This thesis investigates the British and German perception of the IRA and claims that the organization represented an insurmountable obstacle to the progress of both German intelligence and British counter-intelligence. The IRA was also the primary contributor to the political troubles oflrish neutrality during World War II. It examines the perceived threat of the IRA in the minds of the Irish Prime Minister Eamon de Valera and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and those ministers' respective governments. The thesis looks at official debates in the British Parliament and the Irish Dail as well as interwar newspapers and official records. Additionally, the thesis consults the Abwehr II War Diary to compare the Axis interest in the IRA as a means by which to prepare an amphibious'assault on Britain through Ireland. By analyzing intelligence records, arrest records, and correspondences to and from Eire during the war, this research lends insight into the real military potential of the IRA and compares that potential to the perceived threat of international terrorism in the 1940s.
","abstract_html":"<p>This thesis investigates the British and German perception of the IRA and claims that the organization represented an insurmountable obstacle to the progress of both German intelligence and British counter-intelligence. The IRA was also the primary contributor to the political troubles oflrish neutrality during World War II. It examines the perceived threat of the IRA in the minds of the Irish Prime Minister Eamon de Valera and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and those ministers' respective governments. The thesis looks at official debates in the British Parliament and the Irish Dail as well as interwar newspapers and official records. Additionally, the thesis consults the Abwehr II War Diary to compare the Axis interest in the IRA as a means by which to prepare an amphibious'assault on Britain through Ireland. By analyzing intelligence records, arrest records, and correspondences to and from Eire during the war, this research lends insight into the real military potential of the IRA and compares that potential to the perceived threat of international terrorism in the 1940s.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Wilson, L.B., III"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Arts (MA)","degree_level":"Masters Thesis","degree_discipline":"History","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Andrew Wiest","Heather Stur","Ruth Percy"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2012,"date_issued":"2012-12-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2012-12-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T05:45:06Z","subjects":["Arts and Humanities","European History","History"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://aquila.usm.edu/masters_theses/577","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Andrew Wiest","Heather Stur","Ruth Percy"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Wilson, L.B., III"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2018-11-28T08:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["History"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Masters Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Arts (MA)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Arts and Humanities","European History","History"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://aquila.usm.edu/masters_theses/577"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["This thesis investigates the British and German perception of the IRA and claims that the organization represented an insurmountable obstacle to the progress of both German intelligence and British counter-intelligence. The IRA was also the primary contributor to the political troubles oflrish neutrality during World War II. It examines the perceived threat of the IRA in the minds of the Irish Prime Minister Eamon de Valera and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and those ministers' respective governments. The thesis looks at official debates in the British Parliament and the Irish Dail as well as interwar newspapers and official records. Additionally, the thesis consults the Abwehr II War Diary to compare the Axis interest in the IRA as a means by which to prepare an amphibious'assault on Britain through Ireland. By analyzing intelligence records, arrest records, and correspondences to and from Eire during the war, this research lends insight into the real military potential of the IRA and compares that potential to the perceived threat of international terrorism in the 1940s.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Perceptions and Realities of the Irish Republican Army During the Second World War"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Andrew Wiest","Heather Stur","Ruth Percy"],"dc:creator":["Wilson, L.B., III"],"dc:date.available":["2018-11-28T08:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["This thesis investigates the British and German perception of the IRA and claims that the organization represented an insurmountable obstacle to the progress of both German intelligence and British counter-intelligence. The IRA was also the primary contributor to the political troubles oflrish neutrality during World War II. It examines the perceived threat of the IRA in the minds of the Irish Prime Minister Eamon de Valera and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and those ministers' respective governments. The thesis looks at official debates in the British Parliament and the Irish Dail as well as interwar newspapers and official records. Additionally, the thesis consults the Abwehr II War Diary to compare the Axis interest in the IRA as a means by which to prepare an amphibious'assault on Britain through Ireland. By analyzing intelligence records, arrest records, and correspondences to and from Eire during the war, this research lends insight into the real military potential of the IRA and compares that potential to the perceived threat of international terrorism in the 1940s.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://aquila.usm.edu/masters_theses/577"],"dc:subject":["Arts and Humanities","European History","History"],"dc:title":["Perceptions and Realities of the Irish Republican Army During the Second World War"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["History"],"thesis:degree_level":["Masters Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Arts (MA)"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T05:45:06Z"}