unit 04 example 04

Module 3 Unit 04

Timeline

  • 1919

    January 18th

    Formal opening of the Paris Peace Conference.

    January 21st

    First meeting of Dáil Éireann in Dublin.

    IRA ambush in Soloheadbeg: beginning of the War of Independence.

  • 1920

    H.S. Morrison, Modern Ulster: Its Character, Customs, Politics and Industries; completed in January.

    January

    Recruiting begins of ex-servicemen (later known as Black and Tans) to support police against the IRA.

    February

    Judge W.C. Benet, “Scots and Ulster-Scots in the Southern States, Part II,” The Caledonian, Vol. XIX, N° X.

    February 25th

    Government of Ireland Bill introduced in the House of Commons.

    June

    Riots in Derry/Londonderry.

    July

    Riots in Belfast; violence flares up again in August. 

    Tensions remain high in the city during the period 1920-1924.

    November 1st

    Enrolment of the Ulster Special Constabulary begins.

    November 21st

    Bloody Sunday: IRA assassinates 14 British secret service agents in Dublin; Black and Tans open fire on a GAA match in Croke Park, Dublin, killing 12.

    December 23rd

    Government of Ireland Act partitions Ireland, creating Northern Ireland (six counties, with a Parliament in Belfast), Southern Ireland (26 counties, with a Parliament in Dublin) and a Council of Ireland.

  • 1921

    February 4th

    Carson resigns as leader of the Ulster unionists; he is replaced by Sir James Craig.

    May 13th

    All candidates for the Southern Ireland Parliament returned unopposed; Sinn Féin takes 124 of the 128 seats; Sinn Féin members boycott the Southern Ireland Parliament and meet as the Second Dáil (August 1921).

    May 24th

    In elections to Northern Ireland Parliament: unionists win 40 seats, Sinn Féin 6 and nationalists 6.

    June 7th

    Sir James Craig appointed Prime Minister of Northern Ireland.

    June 8th

    Leonard Raven-Hill cartoon, “Starting the settlement,” in Punch. 

    June 22nd

    Opening of Northern Ireland Parliament by King George V.

    July 11th

    Truce begins in the War of Independence.

    October 11th

    Anglo-Irish Conference in London between the British Government and Dáil delegates; Craig does not attend.

    November 19th

    Opening of the Ulster Tower at Thiepval.

    “The Ulster War Memorial,” in The Northern Whig.

    December 6th

    Anglo-Irish Treaty signed in London; Irish Free State is given “dominion status”; Northern Ireland is free to opt out; a Boundary Commission to review the border between the two parts of Ireland.

  • 1922

    January

    On-going IRA campaign.

    February - March

    Sectarian violence in Belfast and elsewhere.

    Ronald McNeill’s, Ulster’s Stand for Union, completed in February.

    April 7th

    Civil Authorities (Special Powers) Act gives the Belfast Government wide-ranging powers, e.g. detention without trial.

    May 31st

    Legislation creating the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) passed.

    June 28th

    Civil War begins between pro- and anti-Treaty republicans.

    September 11th

    Local Government Act (Northern Ireland) abolishes proportional representation in local government elections.

    October 23rd

    Andrew Bonar Law (Conservative) becomes Prime Minister of the United Kingdom

    December 7th

    Northern Ireland Parliament opts out of Irish Free State.

    December 9th

    The office of the Governor of Northern Ireland, established.

  • 1923

    May 24th

    Civil War ends.

    June 22nd

    Education Act (Northern Ireland) establishes system of non-denominational schools.

  • 1924

    November 4th

    Stanley Baldwin (Conservative) becomes Prime Minister of the United Kingdom

    November 5th

    Boundary Commission begins work under the chairmanship of Mr Justice Richard Feetham.

  • 1925

    April 3rd

    General election in Northern Ireland; nationalists decide to end policy of abstention.

    November 7th

    Proposals of the Boundary Commission leaked in the Morning Post.

    November 20th

    Bab M’Keen, “The Boundary,” in The Ballymena Observer.

    December 3rd

    Agreement between London, Belfast and Dublin; the existing border between the Free State and Northern Ireland confirmed; the idea of a Council of Ireland abandoned; additional financial terms agreed.

