 The island of Ireland is located west of the European landmass, and lies alongside Britain. The island of Ireland (Éire in Irish), is the third-largest island in Europe. It lies on the west side of the Irish Sea, close to the island of Great Britain. It is composed of the Republic of Ireland which covers five sixths of the island (south, east and west) and Northern Ireland, a region of the United Kingdom which covers the northeastern sixth of the island. The population of the island is approximately 5.7 million people, most of whom live on the east coast.
Geography
 Some physical features of Ireland are shown on this map. See also this larger version with more details. - Main article: Geography of Ireland
The island of Ireland is located in northwest Europe in the north Atlantic Ocean, west of Great Britain. It is approximately 53° north of the equator and 8° west of the Greenwich meridian. It has a total area of 84,116 km² (32,477 mi²). Ireland is separated from Britain by the Irish Sea. The sea to south of Ireland separates it from mainland Europe: it is known to some, especially in the oil and gas industry as the Celtic Sea, but is more commonly considered part of the Atlantic Ocean.
A ring of coastal mountains surrounds low central plains. The highest peak is Carrauntuohill (Irish: Corrán Tuathail), which is 1041 m (3414 feet). The island is bisected by the River Shannon, at 113 km (70 mi) the longest river in Ireland, and in the British Isles. The island's lush vegetation, a product of its mild climate and frequent but soft rainfall, earns it the sobriquet "Emerald Isle".
Ireland is divided into four provinces, Connacht, Leinster, Munster and Ulster. These were further divided into 32 counties for administrative purposes. Six counties remained in the United Kingdom as Northern Ireland following Ireland's partition in 1922 (the remaining 26 forming present-day Republic of Ireland) and these no longer exist for administrative purposes, apart from Fermanagh. In the Republic, the county boundaries are still adhered to for local government albeit with Tipperary and Dublin subdivided (some cities also have their own administrative regions). For election constituencies, some counties are merged or divided, but constitutionally the boundaries have to be observed. Across Ireland, the old 32 counties are still used in sports and in some other cultural areas and retain a strong sense of local identity.
Ireland's least arable land lies in the southern and western counties. These areas are a mostly mountainous and rocky region with beautiful green and grey vistas.
Politics
- Main articles: Politics of Northern Ireland, Politics of the Republic of Ireland
Politically, the island of Ireland is divided into:
- The Republic of Ireland, capital - Dublin. This state is often simply referred to internally and internationally as "Ireland" or "Éire". Technically Ireland and Éire are the official names of the state while the "Republic of Ireland" is its official description.
- Northern Ireland, capital - Belfast, also referred to unofficially as the 'Six Counties', the 'North of Ireland', and 'Ulster'. Northern Ireland is a region of the United Kingdom.
Prior to the Government of Ireland Act, 1920 the island had existed for centuries as one unified political entity, either on its own (as the Lordship of Ireland, the Kingdom of Ireland) or as part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Prior to English rule in mediaeval times the island was made up of a patchwork of small kingdoms that were people and clan rather than territory-based. At the top of this system was the Ard Ri or High King of Ireland. See Irish States (1171-present).
In a number of areas, the island operates officially as a single entity, for example, in sport. The major religions, the Roman Catholic Church, the Church of Ireland and the Presbyterian Church of Ireland, are organised on an all-island basis. 92% of the population of the Republic of Ireland are Roman Catholic, and 40% in Northern Ireland. Some trades unions are also organised on an all-Irish basis and associated with the Irish Congress of Trades Unions (ICTU) in Dublin, while others in Northern Ireland are affiliated with the Trades Union Congress (TUC) in the United Kingdom. The island also has a shared culture across the divide in many other ways. Traditional Irish music, for example, though showing some variance in all geographical areas, is broadly speaking the same on both sides of the border. Irish and Scottish traditional music are similar.
The island is often referred to as being part of the British Isles. However, many people, especially in Ireland, take exception to this name, which seems to suggest that both islands belong to Britain. For this reason, "Britain and Ireland" is commonly used as a more neutral alternative. Another suggestion, although used much less, is the Islands of the North Atlantic (IONA).
