Category Archives: Northern Ireland
My Interview with Claire Sugden- MLA-Northern Ireland assembly.
Yesterday I interviewed Claire Sugden, a Northern Irish politician who was the Minister of Justice in the fourth Northern Ireland Executive from May 2016 to March 2017. She is a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) for East Londonderry, having been co-opted to the position after the death of David McClarty in 2014, and won election to the seat in 2016, 2017 and 2022. She is an Independent Unionist, and is considered to be one of the most socially liberal unionist MLAs in the Assembly.
These were the questions I asked her
“To introduce yourself to our listeners, who is Claire Sugden?
What made you want to go into politics?
I understand that Martin McGuinness approached you to take the Minister of Justice role, how did you feel about that?
How did you feel about the impasse in the Northern Ireland Assembly?
Are you hopeful , now that a deal appears to have been reached, that the assembly will be up and running again?
Going forward , what impact do you think you can have in Northern Irish politics, as an independent?
Where do you see the future of Northern Ireland, continued as a part of the UK, or as part of the Republic of Ireland, or perhaps as its own nation?
This is just a question to illustrate that life is not all about politics, what is your favourite song?”
Below is the interview. And also her favourite song
My Interview with David Honeyford—Alliance Party MLA-Northern Ireland
I had the privilege to talk with David Honeyford. David is an Alliance MLA (Members of the Legislative Assembly) for Lagan Valley and was first elected in May 2022. The Alliance party was founded in 1970 to bridge the bitter divisions in our community and build a shared society for everyone.
We had a chat about the current political stalemate in Northern Ireland.
He was first elected to Lisburn and Castlereagh City Council at the 2019 local elections for the Killultagh constituency. He topped the poll, with 20.3% of first preference votes and gained a seat for Alliance at the expense of the DUP’s William Leathem. It was the first time an Alliance candidate had won in the Killultagh constituency.
He was later elected as an MLA in the 2022 Northern Ireland Assembly election for Lagan Valley, alongside fellow Alliance Party candidate Sorcha Eastwood, after winning 4,183 First Preference Votes.
David is also a big rugby fan and is involved in the Glenavy GAC Gaelic Football Club. He is also a fan of U2.
sources
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Honeyford
https://www.allianceparty.org/david_honeyford_mla?locale=en
Northern Ireland
On Good Friday, 10 April 1998, the Good Friday Agreement, also known as the Belfast Agreement, It consists of two closely related agreements,
the British-Irish Agreement and the Multi-Party Agreement. It led to the establishment of a system of devolved government in Northern Ireland and the creation of many new institutions such as the Northern Ireland Assembly and Executive, the North South Ministerial Council and the British-Irish Council. The Good Friday Agreement was approved by referendums held in both Ireland and Northern Ireland on 22 May 1998.
Northern Ireland was created in 1921 and remained part of the UK when the rest of Ireland became an independent state. This created a split in the population between unionists, who wish to see Northern Ireland stay within the UK, and nationalists, who want it to become part of the Republic of Ireland. From the late 1960s, armed groups from both sides, such as the Irish Republican Army (IRA) and Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF), and other smaller paramilitary groups, carried out bombings and shootings, and British troops were sent to Northern Ireland. The Troubles lasted almost 30 years and cost the lives of more than 3,500 people. The Good Friday put an end to the violence, creating a lasting but fragile peace for the last 25 years.
Below are just some impressions of the decades of the troubles in Northern Ireland
As buildings burn, British Army troops patrol the streets after being deployed to end the Battle of the Bogside in Derry on August 15, 1969.
The conflict, beginning on August 12 and ending on August 15 with the arrival of the army, involved police officers from the loyalist Royal Ulster Constabulary and the nationalist citizens of the Bogside neighborhood and was one of the first major incidents of the Troubles.
A British soldier trains his rifle on a suspect in the Republican Ballymurphy estate in West Belfast on April 12, 1972.
An IRA member squats on patrol in West Belfast as women and children approach. 1987.
An inspector of the loyalist Royal Ulster Constabulary carries an injured women from a shopping arcade in Donegall Street, Belfast, after an IRA bomb went off there. March 20, 1972.
Masked men fire volleys of rifle shots in 1981 over the coffin of hunger-striker Bobby Sands.
A protestant boy plays football on a street in the sectarian divide of North Belfast where a British soldier is on patrol. January 21, 1972.
Women of the IRA pose with M16 rifles during a training and propaganda exercise in Northern Ireland on February 12, 1977.
August 1969: soldiers and civilians in Northern Ireland during the Troubles.
