Why Conflict Is Northern Ireland Be Important Today?

Why the British Troops Were Sent into Northern Ireland in 1969 In 1969 British Troops were sent into Ireland because Irish police could no longer cope with the violence between the Unionist Protestant population and the Catholic Nationist population. The events that meant it was necessary for British troops to be sent in stretch back a long way. This essay presents the main long term and short term explanations as to why troops were needed.

Eventually, Scottish settlers began to come in large numbers to Ulster in the early decades of the 1600’s. James I, the English monarch, sought to solidify control by transferring land ownership to Protestants and by settling their lands with Protestant tenants (English and Scottish). Scottish settlers continued to come to Ireland throughout the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Scots-Irish immigrants settled in the American colonies during the 1600’s. However, the first major migration of Scots-Irish to America was a group that came with Rev. James McGregor from County Londonderry to New England in 1718. They arrived at Boston, and many of them moved to New Hampshire, establishing the town of

Anglo-Norman invaders arrived in Ireland in 1169, attempting to colonize the island over the next 500 years. The invaders began to expand their influence across the island by means of force. These attacks caused rebellions from the Irish people, as they were no strangers to aggression from the East. “Religious persecution of Catholic Irish grew – in particular after the accession of Elizabeth I, a Protestant, to the throne in 1558. Oliver Cromwell's subsequent siege of Ireland in 1649 ended with massacres of Catholics at Drogheda and Wexford and forced the resettlement of thousands, many of whom lost their homes in the struggle. By 1691, with the victory of Protestant English King William III over the Catholic forces of James II, Protestant supremacy in Ireland had become complete. Catholics in Ireland suffered greatly in the subsequent period of British occupation, enduring laws that prevented them from bearing arms, holding public office and restricting their rights to an education. While many of those rights were eventually restored, the animosity between Catholics and Protestants remained.” (Washington Post, 1999).

One of William early supporters, thanks to his father, was King Henry I of France and throughout his early life he had many guardians, who all died and didn’t last long. William was knighted at the age of fifteen by the king and according to one of his biography’s it “marked a turning point in favor of a strong ducal power; the 15-year-old William determined to play a more prominent role in Norman affairs” (4). By the time William was nineteen he faced his strongest challenge in 1046, when his cousin Guy of Burgundy, with the support of several lords, lead a rebellion in an attempt to depose William and take control. Eventually William proved victorious and with the help of King Henry I of France he defeated Guy and his army at the Battle of Val-ès- Dunes near Caen. This battle not only established William authority and control over Normandy, but it allowed William to demonstrate his power as a warrior for the first time.

Violence, terror, suffering and death. The conflict that has been burning in Northern Ireland seems to be an unstoppable battle and it has flooded over the land of Northern Ireland. The struggle for power and the persistence of greed have fueled the raging fires of the opposing groups. The conflict in Northern Ireland has been discussed continually over the past few decades. Ever since the beginning of the “Troubles,” organizations have been scavenging to find a plan that will cease the violence. Throughout my research for this project, the questions of what are the main sources of conflict in Northern Ireland and why have they continued today guided me to many fascinating pieces of evidence that

On July 1 1690, William of Orange and James II led their respective armies into battle at the River Boyne. James II was a Catholic king who gained power in England after King Charles II died in 1685. Many of James’ opponents were Protestant, and they were strongly against the Catholic monarch. James’ daughter, Mary, was married to William of Orange, and she was Protestant. For many years, Mary was James’ only child. This meant that if James II died, she would take the throne. This brought great comfort to the Protestant groups in Ireland, as their ruler would no longer be Catholic. However, when James’ wife had a son, the crown would be passed to him, and England would have another Catholic monarch. This caused panic and outrage from James’ Protestant opponents, which led them to invite William of Orange to invade England and overthrow James II (BBC: Battle of the Boyne).

With troops supplied by the catholic king Louis XIV of France, James landed in Ireland in March of 1689. Louis had been Williams sworn enemy. James saw Ireland as a way to regain his crown by invading England.

During the Protestant Reformation official church of Scotland became Presbyterianism and the Protestant-Catholic tension from the Protestant Reformation carried into the seventeenth century and the Scottish Enlightenment (“Church of Scotland”) (Wolffe 6). In addition to the Protestant Reformation, in Great Britain there was a violent political/religious conflict that broke out between a group of rebels called the Jacobites and the English military (Jarrells). The Jacobites were composed of primarily a group of Catholics from the Highlands of Scotland. The opposition to the Jacobites contained many Protestants and so the Catholic versus Protestant mentality carried into the political realm.The events leading up to this conflict were centered around the replacement of the Catholic monarch, King James II with his Protestant son-in-law

Northern Ireland has had a long and hard history with violence and oppression. For generations the people of Ireland have been at war with them selves, this has caused lots of damage to the overall health of Ireland. The violence now is at an all time low, meaning that this is the ideal time for Ireland to look at what harm, both mental and physical, the years of violence has caused. The Irish people have always been known as drinkers of alcohol, this has been one of the substances that people have been using to self medicate in Ireland for generations. There is also a large issue with hard drugs in Northern Ireland, this has become a huge issue that Ireland has not seemed to do be able to do anything about. Ireland has a large drug issue that stems from years of violence and mayhem, this drug problem only causes more violence of its own. Ireland cannot move towards a more lasting peace until they do all that is in their power to stop the rampant drug abuse that is in their country.

