The Troubles
Part of the history of Ireland
Political map of Ireland. The history of Ireland begins with the first known settlement in Ireland around 8000 BC when Hunter-gatherers arrived from Great Britain and continental
Date 1968-1998 (sporadic violence continues) Location Northern Ireland. Northern Ireland (Tuaisceart Éireann Ulster Scots: Norlin Airlann) is a Country within the United Kingdom, lying in the northeast of Violence extended to England and the Republic of Ireland, as well as mainland Europe. Result Military Stalemate[1] Ceasefire Good Friday agreement St Andrews Agreement Devolution
Belligerents
Sovereign state security forces United Kingdom Republic of Ireland	Irish republicans Provisional Irish Republican Army Official Irish Republican Army Irish National Liberation Army Irish People's Liberation Organisation Continuity Irish Republican Army Real Irish Republican Army	Ulster loyalists Ulster Volunteer Force Ulster Defence Association Loyalist Volunteer Force Red Hand Commandos Ulster Resistance
Casualties and losses
British Army (excluding NI regiments) 499 UDR & R IRISH 204 RUC 301 NIPS 24 Territorial Army 7 Non RUC Police Services 6 RAF 4 Royal Navy 2 Garda 9 Irish Army 1 Civilians 1857* Total dead 3524* [3]	PIRA293 OIRA29 INLA44 IPLO9 CIRAN/A RIRA2	UVF 63 UDA 81 LVF 3 RHC 2 UR N/A

The Troubles (Irish: Na Trioblóidí) was a period of conflict involving republican and loyalist paramilitary organisations, political activist and civil rights groups, the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC), the British Army and others in Northern Ireland from the late 1960s until the Belfast Agreement of 10 April 1998. Stalemate is a situation in Chess where the player whose turn it is to move is not in check but has no legal moves A ceasefire (or truce) is a temporary stoppage of a War or any Armed conflict, where each side of the conflict agrees The Agreement, most often referred to as the Belfast Agreement (Comhaontú Bhéal Feirste Belfast Greeance or the Good Friday Agreement (Comhaontú Aoine an The St Andrews Agreement (or Comhaontú Chill Rímhinn in Irish) was an agreement between the British and Irish Governments and the political Devolution is the statutory granting of powers from the central government of a State to government at subnational level The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located Ireland ( Irish: Éire, ˈeːrʲə is a country in north-western Europe. Irish republicanism (Poblachtánachas is an ideology based on the Irish nationalist belief that all of Ireland should be a single independent Republic The Provisional Irish Republican Army (Óglaigh na hÉireann ( IRA; also referred to as the PIRA, the Provos, or by some of its supporters as the The term Official Irish Republican Army or Official IRA (informally the Officials) refers to one of the two organisations&mdashthe other being the Provisional The Irish National Liberation Army ( INLA; Arm Saoirse Náisiúnta na hÉireann in Irish is an Irish Republican, Left-wing paramilitary organisation The Irish People's Liberation Organisation was a small Irish republican paramilitary organization which was formed in 1986 by disaffected and expelled members of the Irish The Continuity Irish Republican Army ( CIRA) is an Irish republican Paramilitary organisation that emerged from a split in the Provisional IRA The Real Irish Republican Army, otherwise known as the Real IRA (RIRA or True IRA and styling itself as Óglaigh na hÉireann (Volunteers Ulster loyalism is a militant unionist ideology held mostly by Protestants in Northern Ireland. The Ulster Volunteer Force (more commonly referred to as the UVF) is a Loyalist group in Northern Ireland. The Ulster Defence Association ( UDA) is a loyalist Paramilitary criminal organization in Northern Ireland, outlawed as a Terrorist The Loyalist Volunteer Force ( LVF) is a loyalist Paramilitary group in Northern Ireland which broke away from the Ulster Volunteer The Red Hand Commandos are a loyalist Paramilitary group closely linked to the Ulster Volunteer Force in Northern Ireland Ulster Resistance was a Paramilitary movement established by unionists in Northern Ireland on 10 November 1986 in opposition to the The British Army is the land armed forces branch of the British Armed Forces. The Ulster Defence Regiment ( UDR) was an Infantry Regiment of the British Army formed as an anti-terrorist Militia in 1970 to replace For the regiment of the same name disbanded in 1922 see Royal Irish Regiment (1684-1922 The Royal Irish Regiment (27th (Inniskilling 83rd The Royal Ulster Constabulary GC was the name of the Police force in Northern Ireland from 1922 to 2001 The Northern Ireland Prison Service ( Seirbhís Phríosúin na Tuaisceart Éireann is an executive agency of the Northern Ireland Office (NIO established on 1 April 1995 The Territorial Army ( TA) is the principal and Volunteer reserve force of the British Army, the land armed forces branch of the United Kingdom Law enforcement in the United Kingdom is organised separately in Scotland, Northern Ireland, England and Wales (administration of Police matters The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of the British armed services (and is therefore known as the Senior Service) ga '''''Garda Síochána na hÉireann''''' (ˈgaːrdə ʃiːˈxaːnə nə ˈheːɾʲən Irish for "Peace Guard of Ireland" often rendered The Irish Army ( Arm na hÉireann) is the main branch of the Irish Defence Forces ( Óglaigh na hÉireann) A civilian under International humanitarian law is a person who is not a member of his or her Country 's Armed forces. The Provisional Irish Republican Army (Óglaigh na hÉireann ( IRA; also referred to as the PIRA, the Provos, or by some of its supporters as the The term Official Irish Republican Army or Official IRA (informally the Officials) refers to one of the two organisations&mdashthe other being the Provisional The Irish National Liberation Army ( INLA; Arm Saoirse Náisiúnta na hÉireann in Irish is an Irish Republican, Left-wing paramilitary organisation The Irish People's Liberation Organisation was a small Irish republican paramilitary organization which was formed in 1986 by disaffected and expelled members of the Irish The Continuity Irish Republican Army ( CIRA) is an Irish republican Paramilitary organisation that emerged from a split in the Provisional IRA The Real Irish Republican Army, otherwise known as the Real IRA (RIRA or True IRA and styling itself as Óglaigh na hÉireann (Volunteers The Ulster Volunteer Force (more commonly referred to as the UVF) is a Loyalist group in Northern Ireland. The Ulster Defence Association ( UDA) is a loyalist Paramilitary criminal organization in Northern Ireland, outlawed as a Terrorist The Loyalist Volunteer Force ( LVF) is a loyalist Paramilitary group in Northern Ireland which broke away from the Ulster Volunteer The Red Hand Commandos are a loyalist Paramilitary group closely linked to the Ulster Volunteer Force in Northern Ireland Ulster Resistance was a Paramilitary movement established by unionists in Northern Ireland on 10 November 1986 in opposition to the Irish (ga ''Gaeilge'' is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish. Irish republicanism (Poblachtánachas is an ideology based on the Irish nationalist belief that all of Ireland should be a single independent Republic Ulster loyalism is a militant unionist ideology held mostly by Protestants in Northern Ireland. A paramilitary is a force whose function and organization are similar to those of a professional military force but which are not regarded as having the same status The Royal Ulster Constabulary GC was the name of the Police force in Northern Ireland from 1922 to 2001 The British Army is the land armed forces branch of the British Armed Forces. Northern Ireland (Tuaisceart Éireann Ulster Scots: Norlin Airlann) is a Country within the United Kingdom, lying in the northeast of The Agreement, most often referred to as the Belfast Agreement (Comhaontú Bhéal Feirste Belfast Greeance or the Good Friday Agreement (Comhaontú Aoine an Events 879 - Louis III becomes King of the Western Franks. 1407 - the lama Year 1998 ( MCMXCVIII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1998 Gregorian calendar) The Troubles^[2] have been variously described as terrorism,^[3] ethnic conflict,^[4] a many-sided conflict, a guerrilla war,^[5] a low intensity conflict, and even a civil war. Terrorism is the systematic use of terror especially as a means of coercion An ethnic conflict or ethnic war is a war between Ethnic groups often as a result of Ethnic nationalism. Conflict is a state of discord caused by the actual or perceived opposition of Needs values and interests Guerrilla warfare is the unconventional warfare and combat with which a small group of combatants use mobile tactics (ambushes raids etc Low intensity conflict (LIC is the use of Military forces applied selectively and with restraint to enforce compliance with the policies or objectives of the political A civil war is a War between a State and domestic political actors that are in control of some part of the territory claimed by the state ^[6]

Overview

The Troubles consisted of about thirty years of recurring acts of intense violence between elements of Northern Ireland's nationalist community (principally Roman Catholic) and unionist community (principally Protestant). Northern Ireland (Tuaisceart Éireann Ulster Scots: Norlin Airlann) is a Country within the United Kingdom, lying in the northeast of Irish nationalism (Náisiúnachas Éireannach refers to political and sociological movements and sentiment that embodies a love for Irish ancestry, culture and language and Unionism in Ireland, is a belief in the desirability of a full constitutional and institutional relationship between Ireland and Great Britain based on the terms and Protestantism refers to the forms of Christian faith and practice that originated in the 16th century Protestant Reformation. The conflict was caused by the disputed status of Northern Ireland within the United Kingdom and the domination of the minority nationalist community, and discrimination against them, by the unionist majority. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located The violence was characterised by the armed campaigns of paramilitary groups, including the Provisional IRA campaign of 1969-1997 which was aimed at the end of British rule in Northern Ireland and the creation of a new "all-Ireland", Irish Republic, and the Ulster Volunteer Force, formed in 1966 in response to the perceived erosion of both the British character and unionist domination of Northern Ireland. From 1969 until 1997 the Provisional Irish Republican Army (Provisional IRA conducted an armed Paramilitary campaign in the United Kingdom, aimed at ending British The Irish Republic ( Irish: Poblacht na hÉireann or Saorstát Éireann) was a unilaterally declared independent state of Ireland proclaimed The Ulster Volunteer Force (more commonly referred to as the UVF) is a Loyalist group in Northern Ireland. Unionism in Ireland, is a belief in the desirability of a full constitutional and institutional relationship between Ireland and Great Britain based on the terms and The state security forces--the British Army and the police (the Royal Ulster Constabulary)--were also involved in the violence. The British Army is the land armed forces branch of the British Armed Forces. The Royal Ulster Constabulary GC was the name of the Police force in Northern Ireland from 1922 to 2001 The British government's point of view is that its forces were neutral in the conflict, trying to uphold law and order in Northern Ireland and the right of the people of Northern Ireland to democratic self-determination. Northern Ireland (Tuaisceart Éireann Ulster Scots: Norlin Airlann) is a Country within the United Kingdom, lying in the northeast of Irish republicans, however, regarded the state forces as "combatants" in the conflict, noting collusion between the state forces and the loyalist paramilitaries as proof of this. Irish republicanism (Poblachtánachas is an ideology based on the Irish nationalist belief that all of Ireland should be a single independent Republic A privileged combatant is a person who takes a direct part in the hostilities of an armed conflict within the Law of war and is someone who upon capture qualifies as a Prisoner Collusion is an agreement usually secretive which occurs between two or more persons to deceive mislead or defraud others of their legal rights or to obtain an objective forbidden The "Ballast" investigation by the Police Ombudsman has confirmed that British forces, and in particular the RUC, did collude with loyalist paramilitaries, were involved in murder, and did obstruct the course of justice when such claims had previously been investigated,^[7] although the extent to which such collusion occurred is still hotly disputed, with Unionists claiming that reports of collusion are either false or highly exaggerated and that there were also instances of collusion between the authorities in the Republic of Ireland and Republican paramilitaries. The Office of the Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland is a Non-Departmental Public Body intended to provide an independent impartial police complaints system for the people Unionism in Ireland, is a belief in the desirability of a full constitutional and institutional relationship between Ireland and Great Britain based on the terms and Ireland ( Irish: Éire, ˈeːrʲə is a country in north-western Europe. See also the section below on Collusion by Security Forces and loyalist paramilitaries.

Alongside the violence, there was a political deadlock between the major political parties in Northern Ireland, including those who condemned violence, over the future status of Northern Ireland and the form of government there should be within Northern Ireland.

