FACTS
IRELAND TRIP
MAY 2005
ESSENTIAL FACTS
PRE-HISTORICAL PERIOD
The prehistory of Ireland is paradoxical in that Ireland, after Iceland, may have been the last part of Europe to be occupied by man, probably less than 10,000 years ago, and yet it still has one of the richest archaeological heritages in western Europe.
Probably no other country in Europe is so well endowed with megalithic tombs.
There is no doubt that Ireland's Neolithic, with its monuments and field walls, was a surprising period, but the richness of the island's prehistoric culture continues on into the Bronze Age. Initially this period seems to lack the wealth of the archaeology of the Stone Age but a closer look would suggest otherwise. It used to be thought that metalworking was brought to Ireland by the same people who brought Beaker pottery about 2,500 B.C.
For most of the Bronze Age, metal tools either replaced stone forms or existed side by side with them. In fact, in the first few hundred years, axes, daggers and halberds were virtually the only metal tools. Not a major change, yet the products of Irish mines and workshops were exported throughout the British Isles and beyond - Irish artefacts have been found in Scandinavia, France and even as far away as Poland.
As a result of these relatively minor changes at the beginning of the Bronze Age, Ireland seems to have developed an amazingly complex and rich society some time after 1,000 B.C. This is reflected in technological advances, quantities of implements produced and the beginnings of a more organised society.
The Celts were not, of course, the first inhabitants of Ireland. At the end of the Ice Age, as the climate became warmer say about 6,000 B.C. - early migrants probably crossed the narrow sea from Scotland to the Antrim coast and gradually moved further south. They lived a primitive existence by hunting in the forests and streams and lakes. Next came the first farmers who used stone implements for felling trees and preparing the soil for grain, kept large quantities of cattle, sheep and pigs, and raised huge stone monuments to their dead like the tombs in the Boyne Valley and on the Lough Crew hills. Perhaps by 2,000 B.C. a new group of settlers had arrived, metal-workers in search of gold and copper, who fashioned the artistic ornaments now in the National Museum in Dublin, the greatest collection of prehistoric gold objects in Western Europe.
[pic]The Celts [pic]
The Celts were well established in Ireland a century before Christ, and they dominated the island for nearly a thousand years, resisting challenges and absorbing influences from other cultures for many centuries more. To this day the core of Ireland's heritage remains unmistakably Celtic.
Who were these people and where did they come from? The term Celtic is primarily a linguistic one, denoting one group of Indo-European languages. But we can transfer the name to the people who spoke them. Already before 500 B.C. the Celts had emerged as a recognisable people in an area comprising Bavaria, Switzerland, Austria, Hungary and Bohemia. Archaeologists have found valuable remains of this early Celtic civilisation at Hallstatt in Upper Austria and of somewhat later Celtic culture at La Tene in Switzerland. They spread over much of France and part of northern Italy in the sixth century before Christ, invaded northern Spain in the fifth century, sacked Rome at the end of the fourth century and got a footing in Greece and Asia Minor in the third century. The Greeks called them Keltoi and the Romans Galli
Before they were finally overthrown by the Romans, they had left their name on Gaul, on Galatia in Asia Minor and Galicia in Spain; individual Celtic tribes had given names to Belgium, Bohemia and Aquitaine, to Bologna and Treves, Paris, Arras and Rennes. The greatest of the Celtic gods, Lugh, had been commemorated in the names of Lyon in France, Leon in Spain and Leyden in Holland, not to mention London and Louth. Many of the river names of Europe are Celtic ñ the Rhine itself and its tributaries from the east, the Main, the Lahn and the Ruhr, also the Isar and the Inn in Bavaria. So also are scores of place-names in Central Europe with the elements bri (a hill), mag (a plain), dun (a fort) and so on.
With their arrival a new era had begun in Ireland. The Picts in the north and other pre-Celtic peoples were overthrown. No doubt they still formed a strong element in the population but they were assimilated in language and culture. With the Celts it was different. They dominated Ireland for nearly a thousand years and even when challenged by other cultures they were to resist and absorb them for many centuries more.
Each provincial kingdom comprised a large number of petty kingdoms or tuatha, so that the whole country had ultimately between a hundred and a hundred and fifty of them with a few thousand people in each. Local wars were frequent but not prolonged. The unity of the country was cultural, social and legal rather than political.
It was into this Ireland of warrior princes and cattle-raids that St. Patrick brought the Christian faith in the mid-fifth century.
Remnants of Celtic heritage : Cu Chulainn (a hero figure similar to Achilles in Greek mythology) Cu Chulainn was first named Setanta and was son of important warriors in Ulster. One day, as he was supposed to join his parents to a party, he became late and had to kill the dog watching the entry of the dun (or castle) where he was supposed to go. Culann, the master of the dog became very angry because his dog was a very good watchdog, so Setanta offered to take the place of the dog until he could find an equivalent one. He thus was names Cu Chulainn (or dog of Culann).
He became the greatest hero of the Celts but was constrained by several taboos : he was forbidden to refuse an invitation for food, to break an oath, or to eat a dog’s flesh.
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[pic][pic][pic]The 'Tree of Life' concept is found in many cultures worldwide including Celtic. It is often regarded as an all-nourishing, all-giving Mother, many myths tell of the Tree of Life or World Tree as being involved in the creation of the universe. Britain was once covered by huge oak forests and tree reverence is a major feature within the Celtic religion. They reflect a link between the upper and lower worlds.
The art forms represented here come from the 'Book of Kells'. According to George Bain, author of "Celtic Art the methods of construction", the Celtic 'Tree of Life' completes the total of created life, the seven created beings of the Celtic world, Plant, Insect, Fish, Repetile, Bird, Animal and Man. There is a distinct similarity between these and examples from Buddist art, perhaps helpful in proving the Celtic migrations to these lands.
In most 'Tree of Life' examples, the plants and trees have a logical growth pattern with branches from a main stem to form cornucopia from which other branches with leaves and fruits emerge. It is interesting to note that in most examples the plants bear a remarkable resemblence to mistletoe, one of the Druids most sacred plants.
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THE ROMANS
Geography
The Romans believed that Ireland (Hibernia) was positioned between Spain and Britain. Its close proximity to Roman Britain led Agricola, governor of Britain, to consider invading Hibernia. Agricola thought that he could better handle Britain if it were confronted by Rome on both the eastern and western coasts.
The Romans never set foot in Ireland. Ireland is one of the very few parts of Europe which have not been colonized by the Romans. Yet , through the influence of St Patrick, Ireland became the depository of classical latin and greek manuscripts.
Despite Rome's best intentions, not a single Roman Emperor was able to expand his territory into Ireland. Surely the Romans had the power, if not the inclination, to conquer the Emerald Isle and its peoples.
