Irish Home Rule Movement

Overview

• Home Rule Movement: Advocated for self-government for Ireland within the United Kingdom.
• Dominant political movement of Irish nationalism from 1870 to end of WWI.

Key Figures and Organizations

• Isaac Butt: Founded the Home Government Association in 1870.
• Home Rule League: Successor to the Home Government Association in 1873.
• Irish Parliamentary Party (IPP): Established in 1882, led by Charles Stewart Parnell.
• Charles Stewart Parnell: Played a key role in advocating for home rule through constitutional means.

Significant Events and Legislation

• First Home Rule Bill (1886): Introduced in the House of Commons but defeated.
• Second Home Rule Bill (1893): Passed Commons but defeated in the House of Lords.
• Third Home Rule Bill (1912): Passed but implementation was suspended due to WWI.
• Fourth Home Rule Bill (1920): Aimed to create separate parliaments for Northern and Southern Ireland; only the former was established.

Historical Context

• Act of Union 1800: United the Kingdoms of Ireland and Great Britain.
• Throughout the 19th century, strong Irish opposition to the Act of Union.
• Daniel O'Connell: Led efforts to repeal the Act of Union in the 1830s and 1840s.

Political Dynamics

• Liberal Party: Supported Home Rule, led by William Ewart Gladstone.
• Conservative and Unionists: Opposed Home Rule, sought alternative solutions via "constructive unionism".

The Home Rule Crisis

• The introduction of the Third Home Rule Bill led to the Home Rule Crisis.
• Significant opposition from Ulster unionists who feared "Rome Rule".
• Formation of the Ulster Volunteers and Irish Volunteers in response.

Shift in Public Support

• Following the Easter Rising of 1916, public support shifted from the Home Rule movement to the more radical Sinn Féin.
• By the 1918 General Election, the Irish Parliamentary Party was decimated.

Conclusion

• The movement for Home Rule was eventually overshadowed by the push for full independence.
• Anglo-Irish Treaty: Led to the creation of the Irish Free State in 1922.
• The Parliament of Northern Ireland was established but Southern Ireland's parliament never functioned.
• The division of Ireland was formalized by the Government of Ireland Act 1920.