This subject is one that is mirrored in both social and political tensions. It is not a simple as whether or not Ireland was a willing participant in the colonizing, but also a reflection on the methods and motivation of

Connolly presents an extensive account of historical, economic and social change in Ireland during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries and yet Barnard’s could be described as not more hopefully optimistic, but more surely directed at the British strives for improvements rather than than the tumultuous religious, economic and social conflict. Rather than the analyzation of the workings of individuals singularly or compilation of prior works of Irish writings, Connolly collectively delivers a more pessimistic and yet deliberate viewpoint about the complexities of Irish reform through primary and secondary sources. Yet both Connolly and Barnard could assert the notion that “The replacement of Gaelic lords with New English lords equally meant that continuing differences in customs..were the despised customs of a lower class.. As woods were cleared, roads built and cultivation intensified, protestant interests were at last secure, bringing with it rapid and tangible progress towards civility and prosperity.” (Connolly 168) Although there is some allusion to doubt whether or not the English were successful in transforming Ireland into what Barnard claims as an “english replica,” both Connolly and Barnard assert the fact that with English protestant interference progress in Ireland was achieved, despite the chaos inflicted.

While the common people may have been the first to be happy to see William the ‘leaders’ soon followed. Thus we can see while the upper classes may have been behind all the organization of the revolution they were not the only one who were in full support of it, everyone wanted this uprising and felt that the king was tyrannical. As William rode on and his support became more and more obvious from all classes many from the upper classes decided to follow his small army of 12,000, helping it grow. (Trevelyan p. 54-60) James now totally aware of the situation began to have multiple fears plaguing him as he fled to London and his army resentful of him eventually began to join the side of William. As William takes control James, at the end of his mental

In 1968, the Northern Ireland parliament had been dominated by unionists for over fifty years. Its attempts to solve social and political ills, such as institutional discrimination against Catholics, were too slow for nationalists and republicans and too quick for many unionists. This gave rise to growing tension and violence between the two communities (www.bbc.co.uk). It included an armed insurgency against the state some forms of the Catholic or nationalist population, which mainly were the Irish Republican Army (IRA), though it also included other republican factions, with the idea focused on creating a united independent Ireland (Dorney, 2015). The Ira were in constant battle with forces of the state.

For over 300 years Great Britain controlled Ireland as part of its vast empire. It was not until 1922 when Ireland gained its independence that the violent and oppressive relationship between the two nations ceased. Scanning the centuries of Irish history, the Irish rebelled against British dominance repeatedly. With many of the rebellions failing instantly frustration built amongst the Irish people. This culminated in the Easter Rising of 1916, a transformative event in Ireland. Strategically using World War I, Irish volunteers ambushed Dublin taking key locations throughout the city in order to send a message to the British. When one studies war or rebellions, one assumes that these acts were planned and carried out by men but the Easter Rising was different. With woman's suffrage not enacted until 1918, women's heavy involvement in the rebellion was something unprecedented. Women’s involvement in aspects beyond their stereotypical roles of nursing or preparing food, these women broke social boundaries to help gain independence for their beloved homeland. Though the rebellion ultimately failed, citizen’s involvement, both male and female, would help start Ireland down a path to gain the Republic’s independence in 1922.

Though many historians in Ireland come from either a unionist or republican background the Anglo-American narrative is the most prevalent today with most historians seldom confining their sympathies with either the republican or unionist cause. This Anglo-American narrative is a social history that tends to focus on the impact of living in a divided society, on defusing political and sectarian differences and dismantling prejudices. Important contributors to this narrative include Marianne Elliott and Roy Foster. However, both the Republican and Unionist narratives still have some prominence. The Republican historiography is a narrative that asserts that Ireland is and has always been one nation. As such the actions of the IRA have been part of a legitimate conflict to remove the British from Ireland. This legitimacy question is a key debate in regards to terrorism. If the IRA’s actions are legitimate they cannot be considered terrorists. Furthermore, some proponents of the republican narrative such as Sinn Fein would argue that the British state are in-fact the terrorists: they would argue Britain perpetrated violence without a legitimate mandate in Northern Ireland. The unionist narrative is perhaps the antithesis of the republican one; this narrative proposes that the IRA are terrorists and that their violence is not