We do know for instance, that the Celts and Romans were enemies and had been since about 390 BC. At that time, the Celts were running most of Europe and were slighted when some Romans interfered in another battle in Tyrrhenia. While doing so, one of the Romans killed a Chieftain of some importance to the Celts. When the Celts learned of this, they sent ambassadors to demand justice for the perceived slight. The man responsible was not turned over, nor was a payment sent in his place in accordance with Celtic custom. The Celts naturally took greater offense, and an army of what is said to be 70,000 men marched on Rome under the command of a man the Romans called Brennan (Bran might be Celtic for Prince). The battle was a rout, and Rome was sacked and burned. Obviously there have been better starts to diplomatic relations between peoples.
From this event, the Romans gained a very natural fear of the Celts combined with a little bit of ethnic hatred. Cultural differences only served to aggravate the matter. The Romans were short and olive skinned, the Celts were tall of stature and white. The Romans fought in formations with nice uniforms, while the Celts had a tendency to fight naked and individually. The Celts would take the heads of their defeated and nail them over their doors, thus boasting of their fighting prowess. Both races considered the other Barbarians, but this was largely a difference in custom rather than fact.
The third invasion of Britain in 42 BC was successful, although the Romans never did succeed in totally controlling the Island. This brings us back to the question of why the Romans never invaded Ireland. As mentioned earlier, the Romans had a policy of completely pacifying an area before moving on. This is an intelligent policy, as it prevents the conquering army from leaving its flanks open to attack. But the Romans were never able to neutralize the threat posed by Britain and the Picts. To remove forces from Britain and send them to Ireland would have been suicidal to say the least. The tribes under Roman control would have immediately passed word north to the Picts and the other Caledonian tribes.
St Patrick
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Patrick was born around 385 in Scotland, probably Kilpatrick. His parents were Calpurnius and Conchessa, who were Romans living in Britain in charge of the colonies.
As a boy of fourteen or so, he was captured during a raiding party and taken to Ireland as a slave to herd and tend sheep. Ireland at this time was a land of Druids and pagans. He learned the language and practices of the people who held him.
Patrick's captivity lasted until he was twenty, when he escaped after having a dream from God in which he was told to leave Ireland by going to the coast. There he found some sailors who took him back to Britain, where he reunited with his family.
He began his studies for the priesthood. He was ordained by St. Germanus, the Bishop of Auxerre, whom he had studied under for years.
Later, Patrick was ordained a bishop, and was sent to take the Gospel to Ireland. He arrived in Ireland March 25, 433, at Slane.
Patrick preached and converted all of Ireland for 40 years. He worked many miracles and wrote of his love for God in Confessions. After years of living in poverty, traveling and enduring much suffering he died March 17, 461.
He died at Saul, where he had built the first church.
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Patrick used the shamrock to explain the Trinity, and has been associated with him and the Irish since that time.
The shamrock, which was also called the "seamroy" by the Celts, was a sacred plant in ancient Ireland because it symbolized the rebirth of spring. By the seventeenth century, the shamrock had become a symbol of emerging Irish nationalism. As the English began to seize Irish land and make laws against the use of the Irish language and the practice of Catholicism, many Irish began to wear the shamrock as a symbol of their pride in their heritage and their displeasure with English rule.
The Ireland where Patrick preached was thus a country with a long and venerable culture of its own. Like the wise foreign missionary of today he adopted a policy of what is now called 'inculcation'. The highly sophisticated designs which soon appear on the earliest stone crosses, manuscripts and metalwork were in the same tradition as those on the gold and bronze ornaments of pre-Christian Ireland.
Even the holy places and objects of pre-Christian Ireland - the sacred wells and stones and trees - were incorporated into the Christian tradition. The festival of Lugh at the end of July was baptised by the thousands who later honoured St. Patrick on the Reek. The pagan festival at the beginning of spring was replaced by St. Brigidís feast on 1 February. Even the heroes of the earlier tales were given a place in the Christian pantheon. For example King Conor Mac Nessa was made a contemporary of Christ and died in an attempt to defend him, and Oisin was brought back from Tír na n-Óg to be baptised by Patrick.
The marriage of Christianity and Celtic cultures produced in Ireland a society which was essentially conservative; hence some of its features remained unchanged until the overthrow of Gaelic Ireland in the early seventeenth century. It was basically a rural society with no cities or towns.
The learned class or Aos Dána formed a special group among the freemen. They included judges and lawyers, medical men, craftsmen and most important of all the filí. These were more than poets; they were regarded as seers and visionaries as well. After the conversion of Ireland to Christianity they inherited much of the prestige of the earlier druids.
MONASTERIES
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The system of church government which Patrick introduced into Ireland was naturally the episcopal one with which he was acquainted in his native Britain and in Gaul. But he also rejoiced to see many of his new converts embrace the monastic life. Within a century of the saintís death new monasteries had ousted some of the earlier Patrician foundations and Ireland ultimately became unique in western Europe in having its more important churches, even St. Patrick's own see, ruled by abbots, many of whom were not bishops.
|By . . . [900 AD], the transmission of European civilization was assured. Wherever they went the Irish brought with them |
|their books, many unseen in Europe for centuries and tied to their waists as signs of triumph, just as Irish heroes had |
|once tied to their waists their enemies' heads. Wherever they went they brought their love of learning and their skills in|
|bookmaking. In the bays and valleys of their exile, they reestablished literacy and breathed new life into the exhausted |
|literary culture of Europe. |
And that is how the Irish saved civilization.
Thomas Cahill, How the Irish Saved Civilization, 1995
Scholars trained in the Irish monastic schools show an extensive knowledge of Latin classical authors like Virgil and Horace and some slight acquaintance with Greek.
The barbarian invasions of the fifth and sixth centuries brought about the destruction of the libraries and the scattering of the books. However, in the midst of barbarism, there were a certain number of privileged refuges, in which the copying of books went on. It is to these copyists of the Middle Ages that moderns owe the preservation of the Sacred Books as well as the treasures of classical antiquity; they veritably saved civilization. The chief of these copying centres were: Constantinople, where the library and schools continued to exist; the monasteries of the East and West, like Ireland, where the copying of books was regarded as one of the essential labours of monastic life; the synagogues and schools of the Jews, to which we owe the Hebrew manuscripts of the Bible, the most ancient of which date only from the ninth century the Mussulman schools (Medressehs), provided with large libraries (that at Cordova had 400,000 vols.) and copying rooms, in which were transcribed not only the Koran but also theological works and Arabic translations of Greek authors (Aristotle, Ptolemy, Hippocrates, etc.). The most important works undoubtedly was done by the monasteries; its history is identical with the history of the transmission of sacred and profane texts of antiquity. But their chief study was the Bible. Many of them reached a very high standard as copyists and in the Book of Durrow (from the second half of the seventh century) and the Book of Kells (from shortly after 800) they attained a standard of calligraphy and miniature painting which has never been surpassed. Indeed their artistic achievements in this field are among the greatest glories of Gaelic Ireland.
