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Paper Abstract: Discusses the "Troubles" as a fight between the Protestants and the Catholics. History of the region which is politically part of the United Kingdom. Role of the Irish Republican Army (IRA) and its use of armed warfare and religious strategies to end British rule. Efforts over the years to stop the violence. Paper Introduction: NORTHERN IRELAND Politically still part of the United Kingdom, Northern Ireland’s “Troubles” continue as a fight between the Protestants and the Catholics. Geographically, Northern Ireland is slightly larger than the state of Connecticut, and consists of 26 districts, “derived from the boroughs of Belfast and Londonderry and the counties of Antrim, Armagh, Down, Fermanagh, Londonderry and Tyrone. Together, they are commonly referred to as Ulster, though the territory does not contain the entire ancient province of Ulster.” (Brunner 877) Part of the contention deals with the so-called Six Counties, as the Protestants see it, and Nine counties (adding Donegal, Cavan and Monaghan from the ancient Ulster kingdom) that the Catholics want to preserve. Ulster (as we will refer to it from here on) was part of Catholic Ireland, until i Text of the Paper: The entire text of the paper is shown below. However, the text is somewhat scrambled. We want to give you as much information as we possibly can about our papers and essays, but we cannot give them away for free. In the text below you will find that while disordered, many of the phrases are essentially intact. From this text you will be able to get a solid sense of the writing style, the concepts addressed, and the sources used in the research paper. It is a matter of some sort of pride, and the fearof the minority being overwhelmed by the majority (which, as mentionedearlier) has the support of the British government. It is not merely neighbor (Catholic) fightingneighbor (Protestant). To showgood faith, but to make its point clear, the IRA issued a statement: "TheIRA is committed to ending British rule in Ireland. Paisley is slowly losing his politicalbase, based on the last election results. It is a historical sundering ofreligious inhabitants from British-encouraged settlers from nearbyScotland, which totally disrupted the religious and ethnic make-up of theNorthern part of the Irish island. We want a permanent peace..."(Holland 21 ) Permanent peace can come, so the Catholics maintain, onlywith an independent nation in which they have a fair share of control. Still, he is a roadblock topeaceful compromise. Tony Blair, the recently reelected British PrimeMinister is far more eager to find a peaceful solution than some of hispredecessors (especially Margaret Thatcher). Anunwillingness to compromise is the problem. Part of the blame has to rest with the Irish Republican Army, whichlong ago decided that armed warfare was the only way to get their politicalas well as religious strategies to gain worldwide attention. Senator George Mitchell has been asked to act as a sort ofmediator/arbitrator. The idea that possessionis still nine-tenths of the law continues, wrong-headed as it has alwaysbeen. More recently, in 1999,former U.S. About one-fifth of available manpower is employed in thisindustry. Even when the Irish Free State was declared, Ulsterremained part of the United Kingdom, basically dominated by the ProtestantEnglish Parliament and its emissaries in Ulster. Ulster (as we will refer to it from here on)was part of Catholic Ireland, until it was annexed during the reign ofQueen Elizabeth, when after a series of revolts, Scots Presbyterians weresettled there. It is the root cause ofdivisions and conflict in our country. These Troubles (as theyare euphemistically called) continue, even as there have been a number ofagreements to cease hostilities and attempt to come to some agreementbetween the Protestant majority and the Catholic minority. This is not a territory to be foughtover for material gains: In other words, there is no economic advantage toone "side" or the other, unlike fertile raw materials, diamonds, gold andminerals in the continent of Africa. Perhaps some sort of agreementthat holds can be hammered out. From a political and religious standpoint, the two main opponents forthe past few years have been Gerry Adams, the acknowledged head of the IRA,and the Rev. Ian Paisley, head of the Protestant militants. It is an unfortunate fact that morelives have been lost in the history of Western Civilization because ofreligious conflicts than probably any other reason: from the Crusades, tothe Inquisition, to the Holocaust, the ethnic cleansing in Kosovo, thegenocide in Rwanda and Uganda, and the "Troubles" in Ulster- all