History
- Main article: History of Ireland
 One of the stone age passage tombs at Carrowmore, County SligoThe division of the island into "Northern" and "Republic" is a relatively recent development, only coming about in the Government of Ireland Act, 1920 which, amid much acrimony, created two states of Northern Ireland and Southern Ireland (now the Republic). The island itself has been inhabited for about 9,000 years. Not much is known of pre-Christian Ireland, the only references are a few Roman writings, Irish poetry, myth, and archaeology. Stone age inhabitants arrived sometime after 8000 BC, with the culture progressing from Mesolithic to high Neolithic over the course of three or four millennia. This saw the appearance of huge stone monuments, many of them astronomically aligned. The Bronze Age, which began around 2500 BC, saw the production of elaborate gold and bronze ornaments and weapons. See the Early history of Ireland for a fuller treatment of this period of Irish history. The Iron Age in Ireland is associated with the Celts, who colonised Ireland in a series of waves between the 8th and 1st centuries BC. The Gael, the last wave of Celts, conquered the island and divided it into five or more kingdoms. The Romans referred to Ireland as Hibernia. Ptolemy in AD 100 accurately records Ireland's geography and tribes. The exact relationship between Rome and the tribes of Hibernia is unclear.
Tradition maintains that in AD 432, St. Patrick arrived on the island and, in the years that followed, worked to convert the Irish to Christianity. The druid tradition collapsed in the face of the spread of the new faith. Irish scholars excelled in the study of Latin learning and Christian theology in the monasteries that flourished, preserving Latin learning during the Dark Ages. The arts of manuscript illumination, metalworking, and sculpture flourished and produced such treasures as the Book of Kells, ornate jewelry, and the many carved stone crosses that dot the island. Sites dating to this period include clochans, ringforts and promontory forts. This golden age was interrupted in the 9th century by 200 years of intermittent warfare with waves of Viking raiders who plundered monasteries and towns. The Vikings eventually founded many seacoast towns in Ireland.
In 1172, King Henry II of England gained Irish lands, and from the 13th century, English law began to be introduced. English rule was largely limited to the area around Dublin(based on the Hill of Tara) known as the Pale(based on The Royal County) initially, but this began to expand in the 16th century with the final collapse of the Gaelic social and political superstructure at the end of the 17th century, as a result of the English and Scottish Plantation of Ulster and other plantations in Leix (modern day Laois) and Offaly. In an incident known as the Flight of the Earls, the leaders of Gaelic Ireland in Ulster fled to France and onwards to Rome in 1607. Having been defeated by Elizabethan forces in 1603, they found life under English suzerainty intolerable. The higher echelons of the clan left en masse to take titles in Catholic Europe, thus marking the end of the Gaelic dominance in that province.
In the middle of the 1800s the Island suffered a huge potato famine (An Gorta Mor) when the country was hit by potato blight. Much animosity remains in Ireland today over the British absentee landlords continuing to collect rent in the form of farm products during this period. Millions were starving, spurring emigration waves to Britain, North America and Australia. The result was that, between deaths and emigration, the population dropped from over 8 million before the Famine to 4.4 million in 1911. Although Ireland was a province of the United Kingdom at the time, many Irish people believe the British government would have prevented the widespread loss of life had a similar crop failure occurred in England.
The ancient Irish language, once the spoken language, declined in use in the nineteenth century with the creation of the National School education system and increased economic development, as well as hostility to the language from leading Irish politicians of the time, notably Daniel O'Connell, leading to the wholescale adoption of English. The study of the Irish language is a compulsory subject for both primary and secondary-school children of all ages in the Republic. A certain knowledge is also necessary for most government jobs, including the civil service and the police. This is unpopular with many who consider it irrelevant in a largely English-speaking country. Irish is growing in popularity in Northern Ireland. The version of English spoken in Ireland differs somewhat from that used elsewhere, because it contains some of the grammatical rules of Irish. It is known as Hiberno-english.
An attempt was made to gain independence for Ireland with the 1916 Easter Rising, an insurrection largely confined to Dublin. Though support for the insurgents was small, the violence used in its suppression led to a swing in support of the rebels. The unprecedented threat of Irishmen being conscripted to the British Army for service in France accelerated this change. In December 1918 most voters voted for Sinn Fein, the party of the rebels. Its MPs assembled in Dublin on 21 January 1919 to form an Irish parliament, Dail Eireann. A war of independence often called the Anglo-Irish War raged from 1919 to 1921. In mid 1921 the Irish and British governments signed a truce that halted the war. In late 1921 an Anglo-Irish Treaty was signed between representatives of both governments. This created an Irish self-governing dominion called the Irish Free State). Under the Treaty Northern Ireland could opt out of the Free State and stay with the United Kingdom. This was a foregone conclusion and Northern Ireland promptly did so.
In the aftermath the old republican movement divided into pro-treaty and anti-treaty supporters. Between 1922 and 1923 both sides fought the bloody and controversial Irish Civil War. This division still colours Irish politics today.
