I wasn't in Ireland long before starting to learn its history. I think the taxi driver who was driving me from the airport to my hotel was the first to instruct me =) From then, various tour guides and further research provided greater detail on exactly who had a part to play in the history of Ireland and the typical religious fallout that resulted.
I like to know the overall history of an area so I can place individual events and detailed information as I later come across them. Through research, I realized just how much the religious climate of Ireland changed depending on who governed the island at the time. If you're like me then you may appreciate this incredibly brief overview of Ireland's political and religious history I put together for the sake of context.
1. The
Neolithic period occurred around 3500 BC and is evident today in the Boyne Valley.
Our trip to Newgrange is an example of life during this period where we could view a series of chamber tombs, standing stones and enclosures. Archeologists then categorize the
Bronze and Iron Ages that take us into the 1st century. This is the period of time when art, language and culture began to take hold.
2. Christianization of Gaelic Ireland began in the 5th century when St Patrick who, according to tradition, arrived in 432 AD and worked to convert the Irish to Christianity and introduce academics via monasteries. This was known as the
Golden Age with the foundation of monastic schools. The
Book of Kells is one example of Latin learning during this period and visitors today are able to see the actual books transcribed by the monks in the 9th century.
For the record, St Patrick is traditionally credited with preserving and codifying Irish laws and changing only those that conflicted with Christian practices. He is credited with introducing the Roman alphabet, which enabled Irish monks to preserve parts of the extensive oral literature. The historicity of these claims, however, remains the subject of debate and there is no direct evidence linking Patrick with any of these accomplishments. The myth of Patrick, as scholars refer to it, was developed in the centuries after his death.
3. The first recorded Viking raid in Irish history occurred in 795 AD when Vikings, possibly from the fjords of Norway, looted various islands and coastal areas of Ireland. Early Viking raids were small in scale but grew in intensity and interrupted the
Golden Age of Christian Irish culture when they plundered monasteries and towns throughout Ireland. These invasions led Ireland into a period of secularization, both within the church and politics.
4. Norman invasions and resultant Christian influence took place in the 12th century. The Normans descended from Viking conquerors and were a people who gave their name to
Normandy, a region in northern France. They played a major political, military, and cultural role throughout medieval Europe and even in northern parts of the Middle East. Normans were famed for their martial spirit and eventually for their Christian piety and religious orthodoxy.
The Normans had a profound effect on Irish culture and history after their invasion at
Bannow Bay (along the coast halfway between Dublin and Cork) in 1169. Initially the Normans maintained a distinct culture and ethnicity. Yet, with time, they incorporated Irish culture to the point that it has been said that they became "more Irish than the Irish themselves." The Normans settled mostly in an area in the east of Ireland and established many castles and settlements, including
Dublin Castle. As is recorded in a review on the Internet, both cultures intermixed, borrowing from each other's language, culture and outlook.
5. Numerous Irish kings tried their best to keep Ireland out of the hands of their invaders. On charges of abducting the wife of another king, one of these kings (King Leinster) was dispossessed in the 12th century and solicited help from King Henry II from England to get him reinstated. Instead of helping the ousted king, the English with their military superiority conquered the Irish kingdoms and established themselves (such as building their own castles), thus initiating over 700 years of British rule in Ireland. Government powers resided in these courtyard buildings near
Dublin Castle over the centuries (tower that held prisoners pictured below).
6. British invasion was supported by the pope in Rome who wanted to influence the direction of the "barbaric church" in Ireland. At that time the church did not conform to Latin standards or pay tax to Rome. Rome's influence, however, was defeated centuries later in 1614 with the overthrow of Catholic majority due to the Reformation and influx of thousands of English and Scottish Protestants.
Christ Church Cathedral is the best representation of the Catholic existence in Dublin during pre-Reformation days, founded sometime after 1028.
7. The Irish led many uprisings against the British over the past seven centuries. Examples of uprisings on Dublin soil date back to 1534 and the
Irish Rebellion of 1803 where leaders tried to seize control of Dublin Castle. One of the more modern uprisings was the 1922
Irish War of Independence where the larger part of Ireland finally broke away from the United Kingdom to become the
Irish Free State. As a result, the southern part of Ireland (not under British rule) has become predominantly Catholic again as shown by the 2011 census map depicting religious affiliation "other than Catholic".
Tensions continue to this day in northern Ireland where the Protestant majority want to remain part of the United Kingdom, whereas the typically Catholic National Republicans want to become part of the 'free' Republic of Ireland in the south.