The Troubles were brought to an uneasy end by a peace process which included the declaration of ceasefires by most paramilitary organisations and the complete decommissioning of their weapons, the reform of the police, and the corresponding withdrawal of army troops from the streets and from sensitive border areas such as South Armagh and Fermanagh, as agreed by the signatories to the Belfast Agreement (commonly known as the "Good Friday Agreement"). When discussing the History of Northern Ireland, the " peace process " is generally considered to cover the events leading up to the 1994 Provisional Irish Republican County Fermanagh (fɚr'mænɘ Contae Fhear Manach or Fear Manach ('Men of Monach'in Irish) is the westernmost of the six counties that form Northern The Agreement, most often referred to as the Belfast Agreement (Comhaontú Bhéal Feirste Belfast Greeance or the Good Friday Agreement (Comhaontú Aoine an The Agreement, most often referred to as the Belfast Agreement (Comhaontú Bhéal Feirste Belfast Greeance or the Good Friday Agreement (Comhaontú Aoine an This reiterated the long-held British position, which had never before been fully acknowledged by successive Irish governments, that Northern Ireland will remain within the United Kingdom until a majority votes otherwise. On the other hand, the British Government recognised for the first time, as part of the prospective, the so-called "Irish dimension": the principle that the people of the island of Ireland as a whole have the right, without any outside interference, to solve the issues between North and South by mutual consent. Ireland (pronounced /ˈaɾlənd/ Éire) is the third largest island in Europe, and the twentieth-largest island in the world ^[8] The latter statement was key to winning support for the agreement from nationalists and republicans. It also established a devolved power-sharing government within Northern Ireland (which had been suspended from 14 October 2002 until 8 May 2007), where the government must consist of both unionist and nationalist parties.

Though the number of active participants in the Troubles was relatively small, and the paramilitary organizations that claimed to represent the communities were sometimes unrepresentative of the general population, the Troubles touched the lives of most people in Northern Ireland on a daily basis, while occasionally spreading to England and the Republic of Ireland. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland Ireland ( Irish: Éire, ˈeːrʲə is a country in north-western Europe. At several times between 1969 and 1998 it seemed possible that the Troubles would escalate into a full-scale civil war--for example in 1972 after Bloody Sunday, or during the Hunger Strikes of 1980-1981, when there was mass, hostile mobilisation of the two communities. A civil war is a War between a State and domestic political actors that are in control of some part of the territory claimed by the state Bloody Sunday (Domhnach na Fola is the term used to describe an incident in Derry, Northern Ireland, on 30 January 1972 in which 26 The 1981 Irish hunger strike was the culmination of a five-year protest during The Troubles by Irish republican prisoners in Northern Ireland. Many people today have had their political, social, and communal attitudes and perspectives shaped by the Troubles.

Background

Sir James Craig, later Viscount Craigavon
1st Prime Minister of Northern Ireland who famously said, "All I boast is that we are a Protestant Parliament and Protestant State" (in response to his Southern counterpart Éamon de Valera's assertion that Ireland was a "Catholic nation"). James Craig 1st Viscount Craigavon, Bart, PC ( 8 January 1871 – 24 November 1940) was a prominent Irish unionist Éamon de Valera (ˈeɪmən dɛvəˈlɛrə (born Edward George de Valera) (14 October 1882 &ndash 29 August 1975 was one of the dominant political figures in 20th century HMSO image

Historic communal divisions 1609-1886

The origins of conflict between Catholics and Protestants in the north of Ireland lie in the British settler-colonial Plantation of Ulster in 1609, which confiscated native owned land and settled Ulster with (mainly Protestant) English and Scottish "planters". The Office of Public Sector Information ( OPSI) is the body responsible for the operation of Her Majesty's Stationery Office (usually abbreviated as HMSO A settler is a person who has migrated to an area and established permanent residence there often to colonize the area The Plantation of Ulster (Irish Plandáil Uladh) was a planned process of Colonisation which took place in the northern Irish province of Ulster Ulster ( Ulaidh ˈkwɪɟɪ ˈʌlˠu / ˈʌlˠi is one of the four provinces of Ireland, in addition to Connacht, Munster and Leinster Conflict between the native Catholics and the "planters" led to two bloody ethno-religious conflicts between them in 1641-1653 and 1689-1691. This article is concerned with the military history of Ireland from 1641-53 The Williamite War in Ireland, also known as the Jacobite War in Ireland and in Ireland as Cogadh an Dá Rí or The War of the Two Kings The British Protestant political dominance in Ireland was ensured by victory in these wars and by the Penal Laws, which curtailed the religious, legal and political rights of anyone (including both Catholics and Dissenters, such as Presbyterians) who did not conform to the state church--the Anglican Church of Ireland. The Penal Laws in Ireland (Na Péindlíthe refers to a series of laws imposed under British rule that sought to discriminate against Roman Catholics and Protestant dissenters in favour Presbyterianism is a family of Christian denominations within the Reformed branch of Protestant Western Christianity Anglicanism is a tradition of Christian faith Churches in this tradition either have historical connections to the Church of England or have similar beliefs The Church of Ireland (Eaglais na hÉireann is an autonomous province of the Anglican Communion, operating across the island of Ireland.

The breakdown of the Penal Laws in the latter part of the eighteenth century heralded a renewed period of communal strife. In particular, the removal, in the 1780s, of restrictions on the ability of the Catholic Irish to rent land resulted in greater competition for it. Irish nationalism (Náisiúnachas Éireannach refers to political and sociological movements and sentiment that embodies a love for Irish ancestry, culture and language and With Roman Catholics now allowed to buy land and enter trades from which they had formerly been banned, Protestant "Peep O'Day Boys" attacks on that community increased. The Peep O'Day Boys was a Protestant faction fighting group in 18th century Ireland, active in the 1780s and '90s and precursor of the Orange Order. ^[9] In the 1790s Catholics in south Ulster organised as "The Defenders" and counter-attacked. The Defenders were a militant agrarian secret society in 18th century Ireland, who were involved in the United Irishmen rebellion of 1798. This created polarisation between the communities and a dramatic reduction in reformers within the Protestant community, which had been increasingly receptive to ideas of democratic reform.

Many Presbyterians, Catholics and liberal Anglicans were involved in the Society of the United Irishmen, a nationalist movement inspired by the French Revolution, aimed at ending sectarian division in Ireland, and to the establishment of an Irish Republic, non-sectarian and independent of Britain. The Society of United Irishmen was founded as a Liberal political organisation in eighteenth century Ireland that sought Parliamentary reform The French Revolution (1789–1799 was a period of political and social upheaval in the History of France, during which the French governmental structure previously an Segregation in Northern Ireland is a long-running issue in the political and social history of the province However, the United Irishmen's ideal was destroyed both by the failure of the Irish Rebellion of 1798 and the accompanying repression, and by continuing sectarian violence between Catholics and Protestants. The Irish Rebellion of 1798 (Éirí Amach 1798 Turn Oot 1798 or 1798 rebellion as it is known locally was an uprising in 1798 lasting several months against the Moreover, the more hard-line Protestants were actively mobilised against the radicals by the Government. The Orange Order (founded in 1795) is a lasting manifestation of this movement. The Orange Institution, more commonly known as the Orange Order or the Orange Lodge, is a Protestant fraternal organisation based predominantly The effect was to separate Catholics and Protestants into permanently antagonistic camps.

The abolition of the Irish Parliament and incorporation of Ireland into the United Kingdom in 1801 provided a new political framework within which this dichotomy between both communities continued. The Parliament of Ireland (Irish Parlaimint na hEireann) was a Legislature that existed from mediæval times until 1800. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was the formal name of the United Kingdom from 1 January 1801 until 12 April 1927 Moreover, Presbyterians largely abandoned their previous attachment to radical republican politics and adopted a common identity with Anglicans as part of a "loyal" Protestant community. Presbyterianism is a family of Christian denominations within the Reformed branch of Protestant Western Christianity Catholic Emancipation in 1829, through political agitation by Daniel O'Connell, largely eliminated legal discrimination against Catholics (around 75% of Ireland's population), Jews and other dissenters. Catholic Emancipation (Fuascailt na gCaitliceach or Catholic Relief, was a process in Great Britain and Ireland in the late 18th century and early 19th Daniel O'Connell ( 6 August 1775 &ndash 15 May 1847) ( Dónal Ó Conaill) known as The Liberator, or The Emancipator However O'Connell's long-term goal (for which the Emancipation was essential) was the Repeal of the 1801 Union. He confidently, but incorrectly, declared on January 1 1843 that Repeal would come about that year. O'Connell's pacifist, majoritarian nationalism played an increasingly important role in Irish politics as the century went on by pressing for the restoration of the Irish Parliament (self-government known as "Home Rule"). Most Protestants, afraid of being a minority in a Catholic-dominated Ireland, tended to support continuing rule from Britain.

The conflict was now represented as one between those who supported the Act of Union, the Unionists, and those who opposed it, the Nationalists, as it remains to the present day. The phrase Act of Union 1800 (or sometimes Act of Union 1801) (Acht an Aontais 1800 is used to describe two complementary Acts whose official United Kingdom titles are By 1886 this transition to a modern representation of the conflict was completed when the two communities had organised into mutually opposing nationalist and unionist parties. Irish nationalism (Náisiúnachas Éireannach refers to political and sociological movements and sentiment that embodies a love for Irish ancestry, culture and language and Unionism in Ireland, is a belief in the desirability of a full constitutional and institutional relationship between Ireland and Great Britain based on the terms and Initially, many nationalists were prepared to accept maintaining some links with Britain, with the idea of complete independence only commanding the support of a radical minority; however, throughout the late 19th and early 20th century, support for such a compromise declined.

By this time, Ulster Unionism had also acquired an economic motive, since Ulster was the most industrialised part of Ireland and the one most dependent on free trade with Britain and its empire. The immediate roots of the present conflict are to be found in the early 20th century disputes over Irish Home Rule and independence for Ireland. Home rule refers to a demand that constituent parts of a state be given greater self-government within the greater administrative purview of the central government

The partition of Ireland 1912-1925

Main article: Partition of Ireland

By the second decade of the 20th century, Home Rule, or limited Irish self-government, was on the brink of being conceded due to the agitation of the Irish Parliamentary Party who at times held the balance of power in the Westminster parliament. The Partition of Ireland took place on 3 May 1921 under the Government of Ireland Act 1920. The Irish Parliamentary Party (IPP (commonly called the Irish Party was formed in 1882 by Charles Stewart Parnell, the leader of the Nationalist Party, replacing Unionists, mostly Protestant and concentrated in Ulster, resisted both self-government and independence for Ireland, fearing for their future in an overwhelmingly Catholic country dominated by the Roman Catholic Church. In 1912, unionists led by Edward Carson signed the Ulster Covenant and pledged to resist Home Rule by force if necessary. Edward Henry Carson Baron Carson, PC, Kt, KC (often known as Sir Edward Carson or Lord Carson) ( The Ulster Covenant was signed by just under half a million of men and women from Ulster, on and before September 28, 1912, in protest against the To this end, they formed the paramilitary Ulster Volunteer Force and imported arms from Germany (the Easter Rising insurrectionists would do the same several years later). The Ulster Volunteer Force (more commonly referred to as the UVF) is a Loyalist group in Northern Ireland. Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. The Easter Rising (Éirí Amach na Cásca was a rebellion staged in Ireland in Easter Week, 1916

Nationalists formed the Irish Volunteers, whose ostensible goal was to oppose the Ulster Volunteers and ensure the enactment of the Third Home Rule Bill in the event of British or Unionist recalcitrance. The Irish Volunteers ( Óglaigh na hÉireann) was a military organisation established in 1913 by Irish nationalists. The Ulster Volunteers were a unionist militia founded in 1912 to block Home Rule for Ireland. The Home Rule Act of 1914, also known as the ( Irish) Third Home Rule Act (or Bill) and formally known as the Government of Ireland Act 1914 The Irish Volunteers, however, were gradually infiltrated by members of the Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB), such as Patrick Pearse. The Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB was a secret oath-bound fraternal organisation dedicated to the establishment of an "independent democratic Republic" in the mid nineteenth Patrick Henry Pearse (also known as Pádraig Pearse; Pádraig Anraí Mac Piarais An Piarsach; 10 November 1879 &ndash 3 May 1916 was a teacher barrister The outbreak of the First World War in 1914 temporarily averted the crisis of possible civil war and delayed the resolution of the question of Irish independence. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Home Rule, though actually passed in the British Parliament with Royal Assent, was suspended for the duration of the war. The granting of Royal Assent is the formal method by which a constitutional monarch completes the legislative process of Lawmaking by formally assenting to an The Irish Volunteers split, the majority forming the National Volunteers and following John Redmond's call to support the Allied war effort and ensure the future implementation of home rule by voluntarily enlisting in Irish regiments of the 10th (Irish) Division or the 16th (Irish) Division of the New British Army. The National Volunteers was the name taken by the majority of the Irish Volunteers that sided with Irish Parliamentary Party leader John Redmond after the John Edward Redmond (Seán Éamonn Mac Réamoinn (1 September 1856 &ndash 6 March 1918 was an Irish nationalist Politician, Barrister, MP The Entente Powers (from Triple Entente) were the countries at war with the Central Powers during World War I. An Irish regiment is a Regiment (or similar military unit excluding those actually in the Irish Defence Forces, that at some time in its history has or had intentional The New Army, often referred to as Kitchener's Army, was an (initially all-volunteer army formed in the United Kingdom following the outbreak of hostilities in The men of the Ulster Volunteers joined the 36th (Ulster) Division. The 36th (Ulster Division was a division of Lord Kitchener's New Army formed in September 1914 During 1914-1918 Irish regiments suffered severe losses.

