Irish neutrality during World War II facts for kids
The policy of Irish neutrality during World War II was chosen by the Irish government when World War II started in Europe. Éamon de Valera, who was the leader of Ireland (called the Taoiseach), made this decision. Ireland stayed neutral throughout the war, even though there were some challenges. German planes sometimes accidentally bombed Irish cities, and Irish ships were attacked by both sides.
This time is known in Ireland as The Emergency. This name came from a special rule in the Irish constitution that allowed the government to take strong actions during a crisis. Being neutral meant Ireland had to be careful not to pick a side, but also be ready to defend itself if either side tried to invade.
Even though Ireland was officially neutral, it secretly helped the Allies in many ways. For example, Allied military planes were allowed to fly through a special area called the Donegal Corridor. Irish and Allied spy agencies also worked together. Ireland even gave the Allies important weather reports from the Atlantic Ocean. One report from Blacksod Bay, County Mayo, helped the Allies decide to go ahead with the Normandy landings, a huge invasion during the war.
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Ireland's Relationship with Britain Before the War
In 1939, Ireland was still officially linked to the British Empire. However, Ireland had gained its independence from Britain after the Irish War of Independence. A new constitution was created in 1937. Unlike in World War I, Britain joining the war did not automatically mean Ireland had to join too. Ireland and Britain had a difficult relationship for many years, even having a "trade war" until 1938.
Ireland still had some small connections to the British Crown, but these were finally cut in 1948. The new Irish President was the "Supreme Commander" of the Irish army, showing Ireland's growing independence.
Life in Ireland During The Emergency
Irish people generally supported their country's neutrality. However, many Irish citizens still chose to join the British armed forces. At least 50,000 Irish people fought in the British Army. Others served in the British Merchant Navy (ships that carried goods) and the Royal Air Force (RAF). Some became heroes, like Brendan Finucane, who became a very young and successful RAF pilot.
About 4,983 Irish soldiers left their own army to fight with the British and Allied forces. After the war, they faced problems in Ireland, losing their pensions and not being allowed to work for the government. They were finally officially forgiven by the Irish government in 2013.
Many Irish people also traveled to Britain to work during the war. Some members of the Irish Republican movement (IRA) supported Germany at the start of the war. They hoped a German victory might help unite Ireland.
On September 1, 1939, after Germany invaded Poland, the Irish government quickly declared a "state of emergency." They passed the Emergency Powers Act. This law gave the government strong powers to deal with any problems and make sure Ireland stayed neutral.
The government censored radio news, only allowing newsreaders to read official reports from each side. Weather forecasts were stopped so they wouldn't accidentally help enemy planes or ships. People were usually not allowed to openly support one side or the other. The government even avoided using the word "war," calling the situation "The Emergency."
Life was tough in Ireland during this time. Wages didn't increase, but prices went up. There were serious shortages of fuel and some foods. Smuggling and the black market (illegal trading) became common.
Dealing with Internal Threats
The Irish government worried that the war in Europe might restart old conflicts from the Irish Civil War. There were groups in Ireland who supported or opposed fascism, and the IRA continued its own activities.
Before the war, the IRA had started a bombing campaign in Britain. To stop this, the Irish government passed a law called the Offences against the State Act, 1939. Once the main war started, any secret activities were seen as a danger to Ireland's neutrality. There were fears that Britain might invade Ireland to take control of its ports. There was also a concern that the IRA might work with German spies, which would threaten Ireland's neutrality.
This threat was real. In May 1940, a key IRA leader named Seán Russell went to Berlin to get weapons and support from Germany. He died on a German submarine while returning to Ireland. A few German spies were sent to Ireland, but the Irish military intelligence quickly caught them. Active IRA members were put in prison camps or given jail sentences. By 1943, the IRA was much weaker. Most people in Ireland supported neutrality, even with the rationing and economic problems.
Shipping and Trade During the War
When the war began, Ireland was quite isolated. Its shipping industry had been neglected since independence. Foreign ships, which Ireland relied on, were less available. Neutral American ships refused to enter the "war zone." Ireland had 56 ships when the war started and bought or leased 15 more. Sadly, 20 of these ships were lost during the war.
