Brief History of Ireland
Early and Celtic Ireland
The earliest settlers in Ireland are believed to have lived as early as 8,000 BC. Ireland’s
first farmers arrived from Europe about 6,000 years ago. They built permanent
dwellings and built large monuments such as passage tombs like Newgrange.
During the bronze age the people used Ireland’s rich copper deposits to make tools,
weapons, and personal ornaments of gold.
The first Celtic peoples arrived in Ireland around 400 BC. They left the Irish language
and La Tène style art work. Dwellings were build and when the Roman Empire declined
Irish colonies were made in Wales, Cornwall, and western Scotland. Ring forts became
commonplace in Ireland and are still very evident all over Ireland today.
Christianity was brought to Ireland in the 5th century AD with St. Patrick, and thus a
highly literate society developed, much surviving to the present in both irish and Latin.
By the mid 6th century monastic settlements were widespread throughout the land
becoming not just religious centres but educational and artistic centres also. Ireland
earned the name the Island of Saints and Scholars. Missions spread to Europe followed
by teachers and scholars.
7th and 8th century Ireland was and intensely hierarchical society with many kings. The
Viking raids which began in the 9th century increased this violent society.
Dublin’s Origin
Although Dublin celebrated its official millennium in 1988, its quite clear there were
settlements before 988AD. The city’s Irish name Baile Átha Cliath (The Town of the
Hurdle Ford) comes from an ancient river crossing.
The Vikings, the Normans and the English.
Dublin only became a permanent settlement with the coming of the Vikings in the 9th
century. They intermarried with the Irish and established a prosperous trading port
where the River Poddle joined the River Liffey in a black pool, in Irish dubh linn
(Dublin).
The Vikings were defeated in 1014 by the Irish led by Brian Ború, but many of the
Danes remained in Dublin marrying with the Irish and adopting Christianity.
The Normans having conquered England in 1066 moved to Ireland around 1169 and
like the Vikings merged with the Irish rather than ruling them. Dublin became the base
of Anglo-Norman authority in Ireland.
Even at the time of Elizabeth I of England (1588-1603) English control in Ireland was
restricted to a coastal strip around Dublin called the Pale. The rest of Ireland lived on
under their own rule.
Medieval Dublin
Norman and early English Dublin centred around the black pool, dubh linn, but the city
began to expand west. Misfortune struck Dublin for several centuries with the failed
Scottish invasion in 1316, the failed revolt (of Silken Thomas Fitzgerald) against King
Henry VIII of England in 1534, and the Black Death in 1348. However in 1592 Trinity
College was founded beginning Dublin’s educational tradition which endures until the
present day.
The Protestant Ascendancy
English and Scottish people began settling in Ireland, principally the north-east, after
being granted land by the various English monarchs. This led to a sizeable portion of
the Irish population being of foreign, protestant origin which is still evident today
mainly in north-east Ulster. These people were privileged citizens (they could own land,
the Catholics could not) and many of them became rich through exploitation of the Irish
and the land.
In 1649, the victor of the English Civil War, Oliver Cromwell, took the city, seized
Ireland’s best land, and gave it to his soldiers. Ireland lost out again in 1690 when it
backed the losing side in the war between the Catholic James II and the Protestant King
William of Orange. James’ supporters found themselves excluded from parliament and
the anti-catholic Penal laws were imposed on the Irish population.
The period of the Protestant Ascendancy led Dublin into its 18th Century boom years
and the city became the fifth largest city in Europe. As the city grew the wealthy moved
into northern suburbs of squares surrounded by Georgian mansions. The slums of
Dublin followed them and the rich moved back south to the new squares such Merrion
and Fitzwilliam.
Rebellions and Politics 1790-1890
The Georgian boom years were followed by more than a century of rebellions, unrest
and political issues. An abortive French-backed invasion in 1796, a country-wide
rebellion in 1798, and another failed French invasion in 1798, and another failed revolt
in Dublin brought Ireland into the 19th Century. Martyrs were made by the British and
are still held in high regard by Irish people today.
