On This Day / August 24, 1921

Summary: On This Day – 24th August 1921, Éamon de Valera rejected British proposals for Dominion Status as Lloyd George refused to recognise Ireland’s right to secede. Edited by Éamon Phoenix.

Dev Says ‘No’ | On This Day – 24th August 1921

A COMPLETE surprise was sprung on the press and politicians by the publication of the British Cabinet’s peace proposals, President de Valera’s reply on behalf of the Dail Cabinet and Mr Lloyd George’s rejoinder.

The correspondence had been preceded by the release by Lloyd George of General Smuts’s [South African Prime Minister] remarkable letter to Mr de Valera in which he labours the ‘Ulster’ difficulty and urges that Irish unity should be regarded as an ‘ideal’ to be striven for after a 26-county settlement, but not at present insisted upon.

The British Government’s proposals, signed by Mr Lloyd George, dated July 20th, state that Ireland shall assume forthwith the status of a Dominion under which she would enjoy complete autonomy in taxation and finances, her own military force and take over all matters relating to: education, agriculture, etc.

It is laid down that the settlement must allow for full recognition of the existing powers and privileges of Northern Ireland.’

Mr de Valera, in his reply of August 10th, stated that Dail Eireann could not, and the Irish people would not accept the British government’s proposals.

It was, he wrote, the deep conviction of his colleagues and himself that true friendship with England could be obtained most readily through amicable but absolute separation.

However, Mr Lloyd George replied the British Government could never acknowledge the right of Ireland to secede and were unable to go beyond the present proposals …

Sir James Craig adheres to the attitude that Ulster does not want to interfere with any settlement with the South but will insist on being left alone, promising cooperation with the rest of Ireland ‘on equal terms’

RIC Man and Civilian Shot in Belfast

EARLSWOOD Road, Knock was the scene of a sensational occurrence on Saturday when Constable Thomas Keane was shot at and wounded and Frederick Fox (19), a civilian of Durham Street received a bullet wound.

Francis Crummey, Raglan Street. and Fox were arrested. When constable, becoming suspicious, questioned the men, one of them produced a revolver and fired, wounding him.

(Éamon Phoenix editor’s note: A CENTURY ago today, the Irish people learned with some foreboding that the Dail cabinet had rejected Lloyd George’s ‘final offer’ of Dominion Status for 26 counties.

Indeed, the South African PM, General Smuts, a key figure in ending the Anglo-Irish conflict, was used by London to try to persuade de Valera to place Irish unity on the long finger.

As nationalist Ireland held its breath, de Valera was inundated by a host of northern deputations seeking assurances that northern nationalists would not be abandoned in future negotiations.)

On This Day – 24th August 1921

Further Reading on Irish History:

List of other On This Day columns

Other resources: National Library of Ireland Irish News CAIN Archive

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