Just over a century ago, the Irish Question came to dominate British political debate with passionate arguments about Home Rule, partition and independence occupying many chapters of Hansard. It was a period in Irish and British history which became binary. The success of the Belfast Agreement in 1998 ended such false binary choices and ushered in an era which allowed for multiple options and thus better captured the reality of identities in a complex society. John Hume, the former leader of the Social Democratic and Labour Party and Nobel laureate, credited Europe, describing it as the best conflict resolution mechanism the world had known.

Events in Ireland some 100 years ago cannot be examined in isolation. They were part of a wider European story. Europe was in the midst of the First World War. The Third Home Rule Bill (the price Irish nationalists had exacted from Asquith for supporting his Liberal Government) had just received Royal Assent in September 1914, but its implementation was suspended during the war effort. That suspension probably saved Ireland from bloodshed and civil war as those opposed to Home Rule, and those in favour, had formed rival armed groups.

During the war, each side believed there was much to play for in wooing the British Government of the day with a show of loyalty. The leader of Irish nationalism, John Redmond MP, was keen to support the Government against the Central Powers led by Germany. He encouraged the Irish Volunteers to sign up for the war effort. Equally, the leader of Unionism, Sir Edward Carson MP, also wanted to show loyalty and he encouraged the Ulster Volunteers to sign up. Hundreds of thousands of Irish fought in the war. The turn of events in Europe meant that violence at home (at least for the moment) was abated.