‘The Troubles’ in Northern Ireland

Learning Outcomes for the WeekAll(5)

Students will be able to: • Describe (in detail and using keywords) one

religious conflict currently in our world • Who? What? Where? When? Why?

Most(6)

Students will be able to: • Compare two religious conflicts clearly and in

detail (using keywords) and suggest a variety of strategies and solutions that have been tried

Some(7)

Students will be able to: • Evaluate i.e. weigh up (using keywords)

whether violence is ever justified in religious conflicts and come to a well-argued conclusion

Context

• From Tudor times, England had controlled and colonised Ireland

• After the Protestant Reformation, this became a religious issue between English / Scottish Protestants and native Catholics

Protestant Domination• The Protestants

who came from Britain were granted most of the Catholic lands

• Very soon, the native Catholics became second class citizens in their own country

Partition • After many wars and

rebellions (1595, 1640’s, 1690’s, 1798, 1848, 1867, 1916, 1918-1922) the Irish finally gained independence from Britain in 1922

• However part of the deal was that the area with a Protestant majority stayed within the United Kingdom

• This area became known as Northern Ireland

Unionist Republican

Loyalist Nationalist

Protestant Catholic

Want to stay in the UK Want to join the Republic of Ireland

UVF, UDR, LVF IRA, INLA

The Civil Rights Movement

• For many decades Catholics in Northern Ireland were discriminated against by the Protestant majority

• However, by the 1960’s they had had enough and began non-violent protests based on the tactics of Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King

‘Bloody Sunday’• Unfortunately many Unionists did

not want equality and the peaceful protesters began to clash with the police (who were drawn mainly from the Protestant / Unionist community

• This eventually led to an event in 1972 that is called ‘Bloody Sunday’ where 14 Catholic protesters were shot by the British Army

• Bloody Sunday 2002 ENG • http://www.youtube.com/watch?

v=pBhNUQ7sJqM

• 1 hr 4 mins – 1 hr 11 mins

The Troubles• Following this event, various

armed terrorist groups (IRA, UVF etc) began new terror campaigns

• They argued that they had to protect their communities

• In all, more than 3,000 people died in the period 1969-1999, in shootings and bombings

• This period is known as ‘The Troubles’

The Good Friday Agreement• Eventually, in 1998, both

sides signed what is called the ‘Good Friday Agreement’ which brought most hostilities to an end

Murals• Each side still marks

their areas with murals - some still calling for war and some for peace

The Marching Season• Occasionally rioting and shootings

still occur in Northern Ireland, especially during the so-called Marching season when Protestants march to commemorate the winning of the Battle of the Boyne in 1690

• Sectarian riots in Northern Ireland

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nbZW7rXaQwM

• Riots mark culmination of Belfast marching season

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PO7p50yQi5s

Research Questions

1. Do you think that religious beliefs prolonged the conflict or brought it to an end? Find out and then use PEE to explain your answer...

2. Could religious leaders have done more? How?

3. Is it ever right to kill for a belief – religious or otherwise?

Consider...

• Rev Ian Paisley• Fr James Chesney

• What roles did these two ‘men of the cloth’ play in the Troubles?