78-495: The Ulster Special Constabulary ( USC ; commonly called the " B-Specials " or " B Men ") was a quasi-military reserve special constable police force in what would later become Northern Ireland . It was set up in October 1920, shortly before the partition of Ireland . The USC was an armed corps, organised partially on military lines and called out in times of emergency, such as war or insurgency. It performed this role most notably in
156-513: A vigilante group to provide defence against incursions by the IRA. Brooke himself had been personally affected by the organisation, as his son had been a victim of kidnapping. In Ballymacarrett , a Protestant rector named John Redmond had helped form a unit of ex-servicemen to keep the peace after the July riots. There was a willingness to arm or recognise existing Protestant militias. Wilfrid Spender, head of
234-403: A long-term part-time commitment to support their country if needed. Military reserve refers to specific trained pre-organized forces operating on an on-call basis from the main military force. Reserves are kept and employed at all levels, from a platoon held back from a company level engagement, to whole army corps consisting of armoured and mechanised divisions which are held in reserve with
312-414: A mobile reserve of at least two brigades of experienced troops in addition to the A and B Classes who, between them, made up at least another operational infantry brigade, which could be used in the event of further hostilities, and were in early 1922. The USC's most intense period of deployment was in the first half of 1922, when conditions of a low-intensity war existed along the new Irish border between
390-764: A nationalist Catholic -majority parliament in Dublin and losing their links with Great Britain . In 1913, the militias were organised into the Ulster Volunteer Force ( UVF ) and vowed to resist any attempts by the British Government to impose Home Rule on Ulster. Later that year, Irish nationalists formed a rival militia, the Irish Volunteers , to safeguard Home Rule. In April 1914, the UVF smuggled 25,000 rifles into Ulster from Imperial Germany . The Home Rule Crisis
468-672: A patrol which entered the Free State refused to surrender to the local IRA garrison and took four dead and eight wounded in a firefight. In addition to action against the IRA, the USC may have been involved in a number of attacks on Catholic civilians in reprisal for IRA actions, for example, in Belfast, the McMahon Murders of March 1922, in which six Catholics were killed, and the Arnon Street killings
546-579: A week later which killed another six. On 2 May 1922, in revenge for the IRA killing of six policemen in counties Londonderry and Tyrone, Special Constables killed nine Catholic civilians in the area. The conflict never formally ended but petered out in June 1922, with the outbreak of the Irish Civil War in the Free State and the wholesale arrest and internment of IRA activists in the North. Collins continued to arrange
624-430: Is a group of military personnel or units that is initially not committed to a battle by its commander, so that it remains available to address unforeseen situations or exploit sudden opportunities. Reserves may be held back to defend against attack from other enemy forces, to be committed to the existing battle if the enemy exposes a vulnerability, or to serve as relief for troops already fighting. As reserves (especially in
702-408: Is a key command decision. In the event of reserves being sent forward to exploit a breakthrough, some are typically held back to deal with a potential counterattack . Alternatively, US Army doctrine states that a commander should reform another reserve after committing his existing reserve. Reserves can also be employed to relieve troops in action, allowing those units to rest and regroup away from
780-620: The Battle of Gallipoli . Both of the remaining divisions suffered heavy casualties in July 1916 during the Battle of the Somme and were largely wiped out in 1918 during the German spring offensive . Although many UVF officers left to join the British Army during the war, the unionist leadership wanted to preserve the UVF as a viable force, aware that the issue of Home Rule and partition would be revisited when
858-633: The Conservative & Unionist Party , reviewed 100,000 Ulster Volunteers marching in columns. On 28 September, 218,206 men signed the Ulster Covenant , vowing to use "all means which may be found necessary to defeat the present conspiracy to set up a Home Rule Parliament in Ireland", with the support of 234,046 women. In January 1913, the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) was formally established by
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#1732845579802936-458: The Larne gunrunning . The Ulster Volunteers were a continuation of what has been described as the "Protestant volunteering tradition, in Ireland", which since 1666 spans the various Irish Protestant militias founded to defend Ireland from foreign threat. References to the most prominent of these militias, the Irish Volunteers , was frequently made, and there were also attempts to link the activities of
