Gokhale1

Jamari Gilbert

Professor Pate

World History 4498

Analyzing the Ulster Volunteer Force

Introduction

There is no one who will argue that terrorism is a horrific act of political violence that

can have such a powerful negative effect on people. When terrorist groups engage in violent acts,

they are using this violence to get more attention onto the group and push the group’s ideals.

Violence helps them do this because it gets them publicity and the more people that see it there

are the more people that can potentially be recruited to the cause of the group. Terrorism can be

based on any belief the group is passionate about and wants to see implemented in a country,

whether it be religion or a certain political system. Groups like ISIS and Al-Qaeda are both

religious groups that used terrorism to advance their message. Groups like these are also

strikingly like the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) which is who the research is based on.

The Ulster Volunteer Force or the UVF is a Northern-Irish-based terrorist group that

operated during the Troubles period from the late 1960s to 1998. This group, unlike the IRA

(Irish Republican Army), was loyal to the United Kingdom, and they were one of several groups

that rose to fight the republican groups. Groups like this one were also not afraid of using

violence and terrorism to advance their ideology or to fight back against perceived threats to

their ideology. When looking at terrorist groups like this it is important to know where they
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come from and to look at their attacks to efficiently analyze what they do or who they are. Since

the UVF has taken responsibility for many attacks the research will focus on their most deadly

attack, the 1974 Dublin and Monaghan bombings. It is by researching this attack that one can

make inferences about their motivations and the ideology that they followed. By researching this

attack, and briefly looking at others, it can also be proven that this group was reinvented as a

counter to the rising Irish Republicanism movement and particularly as a counter to the Irish

Republican Army (IRA).

Historical Background

The original UVF was founded in 1912 before the First World War. They were founded

with the intention of blocking the domestic self-government of Ireland, which was a part of the

United Kingdom at the time. This group would become active from 1913 until 1919 and again
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from 1920-1922, as they would carry out several attacks in protest. The version of the 1966 UVF

that the research is based on claims to be descendants of the original UVF however there is not a

lot of evidence to substantiate this claim.

The 1966 version of the UVF would rise during a period called the Troubles. It was a

period of war and violence in the UK (United Kingdom) from the late 1960s to 1998. What

transpired in the Troubles was that Irish nationalists wanted the region of Northern Ireland to be

a part of Ireland to have a United Ireland. These nationalist beliefs would give rise to several

groups like the IRA, and the Irish National Liberation Army who sought to end the UK’s rule

over the Northern Ireland territory. Although this was not a religious war the nationalists would

come to be called Catholics.

On the other side of the conflict were the people who were loyal to the United Kingdom

and wanted Northern Ireland to stay the territory of the United Kingdom. This would cause other

groups to rise to counter the nationalists. Groups like the UDA, Red Hand Commando, and the

UVF sprung up. As was said before although this was not a religious war the people who held

these beliefs would come to be called Protestants as they were from a Protestant area in the UK.

These beliefs would divide the UK and many citizens would have their lives changed as they

knew it.

The Beginning of the UVF

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As was pointed out before, the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) was formed in response to

separate groups like the IRA, and by briefly looking at their other attacks it could be proven that

one of the main motivations of this group would be war with the IRA. One of the first attacks

that can be analyzed is the first attack that they ever did. The attack that the UVF used to

introduce themselves to the people of the UK would be to petrol bomb a pub in Shankill which

was owned by a catholic. They would issue a statement on the 21st of May and this statement

proves the point majorly as the UVF would publicly declare war on the IRA.

“From this day, we declare war against the Irish Republican Army and its splinter groups.

Known IRA men will be executed mercilessly and without hesitation. Less extreme

measures will be taken against anyone sheltering or helping them, but if they persist in

giving them aid, then more extreme methods will be adopted… we solemnly warn the

authorities to make no more speeches of appeasement. We are heavily armed Protestants

dedicated to this cause.”1

From the start, the UVF was a group with multiple goals and purposes, one of the main

purposes being to fight the IRA due to the IRA ‘s terrifying citizens in the Ulster region.

Moreover, the citizens in the Ulster region were wary of the actions taken by then Prime Minister

Terence O’Neil, who seemed like he was colluding with the Irish government.” Three years after

the ending of the I.R.A.’s so-called Border Campaign (1956-1962), many Unionists grew

increasingly opposed to the Northern Ireland Prime Minister Terence O’Neill’s increasing

1
McEnroy, Felix S.C. Rep. COMMISSION of INVESTIGATION into the Dublin and Monaghan

Bombings of 1974 Final Report. Dublin, Ireland: Department of an Taoiseach. , 2007.

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rapprochement with the Dublin Government, which still claimed territorial sovereignty over

Northern Ireland in Articles 2 and 3 of Bunreacht Na Éireann (the Irish Constitution). Also

worrying to many Protestant Unionists was the increasing ecumenical gestures from O’Neill

towards the Catholic Church in Ulster.”2 There is a clear tension between Ulster Unionists and

Irish Nationalists which during the time of the troubles was beginning to spill over.

One of the principal reasons as to why tension began to spill over between the two groups

was that Ulster Unionists felt that there was a difference in the way they were treated versus the

Irish Nationalists.” For the majority of working class Protestants-Unionists growing up in the

forties, the fifties and the sixties, good citizenship was about knowing your place. Those at the

top of the social order were supposed to be our betters - better educated, better mannered, better

bred, better off socially and better off financially.”3 These statements are like statements made by

former Ulster Volunteer Force member, Billy Giles.” To Protestants living in a state that had

been born out of conflict, the IRA remained an ever present threat however distant the reality

may have been” 4

2
Bell, J. Bowyer. In Dubious Battle: The Dublin Bombings, 1972-1974. Dublin, Ireland:

Poolbeg, 1996.

3
Jacobsen, John Kurt, and Sarah Nelson. “Ulster’s Uncertain Defenders: Protestant

Political, Paramilitary, and Community Groups and the Northern Ireland Conflict. by Sarah

Nelson. (Syracuse, N.Y.: Syracuse University Press, 1984. Pp. 219. $32.00.).” American

Political Science Review 79, no. 3 (September 1, 1984): 881–82. doi:10.2307/1956905.

4
Pankhurst, Dale. “‘Mindless Violence’? An Analysis of Loyalist Paramilitarism during the

Troubles: 1966-1979.” Dissertation, Queen’s University-Belfast, 2018.

 Gokhale6

From these statements, an inference can be made for why the UVF was formed from the

beginning it was due to the fear that Ulster citizens had in Northern Ireland coupled with the fact

that the citizens felt they were being treated unfairly. This reasoning is remarkable to other

reasons why terrorist groups form. As Billy made clear in his interview, when the state citizens

become disheveled with the treatment they are receiving, they will often form these groups to

send a message to the government. The UVF also made it clear that this was not only a war

against nationalism but was a war against the IRA. They made this noticeably clear in a

statement released six years prior to the Dublin and Monaghan bombings after an Irish Member

of Parliament began squatting in a house that was given to a Protestant woman.” As and from

Saturday we resume our activities. We are resuming our activities against the IRA and Roman

Catholic extremists because of Mr. Currie's statements at Stormont yesterday and his action in

barricading himself in a house at Caledon today”5 From this statement, it is evident that this

group is going after the IRA and the government that they felt was aiding them.

5
Telegraph, The Belfast. “Mr. Austin Currie Becomes a Squatter.” The Belfast Telegraph.

June 20, 1968.

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The Dublin and Monaghan Bombing

When terrorist groups use violence, it is for a specific reason and for a specific reason.

Often it is because what they want is to get eyes on them as a group and to further their ideals.

They figure the best way to do that is to use violence like bombings which are used because they

get the most attention and can do the most damage in a brief period. However, the UVF, in 1974,

used bombing for a different reason than other groups. The two reasons they used the bombing

were as an attack on the IRA and a means of supporting a protest.

The bombing happened during an event known as the Ulster Workers' Council Strike.

This was an event that set the bombings into motion as the strike was called in opposition to the

Sunningdale Agreement, which was an attempt to establish a power-sharing executive among

other things. Opposition to this agreement was swift as the strikers were opposed to sharing

political power with Irish nationalists. ”The Ulster Workers Council are determined that the

Governmemt shall not ignore the will of the majority of the people as to the form of Goverment

or the Sunningdale Agreement. The attitude of Government has made a nonsense of political

action”6 As the strike went on tensions began to spill over with the bombings taking place three

6
Moving Forward, PUP. Principles of Loyalism An Internal Discussion Paper. Last modified

November 1, 2002. http://pupni.com/assets/images/articles/Principles_of_Loyalism.pdf.

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days into the strike. Investigators have even placed the Sunningdale Agreement as a likely

motive for why the bombing happened. “The manner in which the Sunningdale process was

pushed ahead in the teeth of vehement local opposition greatly inflamed loyalist antipathy

towards their own Government and towards the Republic of Ireland. It was unquestionably the

major catalyst for the Ulster Workers Council strike in May 1974, and most likely also for the

Dublin and Monaghan bombings.”7

The reason there is this much speculation on reasoning is despite the many investigations

done on the bombing and the many reports that have come out since then no one has ever been

arrested and the UVF has never released an official reasoning as to why they did it. The UVF did

release a statement saying that they were responsible for the bombing however that statement

was in response to the suggestion that they had help from British security forces. However, there

is an interview with a former UVF member that helps to suggest how they felt about the

bombing and why they did it.” 'I think certainly there were many within the unionist community

who felt, and I may have felt it too, "Now you know how we feel."” In fact he was only being

brutally honest, as that was how the bombings would have been seen at the time by many

loyalists who had witnessed the IRA wreak havoc in their own areas and kill dozens of their

civilians.”8 From these statements, there is an inference that can be drawn, and it perfectly

7
PRESS STATEMENT THE ULSTER WORKERS FROM COUNCIL. Ulster Worker’s Council, May

15, 1974. Ulster Worker’s Council.

https://cain.ulster.ac.uk/events/uwc/uwc-pdfs/uwcpres.pdf.