The Act of Union came into effect in 1801, which created the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Ireland and ended the limited Irish Home Rule. Many of the city’s leading
people left for London and the city fell into decline.
In 1823, Daniel O’Connell launched his campaign to recover basic rights for Ireland’s
Catholic population. He gained Catholic Emancipation in 1829 and began his campaign
for the repeal of the Act of Union but only willing to agitate within the law his efforts
faded.
Disaster struck Ireland yet again in 1845 when the potato crop, which the majority of
the population depended on for food, failed. Over a million died and a million left
before the famine ended in 1851, due to the British Government’s shameful ignorance.
The ironic thing is that at the same time Ireland was exporting vast quantities of other
food, which the people could not get.
Rebellions occurred in 1848 under the leadership of William Smith O’Brien and again
in 1867 by the Fenians. Both failed but a political solution began to make better ground
from 1870 on with Isaac Butt’s Home Rule ideas and more significantly by Charles
Stewart Parnell. A Dublin parliament was campaigned for tirelessly by Parnell and his
many followers however it was continually defeated by the British House of Lords.
The Struggle for Independence
Resentment against the British began to show a violent side again with the Irish
Republican Brotherhood secretly plotting against the British. A Gaelic revival began in
the 1880s with the establishment of the Gaelic Athletic Association in 1884 and various
other organisations thereafter. The formation of the Republican political party Sinn
Féin (Ourselves Alone) in 1905 was further evidence of anti-British sentiment growing
in Ireland. Further dissatisfaction came to the surface in 1913 with a general strike in
Dublin.
Parallel to this, opposition to Home Rule was growing within Ireland itself (in the
Protestant dominated north-east) in the form of Unionism. Northern Protestants were
worried about losing their privileged position in society, and scared of an independent
Ireland. While the Unionist, Ulster Volunteer Force imported arms illegally and
unopposed by the law, the Nationalist Irish Volunteers were harassed by the law.
Home Rule was to be introduced in 1914 but was put-off because of World War One.
Hundreds of thousands of young Irish Volunteers were sent of to the trenches to fight,
misguided in the belief that Ireland would be peacefully granted Home Rule by their
leader John Redmond. (Over 50,000 young Irishmen died in the trenches).
At home in Ireland, opposition to British Rule came to the boil in 1916 in another
rebellion, in Central Dublin, which would change Ireland forever.
On Easter Monday, 24 April 1916, approximately 2,000 Irish Volunteers took over key
positions in Dublin City and the Proclamation of the Irish Republic was read. The
British had gained a the upper hand by the end of the week employing artillery, machine
guns, and bombs and destroying much of the city in the process. Through bad tactics on
the British side and accurate rebel fire the British lost many times more than the Irish
forces. The rebels surrendered and most were sent off to prison but 77 were sentenced to
death. After the execution of the 15 principal figures, public opinion went against the
British and by the end of 1916 most supported the Irish volunteers.
Sinn Féin gained a huge majority in the 1918 General Election, Dáil Éireann (Irish
Parliament) was formed and Independence was declared on 21 January 1919. The Irish
War of Independence began the same day. Although the British forces were evident on
the ground most people only recognized the authority of the Irish courts and the guerilla
forces (Irish Republican Army, IRA, under the leadership of Michael Collins) of the
Irish Republic were constantly attacking British Army units throughout the country. The
British tried to hang on with the coming to Ireland of their ruthless “Black and Tans”
paramilitary-style force; they roamed the country murdering civilians, massacring a
football crowd, burning villages and even Cork city but they failed to stop the Irish. By
the summer of 1921 the British were exhausted from the war and the Irish were willing
to make a truce with them.
The Anglo-Irish Treaty was signed between the British and Irish governments on 6
December 1921. It recognised Irish independence in 26 of Ireland’s 32 counties, 6
north-eastern ones remaining part of the British Empire. Most of Ireland was now
independent but Northern Ireland was born
However the Treaty did not satisfy all of Ireland’s soldiers and politicians and there was
a split over the treaty as it did not recognise Ireland as a full republic only a free state,
and an oath of allegiance to the English crown was still necessary. The anti-treaty side
seized areas of the country and the Irish Civil War began on 22 June 1922 when they
refused to surrender to the pro-treaty forces. Hostilities continued until the next May
when the anti-treaty forces surrendered because of tough government action against
them.