The Catholic priest Edward Daly waving a blood-stained white handkerchief while trying to escort the mortally wounded Jackie Duddy to safety during Bloody Sunday, or the Bogside Massacre. A massacre on 30 January 1972 when British soldiers shot 26 unarmed civilians during a protest march in the Bogside area of Derry. Fourteen people died: thirteen were killed outright, while the death of another man four months later was attributed to his injuries.
British soldiers killed 14 civilians.
An ambulance collects victims of British paratroopers at dusk on Rossville St, Derry, on Bloody Sunday.
The deadliest single incident of the Troubles in Northern Ireland, happened 4 months after the Good Friday agreement. In Omagh, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland, on August 15, 1998, in which a bomb concealed in a car exploded, killing 29 people and injuring more than 200 others. The Omagh bombing, carried out by members of the Real Irish Republican Army (Real IRA, or New IRA).
The peace has been consistent , but fragile ever since.
sources
https://www.britannica.com/event/Omagh-bombing
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-northern-ireland-61968177
The 12th of July- Orangemen’s Day
The 12th of July is the day when a whole bunch of protestants in Northern Ireland go Dutch. It is an event that truly intrigues me, because it basically goes against everything the Dutch stand for.
So what is it all about?
On the 12th of July every year. The day commemorates Protestant king William of Orange’s victory over Catholic king James II at the Battle of the Boyne: a pivotal moment for the Protestant cause. In Ulster, split 50/50 between Catholics and Protestants, the day has historically seen outbursts of sectarian violence. But today its reputation has improved, with most recent marches celebrated peacefully.
William III also widely known as William of Orange, was the sovereign Prince of Orange from birth, Stadtholder(Stewart) of Holland, Zeeland, Utrecht, Gelderland, and Overijssel in the Dutch Republic from the 1670s, and King of England, Ireland, and Scotland from 1689 until his death in 1702. As King of Scotland, he is known as William II.He is sometimes informally known as “King Billy” in Ireland and Scotland. His victory at the Battle of the Boyne in 1690 is commemorated by Unionists, who display orange colours in his honour. He ruled Britain alongside his wife and cousin Queen Mary II, and popular histories usually refer to their reign as that of “William and Mary”.
William was the only child of William II, Prince of Orange, and Mary, Princess Royal, the daughter of Charles I of England, Scotland, and Ireland. His father died a week before his birth, making William III the Prince of Orange from birth. In 1677, he married Mary, the eldest daughter of his maternal uncle James, Duke of York, the younger brother of Charles II of England, Scotland, and Ireland.
The Twelfth itself originated as a celebration of the Battle of Aughrim, which took place on 12 July 1691 in the ‘Old Style’ (O.S.) Julian calendar then in use. Aughrim was the decisive battle of the Williamite war, in which the predominantly Irish Catholic Jacobite army was destroyed and the remainder capitulated at Limerick, whereas the Boyne was less decisive. The Twelfth in the early 18th century was a popular commemoration of Aughrim, featuring bonfires and parades. The Battle of the Boyne (fought on 1 July 1690) was commemorated with smaller parades on 1 July. However, the two events were combined in the late 18th century. The first reason for this was the British switch to the Gregorian calendar in 1752, which repositioned the nominal date of the Battle of the Boyne to 11 July New Style (N.S.) (with the Battle of Aughrim nominally repositioned to 23 July.
The event is organized by the Orange Order of Ulster.
So how much do we know about the Orange Order?
Here are some facts you might not have known before
1 The Order was founded in 1795 by Daniel Winter, James Sloan and James Wilson after a stand-off in Co Armagh between Protestant Peep o’ Day Boys and Catholic Defenders ended with the Battle of the Diamond and the deaths of 30 Catholics. Dan Winter’s House near Loughgall, where the meeting to form the Orange Order was held after the battle as Protestants sought to protect their properties, has been restored and can be visited.
2 The order’s name comes from Protestant King William of Orange who defeated Catholic King James at the Battle of the Boyne in July 1690. Orange refers to the region of Southeast France that was among William’s family holdings.
3 The Orange Order’s first marches took place on 12 July 1796 at Gosford, outside Markethill, Co Armagh.
4 William of Orange was asthmatic and though not a hunchback, walked with the appearance of one.
5 On February 20, 1702 William was riding Sorrel, a new horse, in the park of Hampton Court. As the horse began to gallop it stumbled on a molehill and fell, throwing William who broke his collarbone, with ultimately fatal consequences. A jolt while in a carriage a few days later caused the bone to break again. Fever set in and he died on March 8.
