Discuss the Ways in Which Historians Have Attempted to Explain the Relationship Between Britain and Ireland

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The relationship between Britain and Ireland between the early 1800’s and the Good Friday Agreement of 1997 was one filled with an array of violence. Historian David George Boyce suggests that “although violence and strife was not wanted by the public it did prove to be ultimately necessary”[7]. The main source of the violence came from not only the British but the nationalist Catholics and of course unionist Protestants. As Boyce said “a full scale assault on British forces by a united Ireland was never going to happen and the nationalists were struggling to comprehend the complexity of the Ulster position”[8]. Another very interesting point in my opinion would be that World War One had quite a big impact on division in Ireland as the leader of the Home Rule party John Redmond wanted young Irishmen to enlist in the war whereas nationalists such as the famous James Connolly and indeed Padraig Pearse believed that the only reason young Irishmen should be fighting was to earn freedom for their country and this in turn laid the foundations for the well documented 1916 Rising as nationalists believed that some of the Irish pubic were becoming far too friendly with the Unionists and this was not acceptable for them. Despite the clear failures of the 1798, 1823 and 1916b rebellions the fighting did not stop and it all came to fore when the ‘Troubles’ began in Northern Ireland. The question of the North, in my opinion truly epitomises the relationship between Britain and Ireland as although Ireland had its republic the country was still heavily divided and this, in my view, is down to the relationship between the two neighbouring countries. As a result of the violence between Britain and Ireland tragic events such as the War of Independence, the Civil War and indeed the Troubles have occurred. Although it can be argued that the War of Independence was won by violence there were numerous deaths of both civilians and influential characters that I believe can all be tied back to the strained relationship between Britain and Ireland.

To conclude this essay, the relationship that I have studied between Britain and Ireland is most certainly not a common one. As far as I am concerned there is no right or wrong opinion on the relationship as is proven by the many different viewpoints taken by respected historians. What really struck me was the role of Diplomacy introduced by Daniel O’Connell throughout this relationship. I would strongly argue that if the interruptions didn’t occur when they did, the Ireland we know today would be a completely different one. I cannot determine whether or not there were benefits to this relationship as not only can you consider the economic, social and political aspects of the two countries, you must bear in mind that the Irish people suffered a huge amount of loss during this period, particularly the Famine and I don’t believe for one second that just because Ireland uses Britain for trading and exporting that the people will ever forget what they were put through. However, the relationship between these two neighbouring countries has created so many debates, inspired thousands of articles, and been the backbone of so many stories told by people who lived during those tough times that I believe it has done wonders for history. Studying this topic is interesting for everyone involved as there is so much to it. Therefore, I believe it is fair to say that the relationship between Great Britain and Ireland is one filled with amazing historical content that you will either agree or disagree with but that it is the beauty of Irish history.

Bibliography

James Loughlin, The British Monarchy and Ireland (Edinburgh, 2007).

F. C. McGrath ‘Heroic Aestheticism: Yeats, Pater, and the Marriage of Ireland and England’, Vol. 8, No. 2 (1978), page. 183-190.

John Morrow, 'Young Ireland and the Condition of Ireland Question’, Thomas Carlyle. Vol. 51, No. 3 (2008), page. 643-667.

http://www.independent.ie/opinion/analysis/was-this-the-most-wicked-man-in-irish-history, accessed 16 April, 2016.

David Boyce, Nineteenth Century Ireland the Search for Stability (Dublin, 1990).

Christine Kinealy, Death Dealing Famine: The Great Hunger in Ireland. (London, 1997)

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