July 1923

Jul-01-23/1

Number of military prisoners in the Free State estimated at 11,316.

Durney (2011), pg 153

Jul-02-23/1

Public Safety Act passed by the Dáil (see Jun-1920/1).  It had been introduced by the pro-Treaty government in June in order to give it the powers to intern and seize land and stock for another six months.  It is heavily criticised by Labour. 

Kissane says that this Act was intended to “cover the period between the cessation of war and the arrival of normal conditions”.  (There was considerable lawlessness in the coming period.  A Garda report for the period between July 1st 1923 and July 31st 1923 said that there were 260 armed robberies and 119 armed raids.)

 

Macardle (1999), pg 862; Kissane (2005), pg 162

Jul-03-23/1

Former anti-Treaty intelligence officer (and bother of Sean) Noel Lemass is arrested by pro-Treaty forces.  His body is discovered in the Dublin mountains on October 13th – See Oct-13-23/2. 

He had been subjected to extreme torture. The jury at his inquest (despite intimidation) concluded that he had been “brutally and wilfully murdered” and that “the armed forces of the State have been implicated”.

It was believed by the Lemass family that Emmet Dalton was involved in the killing of Noel Lemass.  However, Dalton’s biographer, Sean Boyne, refers to this as a conspiracy theory saying that “Dalton was Clerk of the Senate during this period and it seems highly unlikely that he would have taken time off from his official duties to arrange a number. 

 

Macardle (1999), pg 862; Dorney (2017), pg 259; Ferriter (2021), pgs 120 & 224; Boyne (2016), pg 194

Jul-20-23/1

After a meeting between Cosgrave and Craig in London, Cosgrave announces that Eoin MacNeill would be the Free State’s representative on the Boundary Commission and around the same time made the formal request to the British Government to set up the Commission.

This draws a hostile response from Craig who re-stated that he and his government would not recognise any Boundary Commission (see Jul-30-23/2).

Further work on setting up of the Boundary Commission is delayed, in any case, by the announcement of an election in the Free State for August 27th. 

Comment

See also Sep-22-23/1.

 

Phoenix (1994), pgs 290-292; Fanning (2013), pg 346; Matthews (2004), pgs 120-121

Jul-20-23/2

Writing to his fellow ministers in the Executive Council, Ernst Blythe, Minister of Local Government urges them to abolish the 161 rural district councils arguing that the forthcoming local elections will give every “crank and impossibilist” in the country a platform.  The rural councils were subsequently abolished.

 

Kissane (2005), pgs 163-164

Jul-23-23/1

In an interview, de Valera says that the war is finished.

 

 ?

Jul-30-23/2

Reacting to the appointment of MacNeill as Boundary Commissioner, Craig and his NI cabinet declare that they will have nothing to do with the Boundary Commission and refuse to appoint a Boundary Commissioner.

See Sep-22-23/1.

 

Matthews (2004), pg 121

Jul-31-23/1

Anti-Treatyite, Henry McEntee, is picked up on Capel St, Dublin and his body is later found is a field in Finglas.

Dorney (2017), pg 259; Dolan and Murphy (2018), pg 275

Jul-1920/1

Tom Barry resigns from the anti-Treaty Army Executive after he fails to get the Executive to agree to an amnesty and the handing over of arms.

 

Hopkinson (1988), pg 260

 

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