Limerick Soviet
The Limerick Soviet describes the period from April 15 to April 27, 1919, during which the western Irish city of Limerick was under self-government . Another name is the "Limerick General Strike".
The starting point was a declaration by the British government to declare the city of Limerick and large parts of the county a Special Military Area . In order to be allowed to enter and leave the city, a special permit was required, which was issued by the Royal Irish Constabulary , administered by the Irish police . This was a severe limitation for many workers who went to Limerick to work every day. Many saw this as just further humiliation and harassment of the hated British government.
In response, a general strike and a boycott of the British Army were called. In the course of the strike, factories were occupied by workers (especially food factories such as bakeries). A strike committee organized the administration, especially the distribution of food. Own money and newspapers were printed.
After the British army aggravated the situation, the strike administration called on April 27, 1919 to continue the strike, but to give up the boycott whenever there was a direct confrontation with the British occupying forces. With that the Limerick Soviet came to an end.
The Limerick Soviet got the world's attention because there happened to be foreign journalists in the city who wanted to attend an east-west Atlantic crossing in an airplane, and one of them invented the term.