8
Taylor, Peter. Loyalists. London, UK: Bloomsbury Paperbacks, 2014.
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proves the above-mentioned point that the Dublin and Monaghan bombing was meant, in large

part, to be an attack on the IRA.

The inference that can be drawn from the statements and evidence presented is that the

UWC strikes presented the perfect opportunity for the Dublin and Monaghan bombings.

Historian J. Bowyer Bell makes this point and even emphasizes how the UVF saw no difference

between the IRA and the government, they saw the government as an ally of the IRA and anyone

that was an ally of the IRA was going to be targeted. ”It was as much as anything the loyalist

perception of Dublin as centre of their own troubles that worried the authorities, for they realised

that the UVF and UDA saw no difference between the IRA and themselves, the Government, the

Irish establishment, nationalists, everyone in the Republic.”9 The idea was that anyone who was

not with them was against them and the UVF saw the bombings as well as supporting the strikes

as a way to send a message to the IRA and to the governments that they saw supporting them.

When looking at the bombing from this point of view, the conclusion that can be drawn is

that this was a group that arose from people who felt oppressed and mistreated for most of their

lives. Ulster Loyalists, for a long time, felt like they did not have much of a choice. From their

point of view, this bombing and the previous attacks were their way of getting payback for all the

years of torture that they had endured. Recalling earlier, how Billy Miles had said that many felt

that war with the IRA might have been an inevitable reality that they had to face because for

years they saw the IRA slaughter their families and torture innocent civilians. Ulster Protestants

had enough and formed the Ulster Defense Association, which Billy’s dad was a part of, and the

UVF.

9
Taylor, Peter. Loyalists. London, UK: Bloomsbury Paperbacks, 2014.
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As can be seen very often with terrorism, this bombing is a result of disheveled and disassociated

civilians rising to take the power that they felt was taken away from them. Many in Ulster

wanted to fight back against the oppressive regime and they felt that paramilitary groups would

be the way to do it. In the minds of these terrorist groups they did not see what they were doing

as senseless violence or oppressing a population in the same way they were oppressed.

Conclusion

In conclusion, while there may not be an official statement from the UVF for why they

carried out the attacks that they did the analysis and points that can be taken from them are solid.

All the evidence points to the Dublin and Monaghan bombing being an act of support for

Unionists and an act of war against the IRA. The UVF is not one of the most known terrorist

organizations in the world however they made a massive impact in the United Kingdom.

Loyalism versus republicanism has been a debate that has been going on in the United Kingdom
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for several decades and The Troubles was the conflict where all the tensions spilled over. As of

today, the UVF has taken on a citizen role and is no longer using violence to advance its cause.

This would be an attempt to legitimize their views in the eyes of the citizens which is going to be

an uphill battle considering the bombings were not that long ago. The citizens who lost their

family members in the bombings would certainly not appreciate the UVF becoming a legitimate

political party in their country.

Primary Sources

PRESS STATEMENT THE ULSTER WORKERS FROM COUNCIL. Ulster Worker’s Council,
May 15, 1974. Ulster Worker’s Council.
https://cain.ulster.ac.uk/events/uwc/uwc-pdfs/uwcpres.pdf.
Telegraph, The Belfast. “Mr Austin Currie Becomes a Squatter.” The Belfast Telegraph. June 20,
1968.
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Secondary Sources

Bell, J. Bowyer. In Dubious Battle: The Dublin Bombings, 1972-1974. Dublin, Ireland: Poolbeg,
1996.
Moving Forward, PUP. Principles of Loyalism An Internal Discussion Paper. Last modified
November 1, 2002. http://pupni.com/assets/images/articles/Principles_of_Loyalism.pdf.
Jacobsen, John Kurt, and Sarah Nelson. “Ulster’s Uncertain Defenders: Protestant Political,
Paramilitary, and Community Groups and the Northern Ireland Conflict. by Sarah Nelson.
(Syracuse, N.Y.: Syracuse University Press, 1984. Pp. 219. $32.00.).” American Political
Science Review 79, no. 3 (September 1, 1984): 881–82. doi:10.2307/1956905.
 Gokhale13

Pankhurst, Dale. “‘Mindless Violence’? An Analysis of Loyalist Paramilitarism during the

Troubles: 1966-1979.” Dissertation, Queen’s University-Belfast, 2018.
Taylor, Peter. Loyalists. London, UK: Bloomsbury Paperbacks, 2014.