The quest for Home Rule and ultimately independence defined Ireland in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. While the British Parliament passed Home Rule in 1914, its implementation was delayed by World War I. For many Irish Republicans, this limited self-government wasn’t enough. The Easter Rising of 1916, though suppressed, and the subsequent execution of its leaders, coupled with the threat of conscription, significantly radicalized Irish nationalism, fueling the rise of Sinn Féin. In the 1918 general election, Sinn Féin’s landslide victory paved the way for the First Dáil in January 1919, declaring an independent Irish Republic. Simultaneously, the Irish Volunteers, or Irish Republican Army (IRA), launched the Irish War of Independence, initially targeting the Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC).
As attacks on the RIC intensified throughout 1919, the British administration moved to outlaw the Dáil. Faced with dwindling morale within the RIC and needing an immediate solution while drafting a new Home Rule Act, the British government initiated a recruitment drive in January 1920. They sought men in British cities willing to undertake “a rough and dangerous task” to bolster the ranks of the RIC in an increasingly hostile Ireland.
Recruitment was successful, particularly among veterans of the First World War. By November 1921, approximately 9,500 men had joined the RIC. This rapid influx created an unexpected problem: a shortage of RIC uniforms. To clothe the new recruits, the British authorities resorted to issuing a mix-and-match ensemble. These men were given khaki army trousers, combined with surplus dark green RIC tunics or blue British police tunics, caps, and belts. This mismatched attire led to their infamous nickname: the Black and Tans (in Irish, na Dúchrónaigh), borrowed from the Scarteen Black and Tan foxhounds of Limerick, known for their similar black and tan coloration. Despite eventually receiving full RIC uniforms, the moniker “Black and Tans” remained indelibly linked to these recruits.
These newly enlisted men underwent a condensed three-month training period before being deployed to RIC barracks, primarily in Dublin, Munster, and eastern Connacht. The first Black and Tans arrived in Ireland on March 25, 1920. Alongside them, the government established the Auxiliary Division, or “Auxiliaries,” composed of former army officers, to further reinforce the constabulary’s efforts against the IRA. The Black and Tans and the Auxiliaries were instrumental in the government’s strategy to suppress the growing Irish insurgency.
The Black and Tans in Action: Policing and Reprisals
The Black and Tans were motivated by a relatively generous wage of 10 shillings a day, along with room and board. Their policing role was broad, encompassing sentry duty, guarding, escorting government officials, augmenting regular police forces, crowd control, and conducting counter-insurgency operations. Under the command of Major-General Sir Henry Hugh Tudor, the police commander, the Black and Tans and Auxiliaries became known derisively as “Tudor’s Toughs.” Republicans viewed them as an occupying force, and their actions quickly cemented a reputation for brutality. As the RIC intensified its campaign against the IRA and Sinn Féin, government-condoned reprisals for IRA attacks became commonplace.
Constable Alexander Will, from Scotland, holds the grim distinction of being the first Black and Tan fatality, killed in an IRA attack on the Rathmore, County Kerry RIC barracks on July 11, 1920.
In the initial months of their deployment, discipline within the Black and Tans was lax. IRA attacks that resulted in Black and Tan deaths often triggered indiscriminate reprisals against the civilian population. The summer of 1920 witnessed widespread arson and looting of Irish towns and villages by the Black and Tans, beginning with Tuam in County Galway in July, and extending to Trim, Balbriggan, Thurles, and Templemore, among many others. In November 1920, Tralee was effectively “besieged” by the Tans as retribution for the IRA’s killing of two RIC officers. Businesses were shut down, food supplies were blocked for a week, and three local civilians were shot dead. On November 14, the Black and Tans kidnapped and murdered Father Michael Griffin, a Catholic priest, in Galway, with his body discovered in a Barna bog a week later. Perhaps the most infamous act was the burning of Cork city center by the Black and Tans on the night of December 11, 1920.
