I have accrued a great many debts during the production of this book. Its genesis goes as far back as an MPhil. class on violence and politics led by Dr Anne Dolan. As my PhD supervisor, and since, Dr Dolan has been abundantly generous with her time, and a constant source of inspiration, information, and gentle persuasion. For all of that, I am extremely grateful. Professor David Fitzpatrick has had a significant impact on my research as both an internal examiner and an academic mentor. I am indebted to his keen eye and perceptive insights. Professor Roy Foster examined the thesis on which this book is based and has been a generous supporter since.
I am extremely grateful to the School of Histories and Humanities, Trinity College Dublin and the Irish Research Council who funded my research as a postgraduate and postdoctoral fellow respectively; this book would not have been possible otherwise. The Centre for Contemporary Irish History provided a generous travel grant that enabled me to conduct necessary research in London and Belfast and the Grace Lawless-Lee fund contributed to the cost of my first research trip.
I have benefited greatly from the expertise of colleagues in the departments in which I have been lucky enough to work. Professor Eunan O’Halpin, Dr Eve Morrison, and Dr Seán William Gannon all generously shared research findings and sources with me. Thanks in particular to Professor O’Halpin for data from the Dead of the Irish revolution and to Dr Morrison for assistance compiling information on ‘suspect’ civilians used in Chapter 6. At TCD, Dr Steven O’Connor, Dr Brendan Power, Dr Fergus Robson, and Dr Ciarán Wallace provided friendship, stimulating discussion, and good humour. I am also grateful to Dr Joseph Clarke, Dr Peter Crooks, Dr David Ditchburn, Professor John Horne, Dr Ciarán O’Neill, Dr Micheál Ó Síochrú, and Dr Patricia Stapleton, for their guidance and support. All of my fellow postgrads and postdocs at the Department of History deserve further thanks for making my time there so pleasant and productive. At Maynooth University a special word of thanks is due to Professor Susan Schreibman who has been a consistent source of academic guidance and gave me the opportunity to work on two exciting digital projects at An Foras Feasa. Thanks also to my colleagues at Penryn Humanities, and particularly Dr Catriona Pennell, for whose support and encouragement I am most grateful.
Several friends were kind enough to read drafts and offer feedback: Philip Cuffe, Ciara Duffy, Peter Duffy, Rosemary Hegarty, and Fergal O’Leary. Many more listened to my ramblings about my research or, most importantly, subtly reminded me of other, much more important things in life and I offer my thanks to all.
Thanks to the staff, archivists, and keepers in the libraries and archives I have visited over the course of my research: Trinity College Dublin Library and Manuscripts Department, The National Archives of Ireland (especially Tom Quinlan), The National Library of Ireland, University College Dublin Archives, Dublin City Library and Archive, The Public Record Office of Northern Ireland, The National Archives, Kew, The Parliamentary Archives, The Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives, and the Imperial War Museum, London. Without their hard work and diligence primary research would not be possible.
Thanks also to the team at Liverpool University Press, most particularly Alison Welsby, an enthusiastic supporter of this project, and the anonymous reviewers for their generous and perceptive comments. Any errors or oversights that appear in these pages are, of course, my own.
Finally, I am grateful to my parents, Jacinta and Seamus, for whom no printed acknowledgments will ever be sufficient. And to Michelle, for making it all so much more enjoyable with her humour, patience, and love.