Letter from Hugh de Fellenberg Montgomery to W. G. Vance, 13 June 1916

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Letter from Hugh de Fellenberg Montgomery to W. G. Vance, 13 June 1916

1 Copy 13th June, 1916.
Dear Sir, I am very glad to hear that the British Farmers, Red
Cross Fund has reached such a good figure. I should be glad
to do anything I could to raise a further contribution in this
district, but at present the country is in such a ferment over
the extraordinary proposal of the Government to bring the Home
Rule Act into immediate operation apparently as a reward for
Rebellion, that it would be impossible at this moment to get
a second sale organised. I hope if things settle down that we
might manage something later on. A further difficulty arises from the circumstances that
at the present moment a large sum is being raised here to provide
adequate pensions, etc for the wounded and the relicts of the
Ulster Division.
In connection with the last sale we got hardly any
help from Roman Catholics in this neighbourhood. They would
be still less inclined to help now, and I fear the Protestants
could not be got to do as much as they did then. Yours faithfully, W. G. Vance, Esq.

This is a letter from Hugh de Fellenberg Montgomery (1844-1924), Unionist and Liberal, to W. G. Vance. Originally a Liberal and a strong supporter of Gladstone, Montgomery was also a firm Unionist, but by 1916 he believed that Ulster Unionists had no choice but to accept Lloyd George's proposal for a six-county Northern Ireland. The letter discusses a British farmers' and Red Cross fund of which Montgomery states he is glad to learn has reached a good figure. Montgomery goes on to discuss the political situation in Ulster regarding Home Rule, stating that Home Rule is being given as a reward for rebellion. The letter also states that there may be difficulties in raising money for the fund due to raising of money in the area for pensions for injured members of the Ulster Division. The letter ends stating that there was very little support for the fund by Roman Catholics who are even less likely to help now.

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How to cite

Letters 1916, published by the Austrian Centre for Digital Humanities, Vienna, 2026 (https://letters1916static.github.io/letters1916-static/item__2236.html)