Northern Ireland (Part Three)
During the 1600's the rest of Ireland felt the brutal oppression from the British. The Irish Catholics continued to rebel and Oliver Cromwell (who was a hero to the English - and villain to the Irish) marched an army all over Ireland swiftly killing any rebels (many times in mass executions of up to 600 people at a time). By 1660, Catholics could only own land west of the River Shannon, in Connaught and County Clare (By far the worst land of the country - This was Cromwell's famous decree "to hell or Connaught").
The story does not end there. The struggles between Catholics and Protestants continued until the point of all out war.. and many rebellions. The Protestants/English are notorious in their attempts to get Catholics to convert.
Soup kitchens were set up during times of famine - The only way for a starving person to be fed is if they converted to Protestantism.
Families were encouraged to betray one another by laws offering younger sons or even wives their family's land if they would convert to Protestantism.
Catholics were forbidden to enter walled cities, own land, or even take long leases.
Intermarriage between the Irish and Protestant upperclass was banned.
Protestants marched through Catholic neighborhoods to celebrate past victories in war over them (an act that is still repeated - see post from Feb 28, 2006).
Catholics were forced to pay a tithe to the Church of Ireland (Protestant).
Catholic priests were outlawed and considered crimals.
Many of these laws were repealed in 1778 (after America had declared its independence), but by then only 5% of Irish land was owned by Catholics. There was forever a great divide between Protestants and Catholics. This was felt all over Ireland - but especially in the Northern Counties where a slight majority were Protestant (thanks to the plantations).
In 1921 Ireland was granted free state status. The only catch was that 6 counties in the North of Ireland would remain under the control of England. Thus the island of Ireland was divided into two countries. The Irish free state (soon to be the Republic of Ireland) and Northern Ireland (part of the United Kingdom).
Northern Ireland is still divided between Protestant and Catholic. There are Catholic schools and Protestant schools. There are Catholic neighborhoods and Protestant neighborhoods. There are Catholic militants known as the IRA and Protestant militants known as the UDA (Ulster defense Association), UVF (Ulster Volunteer Force), and the UFF (Ulster Freedom Fighters).
So... There you have it. I know that I did not really give a complete history or explanation of the ongoing conflict in Northern Ireland... But I wanted to give you a taste of what is going on.
Any questions? - Leave a comment and I'll try to answer them.
The story does not end there. The struggles between Catholics and Protestants continued until the point of all out war.. and many rebellions. The Protestants/English are notorious in their attempts to get Catholics to convert.
Soup kitchens were set up during times of famine - The only way for a starving person to be fed is if they converted to Protestantism.
Families were encouraged to betray one another by laws offering younger sons or even wives their family's land if they would convert to Protestantism.
Catholics were forbidden to enter walled cities, own land, or even take long leases.
Intermarriage between the Irish and Protestant upperclass was banned.
Protestants marched through Catholic neighborhoods to celebrate past victories in war over them (an act that is still repeated - see post from Feb 28, 2006).
Catholics were forced to pay a tithe to the Church of Ireland (Protestant).
Catholic priests were outlawed and considered crimals.
Many of these laws were repealed in 1778 (after America had declared its independence), but by then only 5% of Irish land was owned by Catholics. There was forever a great divide between Protestants and Catholics. This was felt all over Ireland - but especially in the Northern Counties where a slight majority were Protestant (thanks to the plantations).
In 1921 Ireland was granted free state status. The only catch was that 6 counties in the North of Ireland would remain under the control of England. Thus the island of Ireland was divided into two countries. The Irish free state (soon to be the Republic of Ireland) and Northern Ireland (part of the United Kingdom).
Northern Ireland is still divided between Protestant and Catholic. There are Catholic schools and Protestant schools. There are Catholic neighborhoods and Protestant neighborhoods. There are Catholic militants known as the IRA and Protestant militants known as the UDA (Ulster defense Association), UVF (Ulster Volunteer Force), and the UFF (Ulster Freedom Fighters).
So... There you have it. I know that I did not really give a complete history or explanation of the ongoing conflict in Northern Ireland... But I wanted to give you a taste of what is going on.
Any questions? - Leave a comment and I'll try to answer them.
5 Comments:
yep, it's not hard to imagine why they hate the protestants so much but i'm still wearing orange on st patty's day and not green. i'm a protestant, what can i say?
yep, it's not hard to imagine why they hate the protestants so much but i'm still wearing orange on st patty's day and not green. i'm a protestant, what can i say?
Wow... that is a bold statement! Given the past here - Does it not bother you to be so boldly aligned with the history of abuse? What does that communicate?
historically speaking, the catholics have been the givers of far more abuse over far more years than the protestants so actually, both sides could be said to be violent...it just depends on what country you're from as to which you view as the more militant.
historically speaking, the catholics have been the givers of far more abuse over far more years than the protestants so actually, both sides could be said to be violent...it just depends on what country you're from as to which you view as the more militant.
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