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Partition: How and Why Ireland was Divided
Gibbons uncovers the origins of the Partition of Ireland.
The Partition of Ireland in 1921, which established Northern Ireland and saw it incorporated into the United Kingdom, sparked immediate civil war and a century of unrest. Today, the Partition remains the single most contentious issue in Irish politics, but its origins—how and why the British divided the island—remain obscured by decades of ensuing struggle.
Cutting through the partisan divide, Partition takes readers back to the first days of the twentieth century to uncover the concerns at the heart of the original conflict. Drawing on extensive primary research, Ivan Gibbons reveals how the idea to divide Ireland came about and gained popular support as well as why its implementation proved so controversial and left a century of troubles in its wake.
The Partition of Ireland in 1921, which established Northern Ireland and saw it incorporated into the United Kingdom, sparked immediate civil war and a century of unrest. Today, the Partition remains the single most contentious issue in Irish politics, but its origins—how and why the British divided the island—remain obscured by decades of ensuing struggle.
Cutting through the partisan divide, Partition takes readers back to the first days of the twentieth century to uncover the concerns at the heart of the original conflict. Drawing on extensive primary research, Ivan Gibbons reveals how the idea to divide Ireland came about and gained popular support as well as why its implementation proved so controversial and left a century of troubles in its wake.
- GenresHistoryIrelandNonfiction
172 pages, Hardcover
Published September 2, 2022
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May 10, 2022I admit to a significant deficiency in my understanding of Irish history. Mr. Gibbons’ compact work detailing the division of Ireland, which formally occurred on 3 May 1921, proved quite helpful in framing important elements of Ireland’s recent past. There’s more to this story than a traditional religious divide.
This works tells us something of how government tackles complex issues, for surely with all the years spent considering the Irish issue, the British government must have evolved a sophisticated method for aligning the Irish border. Mr. Gibbons writes to the contrary:
As the recent Brexit experience revealed, border sentiments continue to percolate within Ireland. Brexit is not the end of the Irish issue, however. Basic demographics in Northern Ireland, specifically the Catholic birth rate, foreshadow a continued concern for the border in coming decades.
This works tells us something of how government tackles complex issues, for surely with all the years spent considering the Irish issue, the British government must have evolved a sophisticated method for aligning the Irish border. Mr. Gibbons writes to the contrary:
The Government of Ireland Act [1920] did not coincide with any Irish political aspiration; it was a British coalition Cabinet compromise aimed at delivering the maximum measure of devolution compatible with its own survival and with public, especially Conservative Party, opinion in Britain.And so I suspect it is with most border drawing exercises, if they’re even given this much focus. Proponents of the new Irish state, on the other hand, were driven by nationalist beliefs, propelled with an anti-British sentiment that, at its core, was “exclusivist, Catholic, Gaelic, and rural – rather than the democratic, inclusive, secular Enlightenment principles of the United States and France.” The resulting border was something no one even contemplated a decade prior to its establishment.
As the recent Brexit experience revealed, border sentiments continue to percolate within Ireland. Brexit is not the end of the Irish issue, however. Basic demographics in Northern Ireland, specifically the Catholic birth rate, foreshadow a continued concern for the border in coming decades.
April 16, 2024
This was an insightful and concise read. I wish it had included maps.
May 8, 2021
How the Irish border almost accidentally came together.
The Strange Death of Liberal England covers much of the earlier period but with jokes.
The end chapters on what happens next are very good.
The Strange Death of Liberal England covers much of the earlier period but with jokes.
The end chapters on what happens next are very good.
December 3, 2021
In the past year or so, I've been picking up bits of news relating to the centenary celebrations of events in Irish history – apparently President Higgins was roundly criticised in some quarters for refusing an invitation to a ceremony celebrating Partition, though he apparently decided that it was not something for a President of Ireland to celebrate – so this seemed a worthwhile volume to fill me in with some of the background.