    December 18th

    Bab M’Keen, “The Boundary Buried,” in The Ballymena Observer.

  • 1932

    November 16th

    Parliament Buildings, at Stormont, officially opened by the Prince of Wales.

  • 1948

    Hugh Shearman, Anglo-Irish Relations.

Glossary
Government of Ireland Act 1920
example 04

Starting The Settlement

Leonard Raven-Hill (1867-1942) was a highly successful cartoonist and illustrator. His work appeared in a number of magazines, most notably in the satirical magazine, Punch, to which he contributed for some forty years. Raven-Hill was conservative in his politics. Well known for his work encouraging men to enlist during the First World War, he produced a number of cartoons on Ireland, especially in the period between the end of the war and the early 1920s. 

Raven-Hill’s cartoon, “Starting the settlement,” appeared in Punch on June 8, 1921. The first election to the Parliament of Northern Ireland had taken place some two weeks earlier, on 24th May. As predicted, the Unionists won an overwhelming majority, taking 40 seats, while the Nationalist Party and Sinn Féin won six seats each. 

The Northern Ireland Parliament was opened on June 22. As we saw in Example 3, the ceremony, attended by King George V in person, was held at the Belfast City Hall. It has to be remembered that when the Northern Ireland Parliament was created under the terms of the Government of Ireland Act (1920), there was no building to house it. Initial work on the Stormont site did not begin until 1923. During the early years of the existence of Northern Ireland, Parliament met at the Assembly’s College (now Union Theological College) in Botanic Avenue, Belfast. Parliament Buildings was officially opened on November 16 1932 by the Prince of Wales, Edward Windsor.

IMAGE: Cartoon by Leonard Raven-Hill which appeared in Punch on June 8, 1921.

Module 3 Unit 04

Timeline

  • 1919

    January 18th

    Formal opening of the Paris Peace Conference.

    January 21st

    First meeting of Dáil Éireann in Dublin.

    IRA ambush in Soloheadbeg: beginning of the War of Independence.

  • 1920

    H.S. Morrison, Modern Ulster: Its Character, Customs, Politics and Industries; completed in January.

    January

    Recruiting begins of ex-servicemen (later known as Black and Tans) to support police against the IRA.

    February

    Judge W.C. Benet, “Scots and Ulster-Scots in the Southern States, Part II,” The Caledonian, Vol. XIX, N° X.

    February 25th

    Government of Ireland Bill introduced in the House of Commons.

    June

    Riots in Derry/Londonderry.

    July

    Riots in Belfast; violence flares up again in August. 

    Tensions remain high in the city during the period 1920-1924.

    November 1st

    Enrolment of the Ulster Special Constabulary begins.

    November 21st

    Bloody Sunday: IRA assassinates 14 British secret service agents in Dublin; Black and Tans open fire on a GAA match in Croke Park, Dublin, killing 12.

    December 23rd

    Government of Ireland Act partitions Ireland, creating Northern Ireland (six counties, with a Parliament in Belfast), Southern Ireland (26 counties, with a Parliament in Dublin) and a Council of Ireland.

  • 1921

    February 4th

    Carson resigns as leader of the Ulster unionists; he is replaced by Sir James Craig.

    May 13th

    All candidates for the Southern Ireland Parliament returned unopposed; Sinn Féin takes 124 of the 128 seats; Sinn Féin members boycott the Southern Ireland Parliament and meet as the Second Dáil (August 1921).

    May 24th

    In elections to Northern Ireland Parliament: unionists win 40 seats, Sinn Féin 6 and nationalists 6.

    June 7th

    Sir James Craig appointed Prime Minister of Northern Ireland.

    June 8th

    Leonard Raven-Hill cartoon, “Starting the settlement,” in Punch. 

    June 22nd

    Opening of Northern Ireland Parliament by King George V.

    July 11th

    Truce begins in the War of Independence.

    October 11th

    Anglo-Irish Conference in London between the British Government and Dáil delegates; Craig does not attend.

    November 19th

    Opening of the Ulster Tower at Thiepval.

    “The Ulster War Memorial,” in The Northern Whig.

