"The first evidence of human presence in Ireland dates to around 33,000 years ago..."
The history of Ireland, from ancient times to modern-day, including important events, figures, and key cultural and political shifts.
Celtic Ireland: A study of Ireland before the arrival of the Anglo-Normans.
Anglo-Norman Ireland: A study of what is now Ireland from the 12th century to the 16th century.
Plantations of Ireland: A series of plantation schemes to bring Protestant settlers into Ireland, which took place between 1556 and 1690.
The Norman Invasion of Ireland: The invasion of Ireland by the Anglo-Normans, in 1169.
The Confederation of Ireland: A group of Irish Catholic and Protestant elites who tried unsuccessfully to negotiate a new power-sharing agreement with the British Crown in the mid-1800s.
The Great Famine: The period of mass starvation and disease that hit Ireland during 1845-49.
The 1916 Easter Rising: An Irish Republic separatist rebellion against British rule, that took place in Dublin in April 1916.
The Mexican-American War: A watershed event in U.S. history, and a critical step on the road to civil war.
Partition of Ireland: The division of Ireland into two self-governing territories, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.
Prohibition in the United States: A period which saw the United States prohibit the production, importation, transportation, and sale of alcoholic beverages.
The Troubles: A period of ethno-political conflict in Northern Ireland during the late 20th century.
Irish-American Relations: Relations between the United States of America and the island of Ireland have long been complex.
The Good Friday Agreement: The peace agreement reached by British and Irish political parties in April 1998.
Prehistoric Ireland: Studies the period before the arrival of Christianity in Ireland, including megalithic structures and the Bronze and Iron Ages.
Early Christian Ireland: Covers the period from the arrival of Christianity to the end of the early Middle Ages, examining the influence of Celtic Christianity and medieval Irish monasticism.
Viking and Medieval Ireland: Explores the impact of the Viking invasions and the subsequent establishment of a feudal society.
Early Modern Ireland: Covers the period from the Tudor conquests to the end of the 18th century, including the Plantations and the rise of Irish nationalism.
Modern Ireland: Examines the 19th and 20th centuries, from the Great Famine to Ireland's independence and the Troubles in Northern Ireland.
Cultural Studies: Looks at Irish literature, music, art, folklore, language, and popular culture.
Political History: Studies the evolution of Irish politics, including the development of the Irish state, the role of the Irish diaspora, and contemporary politics.
Economic History: Examines Ireland's economic development, including its agriculture, industry, and trade.
Social History: Looks at issues such as gender, class, religion, education, and social change in Irish society.
Military History: Studies conflicts and military operations involving Ireland and Irish soldiers.
Diaspora Studies: Explores the Irish diaspora and its cultural and economic impact around the world.
Environmental History: Examines the impact of human activity on the Irish environment and the ways in which nature has shaped Irish history.
Religious History: Studies the influence of religion on Irish society and politics, including the role of the Catholic and Protestant churches.
Oral History: Explores the lived experience of Irish people through personal testimonies and oral histories.
Archaeology: Utilizes archaeological evidence to reconstruct Irish history, including the prehistoric period and early Christianity.
"...the Mesolithic, the Neolithic from about 4000 BC and the Copper Age beginning around 2500 BC with the arrival of the Beaker Culture. The Irish Bronze Age proper begins around 2000 BC..."
"The Iron Age of the Celtic Hallstatt culture, beginning about 600 BC..."
"...Christianity had begun to gradually subsume or replace the earlier Celtic polytheism. By the end of the 6th century it had introduced writing along with a predominantly monastic Celtic Christian church, profoundly altering Irish society."
"Viking raids and settlement from the late 8th century AD resulted in extensive cultural interchange, as well as innovation in military and transport technology. Viking penetration was limited..."
"The Norman invasion in 1169 resulted in a partial conquest of the island and marked the beginning of more than 800 years of English political and military involvement in Ireland."
"Initially successful, Norman gains were rolled back over succeeding centuries as a Gaelic resurgence reestablished Gaelic cultural preeminence over most of the country..."
"The English Crown did not make another attempt to conquer the island until after the end of the Wars of the Roses (1488)."
"The nature of Ireland's decentralised political organisation into small territories (known as túatha), martial traditions, difficult terrain and climate and lack of urban infrastructure, meant that attempts to assert Crown authority were slow and expensive."
"The new policy fomented the rebellion of the Hiberno-Norman Earl of Kildare Silken Thomas in 1534, keen to defend his traditional autonomy and Catholicism, and marked the beginning of the prolonged Tudor conquest of Ireland."
"Gaelic Ireland was finally defeated at the battle of Kinsale in 1601 which marked the collapse of the Gaelic system..."
"The arrival of thousands of English and Scottish Protestant settlers, and the displacement of both the Hiberno-Normans (or Old English as they were known by then) and the native Catholic landholders."
"On 1 January 1801, in the wake of the republican United Irishmen Rebellion, the Irish Parliament was abolished..."
"Catholics were not granted full rights until Catholic Emancipation in 1829..."
"The Great Famine struck Ireland in 1845 resulting in over a million deaths from starvation and disease and a million refugees fleeing the country..."
"Parnell's Irish Parliamentary Party which strove from the 1880s to attain Home Rule through the parliamentary constitutional movement..."
"In 1916, the Easter Rising succeeded in turning public opinion against the British establishment after the execution of the leaders by British authorities."
"In 1922, after the Irish War of Independence most of Ireland seceded from the United Kingdom to become the independent Irish Free State..."
"Their opposition led to the outbreak of the Irish Civil War, in which Irish Free State, or 'pro-treaty', forces proved victorious."
"...an uneasy, but largely successful peace was finally achieved with the Good Friday Agreement in 1998."