Not so well remembered are the ninth century scholars who flocked to the centres of learning in the new Empire of Charlemagne: Dungal the educationalist and Dicuil the geographer; Eriugena the philosopher and Sedulius the poet. We sometimes think that Irelandís links with the continent came to an end with the Viking invasions. In fact, the Viking danger was no sooner past than Irish kings and churchmen began again to travel to Europe on pilgrimage and built up a new series of Irish monasteries in Germany and Austria, some of which lasted until the sixteenth century. If the earlier monks had gone as far north as Iceland, these later ones went as far east as Kiev - no small achievement for men who travelled overland on foot and crossed the sea by currach.
THE VIKINGS
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The Vikings were the first foreign invaders for nearly a thousand years and Gaelic Ireland found itself without any political structure for facing a common foe.
The first recorded Viking attack on Ireland occurred in 795.
The term Viking conjures up for most Irish people bands of marauders and robbers who plundered Irish monasteries and churches, causing widespread destruction and terror, and carrying off the precious objects of the monasteries.
By the mid-tenth century these Scandinavians had settled permanently and peacefully in Ireland. They had been absorbed and assimilated into Irish society. Although we know little about the process, they had converted to Christianity.
The Scandinavians were to make their most enduring contribution to Ireland as traders and town dwellers. It is a commonplace to say that the Scandinavians founded the first towns in Ireland;
Here it is sufficient to point out that even more than the Vikings they revealed the fatal Gaelic flaw of inability to unite.
The traditional perception of the Vikings as marauders and plunderers of Irish monasteries is incomplete: it concentrates on the early years of Viking activity, ignoring that the Vikings eventually settled peacefully, integrating into Irish society and making a positive contribution as traders and town-dwellers.
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So within a century of the invasion, the native Irish held only about a quarter of the land, mainly in central and west Ulster
The Celts had left many indelible marks on Ireland and its people which have remained - thousands of habitation sites dotting the landscape, the bulk of the country's place-names and family names, the majority of its saints and missionaries, its finest manuscripts, sculptures and metalwork, one of the earliest vernacular literatures in Europe, the majority language of the island until the Famine and the only widely-spoken minority language today, a splendid native music, one of the richest folklores in the world. Later settlers added to them and adapted them, but the core remains unmistakably Celtic. They now provide a rich inheritance for the whole people of Ireland.
THE IRISH LANGUAGE
The figures tell their own story. By 1801 a quarter of the population was monolingually Irish-speaking. By 1851 this had fallen to only five per cent, while less than a quarter of the population admitted to being able to speak the language at all. The heavy famine mortality among the poorer elements in Irish society dramatically reduced the population of Irish-speakers, while large-scale emigration from Ireland from the second quarter of the nineteenth century largely to English-speaking countries strongly reinforced the desire to acquire English, and in effect, though not necessarily, to abandon Irish as obsolete and unprofitable in the modern world.
Irish is a Celtic language spoken in a number of small communities, mostly in the west of Ireland, and by larger numbers of people scattered across the country. It has been the spoken language of Ireland for over two thousand years, and has an extensive literature stretching back to the seventh century. While Irish speakers are very much a minority in the Ireland of today, they have an importance to the cultural life of the nation far out of proportion to their numbers. Irish is by constitutional law the first official language of the Irish Republic, is taught in every school in Ireland, and was recently awarded official status in the Six Counties of Northern Ireland as a central part of the Good Friday Agreement.
In Ireland, children are taught Irish from when they enter primary school until they complete their secondary education.
CELTIC IDENTITY
Edmund Campion, an Elisabethan Jesuit left us a description of the Irish in 1581 that rings true to this day :
“ The people are thus inclined : religious, franck, amorous, irefull, sufferable of infinite pains, very glorious, many sorcerers, excellent horsemen, delighted with wars, great alms-givers, surpassing in hospitality. They are sharp-witted, lovers of learning,capable of any study wherunto they bend themselves, constant in travail, adventurous, intractable, kind-hearted, secret in displeasure.”
In his treatise of 1854, La Poesie des Races Celtiques, Renan sought to identify (and in large measure to defend and to celebrate) the salient features of the Celtic genius or character. Renan did not ignore the failings of the Celt, but the balance of his judgement lies heavily on the positive characteristics. Thus, for Renan, the Celt was possessed of an essentially feminine temperament , shy and gentle, giving full reign to the play of sentiment and the imagination, proud and loyal and with a strong sense of justice, deeply committed to personal loyalties and to the family, and this to such an extent that it had 'stifled all attempts to attain more complex social and political organisation'. This weakness in devising political structures had been fatal to the Celts and had resulted in their political defeat.
For queen Victoria’s Prime Minister, Disraeli, “ The Irish, hate our order, our civilization, our enterprising industry, our pure religion. This wild, reckless, indolent, uncertain and superstitious race have no sympathy with the English character. Their ideal of human felicity is an alternation of clannish broils and coarse idolatry (i-e Catholicism). Their history describes an unbroken circle of bigotry and blood.”
And Charles Kingsley, a historian who was writing about the Irish famine wrote :” I am daunted by the human chimpanzees I saw along that hundred miles of horrible country. I don’t believe they are our fault. I believe that there are not only many more of them than of old, but that they are happier, better, and more comfortably fed and lodged under our rule than they ever were. But to see white chimpanzees is dreadful; if they were black, one would not feel it so much, but their skins, except where tanned by exposure, are as white as ours.”
And For Freud , “the Irish were the only people who could not be helped by psychoanalysis.”
FIRST ENGLISH SETTLERS
The fourteenth century settlers were not cultural imperialists. Far from trying to impose their system upon the Irish, they jealously reserved its benefits for themselves.
THE PLANTATION
The interest in Ireland was largely strategic. In a Europe now divided by religion, the first line of English defence was effective control over Ireland. It was obvious both that control must be in Protestant hands and that the more Protestant Ireland became the more secure it would be. Again, there were alternative possibilities; the Irish could be converted to Protestantism, or authentic English Protestants could be brought to Ireland to transform it.
So migration was encouraged, the expropriation of Irish land was facilitated and, as opportunity offered, the systematic colonisation of selected areas - the process that contemporaries called 'plantation' - was undertaken.
After 1660, colonial Ireland was Protestant Ireland. A new colony, more representative of what England had become, had replaced the old one. In time, it too was to discover the predicaments of colonial status and face the difficulties of maintaining a satisfactory relationship with a mother country that went on changing. Like their predecessors, these colonists seemed English to the Irish and Irish to the English; perhaps this was because they were, as their predecessors had been, and as Maurice Fitzgerald had not foreseen, both Irish and English.