By January 1921, the British Labour Commission issued a scathing report on the situation in Ireland, criticizing the government’s security policies. The report asserted that the government, in creating the Black and Tans, had unleashed forces beyond their control. However, from December 29, 1920, the British government officially sanctioned reprisals in Ireland, typically involving the burning of property belonging to IRA members or suspected sympathizers. This, combined with stricter RIC disciplinary measures, contributed to a decrease in random atrocities committed by the Black and Tans after March 1920, although reprisals were now directed from higher authorities rather than being spontaneous acts of revenge. (See also Chronology of the Irish War of Independence).
It is important to note that while many atrocities are attributed to the Black and Tans, some were likely perpetrated by the more ruthless Auxiliary Division, and others by Irish members of the RIC. For example, the assassination of Tomás Mac Curtain, the Mayor of Cork, in March 1920, was carried out by local RIC officers. The Bloody Sunday massacre at Croke Park, which resulted in the deaths of 13 civilians, was also committed by the RIC, although Auxiliaries were present. Furthermore, the regular British Army also engaged in brutal actions, such as burning the towns of Mallow and Fermoy. However, in the eyes of many Republicans, the term “Black and Tans” became a blanket term encompassing all police and military groups associated with British repression.
The conduct of the Black and Tans sparked outrage in both Ireland and Britain. Their violent methods pushed both sides towards seeking a peaceful resolution. Edward Wood MP, later Foreign Secretary, argued against force and urged the British government to make a generous offer to the Irish. Sir John Simon MP, another future Foreign Secretary, also expressed horror at the tactics being employed. Lionel Curtis, writing in the imperialist journal The Round Table, warned that preserving the British Commonwealth through such means would negate its fundamental principles. Criticism mounted from King George V, senior Anglican bishops, Liberal and Labour MPs, Oswald Mosley, Jan Smuts, the Trades Union Congress, and sections of the press. Mahatma Gandhi commented on the British peace offer, stating that it was “not fear of losing more lives that has compelled a reluctant offer from England but it is the shame of any further imposition of agony upon a people that loves liberty above everything else”.
Approximately 7,000 Black and Tans served in Ireland between 1920 and 1922. A staggering one-third either died or left the service before disbandment with the rest of the RIC in 1922, indicating an exceptionally high attrition rate. Over half received government pensions. Out of 404 Royal Irish Constabulary fatalities during the conflict and over 600 wounded, the exact breakdown between pre-war RIC members, Black and Tans, and Auxiliaries remains unclear.
Reintegrating into civilian life proved challenging for many returning Black and Tans. At least two former members were executed for murder in Britain, and another, wanted for murder, committed suicide to avoid arrest.
Legacy of the Black and Tans and their Uniform
The brutality and atrocities committed by the Black and Tans in Ireland continue to evoke strong emotions. “Black and Tan” or “Tan” remains a deeply pejorative term for the British in Ireland, and they are still widely reviled. Dominic Behan’s iconic Irish Republican song, “Come Out Ye Black and Tans,” stands as a testament to this enduring animosity. The Irish War of Independence is sometimes referred to as the “Tan War” or “Black-and-Tan War,” particularly by those who opposed the Anglo-Irish Treaty during the subsequent Irish Civil War. Interestingly, the “Cogadh na Saoirse” medal, awarded to IRA Volunteers after 1941, features a ribbon with black and tan vertical stripes, a paradoxical acknowledgment of the very forces they fought against.
A Quote Reflecting the Ruthless Mentality
If a police barracks is burned or if the barracks already occupied is not suitable, then the best house in the locality is to be commandeered, the occupants thrown into the gutter. Let them die there—the more the merrier.
Should the order (”Hands Up”) not be immediately obeyed, shoot and shoot with effect. If the persons approaching (a patrol) carry their hands in their pockets, or are in any way suspicious-looking, shoot them down. You may make mistakes occasionally and innocent persons may be shot, but that cannot be helped, and you are bound to get the right parties some time. The more you shoot, the better I will like you, and I assure you no policeman will get into trouble for shooting any man. —Lt. Col. Smyth, June 1920
