People of Ulster fought strongly to prevent Home Rule. Whilst attention had been focused on the fate of Home Rule the Ulster opinion had been hardening into die-hard resistance well before the introduction of the Bill and, in Sir Edward Carson, it had found an able and articulate leader. They resisted heavily to Home Rule through the “Solemn League and covenant”, where 470,000 people’s signatories pledged themselves to resist a Home Rule Parliament in Ireland should ever one be set up, some even signed in their own blood. Not only this but the Ulster Volunteer force was set up and soon numbered 100,000 men. Both these two actions by the Ulster Unionists put pressure on the government not to be establish Home Rule. The creation of this force caused a counterpart organisation, the Irish National Volunteers, to be set up. These two forces increased the chances of a civil war, thus this caused the Government in England to become indecisive. If they passed the Bill the Ulster Volunteer force would resort to violence and vice versa, if Home Rule was not passed the Irish National Volunteer force would descend to violence. This meant it became more difficult for the Liberal government to establish Home Rule. Not only this but Catholics in Ulster revived the Orange Order and it became a focal point for Protestant Unionist disaffection and for agitation against Home Rule. This shows that Catholics would fight against any takeover from Protestants and that included Home Rule, thus slowing the process of Home Rule, by increasing resistance to it.
The Ulster Unionist became stronger with the support from conservative party. The conservatives had a strong influence in the House of Lords which heavily prevented the Bill from being passed. At the Blenheim Palace Rally Andrew Bonar Law said, “I can imagine no length to which the people of Ulster will not go in which they will not be supported by the vast majority of the British People”. This clearly shows an unlimited pledge from the conservatives to Ulster and implied that even through violence they would support them. This support clearly shows that the conservatives would fight heavily against any type of Home Rule. In order to “kill Home Rule with kindness” the Conservative Government of Lord Salisbury followed a policy of allowing loans to tenant farmers who wished to buy out their landlords. This meant that the hated “absentee” landlords disappeared and a new class of conservative-minded Catholic farmers emerged. Therefore this meant that there would be more opponents against the Home Rule thus putting more pressure on the government to pass it and providing less support for it being passed through parliament thus slowing the bill down through Parliament. This meant the conservative government made it more difficult for the Liberals to establish Home Rule.
Between 1880 and 1891 Irish politics was dominated by Charles Stewart Parnell. However Parnell was a controversial figure and his involvement with a married women ending in a scandalous divorce lead the party to split. Parnell died before the dispute could resolved. In 1895 many Irishmen had lost interest in politics because the Irish National Party seemed to be a waste of time as it appeared more interested in its internal division that in representing Ireland at Westminster. This lack of interest in Irish politics meant less backing for Home Rule so the bill was less likely to pass through parliament because there was less support for it from southern Ireland.
The problems which faced the establishment of Home Rule were not able to be resolved via military force. The British army based in Ireland at Curragh was 1000 men strong. However, the Ulster volunteer force totalled 23,000. Officers born in Ulster were told they could “disappear” as the government worried about their loyalty. British officers informed the troops that they would be court martialled if they resisted to fight and 50 other officers said they would resign rather than fight their own countrymen. Asquith's Liberal government backed down, claiming an "honest misunderstanding," and the men were reinstated. The War Office in London declared that the army would not be used to enforce the Home Rule Act, but the men who issued this statement were later forced to resign. The event contributed to Unionist confidence and this Unionist confidence meant that they were more prepared to resist the establishment of Home Rule The military solution to the factors preventing Home Rule was explored however it was impossible to diffuse these private armed by force because of the mishandling of the Curragh Mutiny.
In conclusion the Curragh Mutiny did close any military solution for the resistance of Home Rule and it did increase the confidence of the Unionists. However it was more so the House of Lords, conservatives and Ulster Unionists who played a more major role in preventing establishment of the Home Rule bill. Although there was a lack of interest in Irish politics due to the Parnell scandal, it was mainly because the House of Lords which was made up of mainly conservative peers and the conservative support for Ulster which joins these three organisations together, and I believe it was these organisations that acted as the force pushing against the motion of Home Rule through parliament.
