The Government of Ireland Act which is more widely known as the Home Rule Act was passed by the UK Parliament in 1914, it was the third bill calling for Home Rule introduced in a span of 28 years and was passed because of the huge momentum of the Home Rule movement. There is a long and complex history surrounding Irish Home Rule with its beginnings far before the Home Rule Acts of 1914 and 1920. The Protestant Lawyer Isaac Butt formed the Home Government Association back in 1870. Three years later, the Home Rule League replaced the Home Government Association with Charles Stewart Parnell leading it; his leadership compared to that of Isaac Butt’s was far more aggressive. Under Parnell’s leadership, the Home Rule cause became more widely known, mainly because of the obstructionist tactics he employed in the British Parliament. In 1885 Prime Minister William Gladstone became supportive of Home Rule and the bill was introduced to Parliament, however it was rejected in 1886. The second Home Rule Bill that Gladstone introduced in 1893 was similarly defeated, but this time it had reached the House of Lords. In order to pass the third Home Rule Act, they had to wait until a liberal government came into power. The Conservative government pursued a policy of “constructive unionism”; this entailed effecting moderate reforms and concessions to alleviate the need for Home Rule.
The Prime Minister Asquith introduced the third Government of Ireland Act on 11 April 1912. The Bill stated that a bicameral (a legislative body containing two chambers) Irish Parliament would be established in Dublin. This Irish Parliament would consist of a 40-member Senate and a 164 member House of Commons. Moreover, each province of Ireland would be represented by ten senators elected by proportional representation. In addition, the Bill stated that a reduced number of Irish MPs would continue to attend the British Parliament.
It was a struggle to ratify the third Home Rule Act as it was defeated twice by the House of Lords in 1913. In 1914, after the third reading of the Act, it was passed by the Commons on 25 May 1914 by a 77-person majority. Despite this, it was defeated a third time in the Lords, so the Government used the provisions of the Parliament Act to override the ruling of the House of Lords and send the third Government of Ireland Act for Royal Assent where it got approval. The Home Rule Act was incredibly significant as it was the first law ever approved by the Parliament of the UK that created a devolved government in any part of the “UK proper” (not colonial territories).
However, the bill was postponed due to the First World War. After the end of the war, the Act still did not come into effect because the Irish Republican Brotherhood orchestrated the Easter Rising in April 1916 which was followed by executions and imprisonments. The consequences of the Easter Rising turned Irish public opinion against the nationalists who were pro-Home Rule and towards the more radical Sinn Féin party. In addition, the Conscription Crisis of 1918 where the British government attempted to impose conscription in Ireland during WWI, increased support for political separatism. As a result of this, in the 1918 general election, the Irish Party was defeated by Sinn Féin and the first parliament of the Irish Republic was formed.
In 1920, after many years of conflict, the Government of Ireland Act passed. This Act partitioned Ireland into north and south and formed two separate Home Rule establishments. Northern Ireland was comprised of the six north-eastern counties and the rest of the country became Southern Ireland. Under the 1920 Government of Ireland Act, both north and south Ireland were to continue as part of the UK and there were plans drawn for their future reunification under common Home Rule. The institutions created under the Home Rule Act for Northern Ireland remained in place until 1972 when they were dismantled due to the Troubles.
Home Rule never took effect in Southern Ireland because of the Irish War of Independence. Instead of Home Rule, in 1921 the Anglo-Irish treaty was signed which put an end to the Anglo-Irish War and the Irish Free State was formed in 1922. In contrast with Home Rule which their northern counterparts operated under, the Anglo-Irish Treaty gave the remaining 26 southern countries dominion status like that of Canada, New Zealand and Australia. The nominal link between the Republic of Ireland and the British Commonwealth was ended in 1949.
By Emilia O
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