1014-707: The RIC ). The Government of Ireland Act 1920 provided for two Home Rule parliaments: one for Northern Ireland and one for Southern Ireland . The unionist-dominated Parliament of Northern Ireland chose to remain a part of the United Kingdom. As a response to IRA attacks within Ulster, the Ulster Unionist Council officially revived the UVF on 25 June 1920. Many Unionists felt that the RIC, being mostly Roman Catholic (though this
1092-606: The Ulster Unionist Council . Recruitment was to be limited to 100,000 men aged from 17 to 65 who had signed the Covenant, under the command of Lieutenant-General Sir George Richardson KCB. William Gibson was the first commander of the 3rd East Belfast Regiment of the Ulster Volunteers. The Ulster Unionists enjoyed the wholehearted support of the British Conservative Party, even when threatening rebellion against
1170-567: The Ulster Volunteer Force was formed in 1966. It claims to be a direct descendant of the older organisation and uses the same logo, but there are no organisational links between the two. By 1912, the Irish Parliamentary Party (IPP), an Irish nationalist party which sought devolution ( Home Rule ) for Ireland , held the balance of power in the Parliament of the United Kingdom . In April 1912, Prime Minister H. H. Asquith introduced
1248-515: The Ulster Volunteers (UVF), (the unionist militia formed in 1912) should be used for this purpose". Wilfrid Spender , the former UVF quartermaster in 1913–14, and by now a decorated war veteran, was appointed by Craig to form and run the USC. UVF units were "incorporated en masse" into the new USC. The idea of a volunteer police force in the north appealed to British Prime Minister David Lloyd George for several practical reasons; it freed up
1326-607: The partition of Ireland . The 1919–21 Irish War of Independence , saw the Irish Republican Army (IRA) launch a guerrilla campaign in pursuit of Irish independence. Unionists in Ireland's northeast were vehemently against this campaign and against Irish independence. However, once it became apparent that the British government was committed to implementing Dominion Status for all of Ireland outside Ulster in response to Sinn Féin's demands, which were far more radical than those of
1404-700: The third Home Rule Bill . Previous Home Rule Bills had fallen, the first rejected by the House of Commons, the second because of the veto power of the Tory-dominated House of Lords , however since the crisis caused by the Lords' rejection of the " People's Budget " of 1909 and the subsequent passing of the Parliament Act , the House of Lords had seen their powers to block legislation diminished and so it could be expected that this Bill would (eventually) become law. Home Rule
1482-400: The 1960s Sten and Sterling submachine guns were also used. In most cases these weapons were retained at home by the constables along with a quantity of ammunition. One of the reasons for this was to enable rapid call out of platoons , via a runner from the local RUC station, without the need to issue arms from a central armoury. 'A Special' platoons were fully mobile using a Ford car for
1560-454: The British Army's Commander-in-Chief in Ireland was ordered to move troops into Ulster to protect arms depots from the UVF. However, 57 of the 70 officers at the Army's headquarters in Ireland chose to resign rather than enforce Home Rule or take on the UVF. The following month, the UVF smuggled 20,000 German rifles with 3,000,000 rounds of ammunition into the port of Larne . This became known as
1638-583: The British Parliament and instead set up their own parliament and declared independence for Ireland . The Irish Volunteers was ostensibly reconstituted as the Irish Republican Army (IRA), the military of the self-declared Republic. The Irish War of Independence began, fought between the IRA and the forces of the Crown in Ireland (consisting of various forces including the British Army, the Auxiliaries , and
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#17328455798021716-600: The British government. The composition of the USC was overwhelmingly Protestant and Unionist, for a number of reasons. Several informal "constabulary" groups had already been created, for example, in Belfast, Fermanagh and Antrim. The Ulster Unionist Labour Association had established an "unofficial special constabulary," with members drawn chiefly from the shipyards, tasked with 'policing' Protestant areas. In April 1920, Captain Sir Basil Brooke (future Prime Minister of Northern Ireland ), had set up "Fermanagh Vigilance",
