Ireland: Topic 3 The pursuit of sovereignty and the impact of partition, 1912-1949
Answer one of the following questions:
2022
1. During the period 1912‐1920, what factors contributed to the partition of Ireland? (100)
2. How did the Unionist party in power respond to the challenges it faced, 1920‐1945? (100)
3. What was the impact of the Eucharistic Congress, 1932, on Irish life?
4. During the period 1923‐1945, why did Irish governments find it difficult to achieve economic success?
2021
1. During the period 1912-1921, what attempts were made to obtain self-government for Ireland, and to what extent were they successful? (100)
2. During the period 1923-1945, how effectively did Irish governments tackle the social and economic problems they faced? (100)
3. What were the successes and failures of Éamon de Valera as a political leader? (100)
4. What attempts were made to promote cultural identity in Ireland, North and South? Refer to one or more of the following: language; religion; education.
2019
1. What was the military and political significance of one or more of the following:
the 1916 Rising; the War of Independence; the Civil War? (100)
2. What were the main events of the Eucharistic Congress, 1932, and what was its significance for church and state? (100)
3. What was the impact on Northern Ireland of the world economic crisis of the inter‐war period and/or World War II? (100)
4. How did Anglo‐Irish relations develop during the period 1923‐1949?
2018
1. How did the Sinn Féin movement develop during the period 1912‐1923? (100)
2. Why were both the negotiations and the terms of the Anglo‐Irish Treaty, 1921,controversial? (100)
3. During the period 1922‐1945, how effective were the governments of both Cosgrave and de Valera in dealing with threats to the security of the state? (100)
4. During the period 1922‐1949, how successful were attempts to make independent Ireland a Gaelic and Catholic society?
2017
1. During the period 1912‐1920, which factors contributed most to the partition of Ireland? (100)
2. During the period 1922‐1939, who achieved more in Anglo‐Irish relations, Cosgrave or de Valera?Argue your case,referring to both. (100)
3. During the period 1922‐1949, how did the 1932 Eucharistic Congress and/or the state’s language and education policies contribute to Irish identity? (100)
4. What was the impact of World War II on Ireland, North and South?
2016
1. What were the main events in Dublin during the 1916 Rising, and was Ireland, in Yeats’phrase, ‘changed utterly’ as a result? (100)
2. Why did the conduct and outcome of the Treaty negotiations, October-December, 1921, prove contentious? (100)
3. During the period 1912-1940, what were the strengths and weaknesses of James Craig
as a political leader? (100)4. How well did Irish governments cope with the social and economic problems they faced, 1923-1945? (100)
2013
1. What were the fortunes of the Sinn Féin movement during the period 1912-1922? (100)
2. During the period 1922-1939, how successful were Irish governments in responding to the economic challenges they faced? (100)
3. How did Anglo-Irish relations develop under Éamon de Valera, 1932-1945? 4. What was the impact of World War II on Ireland, North and South? (100)
2012
1. How did the threat and use of physical force affect Ireland during the period 1912-1923? (100)
2. How did the government of Northern Ireland deal with economic problems and/or threats to security, 1920-1945? (100)
3. What was the significance of the Eucharistic Congress, 1932? (100)
4. How did Anglo-Irish relations develop during the period 1923-1949? (100)
2011
1. What did one or more of the following contribute to Irish affairs: Patrick Pearse; Arthur Griffith; Countess Markievicz?
2. How did the Irish government contribute to the consolidation of democracy, 1922-1932?
3. What were the strengths and weaknesses of Éamon de Valera as a political leader? (100)
4. What was the impact on Northern Ireland of international developments during the period 1932-1945?
2010
1. During the period 1912-1920, what factors contributed to the partition of Ireland?
2. Who handled Anglo-Irish relations better, W. T. Cosgrave or Éamon de Valera? Argue your case, referring to both.
3. To what extent did the 1932 Eucharistic Congress and/or the language and education policies of Irish governments promote Irish cultural identity?
4. How did the Unionist Party in power respond to the challenges posed by the existence of a substantial nationalist minority within Northern Ireland?
2009
1. Why were the Anglo-Irish Treaty negotiations controversial?
2. What were the main social and economic challenges facing Northern Ireland, 1920-1945?
3. During the period 1932-1945, which did Éamon de Valera manage better, the economy or Anglo-Irish relations? Argue your case, referring to both.
4. What attempts were made to promote cultural identity, North and South, during the period, 1912-1945?
2008
1. To what extent was the Anglo-Irish Treaty, 1921, responsible for the Irish Civil War?
2. What steps did Irish governments take to consolidate democracy, 1923-1945?
3. What was the significance of the Eucharistic Congress, 1932, for the Irish Free State?
4. How well did the Unionist Party manage the affairs of Northern Ireland, 1920-1939?
2007
1. What were the aims and achievements of Patrick Pearse?
2. How did Anglo-Irish relations develop during the period 1923 – 1949?
3. How was cultural identity promoted in Ireland, North and South, between 1920 and 1949?
4. Following the experience of war, to what extent was the Belfast of 1945 different from that of 1939?
2006
1. From 1912 onwards, what factors contributed to the partition of Ireland, 1920?
2. Between 1922 and 1932, what steps did the Cosgrave governments take to establish the Irish Free State on firm foundations?
3. How well did Ireland, North and/or South, deal with the social and economic problems presented by World War II?
To what extent were language, religion and education used to promote Irish cultural identity during the period, 19