Gibbons's political orientation fairly soon begins to appear: he has little sympathy for Irish republicanism. Republicanism is first characterised by the curious term 'Irish-Irelandism', and a little later he refers to 'zealous republican dogmatists' or 'ideological republican separatists' (in contrast to the 'moderate nationalists' of the Irish parliamentary party). These republican separatists, he asserts, were guilty, in the early 1920s, of 'growing violent insurgency': presumably he is referring to the military response by the IRA to Britain's attempt to govern Ireland by military force (including the use of the notorious Black and Tans) after they refused to recognise the results of the 1918 general election, which saw an overwhelming victory for Sinn Fein and the formation of the first Irish parliament, Dail Eireann.
So it is hardly surprising that the author barely mentions President De Valera's response to Unionist demands, which was that a measure of autonomy could certainly be granted to north-east Ulster, but that this should be a matter for negotiation between the different interest groups in Ireland, north and south, not something imposed by Britain.
In the event, the actual settlement in Northern Ireland was imposed by Britain, in defiance of the wishes of the Unionists. Gibbons gives a good deal of detail on the terms of the Government of Ireland (1920) Act, which set up Partition, and on the later Boundary Commission, the recommendations of which were never implemented. He is less informative on why that particular approach was insisted on by the British government, and how it worked out on the ground. He does point out that all the Unionist MPs at Westminster voted against the Act, because (following their leader, Edward Carson) they wanted Ulster to remain as part of the UK, rather than be fobbed off with a devolved government. Carson in fact said some years later, after he had relinquished the leadership of the Unionist party (if I recall correctly a detail in a Wikipedia article on him) that he had devoted all his energies to keeping Ulster in the United Kingdom, but it had actually been demoted to a second rate dominion. The question which Gibbons fails to answer properly (and it is a question to which I would like an answer) is why Britain was so insistent on detaching Northern Ireland from the normal party politics of the UK – a question well worth asking, since all subsequent attempts to reconnect Northern Ireland with British political life have met with peremptory refusal, both from the British government, and the main political parties. Gibbons goes no further than asserting that, while the Government of Ireland Act did not coincide with any Irish political aspiration, it did allow Britain to withdraw from Ireland on her own terms. One can only assume that they felt more secure with an Ireland completely divorced from British political parties and hence political activity, despite the grossly – and often violently – sectarian character of the statelet their legislation had created.
The final chapter, which brings the narrative up to the present day, makes more explicit the distaste for Irish republicanism evident in the early chapters. He suggests that 'the core problem that Irish nationalists face is their complete inability to see any role for Britishness in modern Ireland', and goes on effectively to argue for the return of Ireland to the British Commonwealth. Republicans would, of course, see their point of view, not as an inability, but as a firmly held principle based on the facts of Irish history – but that is a matter for a whole new book.
Gibbons's political orientation fairly soon begins to appear: he has little sympathy for Irish republicanism. Republicanism is first characterised by the curious term 'Irish-Irelandism', and a little later he refers to 'zealous republican dogmatists' or 'ideological republican separatists' (in contrast to the 'moderate nationalists' of the Irish parliamentary party). These republican separatists, he asserts, were guilty, in the early 1920s, of 'growing violent insurgency': presumably he is referring to the military response by the IRA to Britain's attempt to govern Ireland by military force (including the use of the notorious Black and Tans) after they refused to recognise the results of the 1918 general election, which saw an overwhelming victory for Sinn Fein and the formation of the first Irish parliament, Dail Eireann.
So it is hardly surprising that the author barely mentions President De Valera's response to Unionist demands, which was that a measure of autonomy could certainly be granted to north-east Ulster, but that this should be a matter for negotiation between the different interest groups in Ireland, north and south, not something imposed by Britain.