    December 6th

    Anglo-Irish Treaty signed in London; Irish Free State is given “dominion status”; Northern Ireland is free to opt out; a Boundary Commission to review the border between the two parts of Ireland.

  • 1922

    January

    On-going IRA campaign.

    February - March

    Sectarian violence in Belfast and elsewhere.

    Ronald McNeill’s, Ulster’s Stand for Union, completed in February.

    April 7th

    Civil Authorities (Special Powers) Act gives the Belfast Government wide-ranging powers, e.g. detention without trial.

    May 31st

    Legislation creating the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) passed.

    June 28th

    Civil War begins between pro- and anti-Treaty republicans.

    September 11th

    Local Government Act (Northern Ireland) abolishes proportional representation in local government elections.

    October 23rd

    Andrew Bonar Law (Conservative) becomes Prime Minister of the United Kingdom

    December 7th

    Northern Ireland Parliament opts out of Irish Free State.

    December 9th

    The office of the Governor of Northern Ireland, established.

  • 1923

    May 24th

    Civil War ends.

    June 22nd

    Education Act (Northern Ireland) establishes system of non-denominational schools.

  • 1924

    November 4th

    Stanley Baldwin (Conservative) becomes Prime Minister of the United Kingdom

    November 5th

    Boundary Commission begins work under the chairmanship of Mr Justice Richard Feetham.

  • 1925

    April 3rd

    General election in Northern Ireland; nationalists decide to end policy of abstention.

    November 7th

    Proposals of the Boundary Commission leaked in the Morning Post.

    November 20th

    Bab M’Keen, “The Boundary,” in The Ballymena Observer.

    December 3rd

    Agreement between London, Belfast and Dublin; the existing border between the Free State and Northern Ireland confirmed; the idea of a Council of Ireland abandoned; additional financial terms agreed.

    December 18th

    Bab M’Keen, “The Boundary Buried,” in The Ballymena Observer.

  • 1932

    November 16th

    Parliament Buildings, at Stormont, officially opened by the Prince of Wales.

  • 1948

    Hugh Shearman, Anglo-Irish Relations.

Glossary
Government of Ireland Act 1920
example 04

Starting The Settlement

[NB: Frames noted in Module 2 are indicated in heavy print.]

Start by looking at the various parts of the image. In the foreground, we see a man, energetically sawing wood at a sawing easel. We know that this is supposed to represent the new Prime Minister of Northern Ireland, James Craig, because lying on the ground, among a pile of tools to the right is a large leather work bag with “J. Craig” written on it. Craig is not dressed as you might imagine a Prime Minister of the period to be dressed. He is wearing rough working clothes. His sleeves are rolled up, and he has a hat on his head. He is clearly hard at work, totally absorbed in the task of sawing a branch of wood. 

He has already cut down a number of trees. There are a number of tree stumps in the ground. So, we can assume that he has been working here for some time. Indeed, he has succeeded in making a clearing in what is obviously very dense forest. In the middle ground, we see a simple log cabin. We can assume that he has built this himself. It is a very rudimentary construction, very much like the log cabins that people would have imagined from the stories they read about the American frontier. We are to understand that this is meant to represent the Northern Ireland Parliament because nailed on to a tree in the right foreground we see a sign with the words “Ulster Parliament House,” above what is clearly a Red Hand of Ulster. 

Everything that we have described is bathed in light. This is in sharp contrast with the background which is much darker in overall tone. The house has been built immediately on the edge of rising ground that slopes off to the right. The ground is covered in huge trees with their roots showing. There are heavy shadows everywhere. We can see the sky in the distance. It is full of dark, menacing clouds. There is even a dramatic flash of lightning in the far left of the image. We can see that a number of trees have fallen in the forest. However, they do not look as if they have been felled by the lumberjack. Rather, they look as if they might have been struck by lightning. 

The title is an obvious play on the word “settlement” which recalls the settler origins of many of those Ulster Unionists who had fought to oppose Home Rule for Ireland and whose resistance had resulted in the creation of a separate parliament for Northern Ireland. 

