The Treaty

In October 1921, a delegation of the Dáil left by boat and train for London, where they were to negotiate with the British government for peace, unity and a republic. They came back with just one of those; and that peace didn’t last long, as war with Britain was replaced by war with their own.

Were the Irish outclassed or outgunned? Were they lied to? Did they lie to their own colleagues back in Dublin? Or did they achieve the best that could be achieved, an incremental step on the way to fuller sovereignty?

The Treaty tells the story of what happened inside those negotiations, as Arthur Griffith, Michael Collins and colleagues faced off against one of the most formidable negotiating teams ever assembled, headed by David Lloyd George and with Winston Churchill often at his side.

This edition is published to coincide with Fishamble’s production in November 2021.

Colin Murphy has written for stage, television, film and radio, and has been nominated for an Irish Theatre Award, an Irish Film and Television Academy award and a Celtic Media Award; his radio documentaries have received a Prix Marulic silver award and a New York Festivals bronze award. With Fishamble Theatre Company, he has written a series of political documentary dramas, two of which, Guaranteed! and Haughey/Gregory, are published by Methuen Drama. He writes a weekly column for the Sunday Business Post.