But the issue was inflamed by the staging of the nationalist Easter Rising in Dublin in 1916 by Irish Republican Brotherhood elements of the Irish Volunteers who did not support the war effort. The Easter Rising (Éirí Amach na Cásca was a rebellion staged in Ireland in Easter Week, 1916 Dublin (ˈdʌblɨn/ /ˈdʊblɨn or /ˈdʊbəlɪn/, bˠalʲə aːha klʲiəh or cliə(ɸ is both the largest city and capital of Ireland. Although the rebellion was put down, the executions of fifteen of the Rising's leaders and the threat of conscription greatly radicalised Irish nationalists. The Conscription Crisis of 1918 stemmed from a move by the Government of the United Kingdom to impose Conscription in Ireland, and contributed to pivotal The independence question came to a head in the 1918 December general election, when the separatist Sinn Féin party won a majority of seats in Ireland and set up the First Dáil (Irish Parliament) in Dublin, essentially seceding from the United Kingdom, although at the time this was not recognised by the UK or any other country except the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic. The Irish general election of 1918 was that part of the 1918 United Kingdom general election that took place in Ireland. Sinn Féin () is a political party in Ireland. The current party led by Gerry Adams was formed following a split in January 1970 The First Dáil (An Chéad Dáil was Dáil Éireann as it convened from 1919&ndash1921 The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located At the same time, IRB volunteers, seeing themselves as the army of the Irish Republic, began armed attacks on state forces the following month (January 1919), killing two Catholic policemen who were transporting gelignite in Soloheadbeg, County Tipperary. Gelignite, also known as blasting gelatin, is an Explosive material consisting of Collodion - Cotton (a type of Nitrocellulose Soloheadbeg ('sɔləhɛdbɛg Solchaid Beag is a small Townland, some two miles outside Tipperary Town, near Limerick Junction railway station County Tipperary (Contae Thiobraid Árann is a County in Ireland situated in the Province of Munster.

In 1920, during a guerrilla war in Ireland which pitted the Volunteers or Irish Republican Army (IRA) against British state forces, the 1920 Government of Ireland Act partitioned the island of Ireland into two separate jurisdictions, Southern Ireland and Northern Ireland, both devolved regions of the United Kingdom. The Irish War of Independence (or Tan War, or Anglo-Irish War, Irish: Cogadh na Saoirse) from January 1919 to July 1921 was a guerrilla The Irish Republican Army ( IRA) (Óglaigh na hÉireann was a military organisation descended from the Irish Volunteers, established 25 November 1913 and who An Act to Provide for the Better Government of Ireland, more usually the Government of Ireland Act 1920, (and sometimes called the Fourth Home Rule Act) was an Act Southern Ireland (Deisceart Éireann was the short lived autonomous region (or Constituent country) of the United Kingdom established on 3 May Northern Ireland (Tuaisceart Éireann Ulster Scots: Norlin Airlann) is a Country within the United Kingdom, lying in the northeast of This partition of Ireland was confirmed when the Parliament of Northern Ireland exercised its right under the Anglo-Irish Treaty of 1921 to opt out of the newly established Irish Free State in December 1922. The Partition of Ireland took place on 3 May 1921 under the Government of Ireland Act 1920. The Parliament of Northern Ireland was the home rule Legislature of Northern Ireland, created under the Government of Ireland Act 1920, The Anglo-Irish Treaty (An Conradh Angla-Éireannach officially called the Articles of Agreement for a Treaty Between Great Britain and Ireland, was a Treaty The Irish Free State (Saorstát Éireann (1922&ndash1937 was the state established as a Dominion on 6 December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty, signed by The Irish Free State was an independent Dominion within the British Commonwealth. The Irish Free State (Saorstát Éireann (1922&ndash1937 was the state established as a Dominion on 6 December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty, signed by A dominion, often Dominion, refers to one of a group of autonomous polities under sovereign authority within the British Empire and The Irish Free State was renamed Ireland in 1937 and it left the Commonwealth in 1949 when it declared that it was a republic. Ireland ( Irish: Éire, ˈeːrʲə is a country in north-western Europe.

Northern Ireland remained a part of the United Kingdom, albeit under a separate system of government whereby it was given its own Parliament and devolved government. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located The Parliament of Northern Ireland was the home rule Legislature of Northern Ireland, created under the Government of Ireland Act 1920, Devolution is the statutory granting of powers from the central government of a State to government at subnational level This system was not requested by unionists, but was included in the settlement by a government keen to rid the Westminster parliament of "the Irish question" that had dominated it for many years. The Irish Home Rule bills were bills introduced in the British House of Commons during the late 19th and early 20th centuries intended to grant self-government and Nonetheless, unionists immediately embraced the new regime and saw Northern Ireland as a state governed according to democratic principles, the rule of law, and in accordance with the will of a majority within its borders to remain part of the United Kingdom. Nationalists, however, saw the partition of Ireland as an illegal and arbitrary division of the island against the will of the vast majority of its people, and argued that the Northern Ireland state was neither legitimate nor democratic, but created with a deliberately gerrymandered Unionist majority. Gerrymandering is a form of redistribution in which electoral district or Constituency boundaries are manipulated for electoral advantage

Catholics within Northern Ireland, initially about 33% of its population,^[10] did not accept the legitimacy of the new state. The roots of the Troubles lie in the failure of the Unionist state to integrate the Catholic/nationalist population in Northern Ireland, most of whom favoured a united Ireland, and the refusal of the same nationalists to eschew political irredentism. Irredentism is any position advocating Annexation of territories administered by another State on the grounds of common Ethnicity or prior historical possession

Northern Ireland came into being in a violent manner--a total of 557 people being killed in political or sectarian violence from 1920-1922, during and after the Irish War of Independence. The Irish War of Independence (or Tan War, or Anglo-Irish War, Irish: Cogadh na Saoirse) from January 1919 to July 1921 was a guerrilla Of these, 303 were Catholics (including IRA members), 172 were Protestants and 82 were Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC) or British Army personnel. The Royal Irish Constabulary ( RIC) ( Irish: Constáblacht Ríoga na hÉireann) was one of Ireland's two police forces in the early twentieth century Belfast saw the majority of the violence, 452 people being killed there, of whom 267 were Catholics and 185 were Protestants^[11] (See also; Irish War of Independence in the North East. The Irish War of Independence (or Tan War, or Anglo-Irish War, Irish: Cogadh na Saoirse) from January 1919 to July 1921 was a guerrilla ) Whereas elsewhere on the island this conflict was largely a confrontation between Irish Republican guerrillas and the British Police and Army, in the north it was marked by communal strife between Catholics and Protestants. The pattern of violence in the north was that loyalist groups, as well as an auxiliary police force, the B-Specials, responded to IRA attacks on the security forces with killings of Catholics. The Ulster Special Constabulary (USC (commonly called the "B-Specials" was a reserve police force in Ireland. Nationalists characterise this violence, especially that in Belfast, as a "pogrom" against their community. Belfast ( is the capital city of Northern Ireland and the seat of government in Northern Ireland. A pogrom is a form of Riot directed against a particular group whether ethnic religious or other and characterized by destruction of their Homes Businesses ^[12]

In 1920, for example, the IRA assassination of RIC district Inspector Swanzy in Lisburn outside a Protestant church following Sunday services resulted in the burning of large section of the Catholic quarter in the town. Lisburn (Lios na gCearrbhach meaning fort of the gamblers) is a predominantly Unionist city in Northern Ireland, south-west of and adjoining Belfast However, although a disproportionate number of the victims were Catholics (58% of victims from a community making up around 30% of the population in Belfast), both sides were guilty of atrocities. Nationalists in the rest of Ireland organised a boycott of northern goods in response to the attacks on Catholics, while some (including Michael Collins in the new Irish Free State) had plans for a military assault on Northern Ireland. Michael John ("Mick" Collins (Mícheál Seán Ó Coileáin 16 October 1890 &ndash 22 August 1922 was an Irish revolutionary leader, Minister for The Irish Free State (Saorstát Éireann (1922&ndash1937 was the state established as a Dominion on 6 December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty, signed by ^[13] This was interrupted by the Irish Civil War (1922-23) between Irish nationalist factions, and during this time the Northern state instead managed to consolidate its existence. The Irish Civil War ( June 28 1922 &ndash May 24 1923) pitted supporters of the Anglo-Irish Treaty against its opponents Another legacy of the Irish Civil War, later to have a major impact on Northern Ireland, was the creation of a marginalised remnant of the Irish Republican Army, illegal in both Irish states and ideologically committed to overthrowing both of them by force of arms and re-establishing the Irish Republic of 1919-1921. This article deals with the Irish republican organisation opposed to the Anglo-Irish Treaty styling itself "Irish Republican Army" as it existed from the time of the Treaty The Irish Republic ( Irish: Poblacht na hÉireann or Saorstát Éireann) was a unilaterally declared independent state of Ireland proclaimed In this context, the Northern Irish government passed the Special Powers Act in 1922; this gave sweeping powers to the government and police to do virtually anything seen as necessary to re-establish or preserve law and order. The Civil Authorities (Special Powers Act (Northern Ireland 1922 was an act of legislation passed by the Parliament of Northern Ireland shortly after the formation of the Northern The Act continued to be used against the nationalist community long after the violence of this period had come to an end. ^[14]

In 1925 many nationalists expected partition to be abolished, or least to have large parts of Northern Ireland ceded to the Free State, by a Boundary Commission. The Boundary Commission was established by the Anglo-Irish Treaty that ended the Anglo-Irish War in 1921 The Commission instead recommended only minor changes in the border, effectively making partition of Ireland permanent. At this point, the Irish Free State formally recognised and accepted (albeit reluctantly) the border. The Irish Free State (Saorstát Éireann (1922&ndash1937 was the state established as a Dominion on 6 December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty, signed by In 1937, Eamon de Valera laid claim to the whole island of Ireland as territory of the Free State in Articles 2 and 3 of the Constitution of Ireland. Éamon de Valera (ˈeɪmən dɛvəˈlɛrə (born Edward George de Valera) (14 October 1882 &ndash 29 August 1975 was one of the dominant political figures in 20th century Article 2 and Article 3 of the Constitution of Ireland ( Bunreacht na hÉireann) were adopted with the constitution as a whole on 29 December 1937 but completely However, the articles stipulated that "pending the re-integration of the national territory" the southern state's borders were the same as those established in 1922. ^[15]

Northern Ireland 1925-1968

Each side established its own narratives to describe its perspective. A narrative or story is a construct created in a suitable format (written spoken poetry prose images song Theater, or Dance) that describes a sequence of Ulster Unionist Prime Minister of Northern Ireland James Craig talked of a "Protestant parliament and a Protestant State" in 1937, in response to his Southern counterpart Éamon de Valera's assertion in 1935 that Ireland was a "Catholic nation". The Ulster Unionist Party ( UUP, sometimes referred to as the Official Unionist Party or OUP or in a historic sense simply the Unionist Party The Prime Minister of Northern Ireland was the De facto head of the Government of Northern Ireland. James Craig 1st Viscount Craigavon, Bart, PC ( 8 January 1871 – 24 November 1940) was a prominent Irish unionist Éamon de Valera (ˈeɪmən dɛvəˈlɛrə (born Edward George de Valera) (14 October 1882 &ndash 29 August 1975 was one of the dominant political figures in 20th century ^[16]

From a Unionist perspective, Northern Ireland's nationalists were inherently disloyal and were determined to force them (Protestants and unionists) into a united Ireland. In the 1970s, during the period when the British government was unsuccessfully attempting to implement the Sunningdale Agreement, then-Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) councillor Hugh Logue described the agreement as the means by which unionists "will be trundled into a united Ireland". The Sunningdale Agreement was an attempt to end " The Troubles " in Northern Ireland by forcing unionists to share power with nationalists The Social Democratic and Labour Party ( SDLP; Páirtí Sóisialta Daonlathach an Lucht Oibre is one of the two major nationalist parties in Northern Ireland Hugh Logue (born 1949 is a Northern Irish former Social Democratic and Labour Party politician and economist who now works as a commentator on political and economic ^[17] This threat was seen as justifying preferential treatment of unionists in housing, employment and other fields. The prevalence of large families and a more rapid population growth among Catholics was also seen as a threat.

