Emerald Ireland, filled with myths about leprechauns and elves, has always been of interest to scientists and archaeologists. After all, the island is considered one of those places where people settled a very long time - eight thousand years before our era. And the area of the island of Ireland is 84 thousand square meters. km, which allows him to occupy the third line in the list of the largest islands in Europe. In addition, until now, archaeologists have not been able to reveal the purpose of megalithic structures and dolmens, which are found in large numbers on the territory of the country. Incredibly, the area of Ireland is still not fully explored, which means that the history of these amazing lands can be replenished with interesting facts.
The first inhabitants of Ireland
Scientists believe that the first population of Ireland came here immediately after the end of the Ice Age, when the climate made it possible to feel comfortable on these lands. Pretty quickly the entire area of Ireland was populated, and the locals allegedly began to build various megalithic structures. It is still unknown why the ancient Irish erected these strange buildings. But, for example, dolmens are considered funerary monuments. Although some scholars claim that they have sacred meaning, and with their help the island population was associated with spirits. By the way, in one of the megalithic buildings, archaeologists found the oldest stone map of the starry sky, which depicted the Moon and its relief in great detail.
Ireland in the pre-Christian era
Around the second millennium BC, Celtic tribes landed on the island. They began to migrate from Eastern Europe and gradually settled not only on the mainland, but also on the nearby islands. The entire area of Ireland was mastered by the Celts very quickly, they used iron weapons, were distinguished by militancy and a passion for military campaigns. They destroyed part of the local population, and the remaining islanders gradually merged with the Celts into one nation. It is worth noting that the conquest of the island had a very good effect on its culture and development. The Celts brought with them new technologies, language, writing, and religion. Almost all Irish myths are some interpretation of Celtic history and beliefs.
It is with the Celts that the Druid tribes are associated, which left a deep mark in the culture of many European peoples. Some historians claim that it was the Druids who brought their vast knowledge to Ireland and taught the children of the locals their culture and religion. Until now, most of the legends tell of wise and fair wizards who helped the Irish to develop agriculture and generously shared their deep knowledge in cosmology, agriculture and healing.
Christianization of Ireland
Around the beginning of the fifth century, the first missionaries attempting to convert the local population to Christianity began to get to Ireland. It is worth noting that in addition to St. Patrick, who is considered the most important Irish saint, other ministers of the church made their contribution to the Christianization of the island - St. Columbus, for example, or St. Kevin. But Saint Patrick, born in Britain and spent more than five years in Irish slavery, is still recognized as the official baptizer of Ireland.
Since the area of Ireland is quite large, and the population is large, Christianization took place in several stages over several centuries, gaining its own characteristic features in the process. Ireland was not characterized by the annihilation of the Gentiles and the imposition of a new faith. Missionaries gradually convinced the local population, built monasteries and actively educated the Irish. This led to the fact that during the cultural decline of Europe, Ireland became a prosperous country where Christianity did not limit the population, but on the contrary supported it. The monks contributed to the development of writing, created unique illustrations for church subjects and stunning sculptures. Many archaeologists and historians call the 5-6th century the "golden age" of Ireland.
Viking raids
Ireland (the area, territories and favorable climate contributed to this) constantly attracted the attention of neighbors. In the 8-9th centuries, the Irish began to be subjected to constant raids of the Vikings.
They ravaged settlements and monasteries, many of which were destroyed to the ground. To strengthen their influence, the Vikings began to establish their cities and gradually assimilated among the indigenous inhabitants of the island. Around 988, the city of Dublin was founded, which began to play a very important role in the development of the island. In parallel, the Vikings laid the port cities, which were of great importance for their lifestyle. Gradually, monasteries began to recover on the island, and the conquerors ceased to treat the monks with distrust. They learned to coexist peacefully.
The Irish tried more than once to stop the Viking invasion, but only at the beginning of the 11th century did Briand Boru (the supreme king) manage to defeat the army of conquerors.
The establishment of British power
The vast area of Ireland (in sq. Km - 84 thousand) could not sooner or later not attract the attention of the British. From the 11th century, they began to approach the large Irish cities, gradually conquering them. From the beginning of the 12th century, King Henry II declared himself Lord of Ireland and established his authority over some part of the island. Anglo-Norman lords also did not fail to get a large piece of Irish land and began to collect it under their rule.
By the beginning of the 17th century, the British had already settled firmly on the island and confidently established their rules. Irish language, traditions and customs were gradually supplanted. But at this time, this trend has not yet become widespread, so the Irish patiently demolished the orders of the new government.
