Executions During The Irish Civil War - Effects

Effects

Arguably the Government policy of executions did help to end the Civil war. After the executions in reprisal for the killing of Seán Hales, there were no further attempts to assassinate members of Parliament. The Anti-Treaty leaders were also aware that continuing the war would mean exposing their prisoners to further executions. This was probably a factor in Frank Aiken calling a halt to the anti-Treaty campaign in April 1923.

There is no doubt that the executions and assassinations of the Civil War left a poisonous legacy of bitterness on both sides of Irish politics. The Free State's official executions of 77 Anti-Treaty prisoners during the civil war was recalled by Fianna Fáil (the political party that emerged from the anti-Treaty side in 1926) members with bitterness for decades afterwards. In the Irish republican tradition, those IRA members executed in the civil war became martyrs and were venerated in songs and poems. (For example, the Republican ballad "Take It Down From The Mast").

As a result of the executions in the civil war, many Republicans would never accept the Free State as a legitimate Irish government, but rather as a repressive, British-imposed state. This attitude was partially alleviated after 1932, when Fianna Fáil, the party who represented the bulk of the Republican constituency, entered government peacefully and introduced a new constitution in 1937. The Free State officially became the Republic of Ireland in 1949.

Kevin O'Higgins, whom republicans felt was most directly responsible for the enactment of the Public Safety Act, with its sanction of executions, himself fell victim to assassination by the IRA in 1927 - becoming one of the last victims of the Civil War era violence in Ireland. Richard Mulcahy became a leader of Fine Gael but never became Taoiseach in 1948 because of his role in the Civil War.