Former First Minister of Northern Ireland David Trimble admitted that Northern Ireland had been "a cold house for Catholics" during this period. The First Minister and the deputy First Minister (Irish Céad-Aire agus an Leas-Chéad-Aire, Ulster Scots: Heid Männystèr an tha Heid Männystèr depute William David Trimble Baron Trimble (born 15 October 1944 is a Northern Irish Politician from Northern Ireland who served as leader of the Ulster Nonetheless, until the 1990s, unionist politicians were able to point to Northern Ireland's relative economic success compared with the Southern state (and the excessive influence of the Roman Catholic hierarchy over Government policy there) as a vindication of Northern Ireland's existence. From a nationalist perspective, continued discrimination against Catholics only proved that Northern Ireland was an inherently corrupt, British-imposed state. The controversial Republic of Ireland Taoiseach (Prime Minister) Charles Haughey, whose family had fled County Londonderry during the 1920s Troubles, described Northern Ireland as "a failed political entity". Ireland ( Irish: Éire, ˈeːrʲə is a country in north-western Europe. The Taoiseach (ˈtiːʃəx in English t̪ˠiːʃʲəx (plural Taoisigh ( or) in Irish) also referred to as An Taoiseach ( t̪ˠiːʃʲəx is the the The unionist government ignored Edward Carson's warning in 1921 that alienating Catholics would make Northern Ireland inherently unstable.

After the initial Troubles of the early 1920s, there were occasional incidents of sectarian unrest in Northern Ireland, a brief and ineffective IRA campaign in the 1940s, and another abortive IRA campaign in the 1950s, but by the early 1960s Northern Ireland was fairly stable. Northern Campaign 1942 - 1944 is a term used to describe attacks involving volunteers of the Irish Republican Army (IRA in World War II during the period September 1942 - December The Border Campaign ( December 12 1956 – February 26 1962) was a campaign of Guerrilla warfare ( codenamed Operation 1966 saw the emergence of the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF), an illegal loyalist paramilitary organisation, in response to a perceived revival of the IRA at the time of the 50th anniversary of the Easter Rising. The Ulster Volunteer Force (more commonly referred to as the UVF) is a Loyalist group in Northern Ireland. The Easter Rising (Éirí Amach na Cásca was a rebellion staged in Ireland in Easter Week, 1916 ^[18] The UVF began a campaign of intimidation against a Catholic owned off-licence on the Shankill Road, and sectarian graffiti such as "Popehead" and "This house is owned by a Taig" was painted on the wall of the house next to the off-licence, which was actually occupied by Protestants. REDIRECT Licensing_laws_of_the_United_Kingdom#Off-licence The Shankill Road ( is the arterial road leading through a predominantly Protestant working-class area ^[18] On 7 May 1966 a petrol bomb was thrown through the window of the house, and the 77-year old Protestant widow who lived there sustained injuries that resulted in her death seven weeks later. Events 558 - In Constantinople, the dome of the Hagia Sophia collapses Year 1966 ( MCMLXVI) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the 1966 Gregorian calendar. ^[18] Historically, she was the first victim of the Troubles. ^[18] The UVF issued a statement two weeks later:

From this day, we declare war against the IRA and its splinter groups. Known IRA men will be executed mercilessly and without hesitation. Less extreme measures will be taken against anyone sheltering or helping them, but if they persist in giving them aid, then more extreme methods will be adopted . . . we solemnly warn the authorities to make no more speeches of appeasement. We are heavily armed Protestants dedicated to this cause. ^[19]

Beginning of the Troubles

The question of when The Troubles began remains a matter of some dispute, linked to some extent to the issue of blame.

The UVF was formed in 1966 as a loyalist paramilitary group and named after the Ulster Volunteers of 1912. ^[20] The UVF claimed what many acknowledge as the first victim of the Troubles, when they shot dead 28-year-old storeman John Patrick Scullion in west Belfast. Barman Peter Ward, an 18-year-old from west Belfast, became the second victim of a UVF gun attack in which three other men were shot and seriously injured. ^[19] Victor Arbuckle, aged 29, was shot dead by Loyalists during street disturbances on the Shankill Road in Belfast in October 1969, the first RUC officer to die in the troubles. The UVF was also responsible for a series of attacks on power stations and reservoirs in Northern Ireland during 1969. ^[21] It was hoped that this campaign would be blamed on the IRA, forcing moderate unionists to increase their opposition to the tentative reforms of Terence O'Neill's government. Terence Marne O'Neill Baron O'Neill of the Maine, PC ( 10 September 1914 &ndash 12 June 1990) was the fourth Prime Minister

Others prefer to date the start of The Troubles to 1968, when widespread rioting and public disorder broke out at the marches of the Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association (NICRA). The Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association ( Cumann Chearta Sibhialta Thuaisceart Éireann) was an organisation which campaigned for Civil rights in Northern This group launched a peaceful civil rights campaign in 1967,^[22][23] which borrowed the language and symbolism of the Civil Rights Movement of Dr. See also Protests of 1968 Historically the civil rights movement was a concentrated period of time around the world of approximately twenty years (1960-1980 in Martin Luther King in the United States. Martin Luther King Jr ( January 15, 1929 April 4, 1968) was an American clergyman, Activist and prominent leader NICRA was seeking a redress of Catholic and nationalist grievances within Northern Ireland. ^[24] Specifically, they wanted an end to the gerrymandering of electoral constituencies that produced unrepresentative local councils (particularly in Derry City) by putting virtually all Catholics in a limited number of electoral wards; the abolition of the rate-payer franchise in local government elections, which gave Protestants disproportionate voting power; an end to unfair allocation of jobs and housing; and an end to the Special Powers Act (which allowed for internment and other repressive measures) which was seen as being aimed at the nationalist community. The Civil Authorities (Special Powers Act (Northern Ireland 1922 was an act of legislation passed by the Parliament of Northern Ireland shortly after the formation of the Northern Operation Demetrius, or Internment as it is more commonly known began in Northern Ireland on the morning of Monday 9 August 1971 ^[25][26][27]

Initially, Terence O'Neill, the Prime Minister of Northern Ireland, reacted favourably to this moderate-seeming campaign and promised reforms of Northern Ireland. However, he was opposed by many hard-line unionists, including William Craig and Ian Paisley, who accused him of being a "sell-out". William Craig may refer to William Craig (politician Right Honourable (William (Bill Craig (1924&ndash Northern Ireland politician William Ian Richard Kyle Paisley (born 6 April 1926 styled The Rt Hon Some Unionists immediately mistrusted the NICRA, seeing it as an IRA "Trojan Horse". This article deals with the Irish republican organisation opposed to the Anglo-Irish Treaty styling itself "Irish Republican Army" as it existed from the time of the Treaty The Trojan Horse was part of the Trojan War, as told in Virgil 's Latin Epic poem The Aeneid. Many resented the concept of Catholic equality in this "Protestant state". Violence broke out at several Civil Rights marches when Protestant loyalists attacked civil rights demonstrators with clubs. The Royal Ulster Constabulary, almost entirely Protestant, was widely accused of supporting the loyalists and of allowing the violence to occur.

Much of the hostile loyalist reaction to the Civil Rights Movement was linked to the ability of leaders to provoke fear within the Unionist populace that the IRA was not only behind the NICRA, but was also planning a renewed armed campaign. In fact, the IRA was moribund, had few weapons, fewer members, negligible support, and was increasingly committed (out of necessity) to non-violent politics. The first bombing campaign of the Troubles (largely directed against power stations and other infrastructure) was staged by the Ulster Volunteer Force in 1969 to try to implicate the IRA. ^[21]

Communal disturbances worsened throughout 1969, escalating in January after a march by the People's Democracy from Belfast to Derry was attacked by loyalists in Burntollet, County Londonderry. People's democracy is also a term used to refer to the People's Republic. The RUC were accused of failing to protect the marchers. Barricades were erected in nationalist areas of Derry and Belfast in the following months. This disorder culminated in the Battle of the Bogside (August 12, 1969-August 14, 1969), a huge communal uprising in Derry between police and nationalists. The Battle of the Bogside was a very large communal Riot between the mostly unarmed residents of the Bogside area of Derry city in Northern Ireland allied Events 1099 - First Crusade: Battle of Ascalon - Crusaders under the command of Godfrey of Bouillon defeat Fatimid Year 1969 ( MCMLXIX) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 1183 - Taira no Munemori and the Taira clan take the young Emperor Antoku and the three sacred treasures Year 1969 ( MCMLXIX) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The riot started in a confrontation between Catholic residents of the Bogside, police, and members of the Apprentice Boys of Derry who were due to march past the Bogside along the city walls. The Bogside is a neighbourhood outside the city walls of Derry, Northern Ireland. The Apprentice Boys Of Derry are a Protestant fraternal society with a worldwide membership founded in 1814

Rioting between police and loyalists on one side and Bogside residents on the other continued for two days before British troops were sent in to restore order. The "Battle" sparked vicious sectarian rioting in Belfast, Newry, Strabane and elsewhere, starting on August 14, 1969, which left many people dead and many homes burned. Newry ( short form An tIúr, "The Yew" is the fourth largest city in Northern Ireland and eighth on the island of Ireland. Strabane (strəˈbæn Irish, An Srath Bán, Fair River Valley or White Strand is a Town in the west of County Tyrone and the north-west of Events 1183 - Taira no Munemori and the Taira clan take the young Emperor Antoku and the three sacred treasures Year 1969 ( MCMLXIX) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The riots began with nationalist demonstrations in support of the Bogside residents and escalated when a grenade was thrown at a police station. The RUC in response deployed three Shorland armoured cars mounted with Browning heavy machine guns, and killed a nine year old boy, struck by a tracer bullet fired by a Browning machine gun as he lay in bed in his family's flat in Divis Tower in the nationalist Divis Street area of Belfast. The Shorland is an armoured car that was designed specifically for the Royal Ulster Constabulary by a police support officer Ernie Lusty during the sixities A military armored (or armoured) car (see spelling differences) is a wheeled armored vehicle lighter than other armored fighting vehicles primarily Browning Arms Company was founded in Utah in 1927 It offers a wide variety of Firearms including Shotguns Rifles Pistols and A heavy machine gun refers to either a larger-caliber high-power Machine gun or one of the smaller medium-caliber (rifle caliber machine guns meant for prolonged firing from ^[28] Loyalist crowds attacked Catholic areas, burning down much of Bombay Street, Madrid Street and other Catholic streets (see Northern Ireland riots of August 1969). From 13- 17 August 1969, Northern Ireland was rocked by intensive Sectarian rioting

Nationalistsalleged that the Royal Ulster Constabulary had aided, or at least not acted against, loyalists in these riots. The IRA had been widely criticised by its supporters for failing to defend the Catholic community during the Belfast troubles of August 1969, when eight people had been killed, about 750 injured and 1,505 Catholic families had been forced out of their homes--almost five times the number of dispossessed Protestant households. ^[29] One Catholic priest reported that his parishioners were contemptuously calling the IRA "I Ran Away".

The government of Northern Ireland requested that the British Government deploy the British Army in Northern Ireland to restore order and to prevent sectarian attacks on Catholics. Executive Committee of the Privy Council of Northern Ireland was the government of Northern Ireland created under the Government of Ireland Act 1920. Her Majesty's Government, or when the monarch is male His Majesty's Government, is the title used by the Government of the United Kingdom, based at Sectarianism is Bigotry, Discrimination, Prejudice or Hatred arising from attaching importance to perceived differences between subdivisions ^[30] Nationalists initially welcomed the Army, often giving the soldiers tea and sandwiches, as they did not trust the police to act in an unbiased manner, but relations soured due to heavy-handedness by the Army^[31]

The peak of violence and the collapse of Stormont

The years 1970-1972 saw an explosion of political violence in Northern Ireland, peaking in 1972, when nearly 500 people lost their lives. There are several reasons why violence escalated in these years.

