So, in conclusion, Britain/England didn't struggle to conquer Ireland, and only briefly actively opposed independence in the early 20th century. Ireland was only desirable in the sense that Britain couldn't afford such an important strategic territory to be in Spanish or French hands.
Ireland wasn't taken because it was nearly worthless. It would be nothing but a waste of resources troops and time that could be dedicated patrolling her borders or waging war against her many enemies.
The reasons for Irish neutrality during the Second World War are widely accepted: that any attempt to take an overtly pro-British line might have resulted in a replay of the Civil War; that Southern Ireland could make little material contribution to the Allied effort, while engagement without adequate defence would ...
Still, the conquest of Ireland took four centuries. Learn how the English settlers became almost “more Irish than the Irish themselves,” and how Ireland was left largely to its own devices until fear of Spanish intervention in Ireland in the 16th century prompted the English to complete the conquest at last.
We lived as part of the English, and then British, Empire for over 700 years. The Normans first conquered Ireland in 1169 and aside from a brief decade of independence during the 1640s Ireland formed an integral part of the English imperial system, until 1922 and the foundation of modern state.
The combination of warfare, famine and plague caused a huge mortality among the Irish population. William Petty estimated (in the 1655–56 Down Survey) that the death toll of the wars in Ireland since 1641 was over 618,000 people, or about 40% of the country's pre-war population.
The second reason for oppressing Ireland has been economic exploitation. English landowners, who had never been to Ireland or cared about conditions there, took over Irish land and drew rent from the peasants, evicting those who could not pay.
The first Norman knight to land in Ireland was Richard fitz Godbert de Roche in 1167, but it was not until 1169 that the main forces of Normans, along with their Welsh and Fleming mercenaries, landed in Wexford.
Irish culture, law and language were replaced; and many Irish lords lost their lands and hereditary authority. Land-owning Irishmen who worked for themselves suddenly became English tenants.
Ireland was part of the United Kingdom from 1801 to 1922. For almost all of this period, the island was governed by the UK Parliament in London through its Dublin Castle administration in Ireland.
The term “black Irish” refers to persons of Irish descent who are supposed to be descendants of the Spanish Armada, which sailed around the middle of the 15th century, and had dark hair and or eyes. The term is used among people of Irish descent and sometimes confuses people since it doesn't refer to dark skin color.
British assistance was limited to loans, helping to fund soup kitchens, and providing employment on road building and other public works. The Irish disliked the imported cornmeal, and reliance on it led to nutritional deficiencies.
The nature of Irish neutrality has varied over time. Ireland declared itself a neutral state during the Second World War (see Irish neutrality during World War II), and during the Cold War it did not join NATO nor the Non-Aligned Movement.
This is because there is a shared root between the native languages of Ireland (Irish) and the Scottish Highlands (Scots Gaelic). Both are part of the Goidelic family of languages, which come from the Celts who settled in both Ireland and Scotland.
Ireland was only desirable in the sense that Britain couldn't afford such an important strategic territory to be in Spanish or French hands. Ireland was so weak militarily, politically and economically that if Britain hadn't taken it, another power would have.
Wales is part of the United Kingdom, which is a fully independent sovereign state. But, the 'United Kingdom' is made up of a political union between four nations, England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, that are countries in their own right and have varying degrees of autonomy.
The first British Law enacted in Ireland which specifically banned the use of the Irish language was Article III of The Statute of Kilkenny from 1367 which made it illegal for English colonists in Ireland to speak the Irish language and for the native Irish to speak their language when interacting with them.
Dermot MacMurrough was the King of Leinster during the twelfth century and is most remembered as the man who invited the English into Ireland. He was born circa 1110 and succeeded to the throne of his father, Enna, in 1126.
From the late 12th century, the Anglo-Norman invasion of Ireland resulted in Anglo-Norman claims over much of Ireland, over which the kings of England then claimed sovereignty. By the late Late Middle Ages, Anglo-Norman control was limited to an area around Dublin known as the Pale.
Viking on Lough Ree
However, the problem worsened for the monasteries in the eight century when the Vikings or Norsemen from Scandinavia began to raid Ireland. They were feared by everyone because they killed anyone who got in their way or took them as slaves.
“There was never any possibility Vikings would have been able to conquer or even thought about conquering Ireland. There were never enough Vikings in Ireland to do this, and there were far too many Irish kingdoms – maybe 150 political units, all with armies – to defeat.”
Around 300BC, Iron Age warriors known as the Celts came to Ireland from mainland Europe. The Celts had a huge influence on Ireland. Many famous Irish myths stem from stories about Celtic warriors.
The landed proprietors in Ireland were held in Britain to have created the conditions that led to the famine. However, it was asserted that the British parliament since the Act of Union of 1800 was partly to blame.
In 1948 the Taoiseach - the Irish prime minister - announced that Ireland was to be declared a republic. The UK Parliament then passed the Ireland Bill which acknowledged the 1949 declaration that Ireland had “ceased to be part…of His Majesty's dominions” and therefore a member of the Commonwealth.
The Irish Penal Laws of 1695 intensified the injustice brought upon by the Protestant English, wherein they stripped the Catholic Irish of religious freedoms and nearly all of their holdings including land.