21st - 24th July 1914
Buckingham Palace Conference
The Home Rule Bill passed the Commons for the third time on the 25th May 1914 and only required royal assent to become law. However the issue of the exclusion of the Northern counties was still unresolved.
Sir Edward Carson, leader of the Ulster Unionists, wanted the exclusion of the whole of Ulster, while other Unionists and the King wanted to exclude only the six north-eastern counties. Nationalists fought against any exclusion.
George V called an interparty conference at Buckingham Palace to negotiate the exclusion of Ulster counties. After four days of discussing maps and figures the talks broke down on the 24th July without an agreement.
