On This Day / July 20, 1921
Go BackReproduced with permission from The Irish News.
July 20, 2021
Publication Date
Listen Along in Éamons Voice *
Summary: On This Day – 20th July 1921, peace talks continued in London while Catholic families forced from their Belfast homes sought refuge in schools and church halls. Edited by Éamon Phoenix.
London Conference | On This Day – 20th July 1921
THE Press Association says that very hopeful feeling continues to prevail regarding the present conference on Ireland.
The progress made so far has been as much as was expected and that nothing in the nature of a hitch in the proceedings has occurred.
The stage has not been reached as yet when the representatives of the Irish parties can be brought together but there is reason to believe this may be effected early next week.
Punctually at half past eleven yesterday morning Mr de Valera, accompanied by Mr R C Barton and Mr Art O’Brien (secretary of the Self-Determination League) arrived at 10 Downing Street in an open car.
The conversations were again in private, Mr de Valera and the Premier, Mr Lloyd George being in the Cabinet Room by themselves.
Families Expelled by Mobs
REFUGEES from Cupar Street, Norfolk Street, Louisa Street, Conway Street and other centres had some heart-rending stories to relate to an Irish News representative of agonising experiences on Sunday morning when these areas were invaded.
They and their family were forced to escape by the backs of their houses.
In view of what these unfortunate people, whose only offence in the eyes of their oppressors is that they belong to the Catholic faith, have gone through, it is remarkable to find amongst them a high spirit of optimism when they are, without any definite prospects for the future.
In Milford St. National School there are housed over sixty persons.
They were warned to leave their homes when an organised crowd made a raid at 4.30 on Sunday morning.
A house in Cupar Street was the first objective of the gang which included as many females as males.
The occupants were a woman and her young family – the wife and children of an expelled worker forced to go to America during the pogrom to earn a living for them.
There were also living in the house the woman’s sister, children and another sister, an invalid whose house was wrecked on 1st July.
Without getting time to carry away any of their property, the unhappy people were compelled to flee by the backs of their houses while the Orange gang proceeded to smash in their doors.
(Éamon Phoenix editor’s note: AT THESE ‘exploratory’ talks in London, Lloyd George outlined the British government’s offer to de Valera:
Dominion status for the south, coupled with the continued existence of a separate Northern Ireland.
De Valera described the offer of Canadian-style status as ‘illusory’ and rejected partition.
Meanwhile Belfast Catholic families burned out of their homes by loyalist mobs following the truce found refuge in local schools and church halls.)
On This Day – 20th July 1921
Further Reading on Irish History:
List of other On This Day columns
Other resources: National Library of Ireland Irish News CAIN Archive
On This Day is a daily column in the Irish News looking back either 50 or 100 years. The column was compiled by Dr Éamon Phoenix from the mid 1980s until autumn, 2022. The Foundation is very grateful to the Irish News for giving permission to reproduce Eamon’s columns. Funding gratefully received from Ireland’s Department of Foreign Affairs and the Magill Trust.
* The Foundation has worked hard to recreate Eamon’s distinctive voice through AI. Since this is an emerging technology, occasional imperfections may be audible.