1794-472: The British government. On 23 September 1913, the 500 delegates of the Ulster Unionist Council met to discuss the practicalities of setting up a provisional government for Ulster, should Home Rule be implemented. On 25 November 1913, partly in response to the formation of the UVF, Irish nationalists formed the Irish Volunteers – a militia whose role was to safeguard Home Rule. In March 1914,
1872-454: The Dromore UVF were said to have supervised the expulsion of Catholic families from Dromore. A further detail was that many UVF units joined the new Constabulary, with their commanders being appointed to senior positions. Unsuccessful efforts were made to attract more Catholics into the force, but these largely failed. One reason for this was that Catholic members were more easily targeted by
1950-574: The Dublin government but also from some elements of the British military and administrative establishment in Ireland and in the British press, which saw the USC as a potentially divisive and sectarian force. In the British House of Commons, the leader of the Nationalist Party of Northern Ireland, Joseph Devlin , formerly a leading member of the now defunct Irish Parliamentary Party, made his feelings on
2028-721: The Free State and Northern Ireland. The Anglo-Irish Treaty had agreed the partition of Ireland, between the Irish Free State and Northern Ireland . The IRA, although now split over the Treaty, continued offensive operations in Northern Ireland, with the co-operation of Michael Collins , leader of the Free State, and Liam Lynch , leader of the Anti-Treaty IRA faction. This was despite the Craig-Collins Agreement which
2106-516: The IRA for intimidation and assassination. The government suggested that, with enough Catholic recruits, special constabulary patrols made up of Catholics only could be extended into Catholic areas. However, the Nationalist Party and Ancient Order of Hibernians discouraged their members from joining. The IRA issued a statement which said that any Catholics who joined the Specials would be treated as traitors and would be dealt with accordingly. The USC
2184-515: The IRA returned fire. Thirteen Catholics and five Protestants were killed in a week of violence. In August 1920, the UVF helped organise the mass burning of Catholic property in Lisburn . This was in response to the IRA assassinating an RIC Inspector in the town. By the end of August 1920 an estimate of the material damage done in Belfast, Lisburn and Banbridge was one million pounds. That October, armed UVF members drove off an IRA unit that had attacked
2262-572: The IRA. In early 1922, he sent IRA units to the border areas and arms to northern units. On 6 December the Northern authorities ordered an end to the Truce with the IRA. The Special Constabulary was, as well as an auxiliary to the police, effectively an army under the control of the Northern Ireland administration. By incorporating the former UVF into the USC as the C1 Specials, the Belfast government had created
2340-697: The Irish Free State. Partition was enacted by the British Parliament in the Government of Ireland Act 1920 . Two main factors were behind the formation of the Ulster Special Constabulary. One was the desire of Unionists, led by Sir James Craig (then a junior minister in the British Government, and later the Prime Minister of Northern Ireland ), that the apparatus of government and security should be placed in their hands long before Northern Ireland
2418-514: The Irish War of Independence .) With police and troops being drawn towards combating insurgency in the south and west, Unionists wanted a force that would be dedicated to taking on the IRA. At a 2 September 1920 meeting of government Ministers in London Craig said that the loyal population was losing faith in the government's ability to protect them and that loyalist paramilitary groups threatened, in
Ulster Special Constabulary - Misplaced Pages Continue
2496-466: The RIC and military for use elsewhere in Ireland, it was cheap, and it did not need new legislation. Special Constabulary Acts had been enacted in 1832 and 1914, meaning that the administration in Dublin Castle only had to use existing laws to create it. The formation of the Ulster Special Constabulary was therefore announced on 22 October 1920. On 1 November 1920, the scheme was officially announced by
2574-549: The RIC barracks in Tempo, County Fermanagh . The sluggish recruitment to the UVF and its failure to stop IRA activities in Ulster prompted Sir James Craig to call for the formation of a new special constabulary . In October 1920, the Ulster Special Constabulary (USC) formed, intended to serve as an armed reserve force to bolster the RIC and fight the IRA. Spender encouraged UVF members to join it and many did, although
2652-511: The RUC. The Special Constabulary were called out during the 12 July period in Belfast in 1931 after sectarian rioting broke out. The B Specials were tasked to relieve the RUC from normal duties, to allow them and the British Army to deal with the disturbances. In 1936 the British advocacy group - the National Council for Civil Liberties characterized the USC as "nothing but the organised army of
