The Troubles

• Engels
• Middelbare school
• havo, vwo
• Leerjaar 4-6

Ireland

What do you notice when you look at the map on the left?

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Ireland - religion

What do you know about the importance of religion in (Northern) Ireland?

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The Troubles in Northern Ireland

Learning Objective

At the end of the lesson, you will be able to understand what the Troubles in Ireland were and how they are connected to the war of Independence and the Irish civil war.

You will be able to discuss a poem (song) and a short story about the Irish Civil War and The Troubles.

Explain to the students what they will be learning and why it is important.

What do you already know about ''The Troubles'' in (Northern) Ireland?

What were the Troubles?

The Troubles was a period of conflict in Northern Ireland that lasted from the late 1960s until the Good Friday Agreement in 1998.

To understand the Troubles you need to know about the history of Ireland.

Ask the students if they have heard of the Troubles before and if they know what it was about.

a short history lesson

The British wanted to keep control over Ireland. To accomplish this, they sent English and Scottish settlers to Ireland. Look at the map on the right.

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a short history lesson

Most of the new settlers were protestant while the Irish people were mostly catholic. 

Catholics weren't allowed to vote or to have governments jobs. Over time, they were treated more and more poorly and resistance began to rise.

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a short history lesson

Due to the Irish potato famine and the emigration of about 1.000.000 people to the USA the population of Ireland dropped dramatically.

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a short history lesson

The remaining Irish population became more and more unhappy with the British domination. In 1905 the political party Sinn Féin ("we ourselves") was established. They wanted "home rule". 

The protestants in the North of Ireland were against home rule, they were afraid the Catholic church would rule the Irish government.

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a short history lesson

In 1914 the Home rule law was passed but immediately suspended because of the outbreak of the first world war.

Many Irish went to fight in the war but some remained in Ireland and planned the Easter Rising (1916) in secret.

After the leaders of the Easter Rising were executed more Irish supported the call for and independent Ireland.

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a short history lesson

In 1918 Sinn Féin won the elections but the chosen members of parliament decided not to go to London but to form an Irish parliament in Dublin (Dáil) and declare independence of Ireland again.

On January 21st, 1919 two officers were killed in the Soloheadbeg ambush by IRA volunteers acting on their own initiative. The Irish War of Independence had started. The IRA used mostly guerilla tactics to fight the enemy.

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a short history lesson

In 1920 Winston Churchill sent reinforcements to Ireland. They were called "the Black and Tans" due to the colours of their uniforms. 

The most infamous day of that year was November 20th when the IRA killed 14 British officers. The revenge: British soldiers fired on the crowd at a Gaelic football match, killing fourteen civilians and wounding sixty-five (this was the first Bloody Sunday).

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a short history lesson

In 1921 the "Anglo-Irish Treaty" made an end to the war of Independence. Ireland would get the status of a dominion (like Canada) and the 6 counties in the North would stay part of Great Britain. 

The treaty caused problems within the Irish parliament: some said it was a step in the right direction but others didn't want to be part of Great Britain at all. 

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a short history lesson

The people who didn't agree with the treaty occupied the Four Courts in Dublin. Michael Collins was threatened by the British: "If you don't handle this, we will!" so he bombed the Four Courts. This marked the start of the Irish Civil war. 

The opponents of the treaty had more soldiers (who were more experienced) but the pro treaty soldiers had British weaponry.

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a short history lesson

The Civil war went on for almost a year and took an estimated 2.000 lives. The war was fought between former comrades, between families and friends. 

The war is known in Irish as Cogadh na gCarad, 'war of friends'.

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The Sniper

As you may know, before the Troubles, Ireland had been in war for its Independence (1919) and in Civil War (1921-1923). The conflicts resulted in a divided society and generational traumas. Eventually, in the 1960s, leading to the Troubles.  The short story The Sniper  takes place in Dublin during the Civil War.

