"No Question of Fighting" : the Government, the Army and the Curragh incident, 1914

Abstract

In March 1914, the impending passage of the Home Rule Bill threatened to plunge Ireland into a civil war. In an effort to forestall the creation of a provisional government in the province of Ulster, the Liberal government instituted a number of troop movements with the intention of ensuring the maintenance of law and order in Northern Ireland. A number of British Army officers stationed at the Curragh military base believed these maneuvers signaled the start of hostile action again Ulster "loyalists" and threatened to accept dismissal rather than comply with the orders. Due to the potential for widespread disaffection throughout the British Army members of the Army Council, unbeknownst to the Prime Minister, granted the officers a "guarantee" that they would not have to act against the Ulstermen. The subsequent uproar in Parliament endangered the stability of Asquith's government, while the unreliability of the Army jeopardized the prospect of a peaceful transition to Irish autonomy.