On 31 March 1920, the British Parliament approved the Government of Ireland Act, also known as the Fourth Home Rule Bill, which sought to partition Ireland into two separate entities—Northern Ireland and Southern Ireland—each with its own parliament.
Intended as a compromise to address growing nationalist and unionist tensions, the act ultimately failed to resolve the Irish question, as violence escalated during the Irish War of Independence.
The division laid the foundation for the eventual establishment of Northern Ireland and the Irish Free State.
