The Conscription Crisis of 1918 stemmed from a move by the Government of the United Kingdom to impose conscription in Ireland, and contributed to pivotal events in early 20th century politics in Ireland, galvanising popular support for parties favouring separation from the United Kingdom. The Houses of Parliament, seen over Westminster Bridge The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom and British overseas territories. ... (19th century - 20th century - 21st century - more centuries) Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s As a means of recording the passage of time, the 20th century was that century which lasted from 1901–2000 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar (1900–1999...

Background

From early 1918 the British Army were dangerously short on troops for the Western Front. In the Spring Offensive of 1918, German troops began an advance along a forty mile front in France, with an advantage in numbers of four to one, the Allied front collapsing totally. Year 1918 (MCMXVIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar (see link for calendar) or a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. ... The British Army is the land armed forces branch of the British Armed Forces. ... Combatants Belgium, British Empire, France, United States, other Western Allies of WWI Germany Commanders No unified command until 1918, then General Ferdinand Foch Kaiser Wilhelm II Casualties ~4,800,000 Unknown though considerably higher Following the outbreak of the First World War in 1914, the German army opened the Western... Combatants Allied Powers: Russian Empire France British Empire Italy United States Central Powers: Austria-Hungary German Empire Ottoman Empire Bulgaria Commanders Nicholas II Aleksei Brusilov Georges Clemenceau Joseph Joffre Ferdinand Foch Herbert Henry Asquith Douglas Haig John Jellicoe Victor Emmanuel III Luigi Cadorna Armando Diaz Woodrow Wilson John Pershing Franz...

In addressing this challenge, the British Government turned to conscription in Ireland, as an untapped reservoir of manpower for the battlefields. Despite opposition from the entire Irish Party, conscription for Ireland was voted through at Westminster. In 1882 Charles Stewart Parnell, the leader of the Nationalist Party, formed the Irish Parliamentary Party (IPP), replacing the Home Rule League, as a parliamentary party with strict rules. ... The Palace of Westminster, also known as the Houses of Parliament or Westminster Palace, in London, England is where the two Houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom (the House of Lords and the House of Commons) meet to conduct their business. ...

Though large numbers of Irish men had willingly joined Irish Brigades of the New British Army on the outbreak of war, the likelihood of enforced conscription created a backlash - particularly as the enactment of the Home Rule bill (as previously recommended in March by the Irish Convention) was controversially linked with a "dual policy" enactment of the Military Draft Bill. The linking of conscription and Home Rule outraged the Irish Parties at Westminster, who walked out of in protest and returned to Ireland to organise opposition. (Redirected from 16th (Irish) Division) The British 16th (Irish) Division was a New Army division formed in Ireland in September 1914 as part of the K2 Army Group. ... WWI recruitment poster for Kitcheners Army. ... Devolution or Home rule is the pooling of powers from central government to government at regional or local level. ... The Irish Convention was an assembly which sat in Ireland from July 1917 until March 1918 to address the Irish Question and other constitutional problems relating to an early enactment of self-government for Ireland, to debate its wider future, discuss and come to an understanding on recommendations as to...

The Conferences and pledge

The 9 Anti-Conscription Committee members (left to right, top to bottom) Griffith, deValera, Dillon, Devlin, W O'Brien, Johnson, Egan, Healy, WX O'Brien

