Today we are learning about Ireland’s struggle to gain independence I RISH I NDEPENDENCE

A BIT OF HISTORY  Ireland -Ruled by the Normans (Viking descendants)  English history- William the Conqueror was from Normandy! – Battle of Hastings- Anglo-Saxon ruled England before this.  Not until after the Protestant Reformation (remember Henry VIII) did England have much interest in Ireland  1800 – Act of Union- Est. United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland

B ACKGROUND  Majority of Irish wanted a greater say in how their country was run following the potato famine Protestant North Ruled by gov in London Catholic South Independence from Brit. Home Rule 1914 – plans that allowed Ireland a gov. of its own were drawn up. WWI- halted Home Rule

T HE E ASTER R ISING  Easter 1916 –Irish nationalists took matters into their own hands  Irish Republican Brotherhood – launched armed uprising in Dublin  Took over Post office  Held off British troops for 5 days  Leaders executed by firing squad  Failed, yet sparked independence due to harshness of Britain

I NDEPENDENCE FOR I RELAND  Sinn Fein (“We Ourselves” wanted to drive the British out.  Eamon da Valera elected president  Goal: Drive British out  Organized: Irish Republican Army  Michael Collins: leader of IRA – Anglo-Irish War  British response:  The Black and Tans Group of ex-soldiers nicknamed because of the uniforms they wore.  Violence broke out!

R ESULTS OF A NGLO -I RISH TREATY  Southern Ireland became an Irish Free State  Have some powers to rule itself  Six counties in the North became part of Britain  Fighting continued – civil war in the south  Independent Eire established.

IRA – W HY THE CONFLICT ?  In the North, the Catholic minority, many of them with "republican" or "nationalist" sympathies," found they faced discrimination for jobs, housing, and in their treatment before the law. On the other side, Protestant "unionists" held sway, controlled the patronage that doled out government jobs, and remained fiercely loyal to the British crown. Throughout much of the 20 th century, Northern Ireland's shipyards, linen mills, and other manufacturing hubs played an important role in the economy of the British Empire. Catholic residents, however, largely were excluded from this prosperity, and when the conflict the Irish call "the Troubles" erupted in 1969, the Catholic unemployment rate in some parts of the province topped 30 percent.the Troubles  Source: Council on Foreign Relations

W HAT KIND OF ATTACKS HAS THE IRA CARRIED OUT ?  Since the late 1960s, the IRA has killed about 1,800 people, including about 650 civilians. The primary targets were British troops, police officers, prison guards, and judges as well as rival paramilitary militants, drug dealers, and informers in Ulster.  Source: Council on Foreign Relations

B REAKING FREE FROM B RITAIN  Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, and Canada – given the right to govern themselves.  India & Pakistan  1960s/70s – other African colonies gain independence