Border Campaign (Irish Republican Army)

The Border Campaign (December 12th 1956 – February 26th 1962) was a guerrilla warfare campaign (codenamed Operation Harvest) carried out by the Irish Republican Army (IRA) against targets in Northern Ireland, with the aim of overthrowing British rule there and creating a united Ireland.

Popularly referred to as the Border Campaign, it was also referred to as the "Resistance Campaign" by some republican activists. The campaign was a military failure, but for some of its members, the campaign was justified as it had kept the IRA engaged for another generation.

This was the third Irish republican campaign against Northern Ireland. The first took place during the Irish War of Independence, the second took place from 1942–1944, and a fourth was to take place from 1969–1997.

Background

The Border Campaign was the first major military undertaking carried out by the IRA since the 1940s, when the harsh security measures of the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland governments had severely weakened it. In 1939 the IRA tried a bombing campaign in England to try to force British withdrawal from Northern Ireland. From 1942-1944 it also mounted an ineffective campaign in Northern Ireland. Internment on both sides of the border, as well as internal feuding and disputes over future policy, all but destroyed the organisation. These campaigns were officially called off on 10 March 1945. By 1947, the IRA had only 200 activists, according to its own general staff.