On April 18, 1918, acting on a resolution of Dublin Corporation, the Lord Mayor of Dublin (Lawrence O'Neill) held a conference at the Mansion House, Dublin. The Irish Anti-Conscription Committee was convened to devise plans to resist conscription, and represented different sections of nationalist opinion: John Dillon and Joseph Devlin for the Irish Parliamentary Party, Eamon de Valera and Arthur Griffith for Sinn Féin, William O'Brien and Timothy Michael Healy for the All-for-Ireland Party and Michael Egan, Thomas Johnson and W X O'Brien representing Labour and the Trade Unions. This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Eamon de Valera (born Edward George de Valera, sometimes Gaelicised Éamon de Bhailéara; October 14, 1882 – August 29, 1975), was an Irish politician, best known as a leader of Irelands struggle for independence from the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland in the early 20th century, and... John Dillon (September 4, 1851 - August 4, 1927) was an Irish nationalist politician. ... Joseph (Joe) Devlin (1872-1934) was an influential Nationalist politician and (MP. Born in Hamill Street, Belfast, Wee Joe was a journalist with the Irish News before becoming an MP for West Belfast through the first two decades of the 20th century, on the Home Rule and Irish Parliamentary Party... William OBrien (2 October 1852–25 February 1928) was an Irish journalist, writer and politician, particularly associated with campaigns for land reform in Ireland during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. ... This article is about Thomas Johnson the Irish politician. ... Michael Egan (Feb 1866-Mar 1947) was a trade unionist, city councillor, and Teachta Dála for Cork. ... Timothy Michael Healy Timothy Michael Healy, KC (May 17, 1855–March 26, 1931) was one of the most brilliant and most controversial of Irish politicians, with a career that spanned the period from Charles Stewart Parnells leadership of the Irish Parliamentary Party in the 1880s to the foundation of... William X. OBrien (1881-1968) was an influential Teachta Dála and trade unionist in Ireland. ... April 18 is the 108th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (109th in leap years). ... Dublin Corporation is the former name given to the city government and its administrative organisation in Dublin between the twelfth century and 1 January 2002. ... The Mansion House The Lord Mayor of Dublin is the symbolic head of the city government in the capital of Ireland. ... The Mansion House on Dawson Street, Dublin, is the official residence of the Lord Mayor of Dublin and has been since 1715. ... John Dillon (September 4, 1851 - August 4, 1927) was an Irish nationalist politician. ... Joseph (Joe) Devlin (1872-18 January 1934) was an influential Nationalist politician and Member of Parliament in Northern Ireland. ... In 1882 Charles Stewart Parnell, the leader of the Nationalist Party, formed the Irish Parliamentary Party (IPP), replacing the Home Rule League, as a parliamentary party with strict rules. ... Eamon de Valera (born Edward George de Valera, sometimes Gaelicised Éamon de Bhailéara; October 14, 1882 – August 29, 1975), was an Irish politician, best known as a leader of Irelands struggle for independence from the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland in the early 20th century, and... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Sinn Féin (pronounced in English, in Irish) is a name used by a series of Irish political movements of the 20th century, each of which claimed sole descent from the original party established by Arthur Griffith in 1905. ... William OBrien (2 October 1852–25 February 1928) was an Irish journalist, writer and politician, particularly associated with campaigns for land reform in Ireland during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. ... Timothy Michael Healy Timothy Michael Healy, KC (May 17, 1855–March 26, 1931) was one of the most brilliant and most controversial of Irish politicians, with a career that spanned the period from Charles Stewart Parnells leadership of the Irish Parliamentary Party in the 1880s to the foundation of... The All-for-Ireland League (A.I.L.), was an Irish, Munster based non-sectarian political party (1909-1918). ... Michael Egan (Feb 1866-Mar 1947) was a trade unionist, city councillor, and Teachta Dála for Cork. ... This article is about Thomas Johnson the Irish politician. ... William X. OBrien (1881-1968) was an influential Teachta Dála and trade unionist in Ireland. ... A union (labor union in American English; trade union, sometimes trades union, in British English; either labour union or trade union in Canadian English) is a legal entity consisting of employees or workers having a common interest, such as all the assembly workers for one employer, or all the workers...

On the evening of the 18th April (the same day), the Catholic bishops were holding their annual meeting at Maynooth (with a similar agenda, to deliver a "Statement on Conscription") and they met a delegation from the Mansion House Conference. (Redirected from 18th April) April 18 is the 108th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (109th in leap years). ... Two bishops assist at the Exhumation of Saint Hubert, who was a bishop too, at the église Saint-Pierre in Liège. ... WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: 53. ...

From both assemblies came an anti-conscription pledge to be taken at the church door of every parish the next Sunday, April 21, which read: "Denying the right of the British government to enforce compulsory service in this country, we pledge ourselves solemnly to one another to resist conscription by the most effective means at our disposal." St. ... A parish is a type of administrative subdivision. ... April 21 is the 111th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (112th in leap years). ...