The new Irish Free State (1922-1937) existed against the backdrop of the growth of dictatorships in Europe and a major world economic downturn. In contrast with many contemporary European states it remained a democracy, in which in 1932 the losing faction in the Irish civil war, Eamon de Valera, was able to take power by winning the 1932 general election. In contrast to many other states in the period the Free State remained financially solvent. However unemployment and emigration were high.
In 1937, a new constitution proclaimed the state of Éire (or Ireland). In 1949 the state was formally declared the Republic of Ireland and it left the British Commonwealth. The neutrality of the state throughout World War II saved it from the horrors of the war, although tens of thousands volunteered to serve in the British forces. Ireland was also hit badly by rationing of food, and coal in particular (peat production became a priority during this time). Though nominally neutral, recent studies have suggested a far greater level of Irish involvement with the Allies than was realised, with D Day's date set on the basis of secret weather information on Atlantic storms supplied by Ireland.
In the 1960s Ireland underwent a major economic change under reforming Taoiseach (prime minister) Sean Lemass and radical senior civil servant T.K. Whittaker, who produced a series of economic plans. Free second level education was introduced by Brian Lenihan as Minister for Education in 1968. The Republic from the early 1960s sought admission to the European Economic Community but because of its economy's dependence on the United Kingdom's market it could not enter until the UK entered in 1973.
The economic downturn in the 1970s, augmented by a set of misjudged economic policies followed by Taoiseach Jack Lynch caused the Irish economy to stagnate. However economic reforms in the late 1980s and considerable investment from the European Community led to the emergence of one of the world's highest economic growth rates, with mass immigration (particularly of people from Asia and Eastern Europe) a feature of the late 1990s. This period came to be known as the Celtic Tiger and was focused on as a model for economic development in the former Eastern Bloc states who entered the European Union in the early 2000s.
Irish society also adopted liberal social policies in this period. Divorce was legalised, homosexuality decriminalised while a right to abortion in limited cases was granted by the Irish Supreme Court in the X Case legal judgment. Major scandals in the Roman Catholic Church led to a wholescale collapse in religious practice, with weekly attendance at Roman Catholic Mass halving in twenty years.
From 1921 to 1971 Northern Ireland was run by a Unionist-dominated government, based at Stormont in East Belfast. Widespread discrimination against the minority nationalist community, and their exclusion from political power, led to the appearance of a civil rights campaign in the late 1960s. A violent counter-reaction by right wing unionists such as the Rev Ian Paisley and the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) led to civil strife. Tensions came to a head with the events of Bloody Sunday, and the worst years (early 1970s) of what became known as The Troubles resulted. The Stormont majority rule government was prorogued in 1971 and abolished totally in 1972. Paramilitaries such as the traditional republican Provisional IRA,and the marxist Official IRA, loyalist groups like the Ulster Defence Association, and the Ulster Volunteer Force, and the British army and the RUC fought a bitter war, which resulted in the deaths of thousands of men, women and children, civilians and military. Though most of the violence took place in Northern Ireland, some spread to the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland.
More recently, the Good Friday Agreement of April 10, 1998 has brought a degree of power-sharing to Northern Ireland, giving both unionists, who favour it remaining a part of the United Kingdom, and nationalists, who favour it becoming part of the Irish state, control of limited areas of government. However, both the power-sharing Executive and the elected Assembly have been suspended since October 2002 following a breakdown in trust between the political parties. Efforts to resolve outstanding issues, including "decommissioning" of IRA weapons, reform of the police and the removal of controversial British army bases are continuing.
Sport
- Main article: Sport in Ireland
The Irish rugby team includes players from north and south, and the Irish Rugby Football Union governs the sport on both sides of the border. Gaelic football is the most popular form of football and is played and organised on an All-Ireland basis; Hurling, a faster, more physical precursor of field hockey, is another popular traditional Irish sport, with teams from all 32 counties north and south competing - both these sports are governed by the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA). Boxing is also an All-Ireland sport governed by the Irish Amateur Boxing Association. However, when Ireland was partitioned, organisation of football (soccer) in the Republic was transferred from the Irish Football Association (IFA) to the new Football Association of Ireland (FAI). The IFA remained in charge of the game in Northern Ireland.
Greyhound racing and horse racing are both popular in Ireland, greyhound stadiums are well attended and there are frequent horse race meetings. The Republic is noted for the breeding and training of race horses and is also a large exporter of racing dogs.