Reading the story in your booklet together 

and answer the questions

(p. 7 - 12)

a short history lesson

The Civil War ended with a ceasefire rather than a decisive victory. As Free State forces steadily overcame the Anti-Treaty IRA, the fighting become a series of confrontations. IRA leadership, knowing it could not win, ordered its forces to stand down on 30th April 1923.

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a short history lesson

In 1949 Ireland became a republic. 

The problems weren't over though! 

The government of Northern-Ireland only existed of protestants and many catholics are poor and out of work. In 1968 the civil rights movement is formed and many demonstrations take place.

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a short history lesson

Riots keep becoming worse. Razzias take place and many people go to prison without any form of trial. To protest against this, there is a demonstration on 30 January 1972. 13 unarmed civilians are killed by the British.

Bloody Sunday came to be regarded as one of the most significant events of the Troubles because so many civilians were killed by forces of the state, in view of the public and the press.

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What happened on Bloody Sunday?

Sunday Bloody Sunday

re-read the lyrics of Sunday Bloody Sunday and answer the questions (p. 4 - 6)

After Bloody Sunday the Northern-Irish prime minister gets an ultimatum: solve the problems or we (the British) will take over. After two more months of riots the British government suspends the parliament of Northern Ireland and establishes "Direct rule".

The IRA stills sets the same goal as in the Civil War: kick out the British and establish the Green State (reunite Northern-Ireland with the rest of Ireland).

On the other side are the loyalists; they want their own government in Stormont and to keep with Great Britain (The Orange State).

Between 1972 and 1998 the Troubles continue; in 1994 there is a ceasefire but this is violated when there is a bombing at Canary Wharf in London. In 1998 the Good Friday Agreement finally marks the ending of most of the IRA actions. However, the IRA didn't formally order an end to the armed campaign until July 28th, 2005.

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Northern Ireland TODAY

Even after the Good Friday Agreement and the declaration of the IRA the division between Catholic and Protestant continues.

In Belfast and Londonderry "Peace Walls" are placed between predominantly Irish republican and nationalist neighbourhoods (Green, catholic) from predominantly British loyalist and unionist neighbourhoods (Orange, protestant).

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Teens today

What do Ryan and Abby fear will happen if the republicans come to power?

Northern Ireland TODAY

Peter of the International Fund for Ireland talks about the importance of making contact with eachother in the following clip.

He says: "Relationship is what dismantles prejudice". 

Can you explain what this means?

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Write down 3 things you learned in this lesson.

Have students enter three things they learned in this lesson. With this they can indicate their own learning efficiency of this lesson.

Write down 2 things you want to know more about.

Here, students enter two things they would like to know more about. This not only increases involvement, but also gives them more ownership.

Ask 1 question about something you haven't quite understood yet.

The students indicate here (in question form) with which part of the material they still have difficulty. For the teacher, this not only provides insight into the extent to which the students understand/master the material, but also a good starting point for the next lesson.

What have we learned?

We have learned that the Troubles was a period of conflict in Northern Ireland between Catholics and Protestants. It was a time of violence and fear, but the Good Friday Agreement helped to bring an end to most of the violence. However, there are still conflicts between Catholic and Protestant people in Northern Ireland. 

Ask the students to summarize what they have learned and if they have any questions.

Short summary

Protestants wanted to stay a part of Great Britain

(England, Scotland, Wales)

Catholics wanted Ireland to be a separate country without any links to Great Britain

Why did the Troubles happen?

While Ireland was fully independent, Northern Ireland remained under British rule, and the Catholic communities in cities like Belfast and Derry (legally called Londonderry) complained of discrimination and unfair treatment by the Protestant-controlled government and police forces

- https://www.history.com/news/the-troubles-northern-ireland

Ask the students if they know the differences between Catholics and Protestants and what they think might have caused the disagreements.

extra information

if you want to watch a short video about this on youtube, use this link: 

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extra information

timeline of important events in Irish history

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