Main events in the colonization period are :
The Curse of Cromwell
Cromwell took power in England after a revolution against the absolutist power of the king Charles 1st. Charles 1st was beheaded on the 30th of January 1649, and a Protectorate (Republic) was established with Cromwell at its head (1649-60)
On 15 August 1649 Oliver Cromwell landed at Ringsend, near Dublin, with an army of 3,000 battle-hardened Ironsides. The civil war in England had ended, and King Charles I had been executed seven months earlier. In Ireland, however, the Roman Catholics had been in revolt since 1641 and held much of the island. They had generally taken the King's side, though some had seen in England's turmoil a chance to restore Irish independence. Cromwell entered Dublin as "lord lieutenant and general for the parliament of England". A fanatical Protestant, he intended to offer no quarter to papist rebels who had massacred English and Scottish settlers.
From Dublin Cromwell marched north to Drogheda, which was defended by an English Catholic and royalist, Sir Arthur Aston. When his surrender demand was ignored, Cromwell stormed the city and ordered the death of every man in the garrison,
Cromwell himself had been in Ireland a mere nine months, but his brutality left an indelible impression on the native Irish. "The curse of Cromwell on you" became an Irish oath.
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MASSACRE AT DROGHEDA
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The Battle of the Boyne
No year in Irish history is better known than 1690. No Irish battle is more famous than William III's victory over James II at the River Boyne, a few miles west of Drogheda.
The Battle of the Boyne (July 1st 1690) when Protestant English King William III of Orange was victorious over the Irish Catholics led by his father-in-law Catholic King James II. Protestants took over the Irish Parliament. This marked the beginning of the annual Drumcree parade, held by the Loyal Orange Lodge on the first Sunday of July.
THE FAMINE
|The Industrial Revolution, which was eventually to sweep the world, began in England in the late 1700s. Yet despite the proximity to her island |
|neighbour, Ireland generally did not industrialise. The only exception was the eastern part of the north-east flax growing area, where |
|industrial processes improved the productivity of the linen industry. Although Ireland's economy had almost flourished during the last half of |
|the 18th century, the Napoleonic Wars of 1803 to 1815 plunged the country into a recession. Not only did agricultural prices fall but wages too.|
|It could be argued that the availability of cheap labour in Ireland would have encouraged industrialists to set up factories, but this did not |
|happen. The reasons for the lack of industrialisation in Ireland are not fully understood, but is probably due to export economics. |
|The industrialisation in England forced Ireland to move more towards agriculture in order to produce viable export crops to make money. In fact,|
|although economics forced the move, Ireland benefitted by an improvement in her terms of trade. Once English merchants began buying Irish grain |
|in 1806, large flour mills were built, and communication routes and agricultural technology both improved. Cottage industry declined in favour |
|of agriculture. Nevertheless, the poorest classes did not see much of this money because the benefit of higher export prices was cancelled out |
|by the rise in food prices. In some ways, this polarisation towards food production increased the poor's vulnerability to crop failure. As the |
|farmers got poorer they were forced to sell more of their crops (usually oats) for money while eating more potatoes (a crop that couldn't be |
|transported easily). |
|In the 1830s the government decided to tackle poverty in Ireland. A number of inquiries were carried out, the most famous being the Irish Poor |
|Inquiry which was based largely on the experience of a similar scheme in Britain. The British report determined that public workhouses, rather |
|than charity, were the best solution to the problem of poverty. The Irish report rejected this policy, but was itself rejected due to the |
|radical nature of its recommendations. Instead, the workhouse policy was extended to Ireland. Other policies introduced included free primary |
|education and subsidised emigration, usually to Britain or the United States. |
|Workhouses were buildings designed for the poorest in society, who could no longer afford to live outside. They were run on the principles of |
|discipline, work, separation from family members and dull food. A total of 130 workhouses, with a capacity for 100,000 people, were commissioned|
|in the 1830s, the last being completed in 1843. Although conditions were harsh, they were never intended to be the over-crowded, disease-ridden |
|pits that they became during the famine. Before the famine they were usually run at around 40% of capacity and, in fact, comparatively fewer |
|Irish people entered the workhouses than in Britain. Funny as it may seem now, the designers had originally worried that non-needy cases would |
|enter the workhouses in order to live off the taxpayers. In reality, those who entered the workhouses were genuinely needy (although entering a |
|workhouse was a matter of choice, there was in reality no other option for the poorest people). In 1844, 40% of inmates were not of working age,|
|and a third were sick on entry. |
As was shown in the previous section, the potato gained importance as a crop in Ireland in the period running up to the famine. However, the potato was not a native of Ireland. It had been found by Spanish conquistadors in south America in the 1500s was shipped to Europe, and reached Ireland around 1590. For the next 80 years it was grown in small numbers, mainly in Munster, as a garden crop or stand-by. Farmers found that potatoes could grow double the food in the same land. They also realised that if they planted some of their land with potatoes, they would have enough to eat, and still have land to grow oats or engage in dairying. This surplus could then be sold, allowing the farmers to make money. By 1750, the potato had been acclimatised to the Irish climate and spread into Connaught (where the lazy-bed was invented) and Leninster, where it became the main food for the farm labourers.
The two main problems that were found were (a) potatoes could not be stored for longer than 9 months or so, meaning that there was a lean period in the summer before the new crop was harvested. This was solved by growing a small number of green crops and by feeding scraps to pigs who could be eaten or sold in the summer. (b) potatoes were hard to transport so they developed as a subsistence crop except for the regions near large markets such as Dublin.
In the east, the farmers were converting to tillage (oats, grain) while Ulster's land was turned over to growing flax for the Irish linen industry. Coupled with the growth of Dublin as an urban centre, the potato economy surged and soon many farmers were selling excess potatoes to those food-deficit regions. New potato varieties that yielded even better harvests were introduced: the Apple Potato around 1760 and the Cup Potato around 1800. As Leinster's oat-driven cash-crop economy developed, oats went out of reach for the poorest people of Connaught and Leinster, who became increasingly dependant on the potato.
By the early 1800s, the population had reached such a level (over 8 million by the start of the famine) that many of the farmers and farm labourers became almost wholly dependant on the potato. By the 1830s, 30% to 35% of Irish people depended on the potato as their main source of food. After 1810, another new breed of potato was introduced by farmers in the south-west. Called the Lumper Potato, it required little manure and could tolerate poorer soils. It spread from Munster into Connaught. On the eve of the famine, the Lumper had made inroads into western Leinster, although it had not yet spread into eastern Leinster or Ulster.
Nutritionally, the potato was excellent. If one added milk, it provided enough protein, carbohydrates, energy and minerals to lead a balanced and healthy diet. In 1700, a Connaught farmer would perhaps have eaten one meal with potatoes in a day. By 1800 this had increased to two. As the potato spread, the ability of a farmer to get milk or oats diminished, so many ate little but potatoes. By 1840, a Connaught farmer would have eaten three potato meals a day, containing a total of around 5 to 6kg (12 to 14lb) of potatoes.