Strikes and other actions in Ireland

Following their representation at the Mansion House, the labour movement made its own immediate and distinctive contribution to the anti-conscription campaign. A general strike was called in protest, and on April 23 1918, work was stopped in railways, docks, factories, mills, theatres, cinemas, trams, public services, shipyards, newspapers, shops, and even Government munitions factories. The strike was described as "complete and entire, an unprecedented event outside the continental countries". A general strike is a strike action by an entire labour force in a city, region or country. ... A Filling Factory was a munitions factory which specialised in filling various munitions, such as bombs, shells, cartridges, screening smokes, etc. ... Continental Europe, also referred to as mainland Europe or simply the Continent, is the continent of Europe, explicitly excluding European islands and peninsulae. ...

In the following weeks, anti-conscription rallies were held nation wide, with 15,000 people attending a meeting in County Roscommon at the start of May. John Dillon, leader of the Irish Parliamentary Party and Eamon de Valera of Sinn Féin shared the platform in a united cause. This in itself is notable as, while sharing nationalist views, Dillon and de Valera's parties had here-to-fore been divided in opinion as to the best means for devolution from the UK, and would subsequently be divided by the Anglo-Irish Treaty. However, all were galvanised to collective action on the conscription issue. A man carries a sign at the September 24, 2005 anti-war protest, a demonstration in Washington, D.C. American Civil Rights March on Washington, leaders marching from the Washington Monument to the Lincoln Memorial, August 28, 1963. ... Statistics Province: Connacht County Town: Roscommon Code: RN Area: 2,547 km² (983 mi²) Population (2006) 58,700 Website: www. ... Signature page of the Anglo-Irish Treaty The Anglo-Irish Treaty, officially called the Articles of Agreement for a Treaty Between Great Britain and Ireland, was a treaty between the Government of the United Kingdom and representatives of the extra-judicial Irish Republic which concluded the Irish War of Independence. ...

Immediately following, Dublin's Lord Mayor, Laurence O'Neill, in a letter to the President of the United States Woodrow Wilson called for support against conscription: In the fourth year of a war ostensibly begun for the defence of small nations, a law conscribing the manhood of Ireland has been passed, in defiance of the wishes of our people. .... To warrant the coercive statue, no recourse was had to the electorate of Britain, much less to that in Ireland. Yet the measure was forced through within a week, despite the votes of Irish representatives and under a system of closure never applied to the debates, which established conscription for Great Britain on a milder basis. For other uses, see President of the United States (disambiguation). ... Thomas Woodrow Wilson was the 28th President of the United States. ...

The "plot" and other reactions

Dillon on platform during Roscommon anti-conscription rally in 1918

Nervous of growing unrest, and still with dire need to progress conscription in Ireland, Lloyd George's government undertook several initiatives to quell the backlash. John Dillon (September 4, 1851 - August 4, 1927) was an Irish nationalist politician. ... Year 1918 (MCMXVIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar (see link for calendar) or a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. ... David Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd George of Dwyfor, OM, PC (17 January 1863 – 26 March 1945) was a British statesman who guided Britain and the Commonwealth of Nations through World War I and the postwar settlement as the Liberal Party Prime Minister, 1916-1922. ...

As Sinn Féin were publicly perceived to be key instigators of anti-government and anti-conscription feeling, the viceroy Lord French, claiming evidence of a treasonable plot between Sinn Féin and the Germans, arrested seventy-three Sinn Féin leaders, including Griffith and de Valera, on the 17th May. This heavy-handed response by the Dublin Castle authorities did little to defuse the situation however. (In fact, a lack of evidence meant the "German plot" was little believed in the UK, Ireland or the US, and aggravated opinion and Sinn Féin support.) The Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (also known as the Viceroy or in the Middle Ages as the Lord Deputy) was the head of Englands (pre-1707) or Britains (post 1707) administration in Ireland. ... The Earl of Ypres John Denton Pinkstone French, 1st Earl of Ypres, KP, GCB, OM, GCVO, KCMG, PC (28 September 1852–22 May 1925) was a British Field Marshal, the first commander of the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) in World War I. Biography Born in Ripple in Kent, the son... (Redirected from 17th May) May 17 is the 137th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (138th in leap years). ... Dublin Castle. ... United States may refer to: Places: United States of America SS United States, the fastest ocean liner ever built. ... Sinn Féin (pronounced in English, in Irish) is a name used by a series of Irish political movements of the 20th century, each of which claimed sole descent from the original party established by Arthur Griffith in 1905. ...

