WICKLOW COUNTY
WICKLOW COUNT Y
– James Scannell
Restricting motoring in Ireland 1918–21
Morris Cars on sale in the 1920s Photo: By kind permission of the National Library of Ireland
Permits required In October 1918, as political unrest swept the country, the Dublin Castle authorities introduced ‘Defence of the Realm Regulation 9AA’, under which owners of motorcycles in Ireland, other than serving members of H.M. Forces or the Royal Irish Constabulary or the Dublin Metropolitan Police, were required to hold a permit from the competent naval or military authority, or from the chief police officer of the district in which the motorcyclist resided, and had to produce this when stopped. In November 1919, this permit requirement was extended to owners of motor cars. Wicklow Council strongly opposed the new restrictions, and in January 1920, protest pickets resulted in long delays on the roads.
Military courts and further restrictions In August 1920, following the collapse of law and order in Ireland, the British government enacted the ‘Restoration of Order in Ireland Act, 1920’, which
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