Irish Republican Army

:This article primarily deals with the Irish Republican Army up to 1922. For Irish paramilitary organisations after 1922 that use or have used the name Irish Republican Army see Irish Republican Army (1922-1969), Official Irish Republican Army (1969- ), Provisional Irish Republican Army (1969- ), Continuity Irish Republican Army (1986- ), and Real Irish Republican Army (1997- ).

Related Topics:
1922 - Irish - Irish Republican Army (1922-1969) - Official Irish Republican Army - Provisional Irish Republican Army - Continuity Irish Republican Army - Real Irish Republican Army

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The name Irish Republican Army has been used to refer to several Irish republican paramilitary organisations. The earliest of these was recognised by the First Dáil as the legitimate army of the Irish Republic, as proclaimed in the Easter Rising in 1916 and reaffirmed by the Dáil in January 1919. Though a series of organisations later claimed to be a continuation of the IRA from the 1920s to today, most Irish people disagree with these claims. After the signature of the Anglo-Irish Treaty in 1921, members of the IRA who supported the Treaty formed the nucleus of the National Army founded by IRA leader Michael Collins in 1922. While the anti-Treaty IRA continued to exist after its defeat in the Irish Civil War, by the late 1930s it had lost most of the legitimacy with which most supporters of the Republican side initially regarded it. A small minority of Irish people accepts later claimants to the name as the political heirs of the original Irish Republican Army.

Related Topics:
Irish - Republican - Paramilitary - First Dáil - Irish Republic - Easter Rising - 1916 - January - 1919 - Anglo-Irish Treaty - National Army - Michael Collins - 1922 - Irish Civil War

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

To distinguish between the army of the Irish Republic, and later claimants to the name, the former is often called the Old IRA.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~