Ireland coursework-Part AIreland has had a lot of trouble over the years for many reasons causing major publicity internationally
Vicky Shreeve Ireland coursework- Part A Ireland has had a lot of trouble over the years for many reasons causing major publicity internationally. The problems have led to the current situation in Northern Ireland. In this coursework I will be examining what has led to these troubles and what is going on in the present day. Today Ireland is split in half; the South, Eire, is an independent country with its own government, the North, Ulster, is part of the United Kingdom and is ruled by the British government in London. Northern Ireland has suffered much political violence since 1968. The problems are between the Protestants or Unionists who want N.Ireland to remain part of the UK, and the Catholics or Nationalists who want an independent united Ireland. The Catholics are outnumbered in N.Ireland so were discriminated against and so had a general dislike for protestants, to get their views heard they set up the IRA. This is a terrorist organisation that uses violence to protest for what they want; they have killed hundreds of soldiers, police and civilians. Protestants have also set up terror gangs and carried out many killings. In 1994 a ceasefire was agreed on both sides but in 1996 there were IRA bombings in London and Manchester. Despite this in 1998 more talks were held and agreements were made to stop using terrorism to express their views and start using politics by
Causes of conflict in Northern Ireland.
Causes of conflict in Northern Ireland There are many causes of present conflict in Northern Ireland. In the 13th and 14th centuries England took control of Ireland and more specifically Dublin and the pale, we think that this was the first cause of conflict in Ireland which makes it a very important cause, however probably the main cause of conflict is that the British took full control of Ireland in the 16th century and actually occupying Ireland with British Protestant families, this obviously made the Irish Catholics very irritated, it was Elizabeth 1st and James 1st who sent the British army into Ireland. This is definitely a long term cause because it happened over seven hundred years ago. Because the Irish had British armies occupying Ireland for seven hundred years so of course the Irish Catholics hated the British, this again is also one of the most important causes because if the British had not been in Ireland there would be no conflict today. This is a long term cause. In the 1660's Oliver Cromwell massacred Irish Catholics at Drogheda - Wexford and the Irish would not just hate Oliver Cromwell but they would absolutely despise him, so this was an important cause of conflict because of the amount of Irish murdered and it is definitely a long term cause. The British who invaded Ireland were all Protestant after 1530 where as the Irish people were Catholics and
It has proved hard to bring peace to Northern Ireland.
It has proved hard to bring peace to Northern Ireland. There are many factors causing the difficulties. I think some are more important than others are. I think the most important factors are as follows. Religion is a problems because throughout history there have been rivalries between Catholics and Protestants in Northern Ireland. Paramilitaries are a problem because they have a huge amount of control. Difference of opinions between people is a problem because it has been difficult to keep everyone happy. Extremists, to justify their actions, often refer to history. Politics has been a problem because there has not always been a balance of power between people of different opinions. Social groups have caused a problem because they have separated the two different religions and not learnt to compromise and live together in peace. Each factor is complex but proves why it has been difficult to bring peace. Currently, the Good Friday Agreement, set up in 1998, is in action to help keep peace in Northern Ireland. This agreement states, for example, that the Northern Ireland assembly runs Northern Ireland. The Northern Ireland assembly must have an equal number of seats for Unionists and Nationalists, so there are a range of views. This peace process caused problems because the IRA refused to decommission their arms. They use these arms as their power to protect themselves. They
The Irish Republican Army: Before and After 1968
The Irish Republican Army: Before and After 1968 Nationalist terrorist groups are one of the many forms of terrorism found in modern days. The definition of "terrorism" is difficult due to its changing nature and the many forms in which terrorism manifests itself as. Nationalist terrorism is one such form. Nationalist terrorism is seen to be practiced by groups of individuals that belong to an organization with a well-defined structure, together with clear political, social or economic objectives and an ideology behind it. There have been quite a number of nationalist terrorist groups. Some of the more well-known ones include the ETA (Euskadi Ta Askatasuna), one of the world's oldest separatist armed groups seeking an independent socialist Basque state, and the Irish Republican Army (IRA) which would be discussed in more depth in this paper. The IRA has been in existence for decades, during which it has many ups and downs. The main body of this essay would look at the failures of the IRA during its years of campaigns from 1955-62, which had since then gone into demise, re-emerging again in1969 only to get involved in another wave of violence. The second section would hence look at the events of 1968-69 in Ireland and explain why the there had been a resurgence of IRA violence during that period. Like any active movements in the world, the IRA has its own ideological
Describe and explain Unionist reactions to the Good Friday Agreement of 1998
e) Describe and explain Unionist reactions to the Good Friday Agreement of 1998 During the 1880's, the Catholic Church tried to make Sinn Fein look for a peaceful settlement. In the late 1980's, the SDLP and Sinn Fein tried to find a way forward by starting talks. At this time, the British government decided that peace could only be accomplished by getting all political parties and interests involved. The Northern Ireland Secretary, Peter Brooke, tried to involve the IRA and its political voice, Sinn Fein, in the talks. Peter Brooke also said that Northern Ireland had no economic or strategic value to Britain. If at any time the majority of people in the north wanted to be part of a united Ireland, Britain would not stand in their way. At the same time, the President of the USA, Bill Clinton, was also very supportive of a way forward to a peaceful solution. During all these events the violence in Northern Ireland continued. Talks between the Southern Irish and the British governments led to the Downing Street Declaration in 1993, where both sides showed a motivation to look for a peaceful solution to the problems. In April 1994, the IRA declared a ceasefire in response. However, the talks on how Northern Ireland should be run did not move forward quickly (this was partly because the IRA refused to be disarmed). The frustration grew and the ceasefire was called to and end in
Explain why the civil rights movement of the 1960's led to the outbreak of violence in 1968/69. Northern Ireland.