6 King Billy’s horse at the Battle of the Boyne wasn’t white as famously portrayed, it was brown. A white horse would have made him an easy target.
7 William was one of the first to utilise mass media. He arrived in England in 1688, at the invitation of British politicians seeking to rid the nation of Catholic King James II, armed with a printing press, producing 60,000 copies of his declaration which criticised the king and tried to convince the English he was a friend rather than an invader.
8 The name Lambeg Drum literally means ‘Little Church Drum’, quite inappropriate for one of the largest and loudest instruments in the world.
9 William’s father (William II, Prince of Orange) died two weeks before he was born and his mother (Mary, eldest daughter of King Charles I of England) when he was 10 years old.
10 Malahide Castle, near Dublin, is the ancestral home of the Talbot family. You can still visit the Great Hall where 14 members of the Talbot family sat down to breakfast on the morning of July 12, 1690. All were dead by that evening.
11 An estimated 50,000 took part in the Battle of the Boyne, Surprisingly, most survived, the casualty list estimated at around 2,000 killed. The fighting lasted about four hours.
12 William of Orange was both the son-in-law and nephew of King James II who he defeated at the battle of the Boyne.{Willie Nelson’s song “I’m my own grandpa” comes to mind) The battle was to prevent James handing over power in Ireland to Catholics. Most of William’s army were militia of Dutch and Danish nationality, and they had landed at Carrickfergus before moving south. Aligned to France, James II was warned by King Louis XIV not to face William’s army and instead burn Dublin and retreat west of the River Shannon and hold his ground there to regroup. He refused. He lost.
13 William of Orange had a narrow escape at the Boyne. He was almost killed when struck by a ricocheted piece of cannon fire on the foot and shoulder as he (according to legend) enjoyed a picnic and was surveying the battle field on July 11. He was also almost struck by musket fire during the battle by one of his own soldiers during the confusion of battle.
14 While the Battle of the Boyne was won by William of Orange, it didn’t win the war. That only came to a decisive conclusion exactly one year later at Aughrim on 12 July 1691.
15 The original Twelfth of July commemorations were to honour the Battle of Aughrim, not the Battle of the Boyne.
16 The Battle of the Boyne, going by the old Julian calendar which was used in Ireland at the time, actually took place on July 1. It wasn’t until 1752 that the Gregorian calendar was adopted in Ireland when the July 12 date became relevant. However, even after this date “The Twelfth” continued to be commemorated at Aughrim. In fact, 1690 and the Boyne only became significant in the late 18th century when the two battles were combined in a single commemoration.
17 In the 1960s the Orange Order boasted almost 100,000 members. There are less than 30,000 today.
18 The first Grand Lodge of Ireland meeting was held in Dublin. Dublin, as the administrative capital of the Island, was the natural headquarters for the Orange Institution and remained such until the Headquarters Buildings, the Fowler Memorial Hall in Rutland Square, was severely damaged in the Irish Civil War.
19 William’s wife Queen Mary had been devoted to him, and he to her. After the shock of her unexpected death in 1694, William became very withdrawn. Following her death he always carried with him a gold ring and a lock of Mary’s hair. William was buried in Westminster Abbey beside Mary on Sunday, April 12.
20 New Zealand’s first Orange lodge was founded in Auckland in 1842, only two years after the country became part of the British Empire, by James Carlton Hill of Co Wicklow.
21 Ghana, Nigeria and Togo are among the African countries to have embraced Orangeism. All have their own Orange lodges.
22 Stall in the ‘field’ sell all sorts of usual merchandise like Toy drums, CDs of band music, mugs and printed t-shirts. Only more recently have some entrepreneurs been more inventive. These days you can course Lego Orangemen and Terry’s Chocolate Orangemen.
23 The Orange Order’s headquarters in Northern Ireland are based in Schomberg House – taking its name from Frederick Schomberg (originally Friedrich Hermann von Schönberg) appointed William of Orange’s commander-in-chief in Ireland in 1689, now Duke of Schomberg, he was appointed commander-in-chief in Ireland. Hit by musket fire, he died in the Battle of the Boyne and is buried in St Patrick’s Cathedral in Dublin.
24 The River Boyne only just scrapes into the top ten of the longest rivers in Ireland. It is tenth on the list at 112km. Longest is the Shannon (360km). The Foyle, the Bann and the Erne are all longer.
25 Famous Orangemen have included Dr Thomas Barnardo, who joined the Order in Dublin, William Massey, who was Prime Minister of New Zealand and Earl Alexander, the Second World War general.