Simultaneously a more subtle effort (and possibly with more potential for success) was undertaken from the offices of Lord Northcliffe under the Minister of Information. The "Hay Plan" was conceived by Stuart Hay - a British Army Captain - who was under orders to establish a proposal to work around widespread anti-conscription feeling and persuade Irish Nationalists to join the French army (initially as labourers in specialised battalions). Alfred Charles William Harmsworth, 1st Viscount Northcliffe The Right Honourable Alfred Charles William Harmsworth, 1st Viscount Northcliffe (July 15, 1865, Dublin - August 14, 1922, London) was an influential and successful newspaper owner. ... The Minister of Information is a British government position that was created briefly during the First World War and again during the Second World War. ... The British Army is the land armed forces branch of the British Armed Forces. ... In military terminology, a battalion consists of two to six companies typically commanded by a lieutenant colonel. ...

Hay's plan relied on the power of the Catholic church in Ireland (and empathy among Irish Catholics for German occupation of Catholic Belgium and France), to sway opinion: if the church were definitely or even in a large measure converted and the support it has given to disloyal elements be not taken away but thrown on to the other side in the controversy [the conscription crisis], much would be done for the future of the peace in Ireland. The name Catholic Church can mean a visible organization that refers to itself as Catholic, or the invisible Christian Church, viz. ...

The plan simply called for a letter (drafted by Hay, and approved by Edward Shortt) to be sent by the French Primate to the Irish bishops, requesting that they soften their opposition to conscription to aid the war effort in France. Edward Shortt KC (March 10, 1862 - November 10, 1935) was a British politician, who served as a member of David Lloyd Georges cabinet. ... Catholic Patriarchal (non cardinal) coat of arms Primate (from the Latin Primus, first) is a title or rank bestowed on some bishops in certain Christian churches. ...

Despite some progress in August in persuading Primate of All Ireland Cardinal Logue through these means, the "Hay Plan" was delayed (and ultimately stymied) by complications in diplomatic channels and by political rivalries. Primate of All Ireland is the title held by the Archbishop of Armagh. ... Michael Cardinal Logue (1 October 1840 - 19 November 1924) was Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland from 1887 to 1924. ...

As a result, recruitment efforts through September and October continued to have very limited success, and by the armistice in November (effectively marking the end of WWI) conscription remaining unimplemented in Ireland.

After effects

Completely ineffectual as a means to bolster battalions in France, the events surrounding the Conscription Crisis were also disastrous for the Dublin Castle authorities, and for the more moderate nationalist parties in Ireland.

The delay in finding a resolution to the home rule issue, partly caused by the war, and exaggerated by the Conscription Crisis in Ireland, increased support for Sinn Féin.

Sinn Féin association (in the public perception at least) with the 1916 Easter Rising and the anti-conscription movement directly and indirectly led to their landslide victory over (and effective elimination of) the Irish Parliamentary Party, the formation of the first Dáil Éireann and in turn to the outbreak of the Anglo-Irish War in 1919. (See: Aftermath of World War I - United Kingdom and Irish (UK) general election, 1918). Year 1916 (MCMXVI) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar). ... Combatants Irish Volunteers, Irish Citizen Army, Irish Republican Brotherhood British Army Royal Irish Constabulary Commanders Pádraig Pearse, James Connolly General Sir John Maxwell Strength 1250 in Dublin, c. ... The Dáil Chamber Dáil Éireann[1] is the lower house of the Oireachtas (parliament) of Ireland. ... An Irish War of Independence memorial in Dublin The Anglo-Irish War (also known as the Irish War of Independence) was a guerrilla campaign mounted against the British government in Ireland by the Irish Republican Army under the proclaimed legitimacy of the First Dáil, the extra-legal Irish parliament... Year 1919 (MCMXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar). ... Woodrow Wilson and the American peace commissioners during the negotiations on the Treaty of Versailles. ... The Irish general election of 1918 was that part of the 1918 United Kingdom general election that took place in Ireland. ...

