Last Updated on August 12, 2022
Today, two decades after the “Troubles” in Northern Ireland supposedly ended, shadows and echoes of it still persist, even though the people there have worked hard to regain peace and achieve reconciliation among the various opposing factions. Our tour guide in Belfast shared one such creative attempt at peacemaking: Ice Hockey! Ice Hockey has been introduced to Northern Ireland as a national sport just to give young people of all political and religious stripes an opportunity to participate in a neutral activity together.
If there was ever a perfect euphemism, the “Troubles” in Northern Ireland surely has to be it. A euphemism is a mild word that substitutes for other words that sound too harsh or blunt when the topic is unpleasant or embarrassing. To refer to recent decades of brutality in Northern Ireland as “Troubles” is to put it mildly! “Troubles” that lasted 30 years? “Troubles” that caused 3,500 deaths?
It helps to review a little background information. Ready to crash through 800 years of Irish history?
England invaded and conquered Ireland in 1169. Virtually all the Irish people were Catholics. For centuries thereafter, the Irish struggled and fought, resisted and suffered under oppressive English rule. One particularly antagonistic thing the English did was to give Scottish Protestants lots of land in the northern part of Ireland. (Scotland was…and still is…a constituent member of Great Britain.) The wealthy Scottish Protestant landowners tormented the Irish in their own country…for many years.
Finally, Ireland won its independence in 1922. It was named the Irish Free State…later on, the Republic of Ireland. Thirty two counties constituted this new nation, but six counties in the north didn’t want to be part of the new independent Ireland. Not surprisingly, they wanted to remain with the Great Britain. So these six counties were named Northern Ireland and stayed with Great Britain. And not surprisingly, problems with this arrangement of a divided Ireland soon developed. Many Catholics still live in Northern Ireland, but mostly Protestants are the ruling class and may be referred to as landowners, professionals, conservatives, Loyalists, the King’s Men, Tories, Unionists. Those on the other, mostly Catholic, side are called Nationalists, Republicans, Patriots, Home Rule supporters, Whigs, social reformers.
The hostilities between these two groupings simmered from 1922 until 1969 when they reached a boiling point, and the so-called “Troubles” erupted bigtime. Vicious fighting ensued among paramilitaries representing the various interests. In 1999, after 30 years and 3,500 deaths, the Troubles presumably ended with the Good Friday Agreement. But not really. There’s still animosity and distrust among the differing factions, and the desire to be part of the Republic of Ireland is still very strong and widespread in Northern Ireland. To complicate the situation further, Brexit is now another obvious source of disagreement since the Republic of Ireland is a member of the European Union, while Northern Ireland (as part of the United Kingdom) no longer participates in the EU. One does not need to be an economist to imagine the confusion and conflict created by Brexit.
The Peace Wall
Starting in 1969, sections of “Peace Walls” were built to separate the warring factions in Belfast. Murals representing their respective politics and sentiments are painted on one or the other side of the wall.
For years I did not comprehend this tragic segment of current history even though it’s been continuously reported on TV and in newspapers. I don’t pretend to understand all the complicated dynamics and subtle nuances, but I am grateful to share this little bit.
Julie Helms
PS This is helpful to know:
Great Britain = England, Scotland, Wales
United Kingdom = England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland
British Isles = England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland