Memorandum from Joseph P. Walshe to Eamon de Valera (Dublin)

Taoiseach, Minister for External Affairs.

1. An Inter-Departmental Committee is preparing a list of foodstuffs (and some clothing) which could be made available for the relief of Continental distress. This list will, I hope, be ready for submission to you at the end of the week. It will be suggested that the list should be published with a statement that the Irish Government are prepared to give the food and clothing listed for the relief of starving Europe, provided transport can be obtained.

2. Every scheme initiated here, whether by the Government or by the Red Cross, for sending food to Europe has broken down through failure to obtain transport. The quantities of food actually transmitted to the Vatican and to the refugee camp in Spain were almost too small to be worth mentioning.

3. Two schemes are being worked out at the present moment, the first to send a hospital unit to France, and the second to receive children refugees from Holland and to send food to that country. The exploratory visit of a Red Cross mission to France is almost terminated. They have already been assured that the medical supplies offered will be accepted and a ship found to transfer them to France. The question of participation by Irish personnel in hospital work in France is not yet finally decided. The Dutch Government are considering the possibility of getting food from Ireland and of sending groups of Dutch children to this country. They have suggested that a Dutchman living in Ireland should make an early visit to Holland. I hope to be able to report within a few days that this latter point has been finally settled. The visit, in the mind of the Dutch Government, is a necessary preliminary to the provision of any kind of relief by Ireland to Holland.

4. The following is the story of the relief actually given and of the offers of relief which could not be realised:-

a) 22 January, 1943. Belgium & Greece
Replying to an offer made to the British Government to send a consignment of foodstuffs to Belgium or Greece, the British Government replied that they were opposed on principle to any shipments through the blockade, since the obligation of feeding occupied territories lay with the occupying Power. The Belgian situation was not so bad. They had made an exception for Greece owing to the specially bad conditions there. The Swedes were bringing two ships of food from Canada to Greece per month, and no shipments from other sources could be allowed. In January, 1944, a further request for permission to send food to Greece was made to the Dominions Office and the reply was received that the position was unchanged.

b) May, 1943. Spain
The following supplies were sent in an Irish ship to Lisbon for transmission to the Spanish Red Cross for the relief of refugees:-

1,000 blankets
100 tons of sugar
52 tons of potatoes
5 tons of milk powder
10 tons of dried peas

c) February, 1945. Vatican
5 tons of concentrated food for local relief sent to Vatican and received in March. Cost £500.

d) August, 1943. Great Britain – Ambulance Units
An offer of two ambulance units to work amongst the civilian population on the Continent was made to the British Government. They replied on the 3rd September, 1943, that the situation was not sufficiently clear and that the first call would be on British voluntary societies. In the circumstances, therefore, ‘it would not be fair to ask the Irish Red Cross to undertake such arrangements’.

e) February, 1944. Children Refugees
The American Minister was informed, in reply to an enquiry, that the Irish Government and the Red Cross would be ready to receive 500 Jewish children from the Continent.¹

In April, 1944, an offer was made to the French Red Cross, through the International Red Cross, to take French children.

The French authorities subsequently decided to look after all French children in France, and nothing further has been heard from the American Government about the Jewish children.

5. Since the French and Dutch authorities appear to be quite sanguine about getting shipping for transport out of the Allied shipping pool for the purpose of taking food from Ireland, it would probably be safe to calculate that we shall be allowed fairly soon to send supplies to these two countries. Food is at present being sent from the United States and from British reserves to the Continent. Any contribution we can make will naturally appear exceedingly small in comparison with the British and American contribution, and neither of the two principal Allied governments is likely to have the same political reasons for putting obstacles in our way as they had before their own food relief system was set in motion.

6. Financial Grants

GRANTS FOR RELIEF MADE ABROAD TO THE 24/4/45
TOTALS

	£	s	d
Grants made for relief in Europe	137,350.	0.	0.
Grants made for relief to countries outside Europe	110,685.	0.	0.
	248,035.	0.	0.

LIST OF GRANTS MADE FOR RELIEF IN EUROPEAN COUNTRIES

		£	s	d	£	s	d
1940	Finnish Red Cross:	2,000.	0.	0.
	Hungarian Red Cross for Polish refugees in Hungary:	500.	0.	0.
	Turkish Red Crescent, towards relief of distress following earthquake in Anatolia:	500.	0.	0.
	International Red Cross, Geneva, on behalf of French refugees:	1,000.	0.	0.
	British Red Cross:	1,000.	0.	0.
	International Red Cross, Geneva, for Greece:	500.	0.	0.	5,500.	0.	0.
1941	International Red Cross, Geneva (budget):	200.	0.	0.
	Ulster Joint Committee, British Red Cross (Belfast Bombing Relief):	1,000.	0.	0.	1,200.	0.	0.
1942	British Red Cross for parcels for French Prisoners of war:	50.	0.	0.
	International Red Cross for Italian Prisoners of War in England:	150.	0.	0.
	Christmas parcels for British and German Internees in Ireland:	50.	0.	0.
	Serbian Prisoners of War in Germany & Italy (Food parcels):	700.	0.	0.
	Polish Red Cross for parcels for Polish Prisoners of war:	50.	0.	0.
	International Red Cross Committee, Geneva (budget):	500.	0.	0.
	League of Red Cross Societies, (budget):	50.	0.	0.	1,550.	0.	0.
1943	Spanish Red Cross, shipment of food & clothing for refugees:	10,000.	0.	0.
	Polish Prisoners of war, parcels	600.	0.	0.
	League of Red Cross Societies, Geneva, (budget):	500.	0.	0.	11,100.	0.	0.
1944	International Red Cross, for relief of suffering Greece, Croatia, Albania:	5,000.	0.	0.
	Polish Red Cross for distress in Poland:	10,000.	0.	0.
	French Red Cross:	1,000.	0.	0.
	Vatican Medical Relief Fund for Refugees:	500.	0.	0.
	International Red Cross, Geneva (budget):	500.	0.	0.
	League of Red Cross Societies, Geneva (budget):	500.	0.	0.
	Vatican for relief of war distress in Italy:	100,000.	0.	0.	117,500.	0.	0.
1945	League of Red Cross Societies, Geneva:	500.	0.	0.	137,350.	0.	0.
	GRANTS MADE OUTSIDE EUROPE
1940	China, for relief of distress	500.	0.	0.
1941	Nil
1942	Needy Irish Citizens in Hong Kong, China:	1,000.	0.	0.
1943	Relief of distress, Chungking, China:	500.	0.	0.
	Needy Irish Citizens in Shanghai:	685.	0.	0.
	"         "         "          "         " :	500.	0.	0.
	"         "         "          "  Hong Kong:	1,000.	0.	0.
	Indian Red Cross (Government Grant):	100,000.	0.	0.
	Indian Red Cross:	2,000.	0.	0.
1944	Needy Irish Citizens in Hong Kong:	1,000.	0.	0.
	"         "         "          "  Shanghai:	500.	0.	0.
		£107,685.	0.	0.
1945	"         "         "          "  Hong Kong:	1,000.	0.	0.
	"         "         "          "  Shanghai:	1,000.	0.	0.
	"         "         "          "           ":	1,000.	0.	0.
		£110,685.	0.	0.