Northern Ireland Flashcards
1964-1970 - Labour
What does the term “Troubles” refer to?
The violence dating from 1960s to the 1990s whose main feature consisted of terrorist conflict between the nationalists and unionists
What began in 1964 in Northern Ireland?
The Civil Rights movement
What did this lead to?
Increased tension as unionists feared a new violent campaign by the IRA (Irish Republican Army)
What did the unionists do in response?
They set up their own paramilitary organisations to defend Great Britain and Northern Ireland
What did the Northern Irish students found in 1967?
The Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association (NICRA) - condemned the political corruption and called for fair distribution of resources across the entire population
What occurred at the Civil Rights marches in October 1968?
Catholic nationalists protesting against discrimination were attacked by Protestant loyalists
What did the Catholics complain about?
That the RUC had failed to protect them
What was this event widely regarded as?
The start of the Troubles
What occurred at the Battle of Bogside 1969?
Loyalist Apprentice Boys were attacked during their annual march in Bogside, a Catholic area
What did the RUC try to do?
Try to storm the Bogside but were held back by 2 days of rioting
What were the RUC seen on TV doing?
RUC officers were seen beating Catholics
What did this lead to?
Mass rioting across the country
What occurred for the first time in the Summer of 1969?
The first deaths occurred
What did the Labour Party do in August 1969?
They sent out the British Army to Northern Ireland
How were the army initially received?
They were welcomed by the Catholics
What did this cause the IRA to do that had been dormant before?
Reorganise and decide to lead the struggle
Who did the IRA target?
British troops as representatives of the Imperialist government which was the root cause of all problems
1970-1074 - Conservatives
What started under Heath in the 1970s?
An explosion of violence despite Heath’s attempts to find a political solution to the fighting
Who did Heath support in 1971?
Brian Faulkner, the Ulster Unionist Party leader of Belfast government and his policies
What policies did Faulkner impose?
Arresting suspected troublemakers and holding them without trial, imposing night-time curfews and internment
What did Heath believe these policies would achieve?
That by removing the violent men from the community this would reduce tension
What were the vast consequences of imposing internment?
- 95% of those interned were Catholic between 1971-1975
- Claimed by IRA to be the best recruiting tool the IRA had ever had
- Increased tension
- Strained British government relations with Irish government
- Created split in Labour Party as many Labour MPs opposed it and called for the withdrawal of British troops
What huge event occurred on the 30th January 1972?
Bloody Sunday - NICRA organised a prohibited Civil Rights march which ended with British soldiers firing live ammunition
What was the death-toll of Bloody Sunday?
26 unarmed civilians were shot and 13 died
What did this cause for the relationship between NI and Britain?
Extreme tension and controversy
What happened to the British Embassy in Dublin after Bloody Sunday in 1972?
It was burnt down
What year was the bloodiest of the Troubles?
1972 - 1382 explosions, 10628 shootings and 480 people killed
What did Heath do to the Stormont parliament in March 1972?
He suspended it and brought in direct rule from Westminster
What did Heath try and find? With whom?
A solution to the violence with all political parties
What did the first inquiry into Bloody Sunday, the Widgery Report, of May 1972 say about the event?
That shots had been fired at the soldiers before the soldiers started firing shots which led to the casualties
What did the Republicans (leave) see this an attempt to?
Whitewash what had happened and justify the British Army’s actions
What did Heath negotiate in 1973?
The Sunningdale Agreement - support of SDLP, Alliance and UUP parties and Dublin government
What were the main proposals of the Sunningdale Agreement?
- A power-sharing Executive of nationalists and unionists guaranteeing political representation for both sides
- A new NI assembly elected under proportional representation
- A Council of Ireland that would get some input from Republic of Ireland
Why was this monumental for Catholics?
It was the first time since 1921 that Catholics had been offered a share in government in Northern Ireland
What were the numerous consequences of the Sunningdale Agreement?
- Violence continued with frequent IRA attacks on police and army
- On both sides, extremists saw the agreement as a sell-out
- UUP voted to pull out of agreement in January 1974 and replaced leader with Harry West who opposed the agreement
What was the result of the Feb 1974 general election concerning the Sunningdale Agreement?
11 of 12 NI constituencies elected an anti-Sunningdale MP