In conclusion, on the eve of the famine around a third of Irish people, concentrated in Munster and Connaught, depended on the potato almost exclusively. As it could not be stored or transported well, a new crop had to be grown each year.
One of the most obvious effects of the famine was emigration. Although the famine itself probably resulted in about 1 million deaths, the resultant emigration caused the population to drop by a further 3 million. About 1 million of these are estimated to have emigrated in the immediate famine period, with the depression that followed continuing the decline until the second half of the 20th century. These migrants largely ended up in North America, with some in Australia and in Britain.
The country left behind by the emigrants was transformed by the famine. The map [1] shows the drop in population islandwide between 1841 and 1851. Only three areas (the metropolitan areas of Belfast, Dublin and Cork) managed to increase their population. This was partly due to an influx of famine victims from rural areas and the fact that the famine had comparatively little effect in urban areas. Elsewhere, the coastal counties of Ulster and Munster suffered the smallest falls, with the inland, southern and western areas suffering the greatest falls.
: mural by the Bogside artists depicting famine
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HOME RULE
Home Rule was the name given to the process of allowing Ireland more say in how it was governed – freeing them from the rule of London and thus appeasing those in Ireland who wanted Ireland to have more home derived power.
By 1911, the Unionists were led by Arthur Bonar Law who was against Home Rule. However, despite all the arguments for and against Home Rule, a Home Rule Bill was introduced into Parliament in April 1912. Its contents were similar to the ones of 1886 and 1893. It would introduce:
1. Purely Irish questions would be dealt with by an Irish Parliament
2. Parliament in Westminster would deal with all issues relating to the crown, army and navy, foreign policy and custom duties.
3. Irish members would still be in Westminster.
However, all talk of Home Rule ended when World War One broke out. Redmond agreed that the issue should be postponed for the duration of the war. Many in Ireland agreed that this was the patriotic thing to do - even staunch supporters of Home Rule. They saw the threat of Germany as being a far greater issue to overcome. Many Irishmen joined the call to arms and fought in Western Europe. However, there were those who were greatly angered by what they saw as Redmond's acquiescence to Westminster, even if they were small in number. It was these people - James Connolly, Patrick Pearse, Eamonn de Valera etc. - who led the Easter Uprising in 1916.
THE EASTER RISING 1916
The Easter Rising (1914-1918)
Summer 1914: Irish Home Rule seemed imminent, and Ulster was ready to go up in flames. As it turned out, someone shot an archduke, and the world went up in flames. British PM Henry Asquith passed a Home Rule Bill in return for some Irish bodies to fill trenches for the British army. A Suspensory Act followed, delaying home rule until peace returned to Ulster; meanwhile, 670,000 Irishmen signed up to fight the Kaiser.
An 11,000-member armed guard, the remnants of the Volunteers, remained at home. They were officially led by Eoin MacNeill, who knew nothing of the revolt that the Fenians were brewing. If an architect could be ascribed to the ensuing mayhem, it would be poet and schoolteacher Padraig Pearse, who won his co-conspirators over to an ideology of "blood sacrifice"---the notion that if a small cache of committed men died public martyrs' deaths, then the island's entire population would join in the struggle for independence.
Pearse, James Connolly, and about a thousand of their closest friends seized the General Post Office on O'Connell St., read aloud a "Proclamation of the Republic of Ireland," and hunkered down for five days of brawling in the streets of Dublin. As their only tangible accomplishment was massive property damage, the rebels were initially seen as criminals in the eyes of most Dubliners.
The Crown retaliated with swift, vindictive punishments---in May, 15 "ringleaders" received the death sentence. Among the executed were Pearse, Pearse's brother (whose primary crime was being Pearse's brother), and James Connolly, who was shot while tied to a chair because his wounds prevented him from standing. Éamon de Valera was spared when the Crown discovered he was American.
The British, with their hasty martial law, proved Pearse a true prophet---the public grew increasingly anti-British and sympathetic to the rebels.
| |
At four minutes past noon on Easter Monday, April 24th, 1916, a sudden hush fell over the O’Connell Street. From the steps of the General Post Office Patrick Pearse read the Proclamation of the Republic:
POBLACHT NA h-EIREANN
THE PROVISIONAL GOVERNMENT OF THE
IRISH REPUBLIC
TO THE PEOPLE OF IRELAND
IRISHMAN AND IRISHWOMEN: In the name of God and of the dead generations from which she receives her old tradition of nationhood, Ireland, through us, summons her children to her flag and strikes for her freedom.
Having organized and trained her manhood through her secret revolutionary organization, the Irish Republican Brotherhood, and through her open military organizations, the Irish Volunteers and the Irish Citizen Army, having patiently perfected her discipline, having resolutely waited for the right moment to reveal itself, she now seizes that moment, and, supported by her exiled children in America and by gallant allies in Europe, but relying in the first on her own strength, she strikes in full confidence of victory.
We declare the right of the people of Ireland to the ownership of Ireland, and to the unfettered control of Irish destinies, to be sovereign and indefeasible. The long usurpation of that right by a foreign people and government has not extinguished the right, nor can it ever be extinguished except by the destruction of the Irish people. In every generation the Irish people have asserted their right to national freedom and sovereignty; six times during the past three hundred years they have asserted it in arms. Standing on that fundamental right and again asserting it in arms in the face of the world, we hereby proclaim the Irish Republic as a Sovereign Independent State. And we pledge our lives and the lives of our comrades-in-arms to the cause of its freedom, of its welfare, and of its exaltation among the nations.
The Irish Republic is entitled to, and hereby claims, the allegiance of every Irishman and Irish woman. The Republic guarantees religious and civil liberty, equal rights and equal opportunities of all its citizens, and declares its resolve to pursue the happiness and prosperity of the whole nation and of all its parts, cherishing all the children of the nation equally, and oblivious of the differences carefully fostered by an alien government, which have divided a minority in the past.
Until our arms have brought the opportune moment for the establishment of a permanent National Government, representative of the whole people of Ireland and elected by the suffrages of all her men and women, the Provision Government, hereby constituted, will administer the civil and military affairs of the Republic in trust for the people.
We place the cause of the Irish Republic under the protection of the Most High God, Whose blessing we invoke upon our arms, and we pray that no one who serves that cause will dishonour it by cowardice, inhumanity, or rapine. In this supreme hour the Irish nation must, by its valour and discipline and by the readiness of its children to sacrifice themselves for the common good, prove itself worthy of the august destiny to which it is called.
