. In 1914, the all-female paramilitary group Cumann na mBan was launched as an auxiliary of the Irish Volunteers. During the Easter Rising, some women participated in fighting and carried messages between Irish Volunteer posts while under fire from British troops. After the rebel defeat, Éamon de Valera opposed the participation of women in combat and they were limited to supporting roles.

During the conflict, women hid IRA volunteers being sought by the British, nursed wounded volunteers, and gathered money to help republican prisoners and their families. Cumann na mBan engaged in undercover work to set back the British war effort. They smuggled guns, ammunition, and money to the IRA; Kathleen Clarke smuggled gold worth £2,000 from Limerick to Dublin for Collins. Because they sheltered wanted men, many women were subject to raids on their homes by British forces, with acts of sexual violence sometimes being reported but not confirmed. It is estimated that there were between 3,000 and 9,000 members of Cumann na mBan during the war, and in 1921 there were 800 branches throughout the island. It is estimated that fewer than 50 women were imprisoned by the British during the war.

Cultural depictions

Literature

1923 – The Shadow of a Gunman, play by Seán O'Casey
1929 – The Last September, novel by Elizabeth Bowen
1931 – Guests of the Nation, short story by Frank O'Connor
1970 – Troubles, novel by J. G. Farrell
1979 – The Old Jest, novel by Jennifer Johnston, winner of the Whitbread Award
1991 - "Amongst Women", novel by John McGahern
2010 – The Soldier's Song, novel by Alan Monaghan

Television and film

1926 – Irish Destiny, silent film
1929 – The Informer, part-talkie film
1934 – The Key, American Pre-Code film
1935 – The Informer, John Ford film
1936 – The Dawn, Irish film (also called Dawn Over Ireland)
1936 – Ourselves Alone, British film
1936 – Beloved Enemy, American drama film
1937 – The Plough and the Stars, John Ford film
1959 – Shake Hands with the Devil, feature film
1975 – Days of Hope, 1916: Joining Up
1988 – The Dawning, film, based on Jennifer Johnston's The Old Jest
1989 – The Shadow of Béalnabláth (1989) RTÉ TV Documentary by Colm Connolly about the life and death of Michael Collins.
1991 – The Treaty
1996 – Michael Collins, feature film
1999 – The Last September
2001 – Rebel Heart, BBC miniseries. The theme music of the same name was composed by Sharon Corr.
2002 – An Deichniúr Dearmadta (The Forgotten Ten) a TG4 TV Documentary
2006 – The Wind That Shakes the Barley, feature film
2014 – A Nightingale Falling, film
2019 – Resistance, five-part RTÉ miniseries

References

Bibliography

External links

The Irish Independence Film Collection Irish Film Institute collection of contemporary newsreels with background information
Cork's War of Independence
The Irish Story archive on the war
The Irish War website
War memorials related to the Irish War of Independence
Irish History Links for the War of Independence