Great Britain and the creation of the Irish Free State beyond terrorism: 1919--1922

As with all historic events, the successful creation of the Irish Free State was the end result of multiple causes. Many historians have been drawn to the creation of the "Irish Free State" because of its exciting historic players and events. The "Freedom Fighters" of the Erie state took on Great Britain in a true David and Goliath story. However, this researcher will not address the Irish Civil War or the role of religious tensions, excepting to place events in its historic perspective. It is my hypothesis that Great Britain acted in its own best interests in formulating the "Irish Free State" agreement. Beyond terror, there was a clear rationale that involved diverse and cross-political purposes that drove British policy makers to accept a negotiated settlement. Not only did these hidden issues drive the negotiation, but they forced the eventual makeup of the North-South settlement.; First, the issue of British economics was a major factor involving Irish/British relations. The question was could Prime Minister Lloyd George and the Liberal coalition afford the succession of Unionist Northern Ireland? It is my belief that Britain, recovering from a financially crushing World War, could never agree to the separation of Northern Ireland and lose control of investments. The bottom line was that the northern counties of Ireland contained the majority of Britain's shipbuilding industry.; Second, the British Conservative Party was using the Northern Irish "Orangemen" as a weapon in domestic British politics to undermine the ruling Liberal Party. The Liberal Party linked themselves with Home Rule through dependence on Irish Party support for its majority.; Third, we will report on the important role played by the minority Catholic Church in Northern Ireland in formulating the Treaty. In this essay I will report on the political pressures by the Church during the Treaty negotiations.; Last, but equally important to the final settlement, was Britain's concern over its relationship with America. The Irish-American community was not only politically organized, but it was a strong advocate for Irish independence.; If we weave these four divergent political currents together into a negotiated settlement, we create on British terms, the Irish Free State---1922.