During the Troubles (late 1960s to late 1990s), the Twelfth was often accompanied by riots and paramilitary violence.[citation needed] In 1972, three people were shot dead on the Twelfth in Portadown and two people were killed in Belfast. Of the five in total, two were killed by Republican groups and three were killed by Loyalist groups.[36] On the Twelfth in 1998, during the Drumcree conflict, three young boys were killed when loyalists firebombed their house in Ballymoney. The boys’ mother was a Catholic, and their home was in a mainly Protestant housing estate. The killings provoked widespread anger from both Catholics and Protestants.
Since the Troubles began, some bands hired to appear at Twelfth marches have openly shown support for loyalist paramilitary groups, either by carrying paramilitary flags and banners or sporting paramilitary names and emblem A number of prominent loyalist militants were Orangemen and took part in their marches. In February 1992, the loyalist UDA shot dead five Catholic civilians in a betting shop in Belfast. When Orangemen marched past the shop that 12 July, some marchers held up five fingers in mockery of the five dead. The Secretary of State, Patrick Mayhew, said that they “would have disgraced a tribe of cannibals”.
Every Twelfth between 1970 and 2005, British Army soldiers were deployed in Belfast to help police the parades. Due to improved policing, dialogue between marchers and residents, and the Northern Ireland peace process, parades have been generally more peaceful since the 2000s. The Parades Commission was set up in 1998 to deal with contentious parades.
The parades are mostly a display of bigotry and intolerance though. The opposite of what the colour Orange symbolises in the Dutch context.
sources.
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Anglo-Irish Treaty-Ireland’s independence.
I remember the celebration in 2016 when Ireland was commemorating the centenary of the Easter Rising. There had already been events months beforehand. On 20 January 2016. Ireland’s first ever commemorative €2 coin went into circulation to mark the centenary year of the Easter Rising.
The Easter Rising , was an armed insurrection in Ireland during Easter Week in April 1916. The Rising was launched by Irish republicans against British rule in Ireland with the aim of establishing an independent Irish Republic. Of course this event needed to be remembered, because it was such an important step towards Irish independence.
However, fast forward to today, December 6 2021, and you will find there are hardly any events planned. Even though today marks the centenary of an even more important event in Irish history, the signing of the Anglo-Irish treaty.
The Treaty formally ended the War of Independence, set the stage for British withdrawal from most of Ireland, and the handover of power to an independent Irish government.
It was signed in 10 Downing Street at 2.20 AM on the 6th of December 1921.The treaty created an Irish Free State that was to be afforded the same status as Canada, a self-governing dominion within the British Empire.
It was signed on the Irish side by delegates Arthur Griffith, Michael Collins, Eamon Duggan, Robert Barton and George Gavan Duffy.
On the British side were Prime Minister David Lloyd-George, Winston Churchill, Austen Chamberlain and FE Smith, Lord Birkenhead.
The Treaty gave Ireland independence, but as a member of the British Commonwealth, and not as a Republic. In 1937 Ireland adopted a new constitution and in 1948 it declared itself a republic.
There would be no all-island unity, as Northern Ireland could decide to – and did – remain outside the new state. An oath of allegiance was to be sworn by TDs. The British Navy would keep access to several seaports. The Irish delegates signed the Treaty after being warned by Lloyd-George that refusal to do so would mean that the War of Independence would resume within days.
The delegates argued that it was the best possible deal under the circumstances, but critics at home, led by President Eamon de Valera, claimed the signing was done under duress and so was invalid.
The Dáil, Irish Parliament, approved the new treaty after nine days of public debate on 7 January 1922, by a vote of 64 to 57, but it was not the assembly specified in the treaty. Therefore its approval of the treaty was not enough to satisfy the requirements of the treaty. The “meeting” required under the terms of the treaty was therefore convened. It formally approved the treaty on 14 January 1922. The “meeting” itself had a somewhat ambiguous status, not being convened or conducted in accordance with the procedures established for the House of Commons, nor being declared a session of Dáil Éireann. Anti-treaty members of the Dáil stayed away, meaning only pro-treaty members and the four elected unionists (who had never sat in Dáil Éireann) attended the meeting. Those assembled overwhelmingly approved the treaty, nominated Michael Collins for appointment as chairman of the provisional government and immediately dispersed with no parliamentary business taking place. This was the nearest that the House of Commons of Southern Ireland ever came to functioning; no other meeting ever took place, but the vote on 14 January, in strict compliance with the treaty wording, allowed the British authorities to maintain that the legal niceties had been observed.
