No victim jammed between two gunmen in a death car with pistols prodding his ribs ever felt more conscious of his position than did Eamon de Valera last week.
"Britain is to invade Eire through Ulster," blared the German radio incessantly, adding: "In such event, Berlin is determined to react in the same manner as in the case of Norway and Belgium." Britain, with approximately 300,000 troops massed in Ulster, was poised to march into Eire, but only after the first Irish shot had been fired at a German.
Military observers believed that Hitler could gain a cheaper victory by invading Eire...