The immediate reference would appear to be to their ancestors, the first Scottish and English settlers in Ulster, at the time of the Plantation of Ulster. The image recalls the passage we read in Module 2 (See: The Ulster Scot and Material Prosperity), in which Rev. Hamilton, referring to the arrival of the Scots at the Plantation period, says: “Soon the sound of the axes of many settlers rang through the forests of Ulster, and of their crowbars and hammers in the quarries, as they felled trees and hewed out stone for the erection of homesteads. Castles, houses, and bawns rose quickly all over the country.” This is exactly what we see in the cartoon. Craig is the settler who has cut down the trees, clearing the forest for the construction of this new Parliament, or perhaps this new political entity, Northern Ireland. 

IMAGE: The Cabinet of Northern Ireland in 1921. From left to right, Dawson Bates, Marquess of Londonderry, James Craig, H. M. Pollock, E. M. Archdale, J. M. Andrews. Public domain. 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Craig,1stViscountCraigavon#
/media/File:Northern
IrelandCabinet1921.jpg

Module 3 Unit 04

Timeline

  • 1919

    January 18th

    Formal opening of the Paris Peace Conference.

    January 21st

    First meeting of Dáil Éireann in Dublin.

    IRA ambush in Soloheadbeg: beginning of the War of Independence.

  • 1920

    H.S. Morrison, Modern Ulster: Its Character, Customs, Politics and Industries; completed in January.

    January

    Recruiting begins of ex-servicemen (later known as Black and Tans) to support police against the IRA.

    February

    Judge W.C. Benet, “Scots and Ulster-Scots in the Southern States, Part II,” The Caledonian, Vol. XIX, N° X.

    February 25th

    Government of Ireland Bill introduced in the House of Commons.

    June

    Riots in Derry/Londonderry.

    July

    Riots in Belfast; violence flares up again in August. 

    Tensions remain high in the city during the period 1920-1924.

    November 1st

    Enrolment of the Ulster Special Constabulary begins.

    November 21st

    Bloody Sunday: IRA assassinates 14 British secret service agents in Dublin; Black and Tans open fire on a GAA match in Croke Park, Dublin, killing 12.

    December 23rd

    Government of Ireland Act partitions Ireland, creating Northern Ireland (six counties, with a Parliament in Belfast), Southern Ireland (26 counties, with a Parliament in Dublin) and a Council of Ireland.

  • 1921

    February 4th

    Carson resigns as leader of the Ulster unionists; he is replaced by Sir James Craig.

    May 13th

    All candidates for the Southern Ireland Parliament returned unopposed; Sinn Féin takes 124 of the 128 seats; Sinn Féin members boycott the Southern Ireland Parliament and meet as the Second Dáil (August 1921).

    May 24th

    In elections to Northern Ireland Parliament: unionists win 40 seats, Sinn Féin 6 and nationalists 6.

    June 7th

    Sir James Craig appointed Prime Minister of Northern Ireland.

    June 8th

    Leonard Raven-Hill cartoon, “Starting the settlement,” in Punch. 

    June 22nd

    Opening of Northern Ireland Parliament by King George V.

    July 11th

    Truce begins in the War of Independence.

    October 11th

    Anglo-Irish Conference in London between the British Government and Dáil delegates; Craig does not attend.

    November 19th

    Opening of the Ulster Tower at Thiepval.

    “The Ulster War Memorial,” in The Northern Whig.

    December 6th

    Anglo-Irish Treaty signed in London; Irish Free State is given “dominion status”; Northern Ireland is free to opt out; a Boundary Commission to review the border between the two parts of Ireland.

  • 1922

    January

    On-going IRA campaign.

    February - March

    Sectarian violence in Belfast and elsewhere.

    Ronald McNeill’s, Ulster’s Stand for Union, completed in February.

    April 7th

    Civil Authorities (Special Powers) Act gives the Belfast Government wide-ranging powers, e.g. detention without trial.

    May 31st

    Legislation creating the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) passed.

    June 28th

    Civil War begins between pro- and anti-Treaty republicans.

    September 11th

    Local Government Act (Northern Ireland) abolishes proportional representation in local government elections.