In the event, the actual settlement in Northern Ireland was imposed by Britain, in defiance of the wishes of the Unionists. Gibbons gives a good deal of detail on the terms of the Government of Ireland (1920) Act, which set up Partition, and on the later Boundary Commission, the recommendations of which were never implemented. He is less informative on why that particular approach was insisted on by the British government, and how it worked out on the ground. He does point out that all the Unionist MPs at Westminster voted against the Act, because (following their leader, Edward Carson) they wanted Ulster to remain as part of the UK, rather than be fobbed off with a devolved government. Carson in fact said some years later, after he had relinquished the leadership of the Unionist party (if I recall correctly a detail in a Wikipedia article on him) that he had devoted all his energies to keeping Ulster in the United Kingdom, but it had actually been demoted to a second rate dominion. The question which Gibbons fails to answer properly (and it is a question to which I would like an answer) is why Britain was so insistent on detaching Northern Ireland from the normal party politics of the UK – a question well worth asking, since all subsequent attempts to reconnect Northern Ireland with British political life have met with peremptory refusal, both from the British government, and the main political parties. Gibbons goes no further than asserting that, while the Government of Ireland Act did not coincide with any Irish political aspiration, it did allow Britain to withdraw from Ireland on her own terms. One can only assume that they felt more secure with an Ireland completely divorced from British political parties and hence political activity, despite the grossly – and often violently – sectarian character of the statelet their legislation had created.
The final chapter, which brings the narrative up to the present day, makes more explicit the distaste for Irish republicanism evident in the early chapters. He suggests that 'the core problem that Irish nationalists face is their complete inability to see any role for Britishness in modern Ireland', and goes on effectively to argue for the return of Ireland to the British Commonwealth. Republicans would, of course, see their point of view, not as an inability, but as a firmly held principle based on the facts of Irish history – but that is a matter for a whole new book.
May 4, 2024
[6 Mar 2022] I looked forward to this book as it seemed timely to understand in more detail the intricacies of the border that has caused such difficulty during the post-Brexit trade agreement. The book is sub-titled 'How and Why Ireland was divided'. The first part of the book 'how' it was divided is a very through, detailed and apparently meticulously researched account of the events, the people, the ups and downs and the mechanics of how you create an international border where one did not exist before. However, I did think there was a degree of repetition and at times the chronology was hard to follow. There was real balance and the author's personal opinions did not seep through onto the page, indeed he seems critical of the lack of effort put in by Nationalists to make Unionists feel that their culture would be protected in an independent Irish state and the Unionists complete intransigence and rigidity of thought and their inability to consider how they might achieve their core aims while compromising somethings.
Later in the text the author discusses EU membership and the UK's decision to leave it in 2016. His tone suggests that he might just be a unreconciled Remain supporter. It is a small book, well written and is well paced and a relatively easy read, but it is frustrating in its light-touch and although at the end of the book I was indeed informed of how partition took place, but although as a Briton I'm aware of the why - I certainly did not learn anything new in this book. The phrases Nationalists and Unionists and Catholics and Protestants were used, but there was no analysis of the cultural differences and the way the communities share the island but have very different origins and cultural aspirations.
If you really want to understand why Ireland ended up divided you'll need to look elsewhere. If you need one book to help with this could I suggest 'The Invention of Memory: An Irish Family Scrapbook' by Simon Loftus - a powerful account of one family, which will leave you in no doubt as to why in the early twentieth century with two-thirds wanting to separate from the United Kingdom and one-third wanted to continue being a part of the United Kingdom it was never going to end well.
Later in the text the author discusses EU membership and the UK's decision to leave it in 2016. His tone suggests that he might just be a unreconciled Remain supporter. It is a small book, well written and is well paced and a relatively easy read, but it is frustrating in its light-touch and although at the end of the book I was indeed informed of how partition took place, but although as a Briton I'm aware of the why - I certainly did not learn anything new in this book. The phrases Nationalists and Unionists and Catholics and Protestants were used, but there was no analysis of the cultural differences and the way the communities share the island but have very different origins and cultural aspirations.