The text of the treaty
- Ireland shall have the same constitutional status in the Community of Nations known as the British Empire as the Dominion of Canada, the Commonwealth of Australia, the Dominion of New Zealand and the Union of South Africa, with a Parliament having powers to make laws for the peace, order and good government of Ireland and an Executive responsible to that Parliament, and shall be styled and known as the Irish Free State.
- Subject to the provisions hereinafter set out the position of the Irish Free State in relation to the Imperial Parliament and Government and otherwise shall be that of the Dominion of Canada, and the law practice and constitutional usage governing the relationship of the Crown or the representative of the Crown and of the Imperial Parliament to the Dominion of Canada shall govern their relationship to the Irish Free State.
- The representative of the Crown in Ireland shall be appointed in like manner as the Governor-General of. Canada and in accordance with the practice observed in the making of such appointments.
- The oath to be taken by Members of the Parliament of the Irish Free State shall be in the following form:
I …………………. do solemnly swear true faith and allegiance to the Constitution of the Irish Free State as by law established and that I will be faithful to H.M. King George V, his heirs and successors by law, in virtue of the common citizenship of Ireland with Great Britain and her adherence to and membership of the group of nations forming the British Commonwealth of Nations.
- The Irish Free State shall assume liability for the service of the Public Debt of the United Kingdom as existing at the date hereof and towards the payment of war pensions as existing at that date in such proportion as may be fair and equitable, having regard to any just claims on the part of Ireland by way of set-off or counter-claim, the amount of such sums being determined in default of agreement by the arbitration of one or more independent persons being citizens of the British Empire.
- Until an arrangement has been made between the British and Irish Governments whereby the Irish Free State undertakes her own coastal defence, the defence by sea of Great Britain and Ireland shall be undertaken by His Majesty’s Imperial Forces. But this shall not prevent the construction or maintenance by the Government of the Irish Free State of such vessels as are necessary for the protection of the Revenue or the Fisheries.
The foregoing provisions of this Article shall be reviewed at a Conference of Representatives of the British and Irish Governments to be held at the expiration of five years from the date hereof with a view to a share in her own coastal defence. - The Government of the Irish Free State shall afford to His Majesty’s Imperial Forces:
(a) In time of peace such harbour and other facilities as are indicated in the Annex hereto, or such other facilities as may from time to time be agreed between the British Government and the Government of the Irish Free State; and
(b) In time of war or of strained relations with a Foreign Power such harbour and other facilities as the British Government may require for the purposes of such defence as aforesaid.
- With a view to securing the observance of the principle of international limitation of armaments, if the Government of the Irish Free State establishes and maintains a military defence force, the establishments thereof shall not exceed in size such proportion of the military establishments maintained in Great Britain as that which the population of Ireland bears to the population of Great Britain.
- The ports of Great Britain and the Irish Free State shall be freely open to the ships of the other country on payment of the customary port and other dues.
- The Government of the Irish Free State agrees to pay fair compensation on terms not less favourable than those accorded by the Act of 1920 to judges, officials, members of Police Forces and other Public Servants who are discharged by it or who retire in consequence of the change of Government effected in pursuance hereof.
Provided that this agreement shall not apply to members of the Auxiliary Police Force or to persons recruited in Great Britain for the Royal Irish Constabulary during the two years next preceding the date hereof. The British Government will assume responsibility for such compensation or pensions as may be payable to any of these excepted persons. - Until the expiration of one month from the passing of the Act of Parliament for the ratification of this instrument, the powers of the Parliament and the Government of the Irish Free State shall not be exercisable as respects Northern Ireland and the provisions of the Government of Ireland Act, 1920, shall so far as they relate to Northern Ireland remain of full force and effect, and no election shall be held for the return of members to serve in the Parliament of the Irish Free State for constituencies in Northern Ireland, unless a resolution is passed by both Houses of the Parliament of Northern Ireland in favour of the holding of such election before the end of the said month.
- If before the expiration of the said month, an address is presented to His Majesty by both Houses of the Parliament of Northern Ireland to that effect, the powers of the Parliament and Government of the Irish Free State shall no longer extend to Northern Ireland, and the provisions of the Government of Ireland Act., 1920 (including those relating to the Council of Ireland) shall, so far as they relate to Northern Ireland continue to be of full force and effect, and this instrument shall have effect subject to the necessary modifications.
Provided that if such an address is so presented a Commission consisting of three Persons, one to be appointed by the Government of the Irish Free State, one to be appointed by the Government of Northern Ireland and one who shall be Chairman to be appointed by the British Government shall determine in accordance with the wishes of the inhabitants, so far as may be compatible with economic and geographic conditions, the boundaries between Northern Ireland and the rest of Ireland, and for the purposes of the Government of Ireland Act, 1920, and of this instrument, the boundary of Northern Ireland shall be such as may be determined by such Commission.