have areligious basis for the disastrous consequences. So, why would this smallish land be so worrisome, and why is there somuch conflict and death? In 1971, forexample, "the IRA had managed to set off some two tons of explosives in athree-week period" (Coogan 125) There is no doubt in the minds of manyhistorians that some sort of peaceful arrangement could have been madepossible, but in the end neither the Catholics nor the Protestants(encouraged by the British government) could reach terms that would bemutually acceptable. NORTHERN IRELAND Politically still part of the United Kingdom, Northern Ireland's"Troubles" continue as a fight between the Protestants and the Catholics.Geographically, Northern Ireland is slightly larger than the state ofConnecticut, and consists of 26 districts, "derived from the boroughs ofBelfast and Londonderry and the counties of Antrim, Armagh, Down,Fermanagh, Londonderry and Tyrone. WORKS CITED:Black, Eric: Northern Ireland: Troubled Land (1998) Minneapolis MN: LernerPublications Co.Brunner, Borgna (ed-in-chief) TIME Almanac 2 1 (2 1) New York NY: TIME,Inc.Coogan, Tim Pat: The Troubles" Ireland's Ordeal 1966-1996 and the Searchfor Peace (1996) Boulder CO: Roberts Rhinehart PublishersHolland, Jack: Hope Against History: The Course of Conflict in NorthernIreland (1999) New York: Henry Holt & Co.Stevenson, Jonathan: "We Wrecked the Place" (1996 New York: The Free Press WORK ACCESSED:Darby, John "Conflict in Northern Ireland: A Background Essay"Cain.ulst.ac.uk/othelem/facets.htm The answer cannot be simple. Together, they are commonly referred toas Ulster, though the territory does not contain the entire ancientprovince of Ulster." (Brunner 877) Part of the contention deals with the so-called Six Counties, as the Protestants see it, and Nine counties (addingDonegal, Cavan and Monaghan from the ancient Ulster kingdom) that theCatholics want to preserve. "Peacemakes the (victims' families) of Northern Ireland feel like afterthoughts.To give them some justice (one of them) suggests a war crimes tribunal..."(Stevenson 257) But, many feel that this would justify the bombings andmurders as war rather than as terrorism. It was not until 1886,when William Gladstone proposed his Home Rule bill that North and Southofficially separated. There have been a number of previous agreements tostop the fighting and sit down to some sort of negotiations which wouldpermanently end the squabble and offer an opportunity for the Catholicminority to participate in the governing and the future of Ulster. Separation, however, did not end the struggles,especially after Ireland remained neutral during the First World War, whichinflamed British passions, and, of course, the long struggle for Irishindependence began, with the Sinn Fein movements, and the British attemptto maintain control. As Coogan (1996) explains the steadfastness of theUnionists (that is, those who wanted to remain part of the UnitedKingdom):"In many ways the hard-working, God-fearing fundamentalists of theSix Counties resembled the Boers of South Africa. OutsideBelfast, and some smaller provincial towns, much of the land is grasslands,with agricultural products including wheat, hay, oats, potatoes, andturnips. One problem comes from the anguish of thefamilies on both sides of the Troubles, and their feelings that their lovedones cannot be allowed to have died (or been murdered) in vain. What is the geopolitical inference to be drawn from these protracted"Troubles"? They developed thesame...mentality and a system of administration very similar to apartheid,albeit based on religion rather than color." (Coogan 25) Historically, fromthe time of Elizabeth, "English laws set up an 'us and them' relationshipbetween Anglo-Scottish Presbyterians and Irish Catholics." (Black 37) Thelaws favored these Protestant late-comers, and over the centuries theenmity grew and remains a sore point today, even with hopes of some sort ofsettlement. Adams, atleast, has been welcomed in the U.S. What could be considered geopolitically different in Northern Irelandis that this is not a colonial power versus a subdued "native" population,although the Catholics would like to have the world believe that. Northern Ireland is not a geographic or economic prize. One of the major industries of Ulster is the production of linenproducts, with plenty of water power available both for electricity as wellas irrigation. After further revolts, Oliver Cromwell cruelly suppressedthese uprising, and more and more Protestant settlers were literallyimported to populate this northern part of Ireland. If this paper is not what you are looking for, you can search again: Search for: or Click here to request an essay written just for you.