Unionists claim the main reason was the formation of the Provisional Irish Republican Army (Provisional IRA), a group formed when the IRA split into the Provisional and Official factions. The Provisional Irish Republican Army (Óglaigh na hÉireann ( IRA; also referred to as the PIRA, the Provos, or by some of its supporters as the This article deals with the Irish republican organisation opposed to the Anglo-Irish Treaty styling itself "Irish Republican Army" as it existed from the time of the Treaty The term Official Irish Republican Army or Official IRA (informally the Officials) refers to one of the two organisations&mdashthe other being the Provisional While the older IRA had embraced non-violent civil agitation, the new Provisional IRA was determined to wage "armed struggle" against British rule in Northern Ireland. The new IRA was willing to take on the role of "defenders of the Catholic community",^[32] rather than seeking working-class unity across both communities which had become the aim of the "Officials".

Nationalists argued that the upsurge in violence was caused by the disappointment of the hopes engendered by the civil rights movement and the repression subsequently directed at their community. They point to a number of events in these years to support this opinion. One such incident was the Falls Curfew in July 1970, when 3,000 troops imposed a curfew on the nationalist Lower Falls area of Belfast, firing more than 1,500 rounds of ammunition in gun battles with the IRA and killing four people. The Falls Curfew, also known as the Lower Falls Curfew or sometimes as the "Rape of the Lower Falls" was a British Army operation on the Falls Road in Another was the 1971 introduction of internment without trial--out of over 350 initial detainees, not a single one was a Protestant. ^[33] Moreover, due to poor intelligence,^[34] very few of those interned were actually republican activists, but some went on to become republicans as a result of their unfortunate experiences. Between 1971 and 1975, 1,981 people were detained; 1,874 were Catholic/republican, while 107 were Protestant/loyalist. ^[35] There were widespread allegations from the nationalist community of abuse and even torture of detainees. Torture, according to the United Nations Convention Against Torture, is "any act by which severe pain or suffering, whether physical or mental is intentionally Most emotionally of all, nationalists also point to the fatal shootings of 14 unarmed nationalist civil rights demonstrators by the British Army in Derry in January 1972 on what became known as Bloody Sunday. Bloody Sunday (Domhnach na Fola is the term used to describe an incident in Derry, Northern Ireland, on 30 January 1972 in which 26

The Provisional IRA (or "Provos", as they became known), formed in early 1970, soon established itself as more aggressive and militant in its response to attacks on the nationalist community by loyalists and the police, gaining much support in the nationalist ghettos in the early 1970s as "defenders" of those communities. Despite the increasingly reformist and Marxist politics of the Official IRA, they nonetheless began their own armed campaign in reaction to the ongoing violence and the deteriorating relationship between the Catholic community and the British military. Socialist Reformism is the belief that gradual democratic changes in a Society can ultimately change a society's fundamental economic relations and political structures Marxism is the political philosophy and practice derived from the work of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. From 1970 onwards, both the PIRA and OIRA engaged in armed confrontations with the British Army.

By 1972, the Provisionals' campaign was of such intensity that they had already killed more than 100 soldiers, wounded 500 more and carried out 1,300 bombings, mostly against commercial targets that they considered "the artificial economy". ^[36][37] The bombing campaign killed many civilians, notably on Bloody Friday in July 1972, when 22 bombs were set off in the centre of Belfast. Bloody Friday is the name given to the bombings by the Provisional Irish Republican Army 's (IRA Belfast Brigade in and around Belfast, Northern Ireland The Official IRA, who had never been fully committed to armed action, called off their campaign in June 1972. The Provisionals, however, despite a temporary ceasefire in 1972 and talks with British officials, were determined to continue their campaign until the achievement of a united Ireland.

The loyalist paramilitaries, including the Ulster Volunteer Force and the newly-founded Ulster Defence Association, responded to the increasing violence with a campaign of sectarian assassination of nationalists, whom they identified simply as Catholics. The Ulster Defence Association ( UDA) is a loyalist Paramilitary criminal organization in Northern Ireland, outlawed as a Terrorist Some of these murders were particularly gruesome, as in the case of the Shankill Butchers, who beat and tortured their victims before killing them. The " Shankill Butchers " were a group of UVF members who were involved in a large number of loyalist terrorist activities in Belfast, Northern Ireland Another feature of the political violence was the involuntary or forced displacement of both Catholics and Protestants from formerly mixed residential areas. For example, in Belfast, Protestants were forced out of Lenadoon, and Catholics were driven out of the Rathcoole estate and the Westvale neighbourhood. In Derry City almost all the Protestants fled to the predominantly loyalist Fountain Estate and Waterside areas.

The UK government in London, perceiving that the Northern Ireland administration was incapable of containing the security situation, suspended the unionist-controlled Stormont Home Rule government in 1972 and introduced "Direct Rule" from London. The Parliament of Northern Ireland was the home rule Legislature of Northern Ireland, created under the Government of Ireland Act 1920, Home rule refers to a demand that constituent parts of a state be given greater self-government within the greater administrative purview of the central government Their government addressed many of the concerns of the civil rights movement: re-drawing electoral boundaries to make them more representative, giving all citizens the vote in local elections, and transferring the power to allocate public housing to an independent Northern Ireland Housing Executive, for example. The Northern Ireland Housing Executive is a regulatory body in Northern Ireland that regulates housing Direct Rule was initially intended as a short-term measure, the medium-term strategy being to restore self-government to Northern Ireland on a basis that was acceptable to both unionists and nationalists. Agreement proved elusive, however, and the Troubles continued throughout the 1970s and 1980s within a context of political deadlock.

The Sunningdale Agreement

In June 1973, following the publication of a British White Paper and an abortive referendum in March on the status of Northern Ireland, a new parliamentary body, the Northern Ireland Assembly, was established. A white paper is an authoritative report or guide that often addresses problems and how to solve them The Northern Ireland referendum of 1973 (also known as the Border Poll) was a Referendum held in Northern Ireland only on March 8, 1973 The Northern Ireland Assembly was a legislative assembly set up by the Government of the United Kingdom on 3 May 1973 to restore devolved Elections to this were held on 28 June. The 1973 elections to the Northern Ireland Assembly took place following the publication of the British government's White paper Northern Ireland Constitutional Events 1098 - Fighters of the First Crusade defeat Kerbogha of Mosul. In October of that year mainstream nationalist and unionist parties, along with the British and (Southern) Irish governments, negotiated the Sunningdale Agreement, which was intended to produce a political settlement within Northern Ireland, but with a so-called "Irish dimension" involving the Republic of Ireland. The Sunningdale Agreement was an attempt to end " The Troubles " in Northern Ireland by forcing unionists to share power with nationalists The agreement provided for "power-sharing" between nationalists and unionists and a "Council of Ireland" designed to encourage cross-border co-operation. Seamus Mallon, the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) politician, has pointed to the marked similarities between the Sunningdale Agreement and the Belfast Agreement of 1998. Seamus Mallon MP first Deputy First Minister of Northern The Social Democratic and Labour Party ( SDLP; Páirtí Sóisialta Daonlathach an Lucht Oibre is one of the two major nationalist parties in Northern Ireland Famously, he characterised the latter as "Sunningdale for slow learners". ^[38]

Unionism, however, was split over Sunningdale, which was also opposed by the IRA, whose goal remained nothing short of an end to Northern Ireland's existence as part of the United Kingdom. Many unionists opposed the concept of power-sharing, arguing that it was not feasible to share power with those (nationalists) who sought the destruction of the state. Perhaps more significant, however, was the unionist opposition to the "Irish dimension" and the Council of Ireland, which was perceived as being an all-Ireland parliament-in-waiting. The remarks by SDLP councillor Hugh Logue to an audience at Trinity College Dublin that Sunningdale was the tool "by which the Unionists will be trundled off to a united Ireland" ensured its defeat. Hugh Logue (born 1949 is a Northern Irish former Social Democratic and Labour Party politician and economist who now works as a commentator on political and economic Trinity College Dublin ( TCD; Irish Coláiste na Tríonóide Baile Átha Cliath; Latin: Collegium Sacrosanctae et Individuae Trinitatis Reginae

In January 1974, Brian Faulkner was narrowly deposed as Unionist Party leader by his own party and replaced by Harry West. Arthur Brian Deane Faulkner Baron Faulkner of Downpatrick, PC ( February 18, 1921 - March 3, 1977) was the sixth and last Henry William West ( March 27 1917 &ndash February 5 2004) was a politician in Northern Ireland who served as leader of the Ulster A UK general election in February 1974 gave the anti-Sunningdale unionists the opportunity to test unionist opinion with the slogan "Dublin is only a Sunningdale away", and the result galvanised their opposition: they won 11 of the 12 seats, winning 58% of the vote with most of the rest going to nationalists and pro-Sunningdale unionists.

Ultimately, however, the Sunningdale Agreement was brought down by mass action on the part of loyalists (primarily the Ulster Defence Association, at that time over 20,000 strong) and Protestant workers, who formed the Ulster Workers' Council. The Ulster Workers Council was a loyalist workers' organisation set up in Northern Ireland in 1974 as a more formalised successor to the Loyalist Association They organised a general strike--the Ulster Workers' Council Strike. A general strike is a Strike action by a critical mass of the labour force in a city region or country The Ulster Workers Council (UWC Strike was a General strike that took place between Wednesday 15 May 1974 and Tuesday 28 May 1974 This stopped all business in Northern Ireland and cut off essential services such as water and electricity. Nationalists argue that the UK government did not do enough to break this strike and uphold the Sunningdale initiative. In the event, however, faced with such determined opposition, the pro-Sunningdale unionists resigned from the power-sharing government and the new regime collapsed.

The failure of Sunningdale led on to the examination in London of the option of a rapid British withdrawal by the new government of Harold Wilson. James Harold Wilson Baron Wilson of Rievaulx, KG, OBE, FRS, PC (11 March 1916 &ndash 24 May 1995 was one of the most prominent British politicians This was also considered in Dublin by Garret FitzGerald in a memorandum of June 1975, on which he commented in 2006. Garret FitzGerald (Gearóid Mac Gearailt born 9 February 1926 was the seventh Taoiseach of Ireland, serving two terms in office (July 1981 to February 1982 December ^[39] This concluded that the Irish government could do little on such a withdrawal with its army of 12,500 men, with the likely result of a greater loss of life. Ireland ( Irish: Éire, ˈeːrʲə is a country in north-western Europe.

The violence continued through the rest of the 1970s. The Provisional IRA declared a ceasefire in 1975 but returned to violence in 1976. By this time they had lost the hope that they had had in the early 1970s that they could force a rapid British withdrawal from Northern Ireland, and instead developed a strategy known as the "Long War", which involved a less intense but more sustained campaign of violence that could continue indefinitely. The Official IRA ceasefire of 1972, however, became permanent, and the "Official" movement eventually evolved into the Workers Party, which rejected violence completely. The term Official Irish Republican Army or Official IRA (informally the Officials) refers to one of the two organisations&mdashthe other being the Provisional The Workers Party of Ireland (in Irish Páirtí na nOibrithe, though its logo translates it erroneously as Páirtí na nOibri) is a left wing Irish However, a splinter from the "Officials" in 1974--the Irish National Liberation Army--continued with a campaign of violence. The Irish National Liberation Army ( INLA; Arm Saoirse Náisiúnta na hÉireann in Irish is an Irish Republican, Left-wing paramilitary organisation

By the late 1970s, war weariness was visible in both communities. One manifestation of this was the formation of group known as "Peace People", which won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1976. The Nobel Peace Prize ( Swedish, Danish and Nobels fredspris is one of five Nobel Prizes Bequeathed by the Swedish industrialist and inventor The Peace People organised large demonstrations calling for an end to paramilitary violence. However, their campaign lost momentum after they appealed to the nationalist community to provide information on the IRA to security forces. The Army and police were so unpopular in many nationalist areas that this was not seen as an objective stance.

The Hunger Strikes and the emergence of Sinn Féin

An IRA mural in Belfast depicting the hunger strikes of 1981. Belfast ( is the capital city of Northern Ireland and the seat of government in Northern Ireland. The 1981 Irish hunger strike was the culmination of a five-year protest during The Troubles by Irish republican prisoners in Northern Ireland.