The small Irish merchant fleet continued to carry essential goods. Irish sailors called this time "The Long Watch." They sailed without weapons, often alone, flying the Irish tricolour flag. They showed they were neutral by using bright lights and painting the flag and "EIRE" in large letters on their ships. Despite this, 20% of Irish sailors died in the war. Allied convoys often couldn't stop to rescue survivors. Irish sailors rescued people from both sides, but their ships were attacked by both, mostly by the Axis powers. Thanks to these brave sailors, imports reached Ireland, and exports, mainly food for Great Britain, were delivered. They saved 521 lives.
Some British ships were also repaired in Irish shipyards.
There were rumors that German submarines (U-boats) used Ireland as a refueling base, but this was not true. These rumors likely started when a German U-boat dropped off 28 rescued Greek sailors on the Irish coast in 1939. The U-boat commander had sunk their Greek cargo ship. This event was even featured on the cover of Life magazine in the U.S.
Ireland's External Relations
For Éamon de Valera, Irish neutrality was about protecting Ireland's independence. So, being neutral helped both practical and political goals.
Offer to End Partition in 1940
In June 1940, during the Battle of France, a British official named Malcolm MacDonald offered a deal to Ireland. He proposed ending the partition of Ireland (dividing the island into two parts) if Ireland would give up its neutrality and join the war against Germany and Italy. However, the details of uniting Ireland would have to be agreed upon by both the Irish government and the government of Northern Ireland, and they didn't trust each other.
De Valera rejected the offer on July 4. He worried there was "no guarantee that in the end we would have a united Ireland" and that it would force Ireland to immediately abandon its neutrality. De Valera had always wanted a united Ireland, and the 1937 Irish Constitution even stated that the country included the "whole island of Ireland." After the war, he continued to call for an end to partition. This secret offer and his rejection were not known to the public until 1970.
Mixed Effects of Neutrality
In April 1941, the idea of Ireland joining the war came up again. The Australian Prime Minister, Robert Menzies, visited Belfast and Dublin for private talks with De Valera and the Prime Minister of Northern Ireland. Menzies later told Churchill that uniting Ireland and its independence were too complicated, so Ireland was unlikely to give up its neutrality.
Without the Irish treaty ports (which Britain had given back to Ireland a year before the war), an independent Ireland made it harder for British ships and planes to operate safely. This meant there was a risk of invasion if Ireland's neutrality became too much of a problem for Britain. To maintain its independence, Ireland had to manage its neutrality in a way that also helped British interests. This meant secretly helping Britain's war effort while also preventing Britain from invading to take back the ports.
During the war, the Prime Minister of Northern Ireland, Lord Craigavon, called de Valera a "Nazi sympathizer" and urged Churchill to invade "southern Ireland." But London rejected this idea. Churchill did, however, order Field Marshal Sir Bernard Montgomery to plan to seize Cork and Queenstown (Cobh) for naval bases. But new submarine-detecting technology and bases in Iceland meant the Irish ports were not as vital to the Allies as they had been in World War I.
At the end of the war, a British official named Viscount Cranborne admitted that the Irish government had been willing to give Britain "any facilities which would not be regarded as overtly prejudicing their attitude to neutrality." This cooperation between British and Irish agencies began when the war started. De Valera allowed British planes to use certain Irish airspace, mainly for patrolling the coast. The use of the "Donegal Corridor" was very important. By autumn 1941, using this corridor was a daily routine.
While de Valera refused British requests to use Irish ports directly, he was, according to historian M.E. Collins, "more friendly than strict neutrality should have allowed." This cooperation led to meetings between Irish and British defense officials. For example, after Germany invaded neutral countries like Denmark and Norway, Irish and British officials met to discuss how British troops could enter Ireland, if invited by de Valera, to remove any German forces trying to use Ireland to invade Britain. These meetings continued throughout the war.
Before the war, de Valera met with Dr. Eduard Hempel, the German Minister in Ireland. They discussed Ireland's close trade links with Britain and how easily Britain could invade if its interests were threatened. Hempel told Berlin that Ireland had to "show a certain consideration for Britain" and urged German officials to avoid anything that would give Britain an excuse to invade Ireland.
