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The Rest Is History

581. The Irish Civil War: The Killing of Michael Collins (Part 2)

July 9, 2025·45m

After the assassination of Sir Henry Wilson and the signing of the polarising Anglo-Irish Treaty, how did the bombastic Battle of the Four Courts break out in Dublin? With British guns opening fire on the building, how long did the men of the IRA hold out? What was the outcome of the battle? With the IRA split, were more people for or against the Anglo-Irish treaty? Was Michael Collins trying to bring the war to a close by this point? Why were he and Éamon de Valera so opposed? How was Michael Collins killed in 1922, and why? Who killed him? And, how significant was this for the future of Ireland? To end their mighty series on the Irish Civil War, Dominic and Tom are joined once more by historian Ronan McGreevy, to discuss the dramatic Battle of Dublin, the death of Michael Collins, and the fate of Ireland in that cataclysmic conflict.