Successive British Governments, having failed to achieve a political settlement, tried to "normalise" Northern Ireland. Aspects included the removal of internment without trial and the removal of political status for paramilitary prisoners. Internment is the imprisonment or confinement of people commonly in large groups without trial From 1972 onwards, paramilitaries were tried in juryless Diplock courts to avoid intimidation of jurors. The Diplock courts were a type of court established by the British Government in Northern Ireland in 1972 in an attempt to overcome widespread Jury intimidation On conviction, they were to be treated as ordinary criminals. Resistance to this policy among republican prisoners led to over 500 of them in the Maze prison initiating the blanket protest and the dirty protest. Her Majesty's Prison Maze (known colloquially as The H Blocks, Long Kesh, or The Maze) was a Prison used to house Paramilitary prisoners The blanket protest (Agóid na mBlancéid was part of a five year protest during The Troubles by Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA and Irish National Liberation The dirty protest (also called the no wash protest) was part of a five year protest during The Troubles by Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA and Their protests culminated in hunger strikes in 1980 and 1981, aimed at the restoration of political status. A hunger strike is a method of Non-violent resistance or pressure in which participants fast as an act of political Protest, or to provoke feelings of

In the 1981 Irish Hunger Strike, ten republican prisoners (seven from the Provisional IRA and three from the Irish National Liberation Army) starved themselves to death. The 1981 Irish hunger strike was the culmination of a five-year protest during The Troubles by Irish republican prisoners in Northern Ireland. The Irish National Liberation Army ( INLA; Arm Saoirse Náisiúnta na hÉireann in Irish is an Irish Republican, Left-wing paramilitary organisation The first hunger striker to die, Bobby Sands, was elected to Parliament on an Anti-H-Block ticket, as was his election agent Owen Carron following Sands' death. Robert Gerard Sands (Roibeard Gearóid Ó Seachnasaigh commonly known as Bobby Sands, (9 March 1954 – 5 May 1981 was a Provisional Irish Republican Army Anti H-Block was the political label used by candidates standing in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland in support of the 1981 hunger strike. Owen Gerard Carron (born February 1953 is an Irish republican activist and the former Member of Parliament (MP for Fermanagh and South Tyrone. The hunger strikes proved emotive events for the nationalist community--over 100,000 people attended Sands' funeral mass at St. Luke's, Twinbrook, West Belfast, and crowds also attended the subsequent funerals.

From an Irish republican perspective, the significance of these events was to demonstrate a potential for political and electoral strategy. ^[40] In the wake of the hunger strikes, Sinn Féin, the Provisional IRA's political wing, began to contest elections for the first time in both Northern Ireland and the Republic. In 1986, Sinn Féin recognised the legitimacy of the Irish Dáil, which caused a small group of republicans to break away and form Republican Sinn Féin. ga '''Dáil Éireann''' ( English House of Representatives of Ireland) is the principal chamber of the Oireachtas (Irish parliament Republican Sinn Féin ( RSF; Irish: Sinn Féin Poblachtach) is a Political party operating in Ireland.

From a unionist perspective, the hunger strikes appeared to show that the nationalist community supported terrorism and this perception deepened sectarian antagonism.

The "Long War"

The PIRA's "Long War" was boosted by large donations of arms to them from Libya in the 1980s (see Provisional IRA arms importation) due to Moammar Qaddafi's anger at Thatcher's government for assisting the Reagan government's bombing of Tripoli, which killed one of Qaddafi's children. Libya ( ليبيا ar-Latn Lībiyā; Libyan vernacular: Lībya; Amazigh:) officially the Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab The Provisional Irish Republican Army began importing large quantities of weapons and ammunition into Ireland for use in Northern Ireland in the early 1970s Muammar Abu Minyar al-Gaddafi 1 (معمر القذافي) (born 7 June 1942) also known as Colonel Gaddafi Margaret Hilda Thatcher Baroness Thatcher LG, OM, PC, FRS (born 13 October 1925 The United States Presidency of Ronald Reagan, also known as the Reagan Administration, was a Republican administration headed by The United States bombing of Libya (code-named Operation El Dorado Canyon) comprised the joint United States Air Force, Navy and

In the mid to late 1980s loyalist paramilitaries, including the Ulster Volunteer Force, the Ulster Defence Association and Ulster Resistance, imported arms and explosives from South Africa. Ulster Resistance was a Paramilitary movement established by unionists in Northern Ireland on 10 November 1986 in opposition to the The Republic of South Africa (also known by other official names) is a country located at the southern tip of the continent of Africa ^[41] The weapons obtained were divided between the UDA, the UVF and Ulster Resistance, and led to an escalation in the assassination of Catholics, although some of the weaponry (such as rocket propelled grenades) were hardly used. RPG or rocket-propelled grenade, is a loose term describing hand-held shoulder-launched Anti-tank weapons capable of firing an unguided These killings were in response to the 1985 Anglo-Irish Agreement which gave the Irish government a "consultative role" in the internal government of Northern Ireland. The Anglo-Irish Agreement was an agreement between the United Kingdom and Ireland which aimed to bring an end to The Troubles in Northern Ireland The Government of Ireland (Rialtas na hÉireann n̪ˠə ˈheːɾʲən̪ˠ is the Cabinet that exercises executive authority in Ireland.

Collusion by security forces and loyalist paramilitaries

One particularly controversial aspect of the conflict has been allegations of collusion between the state security forces and loyalist paramilitaries, traditionally from Irish nationalist or pro-Irish republican media and news outlets, both print and online, such as the Irish News, An Phoblacht, the Irish People (USA), Slugger O'Toole, the Pat Finucane Center, et al, but also The Guardian and, more recently, the BBC. Collusion is an agreement usually secretive which occurs between two or more persons to deceive mislead or defraud others of their legal rights or to obtain an objective forbidden The Irish News is a compact -sized daily newspaper based in Belfast, Northern Ireland. An Phoblacht ( Irish for "The Republic" is the official Newspaper of Sinn Féin Slugger O'Toole is a Weblog started in June 2002 by political analyst Mick Fealty. The Guardian (until 1959 The Manchester Guardian) is a British Newspaper owned by the Guardian Media Group.

The UDR and loyalists

One problem, highlighted by documents declassified in 2004, is that British government documents from the early 1970s show overlapping membership between the Ulster Defence Regiment (UDR) and loyalist paramilitary groups. The Ulster Defence Regiment ( UDR) was an Infantry Regiment of the British Army formed as an anti-terrorist Militia in 1970 to replace The documents include a report titled "Subversion in the UDR" which details the problem. The documents state that:

• an estimated 5-15% of UDR soldiers were directly linked to loyalist paramilitary groups.

• it was believed that the "best single source of weapons, and the only significant source of modern weapons, for Protestant extremist groups was the UDR. "

• it was feared that UDR troops were loyal to "Ulster" alone rather than to "Her Majesty's Government".

• The British Government knew that UDR weapons were being used by loyalist paramilitaries, including the killing of a Roman Catholic civilian and other attacks^[42][43]

Despite knowing that the UDR had problems and that over 200 weapons had been passed from British Army hands to loyalist paramilitaries by 1973, the British Government went on to increase the role of the UDR in maintaining order in Northern Ireland. ^[43]

Special Patrol Group and the Glenane allegations

In the mid-1970s, a Royal Ulster Constabulary "anti-terrorist unit", the Special Patrol Group, was implicated in aiding and participating in a number of sectarian murders in the mid-Ulster area, including the Reavey and O'Dowd killings of 1976. Note the RUC unit should not be confused with the Special Patrol Group of the London Metropolitan Police. The Reavey and O'Dowd killings were the killing of six Catholics in Armagh Northern Ireland by loyalist paramilitaries on January 4 1976 Two SPG members, John Weir and Billy McCaughey, were convicted in 1980 of a 1977 murder, an attack on a pub in Keady, and the kidnap of a Catholic priest. William "Billy" McCaughey (died 8 February 2006) was a member of the Royal Ulster Constabulary 's Special Patrol Group (SPG and the Keady ( is a small Town in County Armagh in Northern Ireland, south of Armagh city and very close to the border with the Republic They implicated their immediate colleagues in at least 11 other killings and alleged that they were part of a wider conspiracy involving the RUC Special Branch, British military intelligence, and the UVF. ^[44] The Special Patrol Group was stood down after the men's conviction. The nationalist Pat Finucane Centre has claimed that the group of British Army, RUC, UDR and UVF members that Wier and McCaughey referred to, which they called the "Glenane gang", was responsible for 87 killings in the 1970s, including the Dublin and Monaghan bombings of 1974 and the Miami Showband killings of 1975. This does not cite its references or sources. You can help Wikipedia by introducing appropriate citations The Miami Showband killings (also known as the Miami Showband Massacre) occurred on 31 July 1975 around 2 ^[45]

Collusion in the 1980s and 1990s

Elements within the Army and police have been shown to have leaked intelligence to loyalists from the late 1980s to target republican activists. In 1992, a British agent within the UDA, Brian Nelson, revealed Army complicity in his activities which included murder and importing arms. ^[46][47] Factions within the British Army and RUC are known to have cooperated with Nelson and the UDA through the British Army Intelligence group called the Force Research Unit. Force Research Unit ( FRU) is alleged to be a name used by a covert Military intelligence unit established by the United Kingdom Ministry of Defence Since the late 1990s, some loyalists have confirmed to journalists such as Peter Taylor that they received files and intelligence from security sources on Republican targets. Peter Taylor born Scarborough, North Yorkshire is a British Journalist and documentary -maker who had covered for many years the political ^[48][49]

In a report released on 22 January 2007, the Police Ombudsman Nuala O'Loan stated that UVF informers committed serious crimes, including murder, with the full knowledge of their handlers. Events 565 - Eutychius is deposed as Patriarch of Constantinople by John Scholasticus. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Dame Nuala Patricia O'Loan DBE (born 20 December 1951) is a noted public figure in Northern Ireland. ^[50] The report alleged that certain Special Branch officers created false statements, blocked evidence searches and "baby-sat" suspects during interviews. Special Branch is an investigative unit of the British, Irish and many Commonwealth police services Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) councillor and former Police Federation chairman Jimmy Spratt said if the report "had had one shred of credible evidence then we could have expected charges against former Police Officers. The Democratic Unionist Party ( DUP) is the larger of the two main unionist political parties in Northern Ireland. There are no charges, so the public should draw their own conclusion, the report is clearly based on little fact". ^[51] However, the then Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Peter Hain, said that he was "convinced that at least one prosecution will arise out of today's report". The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland is the chief minister in the Government of the United Kingdom with responsibilities for Northern Ireland Peter Gerald Hain (born 16 February 1950, Nairobi, Kenya) is a British Labour Party Politician who has ^[52] Peter Hain also said, "There are all sorts of opportunities for prosecutions to follow. The fact that some retired police officers obstructed the investigation and refused to co-operate with the Police Ombudsman is very serious in itself. There will be consequences for those involved and it is a matter for the relevant bodies to take up". ^[53]

Shoot-to-kill allegations

In addition, republicans allege that the security forces operated a policy of "shoot-to-kill"--killing rather than arresting IRA suspects. During the period known as " The Troubles " in Northern Ireland, the British Army and Royal Ulster Constabulary were accused of operating a The security forces denied this and point out that in incidents such as the killing of eight IRA men at Loughgall in 1987, the paramilitaries who were killed were heavily armed. The East Tyrone Brigade, Briogáid Thír Eoghain Thoir, of the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA was one of the most active republican paramilitary Loughgall (in Irish Loch Gall) is a small Village in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. Others argue that incidents such as the shooting of three unarmed IRA members in Gibraltar by the SAS ten months later confirmed suspicions among republicans, and in the British and Irish media, of a tacit British "shoot-to-kill" policy of suspected IRA members. Gibraltar (dʒɨˈbrɒltər is a British overseas territory located near the southernmost tip of the Iberian Peninsula overlooking the Strait of Gibraltar The Special Air Service ( SAS) is a Special forces regiment within the British Army which has served as a model and inspiration for the special ^[54]

The paramilitary ceasefires and peace process

Main article: Northern Ireland peace process

The paramilitaries' activities

Since the late 1980s, while the IRA continued its armed campaign, its political wing Sinn Féin, led since 1983 by Gerry Adams, sought a negotiated end to the conflict, although Adams knew that this would be a very long process. When discussing the History of Northern Ireland, the " peace process " is generally considered to cover the events leading up to the 1994 Provisional Irish Republican Sinn Féin () is a political party in Ireland. The current party led by Gerry Adams was formed following a split in January 1970 Gerry Adams, MLA, MP (Gearóid Mac Ádhaimh born 6 October 1948 is an Irish Republican politician and abstentionist Westminster In the 1970s he himself predicted that the war would last another 20 years. This was manifested in open talks with John Hume—the Social Democratic and Labour Party leader--and secret talks with Government officials. John Hume (born 18 January 1937) is a former Politician in Northern Ireland, founding member of the Social Democratic and Labour Party The Social Democratic and Labour Party ( SDLP; Páirtí Sóisialta Daonlathach an Lucht Oibre is one of the two major nationalist parties in Northern Ireland Loyalists were also engaged in behind-the-scenes talks to end the violence, liaising with the British and Irish governments through Protestant clergy, in particular the Presbyterian Rev. Roy Magee and the Anglican Archbishop Robin Eames. Robin Henry Alexander Eames Baron Eames, OM (born 27 April 1937) was the Anglican Primate of All Ireland and Archbishop of Armagh After a prolonged period of political manoeuvring in the background, the loyalist and republican paramilitaries declared ceasefires in 1994.

