A BRIEF HISTORY OF IRELAND

Early History

Arcaeologists and historians can trace 5000 years of human’s early settlement in Ireland. Stone Age artifacts date back to some 3000 BC and mainly consist of Dolmens, Stone Rings and other stone formations.

A Domen is made up of 3 large stones, built up like a table. It is uncertain what they were used for, but here are 3 suggested theories:

1. The most popular opinion is that the Dolmens were the Gravesites of important community leaders of that time.

2. It is also believed that the positions of the Dolmens are in harmony with the orbits of our nearest planets.

3. The 3rd explanation is derived from the legends of Celtic mythology, from the story of the two lovers, Diamuid and Grainne. Grainne loved Diamuid but she was betrothed to marry a much older High King. On the night before her wedding, she escaped from her quarters and ran away with Diamuid. Every night Diamuid built a Dolmen for his beloved Grainne to sleep under protecting them from the cold and wet.

The Celts

The Celts arrived in Ireland about 300 BC, bringing with them the Irish culture. With their knowledge and tools, they transformed the fishermen and hunters of the time into farmers working the land.

St. Patrick

In 432 AD, a young Welsh slave named Patrick arrived in Ireland. He grew up herding sheep on the hills of Ireland. The legend says that God appeared to Patrick and asked him to rid Ireland of paganism and pagan rituals by introducing and teaching Christianity.

This was no easy task, but Patrick succeeded in his mission and built the first Christian church in Ireland. After this followed a long period of learning and teaching and development of Christian monasteries and ecclesiastical centers throughout Ireland.

Glendalough, clonmacnoise, and Devenish Island are three of the most famous sites remaining from this era. It is known that Irish missionaries traveld from these centers to Europe teaching Christianity.

The Vikings

In 800 BC, Vikings invaded Ireland. The Vikings were a wild, ferocious tribe who robbed and pillaged their way through Ireland. For protection and defense, the monks built high towers where they hid themselves and their treasures when under siege by the Vikings. The Vikings were a sea faring people and founded many of the Irish coastal towns that still exist today. Dublin was one of their first settlements.

The Normans

Ireland was next invaded by the Anglo-Normans in 1169. They have their origins in Normandy and France. Originally the Normans were invited to Ireland by one of the Irish High Kings, who needed help in protecting his land. In return, they received land plantations as payment for their services. The Normans likes it in Ireland and many settled there, introducing the now familiar Irish names of Fitzgerald, Fitzpatrick and Burke. The Normans introduced the building of castles, towers and walled cities as defense strongholds. Any unwanted visitors were welcomed with showers of hot oil and tar, very unlike the warm hospitality and welcome the Irish are now famous for. Some of these castles have been renovated into hotels and are popular with vacationers.

The English

The English invaded Ireland in 1536. The protestant King of England, Henry the VIII, declared himself King of Ireland and started a campaign to suppress Catholicism, which was widely spread throughout Ireland. Loyalty to the King was determined by the religion you practiced, and in this way King Henry tried to convert Ireland to Protestantism, but with little success. Today, 95% of Ireland is Catholic.

English and Scottish Lords received plantations in Ireland as rewards for their loyalty to the King. In the middle of the 17th century, they moved to Ireland and took up the management of the plantations that had been deeded to them. The most plantations were taken in the North of Ireland by Scottish Protestans, which led to the founding of the many plantation towns that still exist today. This is one of the reasons that Northern Ireland remained a part of the British Kingdom in 1921.

The Great Famine

The saddest chapter in the History of Ireland was “The Famine” in 1850, when, 5 years in a row the potato crop was destroyed by a blight from which there was no protection. The Famine drove millions of Irish to their death by starvation and caused a wave of immigration to America, England, and Australia. Ireland’s population dropped from 8 million to 4 million people.

Ireland Today

Many people believe that time has stood still in Ireland, and that it has been bypassed by all modern development and economic progress. This is true of many rural areas, but in the last 10 years, Ireland’s economy has grown to be one of the strongest in Europe.