2730-608: The Specials as an excuse for arming the Orangemen and an act even more atrocious than the creation of the ' Black and Tans '! Their fury was natural as they saw that the Specials might well mean that they would be unable to intimidate and subdue the North by Force. Their skilful propaganda set about blackening the image of Special Constables, trying to identify them with the worst elements of the Protestant mobs in Belfast. They sought to magnify and distort every incident and to stir up hatred of
2808-550: The Troubles in the 1980s. The force was almost exclusively Ulster Protestant and as a result was viewed with great mistrust by Catholics. It carried out several revenge killings and reprisals against Catholic civilians in the 1920–22 conflict. See The Troubles in Ulster (1920–1922) and Timeline of the Irish War of Independence . Unionists generally supported the USC as contributing to the defence of Northern Ireland from subversion and outside aggression. The Special Constabulary
2886-405: The USC did not engulf the bulk of the UVF (and other loyalist paramilitary groups) until early 1922. Craig hoped to "neutralise" the loyalist paramilitaries by enrolling them in the C Division of the USC, a move that was backed by the British government. Historian Michael Hopkinson wrote that the USC, "amounted to an officially approved UVF". Unlike the RIC, the USC was almost wholly Protestant and
2964-581: The USC itself and more broadly, from the Northern Irish state. After the end of the 1920–22 conflict, the Special Constabulary was re-organised. The regular Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) took over normal policing duties. The 'A' and 'C' categories of the USC were dispensed with, leaving only the B-Specials, who functioned as a permanent reserve force, and armed and uniformed in the same manner as
3042-462: The Ulster Volunteer Force, encouraged his members to join. For these groups, was an immediate and illicit supply of arms available, especially from the Ulster Volunteers. Charles Wickham , Chief of Police for the north of Ireland, favoured incorporation of the Ulster Volunteers into "regular military units" instead of having to "face them down". A number of these groups were absorbed into the new Ulster Special Constabulary. Nationalists pointed out that
3120-592: The Unionist party". During the Second World War , the USC was mobilised to serve in Britain's Home Guard , which unusually, was put under the command of the police rather than the British Army. Between 1956 and 1962, the Special Constabulary was again mobilised to combat a guerrilla campaign launched by the IRA . Military reserve A military reserve , active reserve , reserve formation , or simply reserve ,
3198-470: The composition of the USC was overwhelmingly Protestant and loyal, claiming the government was arming Protestants to attack Catholics. In addition, a number of Special Constables, newly appointed by the Lisburn Urban Council, had been charged with rioting and looting committed over three days and nights following the assassination of RIC Inspector Oswald Swanzy. During that same time period, members of
Ulster Special Constabulary - Misplaced Pages Continue
3276-506: The conflict, loyalists set up small independent "vigilance groups" in many parts of Ulster. Most of these groups would patrol their areas and report anything untoward to the RIC. Some of them were armed with UVF rifles from 1914. There were also a number of small loyalist paramilitary groups, the most notable of which was the Ulster Imperial Guards , who may have overreached the UVF in terms of membership. Historian Peter Hart wrote
3354-431: The counties. The districts were based on the existing RIC divisions. The constables drew pistols and truncheons before going on patrol and considerable efforts were made to use them only in Protestant areas. This did free up regular policemen who were generally more acceptable to most Ulster Catholics. By July 1921, more than 3,500 'A' Specials had been enrolled, and almost 16,000 'B' Specials. By 1922 recruiting had swelled
3432-491: The creation of the USC clear: "The Chief Secretary is going to arm pogromists to murder Catholics...we would not touch your special constabulary with a 40 foot pole. Their pogrom is to be made less difficult. Instead of paving stones and sticks they are to be given rifles." Sir Nevil Macready , General Officer Commanding-in-chief of the British Army in Ireland, along with his supporters in the Irish administration, refused to approve
3510-615: The creation of the Ulster Volunteers were Edward Carson (leader of the Irish Unionist Alliance ) and James Craig , supported sub rosa by figures such as Henry Wilson , Director of Military Operations at the British War Office . At the start of 1912, leading unionists and members of the Orange Order (a Protestant fraternity ) began forming small local militias and drilling . On 9 April Carson and Bonar Law , leader of