Surprisingly, the division of the population into old and new manifested itself very clearly in the 17th century. The original Irish and the first English Catholics formed the basis of this society, but it was they who became outcasts. The British immigrants, who relate themselves to the new government, eschewed the local population, which every year became poorer.
The oppression of the Irish: the development of the country under the leadership of the British
The British, who are mostly Protestants, actively oppressed the Catholics, who were almost all Irish. By the 17th century, it had taken truly monstrous forms. Catholics were forbidden to buy land, have their own churches, receive higher education and speak their own language. The country began uprisings, which resulted in a long inter-religious conflict, which led to the division of the country.
By the end of the 18th century, Catholics left no more than five percent of the land, and the culture was preserved only thanks to the efforts of clandestine societies that gathered on weekends and taught classes for the younger generation.
In the first quarter of the 19th century, there was a warming in relations between Ireland and Great Britain. It became possible thanks to the work of Daniel O'Connell, who persuaded the English Parliament to pass several laws that make life easier for Irish Catholics. This patriot enthusiastically defended the rights of his fellow citizens and sought to recreate the Irish parliament, which would allow the inhabitants of the island themselves to influence the country's politics.
Background of the War of Independence
Perhaps the history of Ireland would have taken a different path, but in the middle of the 19th century there was a crop failure of potatoes in the country for three consecutive years, which was the main source of food for the Irish. The population began to starve, but according to the laws established by the British, they had to export grain to other countries. Every year the population of Ireland decreased, in the hope of a better life, the islanders began to emigrate from the country. Most of them settled in the USA, some tried their luck in England. In a short period of time, about two million families left Ireland.
At the end of the 19th century, the Irish began more and more insistently to seek self-government. But it was then that religious differences between the population of the country were clearly manifested - the northern part of Ireland was represented by Protestants, while the main population remained Catholics. Protestants opposed self-government, which caused an increase in tension in the country.
Despite the fact that the British agreed to some concessions for the Irish and signed a document on self-government, Ireland remained under total control of Britain. This greatly worried supporters of the separation from the crown, and on April 24, 1916, a rebellion was raised in Dublin, lasting six days. At its end, almost all the leaders of the movement were executed, which caused the rise of the revolutionary movement in Ireland. In 1919, the creation of the Irish Parliament and an independent republic was announced.
Island of Ireland: area, territories today
The Irish desire for independence led to hostilities with the British, which lasted from 1919 to 1921. As a result, the rebels achieved what they wanted and became completely independent of Britain, but at the cost of freedom was the split of the country and society.
As a result, two states formed on the map - the Irish Free State and Northern Ireland. Moreover, most of the island belongs to the Irish Free State, the northerners occupy only one sixth of the island.
What is the area of Ireland (republic): a brief description
Since independence, the Republic of Ireland has accepted 26 counties, and the country's area is 70 thousand square meters. km This is the largest state on the island.
Until the 80s of the last century, the country experienced serious economic difficulties, the population continued to leave the republic, and finding work in Ireland was extremely difficult. But for more than 20 years, the situation has stabilized. The economy is experiencing stable growth, and once the youth who left once again reached home. According to the latest data, more than 50 percent of migrants have already returned to Ireland. And this indicates that only positive changes await the country ahead.
Northern Ireland: Description and Features
If we consider the total area of Great Britain and Ireland, there is not such an important place (240.5 thousand sq. Km and 84 thousand sq. Km, respectively). But the inhabitants of the northern part of the island were extremely pleased with the current state of things in 1920.
The area of Northern Ireland is just over 14 square meters. km, only 6 counties were included in the country. It is worth noting that until 1998, conflicts between Catholics and Protestants continued in Northern Ireland. Quite often, they were accompanied by armed clashes, and the United Kingdom more than once introduced its troops into the country to resolve conflicts.
In almost 30 years, more than three thousand people have died on religious grounds. Only at the beginning of the 21st century, peace came in the country, the warring parties reconciled and managed to agree on cooperation. In recent years, part of the population of Northern Ireland favors reunification with the republic and return to a single state on the island. But this proposal is not supported by everyone in the country's parliament, which may serve as a reason for another protracted conflict in the future.
Conclusion
Ireland throughout its history has experienced many difficult moments and bloody armed conflicts, however, the spirit of the people remained unconquered by any of the conquerors. Indeed, in every Irishman the blood of Celtic warriors flows, who knew how to defend their freedom and traditions.