Basic HTML Version
22
The
PLAIN TRUTH
CRISIS IN IRELAND-
Top,
British riot squad being
trained for duty in violence–
torn Northern lreland.
Below, anti-Catholic posters
painted on wall in after–
math of lrish riots.
Wldo
World Photo
ITopJ
Ambossodor
Col/ego
/'hoto
18oJowJ
January
1971
appearances and temperament, even the
llttmes
of the lrish and Scotch-Irish
11111-
ally
differ.
Such names as Sullivan, Rafferty,
O'Reilly, Mulligan or O'Malley are
good Irish names. But names likc Mac–
Donald, McLean, Campbell, Wilson
and Stewart are good Scottish or Scotch–
Jrish names. Names beginning with
"Mac" or "Me" are usually Scottish or
Scotch-Irish; names beginning with "0' '
are typically Southern Irish. But there
are a few exceptions to both. For
examplc, O'Neil is a common Scotch·
Irish name and McNamara is a common
Irish name.
Zealous - But Bigoted
Violencc and bloodshed have plagucd
lreland's history for many ccnturies.
Jf
we really wish to understand today's
continuing strife in Ulster, we must
understand recent Irish history.
The Republic of I reland - Southern
Ireland
contains just under three
million people. Approximately 95 pcr–
cent are Catholic, most of the remainder
Protestant. 'fhe overwhclming majority
of them have the political desire of
seeing the six counties of Northern Ire–
Jand handed over to the Republic of
Ireland.
Ulster - about the size of Yorkshire
or Connecticut - has about one and a
half million population. Two-thirds are
Protcstant, one-third Catholic.
Ircland is well known to have sorne
of the world's most devout Catholics,
while Ulster undoubtedly contains the
world's most fervent Protestants. Mis–
understanding and bigotry are found in
both camps!
How did Northern I reland come to
be inhabited by a people whose charac–
tecistics, names, history and religion are
guitc different from that of the majority
of l'hosc living in Southern Ireland?
A Divided Ireland
After the
Protestan/ Reformation,
in
the sixteenth century, a fierce struggle
developed between various Protestant
and Catholic rulcrs in Europe - espe–
cially over control of the British Isles
and Ireland. The English had, for cen–
turies, been trying to subduc aJI the
peoples in thc British Isles, iocluding
Catholic lreland.
France, Spain and other Catholic