Reasons why British Troops were Sent into Northern Ireland

Why the British Troops Were Sent into Northern Ireland in 1969 In 1969 British Troops were sent into Ireland because Irish police could no longer cope with the violence between the Unionist Protestant population and the Catholic Nationist population. The events that meant it was necessary for British troops to be sent in stretch back a long way. This essay presents the main long term and short term explanations as to why troops were needed. The tensions between Catholic and Protestant citizens had been mounting for many years. During the sixteenth century there was a lot of rivalry between the Catholic Church and Protestants and when King Henry VIII broke away from the Pope and became Protestant, Ireland remained strongly Catholic.

After 1500 the English took control for the first time by way of force due to the Irish being loyal to Catholicism and the English were strong protestants. The soldiers drove farmers off their land. The protestants were strongest in Northern Ireland, Ulster. The Irish made a rebellion but this was crushed at the battle of Boyne, many laws were passed to keep the Catholics quiet. Even up to 1914 the Irish were unwilling to accept English domination.

After Cromwell’s death the troubles in Ireland continued when a new King James II was appointed. James II was a Catholic and wanted to ... ... middle of paper ... ... the violence. However, in my opinion the main factor which lead to the British army being sent to Northern Ireland in 1969 were the government policies such as gerrymandering which caused the Catholic community to be given poor housing and jobs, which in turn caused them to protest about the treatment they were receiving from local councils which would end up in violence which was mostly started by the Protestants and then this violence would be dealt with by a biased police force who could not keep the peace and would just end up contributing to the violence by taking the side of the Protestants. So in conclusion it is my opinion that the government policies in Northern Ireland after 1922 and the partition of Ireland is a long-term problem that resulted in the deployment of troops by the British government in 1969.

It seems that all, throughout history, Protestants and Catholics are always butting heads. Tensions were particularly high between Ireland and Britain with Ireland being Catholic and Britain Protestant. This religious discrepancy had a real effect on the Irish people, interfering with their Catholic tradition. The Irish people had longed for independence from the British for a long time; but, Britain really managed to agitate the Irish when they sent settlers from Britain and Scotland to settle in Northern Ireland. This agitation eventually grew into the Northern Ireland War, as the Protestants began to take control.

For the remaining Irish clans, England now became their major enemy and threat, against their customs and way of life. 1609 By the end of Queen Elisabeth’s reign, military conquests had established control in most parts of Ireland, with the exception of the northern province of Ulster. The Ulster clans had succeeded in creating an effective alliance against Queen Elisabeth’s armies, but was eventually defeated and brought under English rule. English colonists settled in these areas and by 1703 less then 5 per cent of the land of Ulster belonged to Catholics Irish. The native people of Ulster remained in the conquered areas, but were gradually expelled from the land that they used to own.

The Nationalists who are prepared to use violence are known as Revolutionary Nationalist. They were developed at the end of the 18th century. The United Irishmen was the first Revolutionary organization founded in 1790; the protestant founder of the organization is still looked upon as a hero by the modern Republicans. Several failed armed rebellions that took place between 1798 and 1867. These rebellions had little support for the ordinary Irish people and it had a bad effect on the Irish parliament whom had to sit later in the Bri... ... middle of paper ... ...of the biggest factors which separate the two communities.

Conflict in Ireland Text Box: Ireland is to the west of Britain and is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, Irish Sea and the Celtic Sea. Today Ireland is divided into two parts, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. In 1921 the partition treaty was signed and was originally supposed to be temporary, it was an attempt to bring peace to Ireland. Currently there are mainly Unionists (Protestants) living in Northern Ireland and in the Republic of Ireland there are mainly Nationalists (Catholics) living in Northern Ireland. The unionists want to be governed by England's parliament however; the Nationalists in Northern Ireland do not.

The people who were 'planted' were Protestants. This caused problems because the majority of Ireland was Catholics. Catholics began to rebel against English Protestants, they were called Nationalists. They were people who wanted Ireland to be as one country. The U.K responded by 'planting' more Protestants over in Northern Ireland.

Between 1500 and 1800 when the British tried to seize control of the catholics, the catholics refused to be ruled by British Protestants and this lead to arguments which are still continuing to the present day. The arguments between the two parties became so extreme that the Irish began to demand home rule which meant that although Ireland would stay part of the UK, it would manage its own affairs and make its own laws. On 20th December 1920 the Government of Ireland act became law whereby Ireland was partitioned in two parts. As a direct result of partition the Protestants became a majority in Norther Ireland, this meant that a Protestant government would rule NI. The Irish Catholics rebelled against this government since they were treated very badly, they were given the worst jobs, they were given places in the worst schools, poor housing, they were not given any benefits.

The Irish held the belief that they were set, knowing that the United States had some unresolved business to finish with England. So they decided to go on with the procedures they would need to take care of in order to have a successful invasion on England. The Irish with their leader, William O’Mahoney, raised money, set up a government in exile and plan strategies for a successful attack. The main causes for the Fenian movement were the stresses created from the war and the overall feeling of no independence in Ireland. Along with things such as, the poor stability of Ireland because of the Potato Famine that had occurred shortly before the movement.