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The Military Service Act 1916 [1] (5 & 6 Geo. 5. c. 104) was an act passed by the Parliament of the United Kingdom during the First World War to impose conscription in Great Britain, but not in Ireland or any other British jurisdiction.
The Easter Rising (Irish: Éirí Amach na Cásca), [2] also known as the Easter Rebellion, was an armed insurrection in Ireland during Easter Week in April 1916. The Rising was launched by Irish republicans against British rule in Ireland with the aim of establishing an independent Irish Republic while the United Kingdom was fighting the First World War.
Despite opposition from the entire Irish Parliamentary Party (IPP), conscription for Ireland was voted through at Westminster, becoming part of the 'Military Service (No. 2) Act, 1918' (8 Geo. 5, c. 5). [9] Although the crisis was unique to Ireland at the time, it followed similar campaigns in Australia (1916–17) and Canada (1917).
Ireland was excluded due to the 1916 Easter Uprising, yet many Irish men still volunteered to enlist. [32] One of the immediate effects of conscription was the biggest protest demonstration Britain had seen since the 1914 anti-war protests. [33]
The Mansion House Conference, held to oppose the introduction of conscription to Ireland, was organised by Irish nationalist groups, including Sinn Féin, the Irish Parliamentary Party and the Irish Catholic Bishops' Conference. Sinn Féin's perceived leading role helped it to win most Irish seats in the 1918 general election. [3] [4] [5]
In 1916, Irish republicans took the opportunity of the ongoing war to proclaim an independent Irish Republic and launch an armed rebellion against British rule in Dublin, which Germany attempted to aid. In addition, Britain's intention to impose conscription in Ireland in 1918 provoked widespread resistance and, as a result, remained unimplemented.
In fact, the National Volunteers fell into decline as the war went on. Their strength fell to around 100,000 by February 1916, [8] and moreover their companies tended to fall into inactivity. In many cases, this was put down to a fear of conscription being introduced into Ireland should they drill too openly. [8]
The Proclamation of the Republic (Irish: Forógra na Poblachta), also known as the 1916 Proclamation or the Easter Proclamation, was a document issued by the Irish Volunteers and the Irish Citizen Army during the Easter Rising in Ireland, which began on 24 April 1916.