    October 23rd

    Andrew Bonar Law (Conservative) becomes Prime Minister of the United Kingdom

    December 7th

    Northern Ireland Parliament opts out of Irish Free State.

    December 9th

    The office of the Governor of Northern Ireland, established.

  • 1923

    May 24th

    Civil War ends.

    June 22nd

    Education Act (Northern Ireland) establishes system of non-denominational schools.

  • 1924

    November 4th

    Stanley Baldwin (Conservative) becomes Prime Minister of the United Kingdom

    November 5th

    Boundary Commission begins work under the chairmanship of Mr Justice Richard Feetham.

  • 1925

    April 3rd

    General election in Northern Ireland; nationalists decide to end policy of abstention.

    November 7th

    Proposals of the Boundary Commission leaked in the Morning Post.

    November 20th

    Bab M’Keen, “The Boundary,” in The Ballymena Observer.

    December 3rd

    Agreement between London, Belfast and Dublin; the existing border between the Free State and Northern Ireland confirmed; the idea of a Council of Ireland abandoned; additional financial terms agreed.

    December 18th

    Bab M’Keen, “The Boundary Buried,” in The Ballymena Observer.

  • 1932

    November 16th

    Parliament Buildings, at Stormont, officially opened by the Prince of Wales.

  • 1948

    Hugh Shearman, Anglo-Irish Relations.

Glossary
Government of Ireland Act 1920
example 04

Starting The Settlement

[NB: Frames noted in Module 2 are indicated in heavy print.]

It has to be remembered that Craig is himself of Scots origin. Patrick Buckland, his biographer, reminds us that his “Scottish ancestors had settled in Ulster probably in the seventeenth century but had lived in County Down since the early eighteenth century.” It is interesting to note that Punch alludes to Craig’s Scottish origins, saying that, in political terms, he is “as inflexible as granite,” and comparing him to “his rocky namesake, Ailsa Craig,” (Punch, Nov. 16 1921), the name of the island in the Firth of Clyde off the coast of South Ayrshire opposite County Antrim.

However, there may be a second suggested layer of meaning – also linked in to the figure of the Ulster Scot. A contemporary audience might also have seen a reference to Scotch-Irish emigration and to their experience on the American frontier. In his representation of the log cabin and the menacing, virgin forest, Raven-Hill seems to be playing with the Ulster Scot’s links to America and the latter’s role opening up the frontier, constantly pushing deeper and deeper into the forest. As John Gamble said in A View of Society and Manners, in the North of Ireland (See: Module 1), “[The Scotch Presbyterian] has little sentiment of locality, and, therefore, emigrates with an indifference only inferior to that of an American planter, who, having created a beautiful spot in the wilderness, disposes of it, and removes some hundreds of miles to create and abandon in the same manner, another.” The idea would appear to be that these “settlers” are used to life on the frontier and do not hesitate to push deeper and deeper into “the wilderness.” 

The overall impression does not seem in any way hostile to Craig and the new Unionist project. On the contrary, Craig is shown to be busy with the work at hand and fully concentrated on the immediate problem. The strong shadowing in the background and the storm that is clearly building in the distance suggest that the settlement may be in for some rough times. However, this does not seem to worry Craig. He is so busy that he doesn’t even bother to look over his shoulder at the storm that seems to be brewing in the background. 

Are we to read this as Craig being unconscious of the dangers, or somehow indifferent to the threat? Given his reputation as a methodical organiser capable of producing a perfectly oiled political machine, and given Craig’s legendary energy, that would be surprising. 

In any case, however a contemporary Englishman might read the cartoon, an Ulster Scot would most likely look at the image very positively. He would notice that, unlike the Plantation period, there is neither “wolf” nor “woodkern” to be seen in this cartoon forest. Similarly, his reading of the ever-growing body of material on the history of the Ulster Scot would invite him to conclude that, as was the case in Ulster and on the American frontier, the “settler” in the image would soon have created a prosperous environment. So, the suggestion is that, given Craig’s dogged determination and single-minded focus, the cabin will be solid enough to withstand whatever the storm may throw at it.

IMAGE: Opening of the new Parliament Buildings, of Northern Ireland, at Stormont, 1932, Commemorative Medal.