Ireland. Flashcards
Where was the Northern Irish parliament situated
Stormont
How were tensions looking in Ireland at the time of Heath’s ascendency
Very high; there was an explosion of sectarian violence in the early 70s
Who did Heath intially back to solve the Ireland situation
Brian Faulkner, head of the Ulster Unionist Party
Name two paramilitary organisations operating in Nothern Ireland in the 70s
IRA, INLA, UDA, UVF
What were Faulkners policies and why were they unpopular
As the head of the Belfast Govt, Faulkner imposed night time curfews and internment(custody without trial). These proved to be ineffective and discriminatory, with 95% of those interned in early 70s being Catholic. IRA commander called it the “best recruiting tool we ever had”
Name some events of violence in Ireland in the 70s
McGurks bar-15 dead to uvf bomb
Bloody Sunday-13 dead to British Army
Aldershot barracks-7 dead
Irish Parliament-2 killed by loyalist bomb
What retaliatory action was taken after bloody Sunday
The British embassy in Dublin was burned down
what events happened in 1972 to make it the bloodiest year of the troubles
1,382 explosions, 10,628 shooting incidents and 480 deaths.
Heath suspended Stormont control and bought in direct rule from parliament, appointing Willie Whitelaw as sec of state.
What was Heaths aim in regards to Ireland and the IRA
Not only try to defeat the IRA as the loyalists and unionists wanted, but the find permanent peace in a solution for ireland. This lead to negotiations with the main N.I. political parties
What was Heaths most important contribution to the N.I. peace process
The Sunningdale Agreement in 1973, a complex plan for powersharing with support from the SDLP(republican moderates), the alliance(moderate unionists leaning neutral) and the UUP(major unionists).
What did the Sunningdale Agreement propose
Power sharing for nationalists and unionists
New N.I. assembly elected by proportional representation
Council of Ireland with some influence from Republic of Ireland
Why was the Sunningdale Agreement unsuccesful in some regards
Extremists on both sides were not onboard, denouncing it as a sell out. The UVF and UDA were both opposed, and the UUP pulled out in ‘74 as Faulkner was replaced as head of UUP by Harry West who was opposed.
It was undermined by the events on the British mainland, including the miners strikes and Heaths fall from power.
Finally, in the 74 GE, parties opposed to Sunningdale put up a single candidate in each constituency, whilst the pro vote was split. 11/12 of constituencies returned candiates opposed to the Agreement.
What lead to Conservatives not being able to continue in power in ‘74
Concern over the Sunningdale Agreement leading to the Tories not being able to rely on the UUP, preventing their reelection.
What was set up by the Shipyard worker Harry Murray, what was its goal and how did it go about achieving this
The Ulster Workers Council, determined to bring down the executive, announced a strike beginning in May 1974
What did the 1974 Strike achieve
Broadly, the collapse of the Sunningdale Agreement and resignment of Faulkner as a state of emergency was declared.
What did Wilson establish to determine N.I.’s future
The Northern Irish Consitution Convention
Who was killed in 1979 by an IRA car bomb
Airey Neave, Tory spokesman on N.I.
What did the 1975 elections result in in Ireland and why was this an issue for the peace process
A Unionist majority who were unwilling to compromise.
When was the N.I. Consitution Convention dissolved
1976
What was removed from terrorist prisoners in ‘76, prompting the Blanket Protest and later the Dirty Protest in ‘78.
Special Category Status, essentially meaning they would simply be treated as criminals rather than enemies in a war.
What did the Blanket and Dirty Protests entail
Prisoners refused to wear clothes, going naked or simply with blankets. Later, alleging ill treatment by guards, they refused to leave their cells, leaving them unable to slop out and so smearing excrement along their cell walls.
Approximately how many were involved in the Dirty Protest by ‘79
250
Who lead the 1980 Hunger Strikes and what were they subsequently elected for
Bobby Sands who in ‘81 became MP for West Tyrone
What consequences did the Hunger Strikes bring
Despite not being granted special category status, the ultimate goal of the protest, there was huge public outrage, with 100,000 marching at Bobby Sands funeral, to protests in Paris and Milan to widespread support in NA, the hunger strikes were extremely influential.