If you really want to understand why Ireland ended up divided you'll need to look elsewhere. If you need one book to help with this could I suggest 'The Invention of Memory: An Irish Family Scrapbook' by Simon Loftus - a powerful account of one family, which will leave you in no doubt as to why in the early twentieth century with two-thirds wanting to separate from the United Kingdom and one-third wanted to continue being a part of the United Kingdom it was never going to end well.
January 30, 2024
Slim little volume comprising a history of the events leading up to the partition of Irish Ireland and British Northern Ireland. A bit of a mixed bag; it wisely doesn't succumb to sprawl by telling the whole series of historical events leading up to the partition, but its laser focus can come across as too precise to be really satisfying. In a lot of ways, it reads more like a legal treatise than a political narrative; Gibbons stays pretty far away from any kind of ideological lens, leaving politics aside except as a baseline descriptive of the players involved. There's very little about the practical implications of partition until the end; even then, it's very restricted to the fallout of partition in an electoral sense, and the prospects of Brexit for reunification (and even here, it's become dated). The style is also extremely dry. If you're looking for a narrowly directed, just-the-facts look at the political wrangling that led to partition, this is a useful book, but if you want a broader narrative of the background and impact of partition, told in an engaging way, you can probably look elsewere.
November 10, 2021
This was a good overview of the issue of Irish partition following the Anglo-Irish War of 1919-21. Gibbons does a good job of identifying all of the factors that played a role in the partition of Ireland into two entities - what became the Republic of Ireland, and the UK territory of Northern Ireland.
The author presents the issues in a dispassionate way, which is a refreshing change from the normally partisan histories that dominate the discussion of the division of Ireland.
This is a slim volume that, with a minimal investment of time, allows the casual reader to understand the thorny issues that broke Ireland into two.
The author presents the issues in a dispassionate way, which is a refreshing change from the normally partisan histories that dominate the discussion of the division of Ireland.
This is a slim volume that, with a minimal investment of time, allows the casual reader to understand the thorny issues that broke Ireland into two.
February 1, 2023
What a helpful primer about Ireland!
The book moves swiftly and concisely through relevant information with one goal in mind. This goal is to fill in a busy public audience on what the issues are, a brief history of what has been done and what might be done in the future with emphasis on the limits each of the three sides (London, Dublin, Belfast) has. I also wonder if a motive is to interest the reader to find out more, to get involved in their own way or to be thankful they have no involvement.
I highly recommend this book.
The book moves swiftly and concisely through relevant information with one goal in mind. This goal is to fill in a busy public audience on what the issues are, a brief history of what has been done and what might be done in the future with emphasis on the limits each of the three sides (London, Dublin, Belfast) has. I also wonder if a motive is to interest the reader to find out more, to get involved in their own way or to be thankful they have no involvement.
I highly recommend this book.
December 25, 2023
Certainly all the facts are here. Often the same facts over and over chapter after chapter. I wonder if the chapters were notes of separate lectures put together as a book? The author's tendency to write paragraph-length sentences did not help. The best, and most clearly written part was the afterward, where he looked forward from 1925 and showed that restoration of a unified Ireland is unlikely.
April 20, 2021
Very informative
Authoritative, balanced, fair-minded, and beautifully written. Essential for all Irish history collections. This book gives everyone an insight into how the partition of Ireland 100 years ago is still having an impact on the problems experienced in Ireland today.
Authoritative, balanced, fair-minded, and beautifully written. Essential for all Irish history collections. This book gives everyone an insight into how the partition of Ireland 100 years ago is still having an impact on the problems experienced in Ireland today.
April 25, 2021
Straight forward and balanced discussion of the topic. Useful context for understanding the ongoing debate about the relationship of Northern Ireland to the rest of the UK post-Brexit.
July 19, 2021
Short (150 pages), concise summary of how partition happened. Recommended.
March 9, 2024
One hundred years after partition was enacted on the Emerald Isle, we still ask if the grass is always greener.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews