From May 1922, nationalists in Ireland were overwhelmed by the British partition and formation of the Northern Government. In an attempt to subvert the nationalist economic position, the Minister of Home Affairs, Dawson Bates, imposed martial law over both the rural and urban populace through violence, intimidation and economic sanctions. Three hundred men were arrested within a 24-hour period from midnight on 22 May 1922, almost all were nationalist and pro-Treaty, but with professional and economic status within their communities. Over 900 men and women in the North wre eventually ordered to be detained by James Craig, Prime Minister of Northern Ireland under the Civil Authorities (Special Powers) Act between 1922 and 1925. Using interviews with detainees and their families, their words, writings and drawings, this study sheds light on the two-year ordeal of those interned aboard the prison ship SS Argenta and at Larne Workhouse Camp. Malnourishment, disease, death, physical abuse, public abandonment, hunger strikes, prayer and escape bids shaped their lives.