The Limerick
Stand-Off
Introduction from Chronology
As the Commandant of the IRA’s Mid-Limerick Brigade, Liam Forde,
had earlier repudiated the authority of GHQ (see Feb-18-22/1), on this date GHQ
orders Michael Brennan, Commandant of the 1st Western Division (and pro-Treaty)
into Limerick to take over barracks from the evacuating British.
(Limerick was not in Brennan’s Divisional area.)
This led to a standoff, especially when the Divisional Commandant
for the 2nd Southern Division, Ernie O'Malley (see Feb-24-22/1), sent troops
into Limerick. Eventually, Liam Lynch (Commandant 1st Southern Division)
and Oscar Traynor (Commandant Dublin Brigade) sorted out a compromise by March
12th.
More Detail
Macardle
says that the pro-Treaty troops moved into Limerick on February 23rd
under Commandant Hurley – he was arrested and went on hunger strike. When
O’Malley (along with Tom Barry) arrived on March 2nd, he ordered the
pro-Treaty forces who had taken over the Castle Barracks to either evacuate or
fight.
They
refused and O’Malley’s men took over a number of hotels and set up in the
Glanworth Hotel as his HQ. O’Malley went
to Dublin and asked Rory O’Connor for engineers to breach the wall of Castle
Barracks but O’Connor disapproved. On March 3rd, Brennan
brought his troops into Limerick and occupied a variety of buildings.
Stephen
(or Alphonsus?) O’Mara, Mayor of Limerick, managed to get both sides talking
but his efforts foundered. On March 10th, Liam Lynch and Oscar
Traynor had a meeting with Collins, Mulcahy and Eoin O’Duffy in Beggar’s
Bush. That night Lynch and Traynor travel to Limerick and, after a lot of
difficulty, manage to effect a compromise between pro- and anti-Treaty forces
in Limerick. By March 11th, most of the pro-Treaty men had evacuated the
city and the city was left in local (mostly anti-Treaty) hands.
Anti-Treaty men held the military barracks while Limerick Corporation held the
ex-RIC barracks. O’Malley thought
that “we had won without firing a shot”.
Anti-Treaty men took over the Ordnance Barracks, Castle Barracks, the
New Barracks and Strand Barracks. (No
more than Brennan, neither Lynch or Traynor had any direct military control
over the 2nd Division men in Limerick.)
Griffith
was against any opposition to the Treaty but Mulcahy was not prepared at this
point to start a war as he thought that his pro-Treaty troops were
ill-prepared. Pro-Treaty men see the agreement as a
climb down by Provisional Government but Mulcahy argues that now is not the
time to start a fight. Some anti-Treaty
men were also unhappy as they seen their numerical advantage not used.