Conflict in Northern Ireland

The conflict in Northern Ireland involves IRA(Irish Republican Army) and the British. It started in ca. 1923,
when the British invaded Northern Ireland because they meant that Ireland should be a part of Great Britain. The
IRA’s original goal when this happened was to get all of the British establishments out of Ireland and to raise an
independent Irish government.

In December the 6th in 1921, the country Ireland was split in two different parts. The free Ireland, and the
Northern Ireland which were under the control of the British. The IRA removed with this all the British in the
south free Ireland by force of arms.

In the Northern Ireland the most of the people were Protestants and therefore they didn’t mind that they were
under control of the British, if the Northern Ireland became a part of Ireland again the Protestants would lose the
privileges they had against the Catholics. It became the Unionists against the Nationalists or the Loyalists against
the Republicans. The Unionists were non-violent Protestants and the Loyalists were the violent ones. On the
Catholic side, the Nationalist were the nonviolent one and the Republicans were the one that used military
resources. Many people become killed during this period, and in May 22nd the IRA and the Protestants
“loyalists” militias were ordered to surrender all illegal weapons. But in a statement April the 29th the IRA stated
that they would not surrender any weapons at all. “There appears to be yet another attempt to resurrect the
decommissioning issue as an obstacle to progress,” said the statement. “Let us make clear there will be no
decommissioning by the IRA”.

During the 2WW, Ireland stayed pretty neutral. The IRA bombs Birmingham, Manchester and London and
Chamberlain offers Ireland Northern to Ireland if they let them raise British military bases there, but the Irish
refuse the offer. Later, Hitler tried to use the fact that the Irish people don’t like Great Britain, and asks if he
could put up a few bases there, but neither he was allowed. After the world war, Ireland gets out of “the
Commonwealth”, and after a while, IRA starts bombing England again. Some protestants goes into RUC (Royal
Ulster Constabulary), which is the protestants police force in Northern Ireland. Approximately 300 members
have until today been killed, and the RUC stands for 54 kills themselves, by them 32 civilians.