History Glossary

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Veto
the power of rejecting a piece of legislation. The House of Lords could veto legislation coming from the House of Commons until the Parliament Act of 1911 which stated that: money Bills could not be discusses in the Lords; and other Bills could only be delayed for three parliamentary sessions and not vetoed.

Victoria Cross
the highest military award for bravery in the United Kingdom. The medals were struck from bronze obtained from guns captured in the Crimean War (1854-56).

Volunteers
the Ulster Volunteer Force was formed in January 1913 to prevent the introduction of Home Rule, and the Irish Volunteerswere formed in November 1913 to defend Home Rule. When war broke out in 1914 the UVF joined the 36th (Ulster) Division and the Irish Volunteers split: 11,000 (still calling themselves the Irish Volunteers) refused to support the war; and 170,000 (now calling themselves the Irish National Volunteers) supported Britain in the war. Some Irish Volunteers took part in the 1916 rebellion and in 1920 the Irish Volunteers took the name, the Irish Republican Army.