5.1) ireland c1688-1730

Question 1

which king invaded ireland and when?

Answer 1

1169 - king henry II invaded ireland and started an english colony -> from then on, english kings saw themselves as rulers of england
- he controlled a small part of the country called pale and anyone living outside that area faced racism
- when england became protestant in the middle ages, ireland remained catholic

Question 2

why did english monarchs set up plantations in ireland in the c16th and c17th?

Answer 2

• they encouraged thousands of scottish end english protestant settlers to take over large parts of irish land and set up plantations
• at the time ireland was governed by a lord deputy appointed by the english monarch and the irish parliament was protestant dominated and only the wealthy (mainly protestants) had a vote
• this was a mode of asserting english protestant power over a majority catholic ireland (and to drive them out)

Question 3

why did most irish catholics support james II?

Answer 3

• his declaration for the liberty of conscience (1687) which granted religious freedom to all christians was popular
• he promised to give the irish parliament parliament greater powers
• james made an irish catholic lord deputy (richard talbot) and built up catholic membership in the army

Question 4

why were the protestant settlements called ‘plantations’?

Answer 4

• protestant people were being planted in ireland to colonise it
• vast areas of irish land was confiscated and handed to to the protestant settlers -> an example of this is ulster which became a scottish settlement
• the intention was that settlers loyal to the english throne would be able to control ireland
• only english laws and customs were permitted within the plantations

Question 5

where were the catholics forced to live?

Answer 5

• irish catholics were forced to live outside the high walls of derry (called bogside)
• the irish catholic majority resented the plantations and there were many uprisings against them
• english policy created a deep divide

Question 6

what did king louis XIV want james to do?

Answer 6

• after william’s invasion in 1688, the king pressed him to return and win back the ‘three kingdoms’ (ireland, scotland and england) by military force

Question 7

where did james’ support come from? and what did james do in ireland?

Answer 7

• most irish catholics were jacobites
• tyrconnell, the lord deputy of ireland, formed a jacobite army
• in 1689, james landed in irealnd with 6000 french troops and held a parliament
• this passed a law giving confiscated land back to the former catholic owners
• also declared that english parliament had no right to make laws governing ireland

Question 8

when did the war in ireland take place?

Answer 8

1689-91

Question 9

what happened at the battle of boyne

Answer 9

1690
- it was a confused encounter with no clear winner but james lost heart and left ireland
- many soldiers deserted the army and the jacobites retreated from dublin
- despite this, the war carried on

Question 10

what happened at the battle of aughrim?

Answer 10

1691
- this was the final battle - 7000 were killed on both sides but william clearly won

Question 11

what was the outcome of the war in ireland?

Answer 11

1691 - both sides signed the treaty of limerick which marked the end of the war

Question 12

what were the terms of the treaty of limerick?

Answer 12

those who fought for james were given three choices:
- to join william’s army
- return home
- continue following james’ army in france which meant leaving ireland forever

Question 13

what were the longer term consequences of the war?

Answer 13

• 14,000 soldiers chose to return to france which removed the risk of the fighting continuing
• jacobite landowners were told they could their land if they pledged allegiance to william and mary
• but he did not stick to this promises in the treaty and many people’s land was taken away
• irish catholics lost their land, political power and army so they were totally excluded for the next 200 years

Question 14

what were the penal laws?

Answer 14

1691-1728 - laws governing what catholics could do in ireland
- 1695: weapons taken away, banned from studying overseas, priests and bishops banished
- 1704: inheritance rights taken away, no longer have the right to buy and lease property, some professions restricted, not allowed to hold a public position unless they become protestant
- 1728: not allowed to vote

Question 15

what was the protestant ascendancy?

Answer 15

• the system favoured the wealthy protestants - they saw themselves as the only true ‘irish nation’ whose god-given right to rule was proved by williamite victories in battle

Question 16

why were there divides amongst the protestants?

Answer 16

• the ascendancy class belonged to the church of ireland
• but most of the scottish settlers were presbyterians
• presbyterians suffered laws discriminating against them (like the catholics)
• there was a division of class between the protestant ascendancy and the catholics and protestant poor

Question 17

what was england’s relationship with ireland viewed as during 1691?

Answer 17

• the protestant ascendancy saw their relationship with england as one of siblings or two parallel kingdoms
• but london viewed ireland as a colony -> england was the ‘parent’ and ireland was the child
• london expected ireland to accept second-class status

Question 18

what ‘parent’ impositions did england make on ireland?

Answer 18

• 1699: to protect english exports, the english woollen act made it illegal for the irish to export woollen cloth outside of the british isles
• 1720: the declaratory act ruled that the british parliament had the right to make laws for ireland for ‘all reasons whatsoever’. the irish house of lords no longer had the right
• 1722-25: the british gov. gave the right to manufacture irish halfpennies to an english entrepreneur, against the will of the irish protestants

Question 19

what changes took place in ireland?

Answer 19

• woods were like cattle and the growth of thr potato took over - it was brought over to america and proved to be well-suited to irish conditions
• by 1700s it was the staple diet in many homes
• there was little manufacturing in ireland and many were dependent on crop growth so when they failed, there was a famine