The Irish Self-Determination League of Great Britain (ISDL) was established in London in 1919. Membership peaked at around 20,000 in and was confined to those of ''Irish birth or descent resident in

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...

.'' In May 1920 a similar organisation was established in

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

, The Irish Self-Determination League of

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

and

Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...

. On 11 March 1923 over 100 members and suspected members (male and female) of the League in Britain, were arrested in London, Glasgow and Liverpool in a series of dawn raids. The arrests were made during the height of the

Irish Civil War The Irish Civil War ( ga, Cogadh Cathartha na hÉireann; 28 June 1922 – 24 May 1923) was a conflict that followed the Irish War of Independence and accompanied the establishment of the Irish Free State, an entity independent from the United ...

at the behest of the

Irish Free State The Irish Free State ( ga, Saorstát Éireann, , ; 6 December 192229 December 1937) was a state established in December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921. The treaty ended the three-year Irish War of Independence between th ...

. Those arrested, including both Irish and those born in Britain, were taken to either Liverpool or the Clyde where they were placed on destroyers and deported to Ireland. The British government used legislation supposedly under the

Restoration of Order in Ireland Act 1920 The Restoration of Order in Ireland Act 1920 (10 & 11 Geo. 5 c. 31) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom passed on 9 August 1920 to address the collapse of the British civilian administration in Ireland during the Irish War of Inde ...

, however the deportees subsequently sued the British government for compensation. The detentions were successfully challenged through the British courts ending with a House of Lords ruling that there was no legal basis for the deportation and resulting in compensation being paid to the men involved. James Hickey, one of the deportees from Glasgow, was beaten whilst in prison in Ireland and as a result lost the hearing in his right ear. Along with all the deportees he was awarded compensation for his illegal arrest and imprisonment. On 1 October 1923 he was awarded £750 plus 100 guineas expenses. This was considerably more than the vast majority of his fellow Scottish deportees who were awarded an average of £389 plus 25 guineas. The reason cited for the difference in these sums given in the Times is that he was a businessman. He subsequently left Scotland and moved, with his family, to Dublin. Others deported included Anthony Mullarkey of

Bedlington Bedlington is a town and former civil parish in Northumberland, England, with a population of 18,470 measured at the 2011 Census. Bedlington is an ancient market town, with a rich history of industry and innovative residents. Located roughly 1 ...

Northumberland Northumberland () is a county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Abbey. It is bordered by land on ...

. He had previously been imprisoned at

Wormwood Scrubs Wormwood Scrubs, known locally as The Scrubs (or simply Scrubs), is an open space in Old Oak Common located in the north-eastern corner of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in west London. It is the largest open space in the borough, ...

, having been identified as Commanding Officer of the

IRA Ira or IRA may refer to: *Ira (name), a Hebrew, Sanskrit, Russian or Finnish language personal name *Ira (surname), a rare Estonian and some other language family name *Iran, UNDP code IRA Law *Indian Reorganization Act of 1934, US, on status of ...

Newcastle upon Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne ( RP: , ), or simply Newcastle, is a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. The city is located on the River Tyne's northern bank and forms the largest part of the Tyneside built-up area. Newcastle is ...

. A coal miner by trade he had served with the

Tyneside Irish Brigade The Tyneside Irish Brigade was a British First World War infantry brigade of Kitchener's Army, raised in 1914. Officially numbered the 103rd (Tyneside Irish) Brigade, it contained four Pals battalions from Newcastle upon Tyne, largely made up of ...

( 25th (2nd Tyneside Irish) Battalion,

Northumberland Fusiliers The Royal Northumberland Fusiliers was an infantry regiment of the British Army. Raised in 1674 as one of three 'English' units in the Dutch Anglo-Scots Brigade, it accompanied William III to England in the November 1688 Glorious Revolution an ...

) in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. Another deportee was Art O'Brian, editor of The League's London-based newspaper, ''The Irish Exile'' whose circulation peaked at 10,000 copies. The newspaper expressed disappointment with the 1921

Anglo-Irish Treaty The 1921 Anglo-Irish Treaty ( ga , An Conradh Angla-Éireannach), commonly known in Ireland as The Treaty and officially the Articles of Agreement for a Treaty Between Great Britain and Ireland, was an agreement between the government of the ...

. It ceased circulation in 1922, the same year that the ISDL itself disbanded.

References

1919 establishments in the United Kingdom Irish diaspora in the United Kingdom Political history of Ireland {{ireland-stub