Signed on behalf of the Provisional Government,
THOMAS J. CLARKE
SEAN MAC DIERMADA THOMAS MACDONAGH
P.H.PEARSE EAMONN CEANNT
JAMES CONNOLLY JOSEPH PLUNKETT
[pic]
[pic]1 Carlow 16 Longford 2 Cavan 17 Louth 3 Clare 18 Mayo 4 Cork 19 Meath 5 Donegal 20 Monaghan 6 Dublin Corporation 21 Offaly 7 Dún Laoghaire & Rathdown 22 Roscommon 8 Fingal 23 Sligo 9 Galway 24 South Dublin 10 Kerry 25 Tipperary North 11 Kildare 26 Tipperary South 12 Kilkenny 27 Waterford 13 Laois 28 Westmeath 14 Leitrim 29 Wexford 15 Limerick 30 Wicklow
[pic]Northern Ireland is divided into 26 administrative units, called Districts. Each District has an elected council which takes care of the local aspects of government. Historically, Northern Ireland was divided into 6 counties (Antrim, Armagh, Down, Fermanagh, Londonderry and Tyrone) but these were abolished as administrative divisions in 1973. They are generally used by the public, nonetheless, when referring to areas. The 26 District Council areas are as follows (if the council has a web site, a link is provided):
|1 |Antrim |14 |Down |
|2 |Ards |15 |Dungannon |
|3 |Armagh |16 |Fermanagh |
|4 |Ballymena |17 |Larne |
|5 |Ballymoney |18 |Limavady |
|6 |Banbridge |19 |Lisburn |
|7 |Belfast |20 |Magherafelt |
|8 |Carrickfergus |21 |Moyle |
|9 |Castlereagh |22 |Newry and Mourne |
|10 |Coleraine |23 |Newtownabbey |
|11 |Cookstown |24 |North Down |
|12 |Craigavon |25 |Omagh |
| | | | |
13 Derry 26 Strabane
[pic]
1. [pic]
GERRYMANDERING
Origins of the term
[pic]
The term is named for early Massachusetts governor Elbridge Gerry. In 1812, the Massachusetts legislature redrew legislative district lines to favor the Jeffersonian Republican party candidates. Two reporters were looking at the new election map and one commented that one of the new districts looked just like a salamander. The other retorted that it looked like a Gerry-mander. The name stuck and is now used by political scientists everywhere.
While Elbridge Gerry pronounced his name with a hard G as in "gate", the word "gerrymander" is usually pronounced with a soft G, as in "gestate".
A particularly famous case occurred in Northern Ireland, where the Ulster Unionist Party government created electoral boundaries for local councils which, coupled with restrictions on voting rights based on economic status, ensured the election of unionist candidates in electoral areas where nationalists were in the overwhelming majority. This policy, coupled with a policy that gave council houses to unionists at the expense of nationalists (in one famous case, giving a council house to an unmarried protestant woman rather than a large catholic family), to ensure unionist control of electoral wards, produced the Civil Rights Movement. The battle for civil rights in local government, and an end to gerrymandered discrimination, led to The Troubles.
A mural depicts the social consequences of Gerrymandering :
INTERNMENT
Internment refers to the arrest and detention without trial of people suspected of being members of illegal paramilitary groups. The policy of internment had been used a number of times during Northern Ireland's history. It was reintroduced on Monday 9 August 1971 and continued in use until Friday 5 December 1975. During this period a total of 1,981 people were detained; 1,874 were Catholic / Republican, while 107 were Protestant / Loyalist.
Internment was introduced on 9 August 1971. This particular security response was one that was recommended to the British government by Unionists in the Stormont government. Internment was mainly used against the Catholic community and proved to be a political and security disaster. Violence increased dramatically after Internment had been introduced.
UNIONIST SYMBOLS
William III or William of Orange : William, one of the most significant players on the continent, constantly strove to spread Protestantism and decrease the Catholic influence of France and Spain.
The Battle of the Boyne (July 1st 1690) when Protestant English King William III of Orange was victorious over the Irish Catholics led by his father-in-law Catholic King James II. Protestants took over the Irish Parliament. This marked the beginning of the annual Drumcree parade, held by the Loyal Orange Lodge on the first Sunday of July.
William III defeated the allied Irish and French armies at the Battle of Aughrim, Ireland.
[pic]
|Unionist and Loyalist Symbols |
|Image |
|Details |
| |
|[pic] |
|[pic] |
|Title: Colours as Symbols |
|Description: The colours 'orange' and 'red, white and blue' are closely associated with Unionism and Loyalism in Northern Ireland. The|
|colours red, white and blue are the three colours of the British Union Flag. These colours are used extensively in working-class |
|Protestant areas of the region and are painted on kerbstones, lampposts, etc. The colour orange is taken from the Orange Order which |
|was established to celebrate the victory of King William III (William of Orange) over the Catholic King James II at the Battle of the |
|Boyne in 1690 (see below). |
| |
|[pic] |
|Title: Acronyms as Symbols |
|Text within image 'UDA' |
|Description: The acronyms of Loyalist paramilitary groups, such as UDA, UFF, UVF, LVF, etc., are to be found painted on many walls in |
|Loyalist areas of Northern Ireland. The initials are also incorporated into many other symbols such as flags and murals. |
| |
|[pic] |
|Title: Dates as Symbols |
|Description: Quite often dates, such as '1690', are painted on walls in Protestant and Loyalist areas. Even without further reference |
|or explanation these dates are readily understood by most people in Northern Ireland. Dates are also incorporated into things like |
|flags and murals. |
| |
|[pic] |
|Title: Slogans as Symbols |
|Text 'No Surrender 1998' |
|Description: Loyalist slogans such as 'No Surrender', 'Remember 1690', 'Ulster Says No', etc., are to be found painted on walls in |
|many working-class Protestant areas. |
| |
|[pic] |
|Title: Crown |
|Description: The Crown symbolises the British monarchy in Ireland. It is seen on many Loyalist murals and Orange Order banners. It is |
|seen as the ultimate symbol of Protestantism, and allegiance is pledged to it by all who are loyal to Britain and the Protestant |
|ascendancy in Ireland. |
| |
|[pic] |
|Title: Poppy |
|Description: The Remembrance Day Poppy was initially used to commemorate the dead of World War I, in which many Irishmen, both |
|Protestant and Catholic, died fighting. The symbol has long been the preserve of the Unionist community as it is seen as unequivocally|
|British. While it can still be the cause of controversy it is slowly growing in popularity with Irish Nationalists who also wish to |
|pay tribute to those who died in the two World Wars. |
| |
|[pic] |
|Title: King William III |
|Text within image: 'The Glorious and Immortal Memory 1690' |
|Description: King William III of Orange (or 'King Billy'), a Dutchman who was declared sovereign of England, Scotland and Ireland in |
|February 1689, won the Protestant victory over Catholic King James II, a Scotsman who was deposed in December 1688, on 1 July 1690 at |
|the Battle of the Boyne. Due to changes in the calendar the battle is celebrated every year by the Orange Order on 12 July ('the |
|Twelth'). The image of King William crossing the Boyne River on a horse used to be very popular on murals in Protestant areas but is |
|perhaps less used in recent years. |
| |
|[pic] |
|Title: Orange Ribbon |
|Description: Lapel ribbons have been used for several years to demonstrate support for a number of causes. Following the use of a |
|green ribbon by Republicans an orange version was introduced to demonstrate support for the Orange Order particularly since the |
|refusal of the authorities to allow the Drumcree march to proceed in July 1998. |
| |
|[pic] |
|Title: Orange Order 'Sash' |
|Description: Although commonly known as the 'sash' this item is more properly termed a collarette. The 'sash' is the most distinctive |
|item worn by members of the Orange Order when taking part in parades. |
| |
|[pic] |
|Title: Bowler hat |
|Description: Along with a pair of white gloves and a 'sash', the Bowler hat is part of the traditional clothing worn by Orange Order |
|members while on parade. It is seen as the symbol of the British gentleman, and it has been suggested that it represents a symbol of |
|authority as it was worn by the foreman on building sites or at the famous Belfast shipyards. |
| |
|[pic] |
|Title: Orangeman Symbol |