The year leading up to the ceasefires was a particularly tense one, marked by atrocities. The UDA and UVF stepped up their killings of Catholics (for the first time killing more civilians than Republicans in a year in 1993). The IRA responded with the Shankill Road bombing in October 1993, which aimed to kill the UDA leadership, but in fact killed nine Protestant civilians. The Shankill Road bombing in Belfast, sometimes referred to as the Shankill bomb, was one of the most notorious incidents of The Troubles in Northern The UDA in turn retaliated with the Greysteel massacre and shootings at Castlerock, County Londonderry. The Greysteel massacre occurred on the evening of 30 October, 1993 when three members of the Ulster Freedom Fighters, an Ulster Loyalist organisation

On June 16, 1994, just before the ceasefires, the Irish National Liberation Army killed three UVF members in a gun attack on the Shankill Road. Events 1487 - Battle of Stoke Field, the last dying breath of the Wars of the Roses. Year 1994 ( MCMXCIV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display full 1994 Gregorian calendar) In revenge, three days later, the UVF killed six civilians in a shooting at a pub in Loughinisland, County Down. Loughinisland ( Irish: Loch an Oileáin) is a Village in County Down, Northern Ireland. County Down, ( Ulster Scots: Coontie Doun. is one of the nine counties that form the province of Ulster and one of six counties that form The IRA, in the remaining month before its ceasefire, killed four senior loyalists, three from the UDA and one from the UVF. There are various interpretations of the spike in violence before the ceasefires. One theory is that the loyalists feared the peace process represented an imminent "sellout" of the Union and ratcheted up their violence accordingly. Another explanation is that the republicans were "settling old scores" before the end of their campaigns and wanted to enter the political process from a position of military strength rather than weakness.

Eventually, in August 1994, the Provisional IRA declared a ceasefire. A ceasefire (or truce) is a temporary stoppage of a War or any Armed conflict, where each side of the conflict agrees The loyalist paramilitaries, temporarily united in the "Combined Loyalist Military Command", reciprocated six weeks later. The Combined Loyalist Military Command was an umbrella body for loyalist Paramilitary groups in Northern Ireland set up in the early 1990s recalling the Although these ceasefires failed in the short run, they mark an effective end to large-scale political violence in the Troubles, as they paved the way for the final ceasefire.

The second ceasefire

On 9 February 1996, less than two years after the declaration of the ceasefire, the IRA revoked it with the Docklands bombing in the Canary Wharf area of London, killing two people and causing £85 million in damage to the city's financial centre. Events 474 - Zeno crowned as co-emperor of the Byzantine Empire. Year 1996 ( MCMXCVI) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display full 1996 Gregorian calendar) The Docklands bombing (also known as the Canary Wharf bombing or South Quay bombing) on February 9, 1996, was one of the most significant Sinn Féin blamed the failure of the ceasefire on the UK government's refusal to begin all-party negotiations until the IRA decommissioned its weapons. ^[55]

The destruction immediately following the attacks in South Quay

The attack was followed by several more, most notably the Manchester Bombing which destroyed a large area of the centre of the city on 15 June 1996. South Quay is a Docklands Light Railway station on the Isle of Dogs, in London. The 1996 Manchester bombing was a bomb attack undertaken by the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA in Manchester, England. Events 763 BC - Assyrians record a Solar eclipse that will be used to fix the Chronology of Mesopotamian history Year 1996 ( MCMXCVI) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display full 1996 Gregorian calendar) It was the largest bomb attack in Great Britain since World War II, and while the attack avoided many fatalities due to the rapid response of the emergency services to an earlier telephone warning made to a local television station, over 200 people were injured in the attack, many of them outside the established cordon. The damage caused by the blast was valued at £411 million. The last British soldier to die in the Troubles, Lance Bombardier Stephen Restorick, was also killed during this period, on 12 February 1997, by the "South Armagh sniper". Bombardier is a rank used in Artillery units in the armies of Commonwealth countries instead of Corporal. Events 1429 - English Forces under Sir John Fastolf defend a supply convoy carrying rations to the army besieging Orleans from attack by the Year 1997 ( MCMXCVII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1997 Gregorian calendar The South Armagh Sniper is the Generic name given to the members of the Provisional Irish Republican Army 's South Armagh Brigade who conducted a sniping

The IRA reinstated their ceasefire in July 1997 as negotiations for the document that would become known as the Good Friday Agreement were starting without Sinn Féin. In September of the same year Sinn Féin signed The Mitchell Principles and was invited into the talks. The Mitchell Principles were six ground rules agreed by the Irish and British governments and the political parties in Northern Ireland regarding participation

The UVF was the first paramilitary grouping to split as a result of their ceasefire, spawning the Loyalist Volunteer Force (LVF) in 1996. The Loyalist Volunteer Force ( LVF) is a loyalist Paramilitary group in Northern Ireland which broke away from the Ulster Volunteer In December 1997, the INLA assassinated LVF leader Billy Wright, leading to a series of revenge killings of Catholics by loyalist groups. Billy Wright (July 7 1960 &ndash December 27 1997 was a Northern Irish loyalist Paramilitary figure In addition, two hardline splinter groups from the Provisional IRA, the Real IRA and the Continuity IRA, who rejected the Provisionals' ceasefire, continued a bombing campaign. The Real Irish Republican Army, otherwise known as the Real IRA (RIRA or True IRA and styling itself as Óglaigh na hÉireann (Volunteers The Continuity Irish Republican Army ( CIRA) is an Irish republican Paramilitary organisation that emerged from a split in the Provisional IRA

In August 1998, a Real IRA bomb in Omagh killed 29 civilians. The Omagh bombing was a Paramilitary Car bomb attack carried out by the Real Irish Republican Army (RIRA a splinter group of former Provisional Irish Omagh (pronounced /'omæ/) is the County town of County Tyrone in Northern Ireland, situated where the rivers Drumragh and Camowen This bombing, the single worst of the entire Troubles, largely discredited "dissident" Republicans and their campaigns in the eyes of most nationalists. They are now small and non-influential groups. The INLA also declared a ceasefire after the Belfast Agreement was passed in 1998.

Since then, most paramilitary violence has been directed inwards, at their "own" communities and at other factions within their organisations. The UDA, for example, has feuded with their fellow loyalists the UVF on two occasions since 2000, and has also seen internal feuding between "Brigade commanders" over power within the organisation and involvement in organised crime. ^[56]

The Provisional IRA has been accused of killing at least one double-agent (Denis Donaldson) and its members have also been accused of intimidating and expelling Catholics, assaulting men and women, and, in the most extreme cases, killing men such as Robert McCartney, Matthew Ignatius Burns and Andrew Kearney. Denis Martin Donaldson ( Belfast, Northern Ireland, 1950 &ndash April 4, 2006 in County Donegal, Republic of Ireland) was Robert McCartney (1971 &ndash 31 January 2005) was the victim of a murder in Belfast, Northern Ireland, allegedly carried out by members of

The political process

After the ceasefires, talks began between the main political parties in Northern Ireland with the aim of establishing political agreement. These talks eventually produced the Belfast Agreement of 1998. This Agreement restored self-government to Northern Ireland on the basis of "power-sharing", and an executive was formed in 1999 consisting of the four main parties, including Sinn Féin. Other reforms included reform of the RUC, which was renamed as the Police Service of Northern Ireland and required to recruit a minimum quota of Catholics. The Police Service of Northern Ireland is the Police service that covers Northern Ireland.

However, the power-sharing Executive and Assembly were suspended in 2002, when unionists withdrew following the exposure of a Provisional IRA spy ring within the Sinn Féin office (which was later revealed to have been started by undercover British agent Denis Donaldson). This was on top of ongoing tensions between unionists and Sinn Féin about the Provisional IRA's failure to disarm fully and sufficiently quickly. PIRA decommissioning has since been completed (in September 2005) to the satisfaction of most, but the Democratic Unionist Party continued to be wary over republican claims that the "war was over".

A feature of Northern Irish politics since the Agreement has been the eclipse in electoral terms of the relatively moderate parties such as the Social Democratic and Labour Party and Ulster Unionist Party by more extreme parties--Sinn Féin and the DUP. The Ulster Unionist Party ( UUP, sometimes referred to as the Official Unionist Party or OUP or in a historic sense simply the Unionist Party

Similarly, although political violence is greatly reduced, sectarian animosity has not disappeared and residential areas are more segregated between Catholic nationalists and Protestant unionists than ever. Because of this, progress towards restoring the power-sharing institutions has been slow and tortuous. Though the "peace process" is slow-going, movements have formed which give those affected by The Troubles a voice in their communities. In particular, the Corrymeela Community in Ballycastle teaches the prejudice-reduction model, which has been adopted by the Ulster Project International to improve relations between Protestant and Catholic families across the country. The Corrymeela Community is a Christian community whose objective is the promotion of reconciliation and peace-building through the healing of social religious and political Ballycastle can refer to Ballycastle County Antrim, a small town in Northern Ireland Ballycastle County Down, a townland in Northern The Ulster Project was started in 1975 by Rev Kerry Waterstone a Church of Ireland priest in Tullamore, County Offally in order to provide a safe place in

Recently, Gerry Adams and Ian Paisley have announced the formation of a power-sharing government, ending the 5 year stand-off.

The parades issue

Drumcree dispute map (enlarge to study)

Inter-communal tensions rise and violence often breaks out during the "marching season" when the Protestant Orange Order parades take place across Northern Ireland. The Orange Institution, more commonly known as the Orange Order or the Orange Lodge, is a Protestant fraternal organisation based predominantly The parades are held to commemorate William of Orange's victory in the Battle of the Boyne in 1690, which secured the Protestant Ascendancy and British rule in Ireland. William III or William of Orange (14 November 1650 &ndash 8 March 1702 He is informally known in Northern Ireland and Scotland as "King Billy" The Battle of the Boyne (Cath na Bóinne was a turning point in the Williamite claim on the English throne The Protestant Ascendancy is a convenient phrase used when referring to the political economic and social domination of the former Kingdom of Ireland by a minority of great One particular flashpoint that has caused repeated strife is the Garvaghy Road area in Portadown, where an Orange parade from Drumcree Church passes by a predominantly nationalist estate off the Garvaghy Road. Portadown ( is a former market town in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. Drumcree may also refer to the village of Drumcree County Westmeath Drumcree Church is the parish church of Drumcree a rural Church of Ireland parish This parade has now been banned indefinitely, following nationalist riots against the parade, and also loyalist counter-riots against its banning. In 1995, 1996 and 1997, there were several weeks of prolonged rioting throughout Northern Ireland over the impasse at Drumcree. A number of people died in this violence, including a Catholic taxi driver, killed by the Loyalist Volunteer Force, and three (of four) nominally Catholic brothers (from a mixed-religion family) died when their house in Ballymoney was petrol-bombed. The Loyalist Volunteer Force ( LVF) is a loyalist Paramilitary group in Northern Ireland which broke away from the Ulster Volunteer Ballymoney ( is a small Town in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. ^[57][58][59]

Disputes have also occurred in Belfast over parade routes along the Ormeau and Crumlin Roads. Orangemen hold that to march their "traditional route" is their civil right. Nationalists argue that by parading through predominantly Catholic areas, the Orange Order is being unnecessarily provocative. Symbolically, the ability to either parade or to block a parade is viewed as expressing ownership of "territory" and influence over the government of Northern Ireland.

Many commentators have expressed the view that the violence over the parades issue has provided an outlet for the violence of paramilitary groups who are otherwise on ceasefire.

Casualties: brief summary

Responsibility

Between 1969 and 2001, 3,523 people were killed as a result of the Troubles.

Approximately 60% of the victims were killed by republicans, 30% by loyalists and 10% by the British, Irish and Northern Irish security forces.