What technique did Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams posit as the way to win Irish independance
The twin tracks of the ballot box and the gun
What took place in OCT 1984 at the Grand Hotel in Brighton and what was bad about it
An IRA bomb went off during the Conservative Party consequence killing 5. What was bad is that it didnt get Thatcher, the main target
How many died in total in the Hunger Strikes before it was called off in OCT ‘81
10, Including Sands
What was signed in 1985 at Hillsborough
The Anglo Irish agreement, setting up permanent intergovernmental cooperation between the R.O.I govt and the UK govt.
Why was the Anglo Irish agreement helpful for Thatcher
She hoped it would help security, as well as strengthen moderate republicans against the extremists, and was suppported by the SDLP and the Alliance.
Why was the Anglo Irish agreement criticised
By Republicans as it denoted N.I. as part of the UK
By unionists as it allowed the Republic of Ireland influence in N.I. affairs, something they saw as a breach of soverignty. 200,000 attended a protest rally led by Ian Paisley, head of the DUP.
What new Unionist Paramilitary force was set up in ‘86 as resistance to the Anglo-Irish agreement
The Ulster Resistance
Name some events of violence related to Ireland during Thatchers reign
Hyde Park Bombing ‘82-11 killed by IRA
Droppin Well bomb ‘82- 17 killed by INLA
Harrods bombing ‘83- 6 killed by IRA
Brighton Grand hotel ‘84-5 killed by IRA
8 IRA volunteers and 1 civilian killed by SAS ‘87
Remembrance day bomb ‘87-12 killed by IRA
What accusations did the UK face over its handling of 3 IRA members in 1988 in Gibralter
Having a shoot to kill policy
Who were the Birmingham Six and the Guildford Four
two groups of people both wrongly convicted for bombings in 1975; subsequently pardoned in 89 and 91.
What luridly evil enterprise was bombed by the IRA in 1989 in order to prevent a second biblical flood
The London Stock Exchange
Did Thatchers harsh stance on Ireland ever waver throughout her Premiership
Nope :)
From 1993, what did John Majors goverment start recieving from Sinn Fein
Overtures of Peace; a sense they wanted the violence to come to an end
Why was Major in an advantageous position to pursue peace in Ireland
Although harder to gain republicans trust, he could avoid backlash from the conservative/unionist movement, as well as be trusted to not ‘sell out’ the protestants in Ireland. Furthermore, he had a good relationship with the Irish Taosieach, and even Bill Clinton the goat encouraged peace
What events marked the end of the Troubles 1993-97
1993 joint downing street declaration from Major and Reynolds, Taoseach.
1994 IRA announces ceasefire
1997- Eamon Collins writes that both sides looked down into a bosnia style abyss and gulped
What setbacks were there to Majors peace process
The IRA grew impatient and resumed violent methods, bombing canary wharf and manchester in 1996. Unionists became distrustful but peace talks continued
Who convinced Gerry Adams and Martin McGuiness that the peace process was viable, subsequently becoming a joint winner of the Noble peace prize due to his role in the talk
John Hume
When was the Good Friday Agreement finalized
April 1998
Why did one of the UUP negotiators nearly pull out at the last minute
Issues over whether the IRA would decommision their arms
What were the key elements of the good friday agreement
bot the UK and ROI would give op their claim to NI, it would be governed by its people
a devolved assembly with a power sharing assembly would be set up
links between all parties would be strengthened
decommisioning of arms
reforms of policiing
early release of paramilitary prisoners whose orgs were commited to peace
how many voted for the GFA
71% in NI and 94% in ROI
What issues remained after the GFA
Republicans were afraid of being accused of selling out
The Omagh bombings killed 30 people, carried out by the continuity IRA
over subsequent years unionists became disillusioned and Ian Paisleys DUP became the biggest unionist part
finally, there were disagreements over decomisionning of arms, release of convicted terrorists, right of the protestant orange order to marchits traditional routes.
devolved institutions suspended in 2002.
