Irish Home Rule movement

The Home Rule movement was a campaign for Ireland to have its own government while still being part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. It was an important idea in Irish politics from 1870 until the end of World War I.

It began in 1870 when Isaac Butt started the Home Government Association. This later became the Home Rule League and then the Irish Parliamentary Party. These groups worked hard to get home rule approved. In 1886, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom tried to pass the First Home Rule Bill, but it failed. A second try in 1893 also did not work. Finally, in 1912, a third bill was introduced, causing a big debate called the Home Rule crisis. It was passed just as World War I began, but not put into action until the war ended.

After the Easter Rising in 1916 and events that followed, many people in Ireland began to support more extreme ideas. In the 1918 general election, the old Home Rule party lost. The new group, Sinn Féin, wanted full independence, not just home rule. They created their own government called Dáil Éireann. Later, in 1922, most of Ireland became the Irish Free State, which eventually turned into the Republic of Ireland.

Historical background

The Act of Union 1800 joined Ireland and Great Britain into one country called the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland in 1801. Many Irish people did not like this and wanted their own government again. Leaders like Daniel O'Connell tried to change this back in the 1830s and 1840s, but their plans stopped when a big meeting was called off.

Before the 1870s, most Irish people voted for British political parties like the Liberals and Conservatives for their members of parliament. The Conservatives and later the Liberal Unionists strongly did not want to change the Act of Union and formed the Irish Unionist Alliance to stop any plans for Irish self-government.

Different concepts

The idea of "Home Rule" meant having an Irish government to handle local matters. It started in the 1860s. Over time, it was seen as a way for Ireland to have its own parliament for local issues, while the main government in Westminster would still manage bigger national matters. Some groups, like the Fenians and the Irish Republican Brotherhood, wanted Ireland to fully separate from Great Britain. Leader Charles Stewart Parnell wanted a parliament in Dublin with some powers as a step toward full independence.

For Unionists, Home Rule meant a Dublin government that might favor the Catholic Church. In England, the Liberal Party, led by William Ewart Gladstone, strongly supported Home Rule. The Conservatives tried to solve Ireland’s issues through laws and decisions.

Struggle for home rule

Isaac Butt, a lawyer, helped bring together groups in Ireland who wanted change. In 1870, he started the Irish Home Government Association to ask for more control for Ireland while still being part of the United Kingdom.

Later, in 1873, this group became the Home Rule League. In the 1874 election, many of its members were elected to Parliament.

After Butt died, Charles Stewart Parnell took over in 1880. Under his leadership, the group won more seats in Parliament in 1880. In 1882, Parnell changed the Home Rule League into a new, well-organized group called the Irish Parliamentary Party. This party became very important in Irish politics and won most of the votes in the 1885 election.

Opposition from the Lords

Two attempts were made by Liberals under British Prime Minister William Ewart Gladstone to help Ireland govern itself. In 1886, Gladstone asked parliament to pass a bill for Irish self-government, but it failed by 30 votes.

This caused problems in Belfast and split the Liberal Party. After winning the 1892 election, Gladstone tried again with a new bill in 1893. This bill passed but was stopped by the House of Lords, which wanted to keep Ireland united with Britain.

Home Rule bills

The four Irish Home Rule bills were introduced in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. They aimed to give Ireland self-government within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and change parts of the Acts of Union 1800. These bills were:

• Government of Ireland Bill 1886 (the first Home Rule Bill): lost in the House of Commons and never reached the House of Lords.
• Government of Ireland Bill 1893 (the second Home Rule Bill): approved by the House of Commons but lost in the House of Lords.
• Government of Ireland Act 1914 (the third Home Rule Bill; the 1914 Act): approved under the Parliament Act 1911 after losing in the House of Lords, with royal assent on 18 September 1914. It did not start because of the Suspensory Act 1914 signed the same day.
• Government of Ireland Act 1920 (replaced the 1914 Act): created the partition of Ireland into separate areas called Northern Ireland and Southern Ireland, each with its own parliament. The Parliament of Northern Ireland started in May 1921. The Parliament of Southern Ireland met but never really worked. Southern Ireland was replaced by the Irish Free State as a dominion in December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty.

In 1920, a unionist peer named Lord Monteagle of Brandon suggested the Dominion of Ireland Bill as a private member's bill in the House of Lords at the same time as the Government bill was moving through the house. This bill would have given a united Ireland wide home rule over all local matters as a dominion within the empire, with foreign affairs and defence still handled by the Westminster government. Lord Monteagle's bill was defeated at its second reading.

Home Rule in sight

After the 1895 election, the Conservatives led the government for ten years. A key law called the Local Government (Ireland) Act 1898 changed how local leaders were chosen. This gave more people a say and created local self-rule in many places. This followed a similar law in England from 1888.

In the 1906 election, the Liberals won but didn’t plan to support Irish Home Rule right away. However, after the 1910 election, the nationalist Irish Parliamentary Party led by John Redmond had important influence in the government. Prime Minister H. H. Asquith promised Redmond that if he helped limit the power of the Lords, a new Home Rule law would be created. The Parliament Act 1911 reduced the Lords’ control over laws.

The Third Home Rule Bill was introduced in 1912. Many people in Ulster, called unionists, strongly opposed it. They feared losing their culture and way of life. Leaders Edward Carson and James Craig organized groups to stand against the bill. In response, groups formed in the south to support Home Rule. The bill became law in September 1914, but its effects were delayed until after World War I, which had just begun.

Changed realities

Main article: Home Rule crisis

When Ireland in the First World War began, many Irish people joined the war effort to help achieve self-government, called Home Rule. Some Irish soldiers formed groups like the National Volunteers and joined Irish regiments in the 10th (Irish) Division and 16th (Irish) Division. Others from Ulster joined the 36th (Ulster) Division.

During this time, a small group called the Irish Volunteers opposed joining the war and instead staged the Easter Rising in Dublin in 1916. At first, many people did not support them, but later events changed some minds. Two tries to put Home Rule into place failed because some people in Ulster did not want it. As the war continued, support grew for a group called Sinn Féin, and interest in Home Rule faded.

Home Rule enacted

After World War I ended in November 1918, a big election was held in December. A group called Sinn Féin won most of the seats for Ireland. In January 1919, some of these winners met in Dublin and declared an independent Irish Republic, but Britain did not recognize it. This led to a conflict called the Irish War of Independence.

Britain still planned to give Ireland more self-control and passed a new law called the Government of Ireland Act in 1920. This law split Ireland into Northern Ireland and Southern Ireland. Southern Ireland later became the Irish Free State, which eventually turned into the Republic of Ireland. The Parliament of Northern Ireland started in June 1921. It kept working until March 1972, when it was stopped and direct rule from Britain began. Later, different versions of a Northern Ireland Assembly were created to help balance different groups in the area.

Effect on domestic tourism

In 1890, a guidebook for tourists visiting Ireland tried to calm worries about the political situation. It said that travelers could move safely from Antrim to Kerry, just like they could travel freely between John o' Groats and the Land's End in Britain. The guidebook assured visitors that the political troubles would not affect tourists and that people in Ireland would be friendly and welcoming.