Culture
- Main article: Culture of Ireland
Literature and the arts
 George Bernard Shaw, one of four Irish winners of the Nobel Prize for Literature. - Main articles: Irish literature, Irish art
For a comparatively small country, Ireland has made a disproportionate contribution to world literature in all its branches, mainly in English. Poetry in Irish represents the oldest vernacular poetry in Europe with the earliest examples dating from the 6th century. In more recent times, Ireland has produced four winners of the Nobel Prize for Literature; George Bernard Shaw, William Butler Yeats, Samuel Beckett and Seamus Heaney.
The early history of Irish visual art is generally considered to begin with early carvings found at sites such as Newgrange and is traced through Bronze age artifacts, particularly ornamental gold objects, and the religious carvings and illuminated manuscripts of the medieval period. During the course of the 19th and 20th centuries, a strong indigenous tradition of painting emerged, including such figures as John Butler Yeats, William Orpen, Jack Yeats and Louis le Brocquy.
Music and dance
- Main article: Irish music
The Irish tradition of folk music and dance is also widely known. In the middle years of the 20th century, as Irish society was attempting to modernise, traditional music tended to fall out of favour, especially in urban areas. During the 1960s, and inspired by the American folk music movement, there was a revival of interest in the Irish tradition. This revival was led by such groups as The Dubliners, The Chieftains, the Clancy Brothers and Sweeney's Men and individuals like Sean Ó Riada.
Before long, groups and musicians including Horslips, Van Morrison and even Thin Lizzy were incorporating elements of traditional music into a rock idiom to form a unique new sound. During the 1970s and 1980s, the distinction between traditional and rock musicians became blurred, with many individuals regularly crossing over between these styles of playing as a matter of course. This trend can be seen more recently in the work of bands and individuals like U2, Sinéad O'Connor and The Pogues.
Infrastructure
Transport
- Main article: Transport in Ireland
Air
The three most important international airports in the Republic are Dublin Airport, Cork Airport and Shannon Airport. All provide extensive services to the UK, Europe and North America. The Irish national airline Aer Lingus and low-cost operator Ryanair are based at Dublin and Shannon is an important stopover on trans-Atlantic and refuelling operations. There are several smaller regional airports in the Republic (Galway Airport, Kerry Airport, Knock Airport, Sligo Airport, Waterford Airport) that mostly limit their services to Ireland and the United Kingdom.
In Northern Ireland there are three main airports. Belfast International (Aldergrove) provides routes to Ireland and Great Britain, as well as many international services to Europe and recently Belfast-New York (Newark). Belfast City and The City of Derry Airport mainly provide flights to Great Britain
Rail
- Main articles: History of rail transport in Ireland, Rail transport in Ireland
The rail network in Ireland was developed by various private companies with the help of British Government funding throughout the late 19th century, reaching its greatest extent around the 1920s. The standard gauge of 1600 mm (5 ft 3 in) was eventually settled upon thoughout the island, although there were narrow gauge (3 ft) railways also. Ireland also has one of the largest freight railways in Europe, operated by Bord na Móna, this company has a narrow gauge railway of 1200 miles.
Road
- Main article: Roads in Ireland
The island of Ireland has a quite extensive road network, despite the low quality of many of these until recently. Northern Ireland has historically had better main roads, while the Republic of Ireland has an increasing motorway network, focused on Dublin.
Energy
For much of their existence electricity networks in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland were entirely separate. Both networks were designed and constructed independently, but are now connected with three interlinks and also connected by Northern Ireland Electricity (NIE) though Great Britain to mainland Europe. The Electricity Supply Board (ESB) in the Republic drove a rural electrification programme in the 1940s until the 1970s.
The natural gas network is also now all-island, with a connection from Northern Ireland to Scotland.
Ireland, north and south has faced difficulties in providing continuous power at peak load. Especially during the winter, power outages have been forced due to inadequate power generation. The situation in Northern Ireland is complicated by the issue of private companies not supplying NIE with enough power, while in the Republic, the government has failed to modernise power plants owned by ESB. In the latter case, availability of power plants has averaged 66% recently, one of the worst such figures in Western Europe.
There have been recent efforts in Ireland to use renewable energy such as wind energy with large wind farms being constructed in coastal counties such as Mayo and County Antrim. These constructions have in some cases been delayed by opposition from locals, most recently on Achill Island, some of whom consider the wind turbines to be unsightly. Another issue in the Republic of Ireland is the failure of the aging network to cope with the varying availability of power from such installations. Turlough Hill is the only energy storage mechanism in Ireland.
See also
External links
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