Condolences for Hitler's Death
Ireland kept its public stance of neutrality until the very end by not closing the German and Japanese offices (Legations) in Dublin. The Irish leader, Éamon de Valera, personally visited the German Ambassador Eduard Hempel on May 2, 1945. He expressed official sadness over the death of German dictator Adolf Hitler. This was done following the usual custom when the leader of a country with an embassy in Ireland died. Irish officials in other countries did the same, but no other Western European democracies followed Ireland's example. These visits caused a lot of anger in the United States.
De Valera dismissed reports of the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp as "anti-national propaganda." Some historians believe this was not because he disbelieved the reports, but because the horrors of the Holocaust challenged the idea that all sides in the war were morally equal, which was a key part of Ireland's neutrality.
Ireland's Stance on Jewish Refugees
Ireland's position on Jewish refugees fleeing Europe was cautious. Irish officials often said they couldn't take more immigrants because it would overcrowd the country and take Irish jobs. They also worried that a large Jewish population might increase anti-Jewish feelings among the Irish. There was some anti-Jewish sentiment in Ireland during World War II, most notably in a speech in 1943 where a politician called for "routing the Jews out of the country."
There was some official indifference from the government towards the Jewish victims of the Holocaust during and after the war. Later, an Irish Minister for Justice described this attitude as "antipathetic, hostile and unfeeling."
Media Portrayal
Irish neutrality was used by German propaganda. In 1941, a German anti-British movie called My Life for Ireland was filmed. It told the story of an Irish family fighting against the British.
Victory in Europe Day
The impact of Ireland not being involved in the war, and thus avoiding the widespread destruction that defined Europe afterwards, is still debated by historians.
One historian, Ronan Fanning, wrote that one might question the "liberating value of war for a people who has so recently emerged from revolution followed by a civil war." He meant that Ireland had already gone through its own conflicts and violence.
The Cranborne Report: British-Irish Cooperation
Viscount Cranborne, a British official, wrote a letter in February 1945 to the British War Cabinet. This letter detailed the ways Ireland and Britain worked together during 1939–1945, despite Ireland's neutrality:
- Ireland allowed Britain to use Lough Foyle for naval and air purposes.
- They allowed British aircraft from Lough Erne to fly through a special "Donegal Corridor" over Irish land and water to reach the Atlantic.
- Ireland quickly sent reports of submarine activity from its coast watching service to the UK.
- They improved reports from their Air Observation Corps about aircraft seen over or near Irish territory.
- Ireland arranged for lights in coastal towns to be turned off if they helped German aircraft.
- They continued to provide Britain with weather reports.
- They allowed British ships and aircraft to use two wireless direction-finding stations at Malin Head.
- Ireland provided details about crashed German aircraft and personnel found on land or washed ashore.
- They held talks about how British troops could help if Germany invaded Southern Ireland, and military contact continued.
- Ireland continued to hold all German military personnel who reached Southern Ireland. However, Allied service personnel were allowed to leave freely, and help was given to recover damaged aircraft.
- They agreed to return or hold any German prisoners who escaped from Northern Ireland into Southern Ireland.
- Ireland never objected to people leaving Southern Ireland to join the British forces, or to these people traveling back and forth for leave (in plain clothes).
- They continued to share information with British security about all foreigners (including Germans) in Southern Ireland.
- Just before the report, they agreed to let Britain set up a radar station in Southern Ireland to help against new submarine attacks.
Impact on Joining the United Nations
Ireland's neutrality policy caused a long delay in its membership of the United Nations (UN). The Soviet Union, a powerful member of the UN Security Council, blocked Ireland's applications from 1946 until December 1955.
The term "United Nations" was originally used from 1942–45 to refer to the Allies of World War II. Ireland applied to join the UN in 1946, after the League of Nations (an earlier international organization) ended.
By March 1955, the Irish Minister for External Affairs, Liam Cosgrave, said that Ireland's application was still blocked by an objection in the Security Council. For diplomatic reasons, the government would not say why or which country had made the objection. Some believed the UN boycott of Ireland was agreed upon by Churchill and Joseph Stalin at the 1945 Yalta Conference. Ireland was finally accepted into the UN on December 15, 1955.
See also
- Irish Mercantile Marine during World War II
- Irish maritime events during World War II
- Irish neutrality
- Neutral powers during World War II