3588-485: The defence) represent a "hedge against uncertainty", the size of the reserve depends on the level of uncertainty a commander has about the enemy's intentions. Some of the different categories of military reserves are: tactical reserve , operational reserve , and strategic reserve . A military reserve is different from a military reserve force , which is a military organization composed of military personnel ( reservists ) who maintain their military skills and readiness in
3666-464: The defunct Irish Parliamentary Party, Unionists in most of the province of Ulster directed their energies into the partition of Ireland by the creation of Northern Ireland as an autonomous region in the United Kingdom. The new region would consist of two thirds of Ulster , the six counties that Unionists could control. The other three counties (Donegal, Monaghan, and Cavan) had disproportionately Catholic and nationalist majorities and would become part of
3744-512: The deployment of professionally trained soldiers. Uniforms were not available at the outset so the men of the B Specials went on duty in their civilian clothes wearing an armband to signify they were Specials. Uniforms did not become available until 1922. Uniforms took the same pattern as RIC/RUC dress with high collared tunics. Badges of rank were displayed on the right forearm of the jacket. The Special Constables were armed with Webley .38 revolvers and also Lee–Enfield rifles and bayonets . By
3822-485: The dregs of the Orange lodges, armed and equipped to overawe Nationalists and Catholics, and with a special object and special facilities and special inclination to invent 'crimes' against Nationalists and Catholics... they are the very classes whom an upright Government would try to keep powerless... Vice Admiral Sir Arthur Hezlet in the official History of the Ulster Special Constabulary , contended that "Sinn Fein regarded
3900-508: The early 1920s during the Irish War of Independence and the 1956–1962 IRA Border Campaign . During its existence, 95 USC members were killed in the line of duty. Most of these (72) were killed in conflict with the IRA in 1921 and 1922. Another 8 died during the Second World War, in air raids or IRA attacks. Of the remainder, most died in accidents but two former officers were killed during
3978-513: The following of these groups: Also occasionally targeted [by the IRA] were Ulster Protestants who saw the republican guerrilla campaign as an invasion of their territory, where they formed the majority. Loyalist activists responded by forming vigilante groups, which soon acquired official status as part of the Ulster Special Constabulary. These men spearheaded the wave of anti-Catholic violence that began in July 1920 and continued for two years. This onslaught
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#17328455798024056-422: The force even before it started to function." The standard of training was varied. In Belfast, the Specials were trained in much the same way as the regular police whereas in rural areas the USC was focused on counter-guerrilla operations. In 1922, B Specials received two weeks training and A Specials were initially given six weeks training. The amount of training was clearly inadequate for a conflict that warranted
4134-458: The front line. Ulster Volunteers The Ulster Volunteers was an Irish unionist , loyalist paramilitary organisation founded in 1912 to block domestic self-government (" Home Rule ") for Ireland , which was then part of the United Kingdom . The Ulster Volunteers were based in the northern province of Ulster . Many Ulster Protestants and Irish unionists feared being governed by
4212-464: The middle of a faction fight, recognise one of the contending parties and expect it to deal with disorder in the spirit of impartiality and fairness essential in those who have to carry out the order of the Government." The Irish nationalist press was less reserved. The Fermanagh Herald noted the opposition of Irish nationalists: These "Special Constables" will be nothing more and nothing less than
4290-610: The new force but were overridden; Lloyd George approved of it from the beginning. Macready and Henry Hughes Wilson argued that the concept of a special constabulary was a dangerous one. Wilson warned the formation of a partisan constabulary "would mean; taking sides, civil war and savage reprisals." John Anderson , the Under Secretary for Ireland (head of the British Administration in Dublin) shared his fears, "you cannot, in
4368-415: The numbers to: 5,500 A Specials, 19,000 B Specials and 7,500 C1 Specials. Their duties would include combatting the urban guerrilla operations of the IRA, and the suppression of the local IRA in rural areas. In addition they were to prevent border incursion, smuggling of arms and escape of fugitives. From the outset, the formation of the USC came in for widespread criticism, mostly from Irish nationalists and
