Assess the provisions of the Anglo-Irish Treaty (1921) and consider the principal arguments for and against it.

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The truce of the War of Independence on 11th July 1921 brought a new atmosphere to Ireland and Britain. As talks of negotiations were rumoured to be happening, people in Ireland rejoiced. The chance of a Republic Ireland or close to a Republic was prayed for. The result of these negotiations would be proven to be one of the most controversial time periods in Irish history.
Preliminary negotiations began between De Valera and Lloyd George. Over July and October, they met four times in London. De Valera’s main aim was to regain the 32 county republic he so desperately wanted. The British Government was bound to reject this. Here was where dominion status was proposed for the first time. Dominion status was a status that would have seen Ireland as being semi-independent, similar to Canada, Australia and New Zealand. These negotiations ended with George inviting an Irish delegation to discuss their situation further. When the cabinet met to choose a delegation, de Valera refused to lead it. This was a shock to almost everyone, but he gave two reasons. He claimed he needed to influence the more extreme nationalists in Ireland and he said that by remaining in Ireland he could make sure the delegates did not sign anything under pressure from the Government. De Valera already witnessed how unattainable a republic was and possibly did not want to have his name blackened for a Republic not being obtained. This would prove to be one of the main causes of the Irish delegates not bringing back the desired result of these negotiations.

The Irish delegation consisted of Arthur Griffith, leader of the delegation; Michael Collins who was reluctant to go but did so out of a sense of duty; Robert Barton, a Republican, Eamon Duggan and Charles Gavin Duffy, both lawyers. Erskine Childers was a non-voting secretary. De Valera sent him to uphold the republican side. This led to distrust between de Valera, Collins and Griffith. In major contrast to this, stood the British delegation. It consisted of Prime Minister, Lloyd George, Winston Churchill, Austen Chamberlain and Lord Birkenhead. These men were extraordinarily skilled politicians. They all had decades of experience behind them. In comparison to the Irish delegation, they would have limitless power and vigor – the Irish delegates were ill-fated from the beginning.

The negotiations began on 11th October 1921. Immediately, both delegations could see that there was a vast gulf between the aims of each side. The British delegation were extremely clear in the objectives. Their main priority was the defence of British territory. Recalling the landing of Spanish and French troops in Ireland centuries past, they feared an independent Ireland would be used as an enemy to attack Britain in future wartime. Because of this, it is clear that a Republic for Ireland was almost completely unattainable. The British Government also believed that the unity of the Empire would be clear only if Irish office holders had to swear allegiance to the King. In contrast to the clear aims of the British delegation, the Irish delegates had not worked out an exact strategy that reflected their aspirations. Commitment to an Irish Republic and restoration of Irish unity was the only solid argument they had. To extinguish the proposal of dominion status, they had external association in mind, which is working in close co-operation with the British Empire, but they had no alternative plan if this was not granted. It is clear that the result of whatever treaty was to come of these negotiations, would be unfavourable, which we later see in the arguments against the treaty.
Not long into the negotiations sub-committees were set up, Griffith and Collins doing most of the work on these sub-committees. Although there was a gradual start, there was an early agreement on British naval bases in Ireland, trade, and the portion of UK debt to be paid by Ireland. There was a major clash of opinions between the delegations on whether dominion status or external association should be put in place. The British rejected external association and the Irish rejected dominion status. This issue was postponed as the Ulster question was discussed. The British offered for the six counties to be put under an All-Ireland parliament, if Ireland stayed in the British Empire. Griffith supported this, only if ‘essential unity’ was guaranteed. The proposal was rejected by Craig and Northern Unionist leaders so a boundary commission was proposed. This was reluctantly accepted by the Irish, they hoped majority nationalists counties would be given back. These provisions would be analysed later, when the delegates returned.
Divisions began to form in the Irish delegation. They returned to Dublin in early December.. There were bitter splits between Brugha, Griffith and Collins. In Dublin, they were instructed to propose external association again. Upon their return to London, the British refused it once again. They did, however, grant some minor concessions concerning the role of the Oath of Allegiance. It gave more importance to searing true faith and allegiance to the Irish Constitution and less importance to being faithful to the King. On 5th December, George presented an ultimatum. He insisted the Irish delegates sign the Treaty, or an “immediate and terrible war” would follow. He refused to allow them refer the forms back to Dublin. It was signed at 2:10am, 6th December, 10 Downing Street. It stated dominion status, the Governor General’s role, the Oath of Allegiance and more. The Irish delegates returned to Dublin, dreading what was to come. Collins wrote, “early this morning, I signed my own death warrant”. The provisions of this Treaty was proven to be a catalyst for the divisions in the country, for many years to come.

The immediate public reaction in Ireland to the Anglo-Irish treaty was one of widespread relief and joy. For the ordinary people of Ireland, it meant the guarantee of peace and removal of the British Army from the country. When the Dáil Cabinet met, however, de Valera expressed his opposition to the Treaty and his annoyance that the delegates had signed it without referring back to Dublin first. The speakers against the Treaty were de Valera, Brugha and Austin Stack. The speakers for the Treaty were Griffith, Collins, Mulcahy and Cosgrave.
One of the main reasons for the Anti-treaty side was the matter of dominion status. De Valera pushed for external association, while the delegates were only able to get dominion status. His main aim was a republic which he did not get. Many republicans said that the republic had been declared in the 1916 Proclamation. Many also believed that Ireland could not follow an independent foreign policy so long as Britain had the Treaty ports. This was one of the principal provisions that put people against the Treaty.

The Oath of Allegiance is evidently one of the main provisions that did not sit well with the people of Ireland. Many people were not willing to swear faithfulness to the King. Their view was that it was outrageous to swear loyalty to a King when they had been trying to fight against it for generations. Many also swore allegiance to the Republic when joining the IRA years previous. Also a person’s verbal promise meant much more than what it does today. Therefore the Oath of Allegiance was understandably one of the main arguments against the Anglo-Irish Treaty.

The Pro-Treaty side’s motions sat equally as non-debatable. One of which was that the IRA and all other Irish military organisations could not continue another war. They could not engage in an “immediate and terrible” war, to use George’s words. The leaders were now recognisable, the IRA had lost advantage of surprise and there would be little support from the people. Mulcahy said “we have not yet been able to drive the enemy, anything but, from a fairly good sized police barracks”. This view was undoubtedly one of reasonable logic. The people of Ireland supported this view, as they had all lost loved ones in wars previous, including the War of Independence.

Another very strong point of Pro-Treaty side was the stepping stone argument. Collins stated “it gives us freedom, not the ultimate freedom that all nations desire and develop to, but the freedom to achieve it.” A Republic was going to be extremely difficult to obtain in one series of negotiations. Collins made the point that the Treaty gave Ireland an opportunity to eventually gain a Republic, full independence. In other words, he told the people of Ireland to be patient. This argument was easily one of the strongest and most popular judgement in favour of the Treaty.

Although both sides, Pro-Treaty and Anti-Treaty had compelling motions, we later see in the Civil War that the Pro-Treaty side were able to gain the most support. For a regular person in Ireland, their main concern was getting the British Army out of Ireland, which was guaranteed in the Treaty. From a historical point of view, it is essential to remain neutral when discussing these issues.