The document provides background information on the conflict in Northern Ireland known as "The Troubles": - The conflict began in the late 1960s but has roots dating back to the 17th century involving questions of nationality, sovereignty, and colonialism. - The community is divided between mainly Protestant unionists who want to remain in the UK, and mainly Catholic nationalists who want Northern Ireland to join the Republic of Ireland. - Over 3,000 people have died since the conflict intensified in 1969, making it Europe's second deadliest conflict after Yugoslavia. While often portrayed as religious, the core issues involve nationality and colonialism.

1. “ The Troubles” The Northern Ireland Conflict The history of Northern Ireland is a tortured one. The conflict, which today is known as “The Troubles”, began some thirty years ago but has its roots going back to the seventeenth century. Since 1969, more than 3,225 people have died in the armed conflict, making it Europe’s second-deadliest encounter since World War II (behind Yugoslavia). While the conflict is typically described in religious terms – Protestant vs. Catholic – it really does not focus on religion. Rather, the disagreement is one involving questions of NATIONALITY , SOVEREIGNTY and COLONIALISM .

2. Getting Your Bearings The community in Northern Ireland is divided into roughly two groups: Unionists , who are mainly Protestants and have traditionally wanted Northern Ireland to stay part of the UK. Nationalists , who are mainly Catholics and have wanted the area to join the Republic of Ireland (the rest of Ireland) and form a united Ireland

4. In the Name of the Father The Guildford Four were Paul Hill , Gerry Conlon , Patrick (Paddy) Armstrong and Carole Richardson , who were wrongly convicted in the United Kingdom in October 1975 for the Provisional IRA's Guildford pub bombing in 1975 which killed five and injured over one hundred people. They were imprisoned for over 15 years. On February 9, 2005, British Prime Minister Tony Blair issued an apology to the families and those still alive of the eleven imprisoned for the bombings in Guildford and Woolwich, saying in part that "I am very sorry that they were subject to such an ordeal and injustice (…) they deserve to be completely and publicly exonerated."

5. Northern Ireland – The Facts POPULATION AND RELIGION

6. Northern Ireland – The Facts Cont. Economy

7. Northern Ireland – The Facts Cont. Security

8. Northern Ireland – The Facts Cont. Deaths Loyalist paramilitaries – 871 (95.7% of victims) Republican paramilitaries – 829 (43.1% of victims) British forces – 203 (56.9% of victims)

9. Northern Ireland – The Facts Cont. Discrimination

11. The Origins of the Northern Ireland Conflict (Long Term Causes) The Plantation of Ulster The Williamite Wars The 1798 Rebellion The Home Rule Crisis War and Partition The Easter Rising 1916

12. Episode - Northern Ireland Conflict Duration:____ Place:_______ Time_______ Key Persons/Groups Key Person//Groups Key Person//Groups Time Sequence EFFECTS CAUSES Key Persons/Groups Key Person//Groups Key Person//Groups

26. How did the Civil Rights marches of 1968 lead to violence? Northern Ireland slide into violence because of the civil rights campaigns of 1968 but this was never their intention. If they had thought that it would lead to 30 years of conflict they would never have carried on with it. From Peace to Violence? Read the handout, How did the Civil Rights marches of 1968 lead to Violence , to gain an understanding of the period 1968 to 1969. It is important that you understand the events of this period before attempting to analyse the reasons for the violent reaction to the civil rights movement.

27. Why was the reaction to the Civil Rights Movement so Violent? Media attention The entire saga took place under the gaze of the television cameras. This raised the stakes and heightened confrontation. Fear of the IRA Many Protestants and govt saw civil rights movement as plot to destabilise NI, little more than a front for an IRA attack backed up by the Republic. But the IRA was basically non-existent at the time. This strengthened their fears that the Catholics in NI were a secret Republican army. O’Neill’s Failings O’Neill was a moderate politician, who found it very difficult to deal with extremists. His reforms were hurried. They were too radical for his Unionist critics, but not radical enough for his Republican critics. Marching and confrontation Marching has a long tradition in NI. It has often led to confrontation. The People’s Democracy march in January 1969 deliberately took a route through sensitive areas, which would be sure to stir up Protestant hostility. Radicalism in the Civil Rights Movt The NICRA was concerned first and foremost with the issue of civil rights, and many Protestants supported this. However, some of the leading figures in the civil rights movement were Republican Nationalists. Many others believed in socialist principles, especially the leaders of the People’s Democracy movement. NI was a very conservative society, and socialist ideas were still treated with suspicion. Sectarian Prejudice Clearly, long-standing sectarian prejudice played a major part in explaining the long-term civil rights abuses. It was also one reason for the violence in 1969. The government’s own report (by the Cameron Commission) went out of its way to criticise the sectarian bias in the actions of some RUC officers and B-Specials. It made it clear that the marchers were not violent. Working-class Protestant resentment Many working-class Loyalists were angry at the demands of the ‘civil righters’. They resented the impression given in the media that only Catholics suffered hardships while a privileged Protestant community looked down on them. They also had to deal with poor living conditions and hardship.

29. Brendan Hughes, a future IRA commander, describes the Provisionals in action in 1970. He was being interviewed for a television series “ My old school was being attacked by loyalist crowds with petrol bombs. One of the IRA men who were there at the time had a Thompson submachine gun and asked if anybody knew the layout of the school. I did and I went with this fella. Petrol bombs were coming in all over… He fired a Thompson submachine gun over the heads of the crowd and it stopped the school from being burnt down. That was my first contact with the IRA.” Interviewer: What impression did the IRA man with a Thompson submachine gun have on you? “ It gave me a sense of pride and a feeling that we had something to protect ourselves with. I wanted to be involved in that too, because our whole community felt that we were under attack. I wanted to be part of that defence. From then on in, I got involved with the Movement.”

31. Timeline 1970-1993 1971 Internment 1972 Bloody Sunday 1972 Direct Rule 1973/74 Sunningdale Conference 1976 Brit govt removes political prisoner status for paramilitary prisoners 1980 Hunger strike by republican prisoners 1981 Bobby Sands elected as MP, but dies soon after 1981 Republican ‘ballot and bullet’ policy begins 1983 New Ireland Forum meets 1985 Anglo-Irish Agreement 1988-1992 Talks between all Northern Ireland political parties, British, Republic of Ireland govts to establish peace process

35. Political Initiatives 1971-93 (Why did they fail?) During the Troubles, the media reports of bombs and shootings gave people outside Northern Ireland that it was a war zone. It seemed to have no normal life and no normal politics either. This was not the case. There were ‘normal’ political parties in Northern Ireland, and most people supported them. All the parties had views and policies relating to a wide range of ‘normal’ issues such as education, health care and housing. However, the key question for all the political parties was clear: how could they bring peace back to Northern Ireland? Part of the problem for the politicians was that they did not agree on how to do this.

36. Anglo-Irish Agreement Harold McCusker UUP MP for Upper Bann Rev Ian Paisley MP Leader of the DUP John Major Prime Minister of United Kingdom Seamus Mallon SDLP MP for Newry and Armagh Rev Ian Paisley MP Leader of the DUP The Downing Street Declaration Gerry Adams MP

41. Northern Ireland, the Present and the Future Read the handouts given to you by your teacher and discuss whether you think peace in Northern Ireland will be lasting.