Taoiseach: London government's 'destructive role' prevented any chance of avoiding civil war a century ago 

Taoiseach Micheál Martin: 'For me, the greatest ‘what if’ of the Civil War remains the question of what could have been achieved if Ireland’s leaders had been allowed the time, space, and freedom to prevent conflict.' Picture: Maxwells Dublin

Taoiseach Micheál Martin says the “destructive role” played by the London government in the wake of the Anglo-Irish Treaty prevented any chance of avoiding the civil war 100 years ago.

Writing in the Irish Examiner today, Mr Martin said direct and constant pressure on the provisional government led to many opportunities for compromise being spurned in early 1922, the repudiation of the ‘pact’ and the opening of hostilities.