4446-457: The officer in charge, two armoured cars and four Crossley Tenders (one for each of the sections). B Specials generally deployed on foot but could be supplied with vehicles from the police pool. Deployment of the USC during the Anglo-Irish War provided the Northern Ireland government with its own territorial militia to fight the IRA. The use of Specials to reinforce the RIC also allowed for
4524-514: The purpose of exploiting a breakthrough or containing an enemy advance. Typically what is a reserve for one headquarters is not the reserve for a higher headquarters (though depending on the setup they may be). So if one of a battalion's companies is held in reserve during a battle, the company is considered to be a reserve for the battalion but not for the brigade or the division, since it is committed to action in its parent battalion sector. Deciding where, how and especially when to employ reserves
4602-511: The re-opening of over 20 barracks in rural areas which had previously been abandoned because of IRA attacks. The cost of maintaining the USC in 1921–22 was £1,500,000. Their conduct towards the Catholic population was criticised on a number of occasions. In February 1921, Specials and UVF men burned down ten Catholic houses in the County Fermanagh village of Roslea after a Special who lived in
4680-471: The supply of arms covertly to the Northern IRA until shortly before his death in August 1922. Assessments of the USC's role in this conflict vary. Unionists have written that the Special Constabulary, "saved Northern Ireland from anarchy" and "subdued the IRA", while nationalist authors have judged that their treatment of the Catholic community, including, "widespread harassment and a significant number of reprisal killings" permanently alienated nationalists from
4758-404: The two. The third Home Rule Bill was eventually passed despite the objections of the House of Lords , whose power of veto had been abolished under the Parliament Act 1911 . While Carson had hoped to have the whole of Ulster excluded, he felt a good case could be made for the six Ulster counties with unionist, or only slight nationalist, majorities. However, in August 1914 the Home Rule issue
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#17328455798024836-497: The village was shot and wounded. Following the death of a Special Constable near Newry on 8 June 1921, it was alleged that Specials and an armed mob were involved in the burning of 161 Catholic homes and the death of 10 Catholics. An inquest advised that the Special Constabulary "should not be allowed into any locality occupied by people of an opposite denomination." The government suggested the recruitment of more Catholics to form "Catholic only" patrols to cover Catholic areas, but this
4914-409: The war ended. There were also fears of a German naval raid on Ulster and so much of the UVF was recast as a home defence force. World War I ended in November 1918. On 1 May 1919, the UVF was 'demobilised' when Richardson stood down as its General Officer Commanding . In Richardson's last orders to the UVF, he stated: Existing conditions call for the demobilisation of the Ulster Volunteers. The Force
4992-458: The words of Craig, "a recourse to arms, which would precipitate civil war". Craig proposed to the British cabinet a new "volunteer constabulary" which "must be raised from the loyal population" and organised, "on military lines" and "armed for duty within the six county area only". On 23 July 1920 Craig informed the British cabinet that the "Specials" would "prevent mob law and the Protestants from running amok." He recommended that "the organisation of
5070-407: Was disbanded in May 1970, after the Hunt Report , which advised re-shaping Northern Ireland's security forces to attract more Catholic recruits and demilitarizing the police. Its functions and membership were largely taken over by the Ulster Defence Regiment and the Royal Ulster Constabulary . The Ulster Special Constabulary was formed against the background of conflict over Irish independence and
5148-467: Was formally established. A second reason was that violence in the north was increasing after the summer of 1920. The IRA began extending attacks to the Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC), RIC barracks, and revenue offices in Northern Ireland. There had been serious rioting between Catholics and Protestants in Derry in May and June and in Belfast in July, which had left up to 40 people dead. (See The Troubles in Northern Ireland (1920–1922) and Timeline of
5226-403: Was greatly mistrusted by Catholics and nationalists. Following IRA attacks, the USC often carried out revenge killings and reprisals against Catholic civilians. In his book Carson's Army: the Ulster Volunteer Force 1910–22 , Timothy Bowman gave the following as his last thought on the UVF during this period: It is questionable the extent to which the UVF did actually reform in 1920. Possibly