|Description: The Orange Order was founded prior to the 1798 Rebellion, after the battle of the Diamond, to defend and uphold |
|Protestantism and the English Monarchy. The Order commemorates the Battle of the Boyne every 12 July. This particular symbol, showing |
|a figure wearing an Orange Sash and a Bowler hat, appeared in response to a similar Nationalist symbol which indicated that the Orange|
|Order were not welcome. Both are based on traffic signs. The blue background represents right of way and refers to demands by the |
|Orange Order that they should be free to walk through Catholic areas on their 'traditional' routes. |
| |
|[pic] |
|Title: British Zionist Star (Star of David) |
|Description: The Star of David gives an unusual religious dimension to Loyalism. One interpretation is that it is meant to highlight |
|the point of view that the Ulster Protestant people are like the Lost Tribe of Israel who are continuously persecuted. Another theory |
|is that the star was chosen because the six points symbolise the six counties of Northern Ireland. |
| |
|[pic] |
|Title: Red Clenched Fist |
|Description: The Clenched Fist is perhaps the strongest Loyalist emblem in existence. It is very often seen on Loyalist Paramilitary |
|murals, and is often depicted with barbed wire surrounding it, which is the official symbol of the Loyalist Prisoner's Aid group. The |
|fist surrounded by barbed wire is also symbolises protest against the British establishment highlighting the fact that they believe |
|their only crime was loyalty. |
| |
|[pic] |
|Nationalist and Republican Symbols |
|'Click' on images for full size and further information |
|Image |
|Details |
| |
|[pic] |
|[pic] |
|Title: Colours as Symbols |
|Description: The colours 'green' and 'green, white and orange' are closely associated with Nationalism and Republicanism in Northern |
|Ireland. Green has been a traditional symbolic colour for Ireland and has been the basis for a number of flags (see for example the |
|Leinster flag). The colours green, white and orange are important to Nationalists and Republicans because they form the Tricolour of |
|the Republic of Ireland. |
| |
|[pic] |
|Title: Acronyms as Symbols |
|Text: 'IRA' |
|Description: The acronyms, or initial letters, of the larger Republican paramilitary groups, such as IRA (PIRA), INLA, etc., are often|
|to be found painted on walls in Catholic working-class areas. The initials are also incorporated into many other symbols such as flags|
|and murals. |
| |
|[pic] |
|Title: Dates as Symbols |
|Text: '1916' |
|Description: As is the case in Protestant areas, dates often appear in Catholic areas either on their own or incorporated into other |
|symbols such as murals, slogans, or flags. |
| |
|[pic] |
|Title: Slogans as Symbols |
|Text: 'Brits Out' |
|Description: Slogans such as 'Tiocfáidh ár Lá', 'Remember 1916', and 'Brits Out' are to be found painted on walls in Nationalist and |
|Republican areas. |
| |
|[pic] |
|Title: Crest of the O'Neills |
|Description: The Crest of the O'Neills represents the nine counties of the province of Ulster. It is said that King Hugh O'Neill |
|adopted the Red Hand after seeing it on the Monasterboice high cross, representing the hand of God. There have been alternative |
|explanations for the use of the Red Hand symbol. The O'Neills were the most resilient of all the Irish Gaelic Clans in resisting |
|English invasion. |
| |
|[pic] |
|Title: Celtic Emblem |
|Description: Irish Nationalists see themselves as descendants of a Celtic past. The Celts lived on the island of Ireland since around |
|500 BC, and nurtured a very strong Gaelic culture (with its own language, sport, music and mythology) which is still widely used to |
|this day. The mythological warrior, Cú Chulainn is character from Celtic mythology. Distinctive Celtic art can be seen in a multitude |
|of different forms. The Celtic traditions that had withstood the Viking and Norman invasions became overwhelmed in the seventeenth |
|century by the English invasions and plantations. |
| |
|[pic] |
|Title: Crest of the United Irishmen |
|Description: Widely seen as the birth of Irish Republicanism, the Society of the United Irishmen was a Republican movement founded in |
|1791 in Belfast by the city's leading merchants and intellectuals. Their movement was based upon the ideals of liberty, equality and |
|fraternity espoused by the French revolution of 1789. Led by a young Dublin Barrister by the name of Theobald Wolfe Tone, the society |
|desired an Ireland free from the authority of England and its sectarian Protestant ascendancy, thus embracing the Protestant, Catholic|
|and Dissenter traditions. The United Irishmen's Rebellion of 1798 failed facing the impossible odds of seasoned troops and British |
|espionage. |
| |
|[pic] |
|Title: Emblem of the Ancient Order of Hibernians with US flag and Irish Tricolour in the backgound. |
|Text within image: 'AOH', 'IAOH' |
|Description: Often regarded as the Catholic counterpart to the Orange Order, the Ancient Order of Hibernians (AOH) was founded in the |
|USA in 1838. The word 'Hibernia' comes from the old Roman name for Ireland. AOH members parade with banners depicting their Catholic, |
|Nationalist and Celtic heritage. The traditional AOH parade days each year are 15 August, the Feast of the Assumption, and St. |
|Patrick's day on 17 March. |
| |
|[pic] |
|Title: Easter Lily |
|Description: This symbol is associated with the 1916 Easter Rising in Dublin, due to the seasonal decoration in churches during that |
|period. It is worn as a flower of remembrance for those who gave their lives for the cause of Irish independence. When the Irish |
|Republican Army (IRA) split in 1970 to form the Provisional IRA and the Official IRA both organisations continued to use a paper |
|representation of the Easter Lily in their separate commemorations. Official IRA members wore an Easter Lily with a self-adhesive |
|backing and hence became known as 'the Stickies', while the Provisional IRA supporters secured theirs with a traditional pin (their |
|nickname 'the Pinheads' didn't last). |
| |
|[pic] |
|Title: Green Ribbon |
|Description: The Green Ribbon is worn in support of 'Saoirse' a Republican organisation which campaigns on behalf of Republican |
|paramilitary prisoners. In the past Saoirse lobbied for the recognition of political status for Republican prisoners, demanded the |
|release of all political prisoners of the conflict, and supported the 1998 Good Friday Agreement. It receives strong support from the |
|USA. |
| |
|[pic] |
|Title: Orangeman Symbol |
|Description: This symbol began to appear in Nationalist areas where Loyal Order marches were proving controversial. The symbol |
|combines a representation of an Orangeman and the traffic symbol for not allowed. It is mean to represent the fact that the Orange |
|Order is not welcome. Following the use of this symbol a Loyalist version began to appear. |
| |
|[pic] |
|Title: Policeman |
|Text: 'Disband the RUC' |
|Description: The issue of policing, and in particular the acceptability of the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) in Catholic areas, has |
|been high on the political agenda for the past few years. The RUC is 92 per cent Protestant. This symbol and similar ones, all refer |
|to the fact that many Nationalists find the RUC unacceptable. The symbol of the RUC officer is often painted with an 'orange sash' |
|(collarette) as in this example. This refers to the fact that many officers are members of the Orange Order. |
| |
[pic]Title: St. George's Cross
Description: The Cross of St. George, the Patron Saint of England, is the national English flag. This flag has been used to form the basis of a number of flags representing Northern Ireland (see below). [pic]Title: St. Andrew's Cross
Description: The national flag of Scotland was merged with the national flag of England in 1606 by King James I. It has grown very popular in Scotland given the increasing desire for devolution or independence. The flag is also found on Loyalist Murals suggesting the affinity between Ulster Protestants and Scots. [pic]Title: St. Patrick's Cross
Description: Even on St. Patrick's day, this flag is not widely flown by Irish people who, for the most part, do not recognise it as their own. It is seen as a British symbol, and is used by regiments of the British Army. [Additional note: The flag was first designed by British authorities in Dublin Castle in the 17th century as a counterpart to St. George's Cross.]