- For the purpose of the last foregoing article, the powers of the Parliament of Southern Ireland under the Government of Ireland Act, 1920, to elect members of the Council of Ireland shall after the Parliament of the Irish Free State is constituted be exercised by that Parliament.
- After the expiration of the said month, if no such address as is mentioned in Article 12 hereof is Presented, the Parliament and Government of Northern Ireland shall continue to exercise as respects Northern Ireland the powers conferred on them by the Government of Ireland Act, 1920, but the Parliament and Government of the Irish Free State shall in Northern Ireland have in relation to matters in respect of which the Parliament of Northern Ireland has not power to make laws under that Act (including matters which under the said Act are within the jurisdiction of the Council of Ireland) the same powers as in the rest of Ireland, subject to such other provisions as may he agreed in manner hereinafter appearing.
- At any time after the date hereof the Government of Northern Ireland and the provisional Government of Southern Ireland hereinafter constituted may meet for the purpose of discussing the provisions subject to which the last foregoing article is to operate in the event of no such address as is therein mentioned being presented and those provisions may include:
(a) Safeguards with regard to patronage in Northern Ireland:
(b) Safeguards with regard to the collection of revenue in Northern Ireland:
(c) Safeguards with regard to import and export duties affecting the trade or industry of Northern Ireland:
(d) Safeguards for minorities in Northern Ireland:
(c) The settlement of the financial relations between Northern Ireland and the Irish Free State:
(f) The establishment and powers of a local militia in Northern Ireland and the relation of the Defence Forces of the Irish Free State and of Northern Ireland respectively:
and if at any such meeting provisions are agreed to, the same shall have effect as if they were included amongst the provisions subject to which the Powers of the Parliament and Government of the Irish Free State are to be exercisable in Northern Ireland under Article 14 hereof.
- Neither the Parliament of the Irish Free State nor the Parliament of Northern Ireland shall make any law so as either directly or indirectly to endow any religion or. prohibit or restrict the free exercise thereof or give any preference or impose any disability on account of religious belief or religious status or affect prejudicially the right of any child to attend a school receiving public money without attending religious instruction at the school or make any discrimination as respects state aid between schools under the management of different religious denominations or divert from any religious denomination. or any educational institution any of its property except for public utility purposes and on payment of compensation.
- By way of provisional arrangement for the administration of Southern Ireland during the interval which must elapse between the date hereof and the constitution of a Parliament and Government of the Irish Free State in accordance therewith, steps shall be taken forthwith for summoning a meeting of members of Parliament elected for constituencies in Southern Ireland since the passing of the Government of Ireland Act, 1920, and for constituting a provisional Government, and the British Government shall take the steps necessary to transfer to such provisional Government the powers and machinery requisite for the discharge of its duties, provided that every member of such provisional Government shall have signified in writing his or her acceptance of this instrument. But this arrangement shall not continue in force beyond the expiration of twelve months from the date hereof.
- This instrument shall be submitted forthwith by is Majesty’s Government for the approval of Parliament and by the Irish signatories to a meeting summoned for the purpose of the members elected to sit in the House of Commons of Southern Ireland, and if approved shall be ratified by the necessary legislation.
De Valera did not accept the result, and led opponents out of the Dáil in protest. This began the chain of events that led to the outbreak of the Civil War six months later.
sources
https://www.rte.ie/news/2021/1206/1264949-anglo-irish-treaty/
https://cain.ulster.ac.uk/issues/politics/docs/ait1921.htm
https://www.onthisday.com/photos/anglo-irish-treaty
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anglo-Irish_Treaty
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The Unlikely Irish Contributions During D-Day
Ireland remained neutral throughout World War II, but that is not to say there was no contribution from the Irish during the war. Many young Irish men did join the British army and also partook in Operation Overlord, more commonly known as D-Day.
However, this blog is not about any of those troops but—about two less likely participants in Operation Overlord.
When Maureen Flavin took on a job as postmistress at the Blacksod Lighthouse in Co. Mayo in Ireland, she had not anticipated the other job bestowed on her. The job was taking barometer and thermometer readings (basically weather forecasting) at the remote Blacksod weather station on the west coast of Ireland. She did do her job—and it made a global impact.
On her 21st birthday on June 3, 1944, she took the barometer readings and noticed a sudden drop, indicating bad weather was coming. Maureen reported to Ted Sweeney, the lighthouse keeper, and they sent it in. Maureen quickly received a call from a British woman asking them to check and confirm the report.
