1. The Crisis over Home Rule
Home Rule = “self government”
ie: a parliament in Dublin to look after internal affairs in Ireland (education, health, transport, communications etc.)
This was to be achieved through peaceful means, i.e. A parliamentary Act (a law)

2. The ‘power of veto’ There was 2 houses of parliament in Westminster
The House of Commons:
If a law was passed here, it had to be second by the House of Lords before it became law.
The House of Lords:
Stopped Home Rule from passing as law from the 1800s.

3. 1910, The Liberal Party held the power in the House of Commons.
They supported the Home Rule Party’s demand for self government.
The Conservative Party had power in the House of Lords.
The did not support Home Rule, and would not pass it through the House of Lords into law. (this was called the ‘power of veto’)

4. 1911 Parliament Act
This law removed the ‘power of veto’ from the House of Lords.
If a law was passed 3 years in a row in the House of Commons, it became law on the 3rd year.
Therefore, if the Home Rule Bill was passed in the House of Commons in 1912, 1913 & 1914, it would then become law.

5. The background:
1910, Herbert Asquith was Prime Minister of Britain. He was a member of the Liberal party.
In the recent election, the liberals needed the support of the Home Rule party to stay in government.

6. This gave John Redmond the upper hand to demand Home Rule for Ireland.
He negotiated with Asquith to agree on Home Rule.
1912, Home Rule was passed through the House of Commons, it would become law by

7. How did the Unionists react to the progress of Home Rule?
Unionist were not happy.
They believed if they opposed the Bill strongly, the British parliament would drop the Act.
The began to organise demonstrations and rally to show their opposition to the passing of the Home Rule Bill.

8. What did they do? Demonstrations & Protests:
A meeting was held at James Craig’s house. Edward Carson spoke to over 50,000 people.
They wanted to set up their own government in Belfast to rule Ulster if Dublin got its own parliament.
2) Ulster Solemn League & Covenant (28th Sept. 1912):
Petition signed by over 500,000 men & women.
Swore to oppose Home Rule by “all means”
Some people signed in their own blood.

9. 3) Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF):
Organised armed groups to resist Home Rule through force.
1914, had 100,000 members.
Drilled (practiced) with wooden guns.
1914, bought ammunition & guns in Germany. Imported them through Larne, Co. Antrim.
35,000 guns
5 million rounds of ammunition.
Unionist were now armed, angry & ready to resist Home Rule with force.

10. The Unionists had support:
The British Conservative Party:
Andrew Bonar Law (leader) openly supported all Unionist efforts to resist the Home Rule Bill.
The British Army:
Based in the Curragh (1914) said they would resign before they marched to Ulster to stop Unionist resistance to Home Rule Bill.
The British government had no power over the military in Ireland, and therefore hadn’t much control over the whole situation.

11. Nationalist reaction to Unionist Opposition:
Eoin MacNeill wrote an article suggesting that Nationalists copy the Unionist UVF.
Eoin MacNeil set up the Irish Volunteer Force (IVF) in 1913.
By 1914, the IVF also had over 100,000 members. It was made up of Home Rulers, Sinn Féiners & IRB men.
They also bought ammunition from Germany, it arrived in Howth, Co. Dublin on the Asgard ship.
900 rifles
25,000 rounds of ammunition
There were no 2 armed organisations within the country that opposed each other. Things were beginning to get tense in the country.