5304-409: Was initially financed and equipped by the British government and placed under the control of the RIC. The USC consisted of 32,000 men divided into four sections, all of whom were armed: The units were organised on military lines up to company level. Platoons had two officers, a Head Constable , four sergeants and sixty special constables. The Belfast units were constructed differently from those in
5382-405: Was interrupted by the First World War . Much of the UVF enlisted with the British Army 's 36th (Ulster) Division and went to fight on the Western Front . After the war, the British Government decided to partition Ireland into two self-governing regions: Northern Ireland (which overall had a Protestant/unionist majority) and Southern Ireland . However, by 1920 the Irish War of Independence
5460-432: Was not acted upon. After the Truce between the IRA and the British on 11 July 1921, the USC was demobilised by the British and the IRA was given official recognition while peace talks were ongoing. However, the force was remobilised in November 1921, after security powers were transferred from London to the Northern Ireland Government. Michael Collins planned a clandestine guerrilla campaign against Northern Ireland using
5538-571: Was not the case with regards to Ulster) as a whole, would not adequately protect Protestant areas. In early July, the UUC appointed Lieutenant Colonel Wilfrid Spender as the UVF's Officer Commanding. At the same time, announcements were printed in unionist newspapers calling on all former UVF members to report for duty. However, this call met with limited success; for example, each Belfast battalion drew little more than 100 men each and they were left mostly unarmed. The UVF's revival also met with little backing from unionists in Great Britain. During
5616-572: Was only used in the Pettigo and Belleek actions. Therefore, the main job of counter-insurgency in this border conflict fell to the Special Constabulary while the RIC/RUC patrolled the interior. Forty-nine Special Constables were killed during the period of the "Border War", out of a total of eighty-one British forces killed in Northern Ireland. Their biggest single loss of life came at Clones in February 1922, when
5694-543: Was organised, to protect the interests of the Province of Ulster, at a time when trouble threatened. The success of the organisation speaks for itself, as a page of history, in the records of Ulster that will never fade. In the December 1918 general election , Sinn Féin —an Irish republican party who sought full independence for Ireland—won an overwhelming majority of the seats in Ireland. Its members refused to take their seats in
5772-580: Was part of an Ulster Unionist counter-revolution, whose gunmen operated almost exclusively as ethnic cleansers and avengers. The UVF was involved in sectarian clashes in Derry in June 1920. Catholic homes were burned in the mainly-Protestant Waterside area, and UVF members fired on Catholics fleeing by boat across the River Foyle . UVF members fired from the Fountain neighbourhood into adjoining Catholic districts, and
5850-477: Was popular in all of Ireland apart from the northeast of Ulster. While Catholics were the majority in most of Ireland, Protestants were the majority in the six counties that became Northern Ireland as well as in Great Britain . Many Ulster Protestants feared being governed by a Catholic-dominated parliament in Dublin and losing their local supremacy and strong links with Britain. The two key figures in
5928-428: Was raging and the Irish Republican Army (IRA) was launching attacks on British forces in Ireland. In response, the UVF was revived. It was involved in some sectarian clashes and minor actions against the IRA. However, this revival was largely unsuccessful and the UVF was absorbed into the Ulster Special Constabulary (USC), the new reserve police force of Northern Ireland. A loyalist paramilitary group calling itself
6006-494: Was signed by the leaders of Northern Ireland and the Free State on 30 March, and envisaged the end of IRA activity and a reduced role for the USC. The renewed IRA campaign involved attacking barracks, burning commercial buildings and making a large-scale incursion into Northern Ireland, occupying Belleek and Pettigo in May–June, which was repulsed after heavy fighting, including British use of artillery on 8 June. The British Army
6084-418: Was temporarily suspended by the outbreak of World War I and Ireland's involvement in it. Many UVF men enlisted in the British Army, mostly with the 36th (Ulster) Division of the ' New Army '. Others joined Irish regiments of the United Kingdom's 10th and 16th (Irish) Divisions . By the summer of 1916, only the Ulster and 16th divisions remained, the 10th amalgamated into both following severe losses in
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