The report was re-sent, and an hour later, she received a call from the same British woman, asking her to check and confirm again, which she did.
Unbeknownst to Maureen, the Allied leaders in London relied on her weather reports to judge whether they should proceed with the D-Day launch as planned. The chief meteorologist, a Scottish man named James Scagg, was giving General Eisenhower regular weather updates.
Scagg advised Eisenhower that based on Maureen’s report—Operation Overlord (planned for June 5, 1944), should be postponed. He knew the weather forecasted by Maureen would hit the United Kingdom and France after it hit Ireland. Eisenhower took the advice and postponed the planned invasion by one day, so D-Day happened on June 6 because of a young Irish woman. Maureen later married the lighthouse keeper, Ted Sweeney. Their son Vincent is currently the lighthouse keeper at Blacksod Lighthouse.
The other unlikely Irish D-Day hero was born and raised in the village of Carnlough on the Antrim Coast in Northern Ireland. He joined the RAF as a messenger, and although he wasn’t a pilot nor did he have a plane, he still flew a dangerous mission.
You see, Paddy was a messenger pigeon who served with the RAF during the Normandy operations in June 1944. He was the fastest pigeon to reach England with a coded message from the battle-front beaches of Normandy.
The brave bird brought back vital information about the Allies’ progress, flying 230 miles in four hours and 50 minutes—the fastest time of any messenger pigeon involved in the mission with an average speed of 56 mph.
In the face of poor weather conditions and the threat of German Falcons deployed to intercept Paddy and his comrades, he delivered his message to his home loft at RAF Hurn.
He was the only Irish pigeon to receive the award—the Dicken Medal for bravery. Paddy trained for his specialist role in Northern Ireland and England.
Before D-Day Normandy landings on June 6, 1944, Paddy was delivered to RAF Hurn in Hampshire. Two days later, he was among 30 pigeons taken to France by a unit of the 1st US Army. Paddy was released at 8.15 a.m. on June 12, carrying coded information on the Allied advance.
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Sources
RTE
BBC
My secret Northern Ireland
Irish Central
Irish Mirror
Independent.ie
Derry Girl
Technically you weren’t a Derry Girl , you were born and raised in Belfast. But you made Derry your home, you became one of its daughters.
Like the show Derry Girls, witty, sharp and funny, so were you.
But what happened today is not funny, It is rotten to the core. A talented young prime example of humanity was killed. Killed by thugs who claim to fight for a cause.
There are some who say that these people don’t represent them, but not all of them are truthful in that.
I did not know you nor did I ever meet you, but that doesn’t matter for it was clear to me that you were pure in your heart and steadfast in what you believed in.
I hope that those who loved you can find solace in the knowledge that you were a decent human being. a rarity in this ever changing world.
We never met but I wish we had.
May you rest in peace and may your soul live on in those who know and love you.
RIP Lyra McKee,
Typhoid Mary
How could a seemingly healthy woman spread a potentially deadly disease?
Typhoid or Typhoid fever fever is a bacterial infection that can spread throughout the body, affecting many organs. Without prompt treatment, it can cause serious complications and can be fatal.If typhoid fever isn’t treated, it’s estimated that up to 1 in 5 people with the condition will die. However at the start of the 20th century that number would have been greater.
The main symptoms of typhoid fever are:
- a high temperature that can reach 39 to 40C
- headache
- general aches and pains
- cough
- constipation
Additionally it can cause diarrhea and a rash.Typhoid fever is caused by a type of bacteria called Salmonella typhi. It is basically spread by poor hygiene.
Mary Mallon was an asymptomatic carrier of the pathogen associated with typhoid fever. This means although she was infected she didn’t have any signs of the symptoms. Although she herself did not have the symptoms, she was a carrier and could infect others around her.
She was born in 1869 in Cookstown, County Tyrone, in what is now Northern Ireland.Orphaned as a child, Mary lived with her grandmother. Her Grandmother taught Mary how to scrounge for food and cook with what they had, making potato cakes and nettles over a peat fire.
In 1883 or 1884, Mary immigrated to the US where she lived with her Aunt and Uncle.In 1900 , she found employment in Mamaroneck, New York, as a cook.
Soon a number of residents of the houses where she worked developed fever and diarrhea.
In 1901, she moved 18 miles to Manhattan, where members of the family for whom she worked developed fevers and diarrhea, and the laundress died. Mallon then went to work for a lawyer and left after seven of the eight people in that household became ill.
