Today marks the 100th anniversary of the signing of the Anglo-Irish Treaty in London. The Treaty formally ended the War of Independence, set the stage for British withdrawal from most of Ireland, and the handover of power to an independent Irish government. However, the Treaty only gave Ireland independence as a member of the British Commonwealth, not as a Republic. Northern Ireland was to remain outside the new independent Irish state. The Irish delegates signed the Treaty after being warned that refusal to do so would mean that the War of Independence would resume within days. Irish President Eamon de Valera claimed the signing was done under duress and so was invalid. The Treaty was put to the Dáil and was ratified by a slim margin. De Valera did not accept the result, and led opponents out of the Dáil in protest. This began the chain of events that led to the outbreak of the Civil War six months later. (Summarized from this article on the RTÉ website.)
There does not seems to be much fanfare being made over the anniversary. It’s understandable why it is not celebrated, as the Treaty brought about the partition of the island and led to a civil war.
In other news, Ireland is bracing for a large storm due to hit tomorrow morning. I’m glad I was able to get out most of yesterday. After writing my previous post, I walked to Grafton Street to enjoy the holiday atmosphere and people watch.
Until next time….