Notes

It should be noted that the bulk of opposition to the Great War in Ireland was to compulsory conscription, not to the war nor to voluntary enlistment in the British Army. In fact, many Irish supported the war and Irish involvement.

Support and enlistment was more prominent amongst Irish unionist and Protestant traditions, however, nationalist and Catholic enlistment was also common as the war was seen to be fought in defence of smaller Catholic countries (like occupied Belgium). In this cause, those who would later become detractors of conscription (including John Dillon, William O'Brien and the Catholic bishops) were prominent on recruitment platforms at the outbreak of the war. In the context of Irish politics, Unionists are people in Northern Ireland, who wish to see the continuation of the Act of Union 1800, as amended by the Government of Ireland Act 1920, under which Northern Ireland, created in that latter Act, remains part of the United Kingdom of Great... Protestantism is a general grouping of denominations within Christianity. ...

In all, approaching 200,000* Irishmen served with British forces during the Great War, and, of the 680,000 fatalities from Britain, some 40,000* were from Ireland. (* Sources differ slightly on the number of Irish who served with allied forces, and on the number of dead. Averages are used here ^[1]).

Contemporaneous quotes

W.B. Yeats in Dublin on 24 January 1908. ... Lord Haldane Richard Burdon Sanderson Haldane, 1st Viscount Haldane, (July 30, 1856 - August 19, 1928), was an important British Liberal politician, lawyer, and philosopher. ...

A photograph of Lady Gregory from her 1913 book Our Irish Theatre Isabella Augusta, Lady Gregory (15 March 1852–22 May 1932), née Isabella Augusta Persse, was an Irish dramatist and folklorist. ...

See also

Wikisource has original text related to this article:

Irish Anti-Conscription Crisis

• 1918 in Ireland (for dates and timeline)
• History of Ireland (1801-1922)
• Conscription crisis
• Conscription and Conscription in Ireland
• Edward Shortt (Chief Secretary for Ireland at time and supporter of the Hay Plan)
• David Lloyd George (Prime Minister of United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland at time)
• Aftermath of World War I - United Kingdom

Image File history File links Wikisource-logo. ... The original Wikisource logo. ... From 1801 to 1922 the whole island of Ireland formed a constituent part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (UK). ... A conscription crisis is a public dispute about a policy of conscription, or mandatory service in the military. ... For other uses, see Conscript (disambiguation). ... Edward Shortt KC (March 10, 1862 - November 10, 1935) was a British politician, who served as a member of David Lloyd Georges cabinet. ... The Chief Secretary was the most important position for determining British policy in Ireland after the Lord Lieutenant, and was frequently a cabinet level position in the 19th and early twentieth centuries. ... David Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd George of Dwyfor, OM, PC (17 January 1863 – 26 March 1945) was a British statesman who guided Britain and the Commonwealth of Nations through World War I and the postwar settlement as the Liberal Party Prime Minister, 1916-1922. ... The Prime Minister is in practice the most important political office in the United Kingdom. ... Motto: Dieu et mon droit (French: God and my right)1 Anthem: God Save the King/Queen Territory of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland Capital London Language(s) English Gaelic Welsh (Wales) Scottish Gaelic (parts of Scotland) Government Constitutional monarchy Monarch  - 1801–1820 George III  - 1920–1922... Woodrow Wilson and the American peace commissioners during the negotiations on the Treaty of Versailles. ...

Footnotes

1. ^ Department of the Taoiseach - Irish Soldiers in the First World War - Statistics

References and external links

• Letters and Leaders of my Day T. M. Healy, K. C. (Anti-Conscription council delegate and Governor-General of the Irish Free State)
• The Hay Plan & Conscription In Ireland During WW1 Dave Hennessy
• Ireland and the Great War ISBN 0-521-77323-7 Keith Jeffery Cambridge University Press, 2000
• Dublin and the Great War
• BBC article highlighting pre- and post-war Irish attitudes to participation of Irish in Great War