Status

Most of those killed were civilians or members of the security forces, with smaller groups of victims identified with republican and loyalist paramilitary groups. It is often disputed whether some civilians were members of paramilitary organisations due to their secretive nature. Several PIRA paramilitaries were claimed to be civilians by CAIN but are now claimed by the IRA as their members, Padraig O'Seanachain (Patrick Shanaghan) for example. CAIN ( Conflict Archive on the Internet) is a database containing information about Conflict and Politics in Northern Ireland from 1968 to the Present ^[60] At least three Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) members killed were also Ulster Defence Regiment (UDR) soldiers. The Ulster Volunteer Force (more commonly referred to as the UVF) is a Loyalist group in Northern Ireland. The Ulster Defence Regiment ( UDR) was an Infantry Regiment of the British Army formed as an anti-terrorist Militia in 1970 to replace ^[61] At least one civilian victim was an off-duty member of the TA. The Territorial Army ( TA) is the principal and Volunteer reserve force of the British Army, the land armed forces branch of the United Kingdom ^[62]

Location

Most killings took place within Northern Ireland, especially Belfast, although surrounding counties, Dublin and large English cities (such as London and Birmingham) were affected, albeit to a lesser degree than in Northern Ireland itself. The British Army is the land armed forces branch of the British Armed Forces. The Royal Ulster Constabulary GC was the name of the Police force in Northern Ireland from 1922 to 2001 The Ulster Defence Regiment ( UDR) was an Infantry Regiment of the British Army formed as an anti-terrorist Militia in 1970 to replace The Northern Ireland Prison Service ( Seirbhís Phríosúin na Tuaisceart Éireann is an executive agency of the Northern Ireland Office (NIO established on 1 April 1995 ga '''''Garda Síochána na hÉireann''''' (ˈgaːrdə ʃiːˈxaːnə nə ˈheːɾʲən Irish for "Peace Guard of Ireland" often rendered Ireland ( Irish: Éire, ˈeːrʲə is a country in north-western Europe. For the regiment of the same name disbanded in 1922 see Royal Irish Regiment (1684-1922 The Royal Irish Regiment (27th (Inniskilling 83rd The Territorial Army ( TA) is the principal and Volunteer reserve force of the British Army, the land armed forces branch of the United Kingdom Law enforcement in the United Kingdom is organised separately in Scotland, Northern Ireland, England and Wales (administration of Police matters The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of the British armed services (and is therefore known as the Senior Service) The Irish Army ( Arm na hÉireann) is the main branch of the Irish Defence Forces ( Óglaigh na hÉireann) Dublin (ˈdʌblɨn/ /ˈdʊblɨn or /ˈdʊbəlɪn/, bˠalʲə aːha klʲiəh or cliə(ɸ is both the largest city and capital of Ireland. London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom. Birmingham ( ˈbɜːmɪŋəm Ber -ming-um Occasionally, violence also took place in western Europe, especially against the British Army in Germany. The British Army is the land armed forces branch of the British Armed Forces. Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe.

Chronological listing

Additional statistics

Timeline

Main article: Chronology of the Northern Ireland Troubles

Directory

Main article: Directory of the Northern Ireland Troubles

See also

• Segregation in Northern Ireland

• Northern Irish murals

• List of topics related to Northern Ireland

• CAIN

Responses to the Troubles in popular culture

Films about or related to the Troubles

• A Prayer for the Dying (1987)

• An Everlasting Piece (2000)

• Angel (1982)

• Bloody Sunday (2002)

• Breakfast on Pluto (2005)

• Cal (1984)

• Children in the Crossfire (1984)

• Elephant (Alan Clarke film) (1989)

• The Long Good Friday (1980)

• H3 (2001)

• Harry's Game (1982)

• Hidden Agenda (1990)

• Hunger (2008)

• In the Name of the Father (1993)

• Johnny Was (2006)

• Mickybo and Me (2004)

• My Brother's War (1998)

• Nothing Personal (1997)

• Omagh (2004)

• Omagh the Legacy: Claire and Stephen's Story (1999)

• Patriot Games (1992)

• Patriots (1998)

• Resurrection Man (1997)

• Ronin (1998)

• Some Mothers Son (1996)

• Sunday (2002)

• The Boxer (1997)

• The Crying Game (1992)

• The Devil's Own (1997)

• The General (1998)

• The Informant (1997)

• The Railway Station Man (1993)

• Titanic Town (1998)

Novels about or related to the Troubles

• Breakfast on Pluto by Patrick McCabe (1998)

• Eureka Street by Robert McLiam Wilson (1996)

• No Bones by Anna Burns (2001)

• Ourselves Alone by Anne Devlin (1985)

• The Bombmaker by Stephen Leather (1999)

• Joan Lingard's children's series: The Twelfth Day of July, Across the Barricades (1973), Into Exile, A Proper Place, and Hostage to Fortune

• Belfast Diaries: War as a Way of Life by John Conroy (1995)

• Stand by Stand by: Chris Ryan

• Northern Protestants- an unsettled people. Considering that Northern Ireland has been ravaged by conflict for over thirty years it would be simply impossible to include every single event that took place during that time The whole of Northern Ireland has in some way been caught up in The Troubles and subsequent peace process Segregation in Northern Ireland is a long-running issue in the political and social history of the province Northern Irish murals have become symbols of Northern Ireland, depicting the region's past and present divisions This page aims to list articles related to Northern Ireland. For a list of topics related to the island of Ireland, see the List of Ireland-related topics; for CAIN ( Conflict Archive on the Internet) is a database containing information about Conflict and Politics in Northern Ireland from 1968 to the Present A Prayer for the Dying is a 1987 action - Drama film about a former IRA member trying to escape his past An Everlasting Piece is a Comedy film released in 2000. It was directed by Barry Levinson and written by and starring Barry McEvoy Angel is a 1982 film directed by Neil Jordan and starring Stephen Rea. Bloody Sunday is a 2002 Television film about the 1972 " Bloody Sunday " shootings in Derry, Northern Breakfast on Pluto is a 2005 Irish Comedy-drama film directed by Neil Jordan and based on the novel of the same name by Cal is a 1984 film based on the novela Cal written by Bernard MacLaverty who also wrote the script Elephant is a 1989 short film directed by Alan Clarke. The film is set in Northern Ireland during The Troubles. The Long Good Friday is a British Gangster film starring Bob Hoskins and Helen Mirren. H3 was a film released in 2001 about the 1981 Irish hunger strike, events leading up to it and subsequent developments in the prisoners' struggle for Prisoner Harry's Game is a British Television series made by Yorkshire Television for ITV in 1982. Hunger is a 2008 film about the 1981 Irish hunger strike. It is written by Enda Walsh and Steve McQueen, who also directed In the Name of the Father is a 1993 film directed by Jim Sheridan based on the true life story of the Guildford Four, four people falsely Johnny Was is a British/Irish Gangster movie directed by Mark Hammond and written by Brendan Foley and made by Ben Katz Productions Borderline Mickybo and Me is a 2004 film directed by Terry Loane and based on a play by Owen McCafferty. Omagh was a film dramatising the events surrounding the Omagh bombing and its aftermath co-produced by Irish state broadcaster RTÉ and Patriot Games is a 1992 film based on the novel of the same name by Tom Clancy. Ronin is a 1998 action - Thriller film written by JD Zeik and David Mamet and directed by John Frankenheimer. Some Mother's Son is a 1996 film written and directed by Irish filmmaker Terry George, co-written by Jim Sheridan and based on the true Sunday is a Television drama produced by Sunday Productions for Channel 4 and screened on January 25 2002 The Boxer is a 1997 film by Irish director Jim Sheridan. Starring Daniel Day-Lewis and Emily Watson, the The Crying Game is a 1992 film written and directed by Neil Jordan. "The Devil's Own" is also a nickname for the Connaught Rangers and of the Inns of Court Regiment The Devil's Own The General is a 1998 crime Film about Dublin criminal Martin Cahill, who pulled off several daring heists in the The Informant is a 1997 cable TV movie produced by Showtime, starring Cary Elwes and Timothy Dalton. Titanic Town is a 1998 film Ciaran Hinds and Julie Walters play Aidan and Bernie McPhelimy a mother and father caught in the Northern Patrick McCabe or Pat McCabe may refer to Patrick McCabe (novelist, Irish novelist Patrick McCabe member of the Irish Republican Army Robert McLiam Wilson (born 1964 in Belfast) is a Northern Irish novelist Anna Burns (born 1962 is an Northern Irish author She was born in Belfast and moved to London in 1987 Stephen Leather is an English thriller author who writes pacy "action packed" novels in a style deliberately based upon the work of Jack Higgins and Joan Lingard (1932- is a Scottish Writer. She's the Author of the Kevin And Sadie series of books, which have sold over 1 million copies by: Susan McKay

Songs about or related to the Troubles

• "Alternative Ulster" by Stiff Little Fingers

• "Armagh" by Au Pairs

• "Banana Republic" by The Boomtown Rats

• "Belfast" by Boney M

• "Belfast" by Elton John

• "Belfast Child" by Simple Minds

• "Belfast (Penguins and Cats)" by Katie Melua

• "Belfast to Boston (God's Rifle)" by James Taylor

• "Broken Land" by The Adventures

• "Crimson Days" by Silent Running

• "Each Dollar a Bullet" and others by Stiff Little Fingers

• "Ether" by Gang Of Four

• "Forgotten Sons" by Marillion

• "Give Ireland Back to the Irish" by Paul McCartney

• "God Kicks", "Potato Junkie" and "Church of Noise" by Therapy?

• "Hang the IRA" by Skullhead

• "Holy Wars... The Punishment Due" by Megadeth

• "The House of Orange" by Stan Rogers on From Fresh Water

• "Invisible Sun" by The Police

• "It's Going To Happen" by The Undertones

• "It's Only Tuesday" by Eric Bogle

• "Last Night Another Soldier", "Brighton Bomb" and "Soldier" by The Angelic Upstarts

• "Letter from Louise" by The Saw Doctors

• " My Little ArmaLite" by Unknown

• "Oliver's Army" by Elvis Costello

• "Pie Jesu" by Andrew Lloyd Weber

• "Shankill Butchers" by Decemberists

• "Smash the IRA" by Skrewdriver

• "Soldier" by Harvey Andrews

• "Sunday Bloody Sunday" and The Luck of the Irish by John Lennon and Yoko Ono

• "Streets of Sorrow/Birmingham Six" and "Flogging Molly" by The Pogues

• "Sunday Bloody Sunday", "Please", "Peace on Earth" and "North and South of The River" by U2

• "Sunrise" by The Divine Comedy

• "The Greening of Belfast" by Michael Card

• "The Island" by Paul Brady

• "The Men Behind the Wire" by Barleycorn

• "The More I See (The Less I Believe)" by Fun Boy Three

• "The Town I Loved So Well" by Phil Coulter

• "The Troubles" by The Roches

• "The Troubles" by XTC

• "Theme from Harry's Game" by Clannad

• "This Is a Rebel Song" by Sinéad O'Connor

• "Through the barricades" by Spandau Ballet^[63][64]

• "Ulster" by Sham 69

• "Zombie" by The Cranberries

Poems about or related to the Troubles

• Ceasefire, by Michael Longley

• Ballad of Claudy, by James Simmons

• Belfast Confetti by Ciaran Carson

• Casualty by Seamus Heaney

• Punishment by Seamus Heaney

Notes

Bibliography

• David McKittrick, Seamus Kelters, Brian Feeney and Chris Thornton (1999), Lost Lives: The stories of the men, women and children who died as a result of the Northern Ireland troubles, Mainstream Publishing Company. ISBN 1-84018-227-X.

• Greg Harkin and Martin Ingram (2004), Stakeknife: Britain's secret agents in Ireland, O'Brien Press

• Richard English (2003), Armed Struggle: The History of the IRA, Oxford University Press,

• Kevin Myers (2006), Watching the Door A Memoir 1971-1978, Lilliput Press, Dublin. Martin Ingram is the Pseudonym of an ex- British Army soldier who served in the Intelligence Corps and Force Research Unit (FRU Stakeknife is the code name of a spy who infiltrated the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA at a high level as an agent working for the top secret

• Tim Pat Coogan, 'Ireland in the Twentieth Century', Palgrave Macmillan (February 16, 2006), ISBN 1-4039-6842-X

• Peter Taylor, Behind the Mask: The IRA and Sinn Féin, TV books, Inc. Events 1249 - Andrew of Longjumeau is dispatched by Louis IX of France as his ambassador to meet with the Khan of the Mongols Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. , New York, 1997, ISBN 1-57500-061-X

External links

• NI Elections Archive
• NI Conflict Archive on the Internet
• Guardian Special Report on Northern Ireland
• BBC Northern Ireland News
• Ireland Story (source of images above)

• Belfast Exposed Image Archive.
• MSN Encarta video of 1970s riot.

• Linen Hall Library Northern Ireland Political Collection