Free State to Republic
Ireland was finally at peace but a substantial minority of the Dáil refused to take their
seats there because they opposed the treaty and desired a full republic. In 1926 the
Republican leader Éamon De Valera formed Fianna Fáil (Soldiers of Destiny) and the
next year nearly won the General Election. They won it, however, in 1932 and would
remain in power until 1948. While in power they soon ignored the treaty clauses; the
oath of allegiance, the British representative, and the treaty ports (Ports used by the
British Navy). Ireland made abundantly clear its independence when she was declared
neutral in World War Two by the Irish Government.
Ireland became officially recognized as a republic in 1949 when she left the British
commonwealth.
Ireland Today
Seán Lemass’ government (Fianna Fáil) came to power in 1959 and sought to stem
emigration and improve the country’s economy. By the mid-60s they were successful
and things were on the up. Ireland became a member of the European Economic
Community in 1973 and things improved more with grants and funding from them.
Things went bad once again in the early 1980s with economic difficulties and it was not
until the early 1990s that things picked up again, when Ireland saw a dramatic change it
her economic fortunes. Tumbling interest rates encouraged new business and foreign
investment in the country began to bring substantial benefits, and unemployment nearly
disappeared. Ireland’s strong economy (known as the “Celtic Tiger”) has become a
model for other European countries.
In 1997 Fianna Fáil was re-elected under the leadership of Bertie Ahern. The current
president of Ireland is Mary McAleese. She has non-executive powers however she can
veto a bill, she is seen by many as an ambassador of the Irish people representing
Ireland worldwide.
Dublin has grown from a large town in 1919 to a large city of about 1.3 million people
today. This is still evident if you look at the skyline of Dublin, full of cranes and
construction, the city is now catering for a sizeable immigrant population from all parts
of Europe and the World.
Northern Ireland 1921-2001
From 1921 Northern Ireland was dominated by a protestant government. Street
violence was part of everyday life and sectarian equality was non-existent. Catholics
were discriminated against and jobs for them were few. The semi-independent
government acting under the British authority introduced notorious paramilitary-style
police forces to keep the Catholics at bay. The Irish Republlican Army commenced a
war against the British again in 1939 but it fizzled out when in 1940 the Irish
government interned almost all IRA volunteers in camps for the duration of World War
Two.
Things continued much the same in the North through the 40s and 50s and the IRA
began another campaign against the British in 1956 but by 1962 it was obvious that it
lacked popular support. The civil rights (for Catholics) Movement began in the 1960s
and under people such as John Hume got much support. In the late 1960s attacks were
made on the Catholic community by Unionist (Loyalist) paramilitaries and the British
Army was brought in to protect them. Initially the British protected them but things
became worse and the Catholic (Nationalist) community came to resent their presence
and the IRA commenced a campaign against the British Army which would last 25
years until 1994.
By the 80s things in Northern Ireland were very bad. They had already endured war for
a decade, the main parties involved were the IRA fighting the British Army and the
Loyalists attacking the Catholic community. The most horrific incident was “Bloody
Sunday” in Derry City in 1972 when the British Army murdered 14 civilians on a
protest march. In 1981 a IRA prisoners went on Hunger Strike and 11 died. Attempts
were made at power-sharing governments in 1973 and 1985 but both failed. In 1995
after the IRA and Loyalist ceasefires came into effect negotiations started between the
different parties and on Good Friday 1998 the historical Good Friday Agreement was
signed between most of the parties in the North and ratified in referendums by the Irish
people on both sides of the border.
Today the semi-independent government in the North is made up of parties of all
allegiances and shades and things are moving closer towards normality. The IRA
campaign remains at ceasefire but many Loyalist terrorist groups continue attacking the
Catholic community in certain areas within the North. On the other side of the divide a
small splinter group of the IRA, the continuity IRA, are making some attacks also.