The Beginning of the Division Between Catholics and Protestants
The Irish have always been a very proud people with a long and turbulent history. Some Irish surnames are said to be the oldest in Europe. As far back as 7th Century, the Irish would gather in what was then called clans or tribes. The idea of belonging to a clan meant belonging to an extended family. You had protection, ate what the clan ate, lived in clan housing, and shared customs and laws. Because Ireland was separated by these various clans and tribes, the island is bestowed a history of violence and conquest.
After the 12th Century Anglo-Norman invasion of Ireland, the King of England ruled the island. Irishmen had to swear allegiance to the King and this diminished the role of clans. In 1494, a law, entitled Poynings law, required approval from the King of England and Privy Council before the Irish Parliament could meet. In 1541 English King Henry VIII made Ireland a kingdom and proclaimed himself King of Ireland.
The Irish War of Independence, or Anglo-Irish War, was the culmination of centuries long struggle for control of Ireland, this included the Rebellion of 1798. What ensued over the years were sectarian battles between Catholics and Protestants. The Protestant church professed their allegiance to the King of England, meanwhile, the Catholics declared their loyalty to the Pope in Rome.
In the northern part of Ireland, the Protestants were in the majority and ruled over the Catholic minority. They were generally the Protestant descendants of colonists from Britain. The concentrated fighting took place in the northern province of Ulster (located in the northeast corner of the island). Because they wished to remain under England’s rule, the Protestants were called unionists (wanting to remain with England).
The Catholics were the majority in the southern part of Ireland. The Catholics were referred to as nationalists because they foresaw one Ireland separate and independent from England. Today, the Protestants and Catholics still hold their majorities in north and south Ireland. However, these majorities are dwindling for each side. (Later we will read in 2024 Northern Ireland installed its first nationalists – First Minister, Michelle O’Neill.)
20th Century Ireland
At the start of the 20th century, the idea of transferring rule from Great Britain to Ireland seemed very likely. This is the period in Ireland referred to as ‘Home Rule.’ The Unionist minority living in southern Ireland resisted the idea and the Protestants took on a more active resistance.
In 1921, Ireland was finally partitioned by the Government of Ireland Act of 1920. Irish ‘home rule’ was granted but only in the southern part of Ireland. It excluded the six mainly Protestant counties of the province of Ulster. Thus, Northern Island was officially established and continued to be part of the United Kingdom. Northern Ireland had a unionist’s majority and they consider themselves British. Their head of state is the Prime Minister of Great Britain.
The Partition of Ireland after 1921
Meanwhile, southern Ireland became what is known as the Irish Free State. The residents of southern Ireland are called Irish nationalists. The capital of the Irish Free State is Dublin and the citizens are ruled by a Prime Minister and Parliament. They were generally Catholics and identify themselves as Irish. All along, the nationalists wanted a united independent Ireland. Because Northern Ireland contained a minority of Catholics and nationalists, this would not occur.
Soon after the creation of Northern Ireland, violence began between the unionists Protestants and nationalists Catholics. During the conflict between 1920 and 1922, the capital of Northern Ireland, Belfast, saw major violence in which claimed an estimated 500 lives and more than 10,000 became refuges, mostly Catholics. At the heart of this conflict was the Irish Republican Army or the IRA. The IRA’s main belief is that all of Ireland should be an independent republic free from British rule.
“The Troubles”
For the next 50 years, Northern Ireland had a series of governments ruled by the Unionist Party. The Unionist Party was accused of discriminating against the Irish nationalist and Catholic minority in Northern Ireland. A campaign to end the discrimination against the Catholics in Northern Ireland began in the late 1960’s. However, the nationalists refused to make concessions. Unrests soon began. The violence stemmed from disputes over the status of Catholics in Northern Ireland. The unionists carried out discrimination against Catholics through political gerrymandering, de facto segregation from housing policies, and workplace hiring practices. These hiring practices prevented Catholics from working in major industries that were mostly controlled by Protestants.
The Troubles was a very violent event in Irish history. It lasted for 30 years and when all was said and done Northern Ireland still remained under British rule.
This unrest is referred to as the Troubles. The Troubles lasted over 30 years and it involved republican and loyalist paramilitaries and state forces. Throughout the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s, nationalist groups like the Irish Republican Army (IRA) on one side and unionist groups like the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) on the other carried out assassinations, arson, and bombings.The Troubles claimed the lives of an estimated 3,500 and injured 50,000 others. In 1998, the Good Friday Agreement, which received overwhelming support in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, brought an end to The Troubles.
21st Century Northern Ireland
Today, Northern Ireland is still part of the United Kingdom. Yet, per the Good Friday Agreement, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland can reunite as one country if the majority of both countries vote in favor of such a change via referenda. With that being said, the majority of Irish nationalist and unionist are becoming smaller for each side. Could a unification of Ireland be in the near future? If so, would violence erupt between those who want to be ruled by the British Crown and those who seek an independence?
On February 2, 2024, for the first time Northern Ireland will be ruled by the Sinn Fein Party. The Sinn Fein party is the political wing of the IRA. The Sinn Fein strives for an end to the political separation of the island and seeks unification of Ireland. Its ideology is democratic socialism. Sinn Féin won the plurality of Northern Ireland Assembly seats in May 2022 for the first time in the country’s history. However, a failure to reach a power-sharing agreement delayed the appointment of a first minister for nearly two years.
The new administration is led by First Minister Michelle O’Neill of the Sinn Fein Party. Her appointment is historic, marking the first time an Irish nationalist, who aspires to take Northern Ireland out of the United Kingdom and unite it with the republic, has held the post. However, Ms. O’Neill has vowed that she will address other issues of concern and that reuniting Ireland was not one of them.
Ms. Michelle O’Neill, First Minister of Ireland, and the first Sinn Fein Party First Minister ever elected to the office. The Protestants are losing their majority status in Northern Island. Will this lead to reunification or more division?
Jim Allister, a member of the legislative assembly, chastised Ms. O’Neill for not denouncing the violence of the IRA. He said, “O’Neill is a lady who told the people of Northern Island that there was no alternative to the butchery and genocide of the IRA. She justifies those acts. So, I think she is wholly unworthy to hold this high office, or any democratic office, if she thinks it was right and necessary to murder and to butcher innocent people.”
In 2022, Ms. O’Neill was asked by the BBC about the IRA violence during the Troubles. She responded, “I don’t think any Irish person ever woke up one morning and thought that conflict was a good idea, but the war came to Ireland.”
So, the political tension is still present between the unionists and nationalists. However, because these majorities are ever shrinking and with new leadership, maybe, just maybe Ireland can reunite without more bloodshed. Ms. O’Neill certainly wants the country to move forward, however, she does not want them to forget the price each side had to pay. In her first speech before the legislative assembly soon after she was appointed First Minister, O’Neill said, “I am sorry for all the lives lost during the conflict. Without exception. I will never ask anyone to move on, but I do hope that we can move forward.”
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