In 1906 she moved to Oyster Bay ,Long Island.Where again she got a job as a cook. Within two weeks, 10 of the 11 family members were diagnosed with typhoid and hospitalized. Mary moved jobs again, this time for a wealthy New York banker, Charles Henry Warren. The Warrens had rented a house in Oyster Bay for the summer of 1906, Mallon went along too ,where she infected six of the 11 people in the family.
Eventually one of the families Mary had worked for hired George Soper, a typhoid researcher
After his investigation Soper released his results on June 15, 1907, in the Journal of the American Medical Association. He had the believe that Mary Mallon could be the source of the outbreak.He wrote:
“It was found that the family changed cooks in August 4. This was about three weeks before the typhoid epidemic broke out. The new cook, Mallon, remained in the family only a short time, and left about three weeks after the outbreak occurred. Mallon was described as an Irish woman about 40 years of age, tall, heavy, single. She seemed to be in perfect health.”
Soper looked into the employment agencies which staffed private kitchens and retrieved the name of Mary’s employers from 1900 to 1907. He found out that typhoid had struck seven of the last eight families where she worked. He also discovered, , that in all the stricken households she had lovingly iced and nursed the victims ,even receiving a tip of $50 from one employer.
Soper tracked Mary Mallon to a house on Park Avenue,home of Walter Bowen, where a daughter and maid had already come down with typhoid. When Soper approached Mary about her possible role in spreading typhoid, she was furious.
Soper reported this to the authorities and eventually, the New York City Department of Health arranged for Mallon to be taken into custody. Doctors found typhoid bacteria in her gallbladder, but she refused to have it removed as she didn’t believe she carried the disease. Mallon was held in isolation for three years at a clinic located on North Brother Island.
In 1910 it was agreed that Mallon could be released from the Hospital if she agreed to stop working as a cook, and take precautions to ensure that she didn’t infect more people with typhoid. She returned to the mainland and got a job as a laundress. But Sbecause this was a low paid job she changed her name to Mary Brown and resumed working as a cook.
For the following five years, everywhere she went, typhoid followed. In 1915 she set off a major outbreak in New York in which 25 people were infected and two died. She was arrested and on March 27,1915 the health authorities returned her to quarantine on North Brother Island,where she remained for the rest of her life.
Despite her isolation she became a minor celebrity and was occasionally interviewed by the media.Visitors were strongly urged warned not to accept even a glass of water from her . On November 11,1938, died of pneumonia at the age of 69.
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Sources
Irish Times
Irish America
The 535-536 AD climate change and the famine.
In the years 535 and 536, several remarkable aberrations in world climate took place. They were the most severe and protracted short-term episodes of cooling in the Northern Hemisphere in the last 2 Millennia.
Including bizarrely low-temperatures, with snow fall during the summer months in some locations; widespread crop-failures and famine; greatly decreased levels of sunlight; and also causing geopolitical problems.
While it’s currently believed that the event was caused by an extensive atmospheric dust veil formed either, due to a large volcanic eruption in the tropics, or the disintegration of a large amount of space-debris in the upper atmosphere, it is still unclear.Evidence does point towards the volcanic explanation though — owing to the presence of substantial sulfate deposits in glaciers around the world corresponding to the years in question.
There is some documented evidence from the time.
The Gaelic Irish Annals record the following:
“A failure of bread in the year 536 AD” – the Annals of Ulster
“A failure of bread from the years 536–539 AD” – the Annals of Inisfallen”
Further phenomena were reported by a number of independent contemporary sources:
Low temperatures, even snow during the summer (snow reportedly fell in August in China during the Northern and Southern dynasties, which caused the harvest there to be delayed) Crop failures
“A dense, dry fog” in the Middle East, China and Europe
Drought in Peru, which affected the Moche culture”
It caused famine in Ireland but also in other countries around the world.
Tree-ring analysis work done by the dendrochronologist Mike Baillie — of the Queen’s University of Belfast — has shown that there was “abnormally” low growth in Irish oaks in the 536 growing season. This was followed by a partial recovery and then another drop in growth in 542.
Tree-ring analysis of tree-stands in Sweden, Finland, California, and Chile, all confirm these findings.
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I am passionate about my site and I know you all like reading my blogs. I have been doing this at no cost and will continue to do so. All I ask is for a voluntary donation of $2, however if you are not in a position to do so I can fully understand, maybe next time then. Thank you. To donate click on the credit/debit card icon of the card you will use. If you want to donate more then $2 just add a higher number in the box left from the PayPal link. Many thanks.
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History of Sorts 
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