History c/wk Explain why the civil rights movement of the 1960's led to the outbreak of violence in 1968/69. The civil rights movement started because the Catholics felt as though they were discriminated against. This is because Protestants get the best jobs, the policeforce is biased against Catholics, many Catholics could not get a vote, elections were being gerrymandered, Catholics live in the worst houses, new council houses are always given to Protestants first and the Northern Ireland government always has a Protestant majority. For these reasons Catholics felt they were second class citizens and ever since partition they have been under the rule of Protestant governments. They aimed to have equal rights and wanted to achieve this by having peaceful marches. I do not think that the civil rights marchers really believed that their marches would be non violent because they intended to march through Protestant areas which would evidently aggravate Protestants, and especially extremists like Ian Paisley. Whenever Ian Paisley saw some peace arising, he stirred it up again. For example when Terrance O Neil shook hands with a man from the Republic of Ireland and when Protestant churches started talking to Catholic churches saying that they should have mixed churches. The people opposed to the civil rights movement were the Protestants because they were loyalists i.e.
Do you agree that the most difficult problem that led to the conflict between the Catholics and the Protestants is the lack of social interaction?
SEQ on Northern Ireland Do you agree that the most difficult problem that led to the conflict between the Catholics and the Protestants is the lack of social interaction? EYA. [12m] Introduction The Protestants and Catholics have been in conflict with each other since the later part of the 17th century. There are several reasons which contributed to the conflict. (P.E.E.L given factor) I agree that one of the most difficult problems that led to the conflict between the Catholic and the Protestants is the lack of social interaction. (Point) The lack of social interaction among the Catholics and Protestants was due to the different education systems. In Northern Ireland, the Catholics and the Protestants attended public schools where they were taught British History, sports and British loyalty. Meanwhile the Catholic children attended private schools where they were taught Irish history, sport and culture. (Example) Thus, the separation of these two groups of children from young meant the lack of fostering of greater understanding between the two groups. Generations of children grew up not knowing each other and to be distrustful of each other. This created further hostility and distrust and contributed to the conflict between the Protestants and Catholics. (Explanation) Therefore the most difficult problem that led to the conflict between the Catholic and the
Why were British troops sent into Northern Ireland in 1969? (15 Marks) There has been a history of violence between Catholics and Protestants over
Why were British troops sent into Northern Ireland in 1969? (15 Marks) There has been a history of violence between Catholics and Protestants over a long period of time. These being long, short and medium term causes. Historical events in Irish history have played a big part in Ireland today creating difficulties and increased tension. These difficulties increased in the period between 1968-69. The problems in Ireland between Catholics and Protestants stem back from the late 700s onwards. Irish people fought against Viking invaders, and in the twelfth century, Irish chieftains fought against Norman adventurers looking to carve out estates for themselves in Ireland. From the middle Ages, the English monarch governed Ireland but its authority wasn't great. In the sixteenth and seventieth centuries, there were major conflicts between Irish lords and English monarchs trying to gain more control of Ireland. Critics (Protestants) said that the church was out of touch with the lives of ordinary people. At this time Ireland was strongly Catholic and England was Protestant as King Henry 8th broke away from the pope. In 1602 the English Queen Elizabeth 1st brought Ireland under English control. But was succeeded by James 1st in 1603 and to keep control of Ireland he began the 'Plantation' of Ulster. This involved planting Protestants from England and Scotland, loyal to the English
The build up to Bloody Sunday, and why it happened.
The build up to Bloody Sunday, and why it happened. On Saturday 5 October 1968 a civil rights march was organised, but it was stopped before it had really begun by the Royal Ulster Constabulary. The RUC broke up the march by using batons, which left many members of the march severely injured. Broadcasters around the world were filming this incident. The incidents in Derry had a big effect on many people around the world but particularly on the Catholic population of Northern Ireland. For two days after this march there was serious rioting between the Catholics and the RUC. In the following January there were many civil rights marches with increasing violence brought about by over policeing and confrontations between them and loyalist crowds. On 25 April 1969 following a bombing campaign by Loyalists extremists, 500 additional British troops were sent to Northern Ireland. A few months later on the 12th August 1969 as the Apprentice boys passed near the Bogside area a serious riot erupted. The RUC got involved to try and stop the riot by using water cannons and armoured cars. They were closely followed by a loyalist crowd. The people who lived on the Bogside forced the RUC and loyalists out of the area. Once being pushed out of the Bogside the RUC used CS gas to again enter the area. (This was to become known as the battle of the Bogside, which lasted for two days). On the 13th
In this essay I am going to try and decide whether the cause of the Northern Island troubles were long term or short term.
In this essay I am going to try and decide whether the cause of the Northern Island troubles were long term or short term. Some people believe that the troubles in Northern Ireland began hundreds of years ago - that the current conflict was started by religious differences and has continued to the present day. The other viewpoint is that the disturbance today only began when tensions started building at the time of the Civil Rights movements/marches during the 1960s. This viewpoint claims that earlier events had no bearing on the struggles of today, they were simply used to make a point of whom out of the Nationalist or the Unionists were right. View One Many people believe that the conflict really began in the 1530s when Henry VIII broke away from the Roman Catholic Church and set up his own Protestant Church in England. Although Protestantism was now the major religion in England most of the Irish people remained Catholic, so Henry declared himself King of Ireland. He tried to anglicise the Irish so they would no longer appear against the English. This could be a major religious cause as it created the two separate groups of people in the first place - making it an important factor in bringing about the difficulties. Catholics could feel like they were alienated from the start - and the fact that King Henry just declared himself king of Ireland could strengthen some