[pic]Title: British Union Flag
Description: This flag is commonly called the 'Union Jack' and is made up of the above three flags: St. George's Cross, St. Andrew's Cross, and St. Patrick's Cross. The design was meant to reflect the 1801 Act of Union between Britain and Ireland (the Welsh flag was not incorporated into the British Union Flag). The British Union Flag is the official flag of Northern Ireland and is an integral part of the Protestant, Unionist, and Loyalist tradition. [pic]Title: Irish National Flag (Tricolour)
Description: Ireland's national flag has its origins in the French Revolution and the French flag. The Tricolour was designed to signify the peace (white) between Nationalists (green) and Unionists (orange). It was hoisted above the General Post Office in Dublin during the 1916 Easter Rising, and has since been used by Ireland's Nationalists and Republicans North and South of the border.
The Use of Symbols in Loyalist Murals
'Click' on images for full size and further information
|Image |Details |
|[pic] |Title: Loyalist Mural (Londonderry) |
| |Text: 'Londonderry', 'Vita Veritas Victoria' |
| |Description: This Loyalist Mural commemorates the Siege of Derry, with the coat of |
| |arms of the city flanked on both sides by the flag of the Apprentice Boys of Derry, |
| |with British Union Flags on the outside. |
|[pic] |Title: Red Hand |
| |Text: 'No Surrender', 'IRA' |
| |Description: This mural was in protest of Southern Irish involvement in Northern |
| |Ireland's affairs, showing the Red Hand of Ulster in a Victory formation trampling on |
| |the Irish Tricolour with 'IRA' written on it. |
|[pic] |Title: UVF Mural |
| |Text: 'Ulster Volunteer Force: 1st Battalion, B/Company', 'The UVF reserves the right |
| |to strike at Republican targets where and when the opportunity arises' |
| |Description: The mural incorporates the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) Crest flanked by |
| |official UVF flag. The mural also shows two members of the UVF with weapons. The |
| |statement on the left of the main mural refers to Republican targets but the |
| |overwhelming majoity of the UVF's victims have been innocent Catholic civilians. |
MAIN STEPS OF THE PEACE PROCESS
1 recognition from the British government of the validity of both unionist and nationalist traditions
2 new legislation to deal with imbalances in education and employment
3 post-nationalist ethos in the Republic of Ireland
4 debate among the militants on the sustainability of a long war
5 change in loyalist organisations, more pragmatic, willing to compromise
6 changes in the US, a small group of Irish-Americans persuaded the Clinton administration to become interested in Northern Ireland
7 1993 : The Downing street declaration , published by the British and Irish governments was a major step forward . In a key line, the Declaration noted that “ the British government agree that it is for the people of the island of Ireland alone, by agreement between the two parts respectively, to exercise their right of self-determination on the basis of consent, freely and concurrently given, North and South, to bring about a united Ireland, if that is their wish.”
8 1994 : Clinton grants a US entry visa visa to Gerry Adams despite a continuing IRA campaign
9 31 August 1994 : The IRA declared “a complete cessation of military operations”, and the main loyalist paramilitary organizations followed their example.
10 1994-1998 : difficult period with arguments over the “decommissioning issue” , i-e the surrender of all weapons, new violence.
11 April 1998 : a copy of the Good Friday Agreement is delivered to every home in Northern Ireland. It contains 5 main articles :
* Northern Ireland’s future constitutional status is to be in the hands of its citizens
* If the people of Ireland, North and South, want a united Ireland, they can have one by voting for it.
* Northern Ireland’s current constitutional position will remain within the UK
* Northern Ireland’s citizens will have the right to identify themselves as Irish, or British or both.
* The Irish state will drop its territorial claim on Northern Ireland and instead define the Irish nation in terms of people rather than land.
12 Creation of a North-South Ministerial Council which will allow cooperation between the Northern Ireland Assembly and Irish Parliament on certain functional issues
13 Referendum on May 1998 : 71% of Northern Ireland’s voters supported the Agreement (all the republicans voted yes, the unionists were split).94% voted for in the Republic of Ireland
14 “No guns, no government” : this slogan symbolizes the burning issue of decommissioning (the former Finnish president and an ex-ANC Secretary served as observers).
15 : 2003 : the Peace process stands in suspension
Tony Blair’s five promises
On the days following the signing of the Good Friday Agreement and before the Referendum, UK Prime Minister Tony Blair sought to reassure wavering people that it was safe to say 'Yes' to the Agreement. People were afraid of letting terrorist prisoners out of gaol and of letting those who use violence enter government. Mr Blair reinforced his reassurances by giving the people of Northern Ireland 5 promises.
These 5 promises are as follows:
2. No change in the status of Northern Ireland without the express consent of the people.
3. Power to make decisions returned to a Northern Ireland Assembly, with accountable North-South co-operation.
4. Fairness and equality guaranteed for all.
5. Those who use or threaten violence excluded from the government of Northern Ireland.
6. Prisoners kept in unless violence is given up for good.
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