What role did printed propaganda play in the outbreak and continuation of conflict during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms? Discuss with reference t...

1233 Words3 Pages

This assignment will focus on printed propaganda and the role, impact and consequence it had during the outbreak and continuation of the conflict of the Wars of the Three Kingdoms. Two primary sources will be analysed and discussed. The first source chosen is print from The Teares of Ireland 1642 Figure 10.8 and the second is document 3.14 from the Anthology. Primary and secondary sources will be used to provide evidence and context on the impact on religion, government and monarchy in England, Scotland and Ireland. Before analysing the first source it is worth remembering that in 1640 the censorship of the press lapsed allowing multiple forms of media to be printed without a censor (Laurence & Gibbons, 2011, p.68). Propaganda generated as a result of the lack of censorship set about a chain of events that alienated and influenced people in several ways. The lapse allowed multiple published pieces of propagandist material to be found in the Three Kingdoms. It is also worth remembering what propaganda means ‘Information, especially of a biased or misleading nature, used to promote a political cause or point of view’ (Oxford English Dictionary, 2014), The first source Figure 10.8 is a print from The Teares of Ireland in 1642 which is split into two illustrated sections. The upper section of the print depicts the desecration of a women and her unborn baby which is subsequently shown to be sacrificed in the fire. The lower section shows Catholics driving the Protestants into the mountains. The phrase “now are ye wilde Irisch as well as wee.” from Figure 10.8 lends to the idea that Protestants viewed Irish Catholics as wild, savage and unruly. Catholics would have viewed this as Protestants creating lies and deceit to turn people a... ... middle of paper ... ...upport for a cause and to influence opinions. This resulted in the split of families, communities, counties, countries resulting in the execution of Charles I. Propaganda impacted the Three Kingdoms decisively due to de-censorship of printed materials. Used to influence and destabilise religion, government and the monarchy; printed material was available in each of the Three Kingdoms and the context of the material produced would endure into the seventeenth and eighteenth century (Laurence & Gibbons, 2011, p.57). Ireland today is still split with regular clashes occurring between loyalist Protestants and republican Catholics. To summarise, three key events occurred during the War of the Three Kingdoms caused due to printed propaganda; the downfall of the monarchy, the rise of the Commonwealth and the re-establishment of the monarchy bound by the law of the country.

More about What role did printed propaganda play in the outbreak and continuation of conflict during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms? Discuss with reference t...

Open Document