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Prime minister De Valera's policy of neutrality for the Irish Republic during WW2 was very heavily supported by the general population with perhaps only James Dillon who became leader of the Fine Gael party suggesting we should take on the Nazis. It was a very practical neutrality as we were neutral on the allies side eg allied airmen who came down in the Republic were save for a token few sent back across the border, whereas Nazi airmen were interned in very benign surroundings. Also the Dublin fire brigade was immediately sent up to Belfast when it was bombed during the Blitz to assist the local services. Also many Irish men faught for the allies and Irish people went to Britain to work during the war.The IRA however made contacts with the Nazis under the old Republican maxims of 1 England's misfortune is Ireland's opportunity and 2 the bizarre one of The enemy of my enemy is my friend. Indeed celebrated IRA man Frank Ryan who had been interned by Franco during the Spanish Civil War as a prominent Brigadist eventually ended up very friendly with the Nazis to cause devilment.
De Valera always maintained nothing could be worse than British imperialism but was forced to conceed Nazism certainly was in the end. He also believed at the start of the conflict the Nazis would win hence part of his neutral stance.
I reckon an Ireland on the Allied side as it would most definitely have been, could have actually prolonged the war as The RAF would have to divert resources to protect the Irish coast, with The Irish having very little air defences. One positive from an Irish point of view would be more than just a token amount of money from the Marshall plan post WW2. Also a large prescence of US forces here would perhaps have modernised the Irish state faster. Would it have led to a unitary Irish State ?- probably not!
Our stance really annoyed Churchill, also the US envoy and De Valera did not get on at all, leading to Dev visting the German embassy in Dublin to offer the condolences of the Irish people against all sane advice when Hitler killed himself!
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