A TIMELINE OF IRISH HISTORY
By Tim Lambert
ANCIENT IRELAND
C. 7,500 B.C. The first humans arrive in Ireland. They live by hunting, fishing and gathering plants.
C. 4,000 B.C. The first farmers arrive in Ireland
C. 2,000 B.C Bronze is introduced into Ireland
C. 750 B.C. The Celts arrive in Ireland. They bring iron tools and weapons.
C. 500 B.C. A Greek writer mentions a place he calls 'Holy Island'. This is the first time Ireland is mentioned in writing.
C. 150 A.D. Ptolemy writes the first detailed description of Ireland
367 A.D. The Irish join with the Scots and Picts to raid Roman Britain
C. 400 The first Christians in Ireland
432 According to tradition, St Patrick arrives in Ireland
C. 454 St Brigid is born
461 St Patrick dies
C. 480 St Ita is born
484 St Brendan is born
525 St Brigid dies
543 St Columbanus is born
570 St Ita dies
577 St Brendan dies
C. 600 St Aidan is born
615 St Columbanus dies
651 St Aidan dies
795 The Vikings begin raiding Ireland
841 The Vikings found Dublin
922 The Vikings found Limerick
976 Brian Boru becomes king of Munster
1002 Brian Boru becomes High King of Ireland
1014 The battle of Clontarf. The Irish defeat the Vikings but Brian Boru is killed.
1094 St Malachy is born
THE MIDDLE AGES
1148 St Malachy dies
1155 Pope Adrian IV (actually an Englishman called Nicholas Breakspear) grants the English king the right to invade Ireland to sort out the Irish Church
1166
Rory O'Connor becomes High King of Ireland
Dermait MacMurrough, King of Leinster, is deposed
1167
Dermait returns to Ireland. While away he sought help form English barons. Richard de Clare (known as Strongbow) agreed to lead an army to restore Dermait to his throne on the understanding that he will marry Dermait's daughter and become king of Leinster when Dermait dies.
1169 The first English soldiers arrive in Ireland and capture Wexford
1170
Strongbow brings more soldiers. They capture Waterford and Dublin.
1171
Dermait dies
Alarmed at the prospect of Strongbow forming his own independent kingdom in Leinster the English king Henry II leads an army to Waterford. Strongbow submits to the king and is rewarded by being made Lord of Leinster.
1175
The Treaty of Windsor is made between King Henry II and Rory O'Connor the High King of Ireland. King Henry agrees to let Rory rule all Ireland outside Leinster, Meath and Waterford. In return Rory submits to Henry as his overlord.
1177
John de Courcy conquers the eastern part of Ulster
The English capture Cork
King Henry makes his son John Lord of Ireland
1185 Prince John visits Ireland for the first time
C. 1192-1250 The English extend their rule to parts of western Ireland
1194 The English capture Limerick
1197 Limerick is granted a charter
1210 Fearing the English lords in Ireland are getting out of hand King John leads an expedition to Ireland to force them to submit.
1226-1235 Richard de Clare conquers Connacht
C. 1250-1350
The English king's hold on Ireland weakens. English landowners are gradually absorbed into Irish society, partly through intermarriage. Furthermore there are frequent wars between the Anglo-Irish and the native Irish. The native Irish gradually take back territory.
1315 The Scots under Robert the Bruce's brother Edward Bruce invade Ireland to open up a second front in their war with the English.
1318 Edward Bruce is killed
1361
Fearing that Ireland will be lost completely the English King Edward III sends an expedition under his son Lionel to subdue Ireland. However the expedition fails.
1366
The Statute of Kikenny. This is an attempt to separate the Anglo-Irish and the Irish to prevent the Anglo-Irish losing their 'Englishness'. They are forbidden to intermarry. All Englishmen are commanded to speak English only and are forbidden to play Irish games. However the statutes have little effect.
1394 King Richard II leads an army to subdue Ireland. The Irish submit but rebel once he leaves
1399 Richard II returns but this time he fails to subdue the Irish
1400-1450
The English lose control of Ireland except for Dublin and the surrounding area known as the Pale
1495 Poyning's law states that the Irish parliament cannot meet without the English king's permission and can only pass laws approved by the king and his council
THE 16th CENTURY
1536
The Irish parliament makes Henry VIII head of the Church of Ireland. However the Reformation makes little progress in Ireland. The vast majority of the Irish remain Catholic.
1541
King Henry VIII is determined to re-assert his authority over Ireland. He changes his title from Lord of Ireland to king. The Irish parliament assents.
1556
Queen Mary sends English people to settle land confiscated from Irish rebels in Laois and Offaly. Mary is the first monarch to successfully 'plant' English settlers in Ireland.
1579-1583 A rebellion is led by the Earl of Desmond
1586 onwards
Queen Elizabeth sends English people to settle lands confiscated from the Irish rebels in Munster
1593-1603 The Nine Years War
THE 17th CENTURY
1607 The flight of the Earls takes place. Many prominent men leave Ireland Afterwards their lands in Ulster are confiscated.
1608
Cahir O'Doherty rebels and sacks Derry. The rebellion is crushed and yet more land is confiscated. The British government plans to settle large numbers of Scots and English on the confiscated lands to create a loyal population.
1610 The first Protestant settlers arrive
1613 A new town is created at Derry (called Londonderry). It receives its charter this year.
1629 St Oliver Plunket is born
1632 Thomas Wentworth (also known as Black Tom Tyrant) is made Lord Deputy of Ireland
1641 The Irish in Ulster rise in rebellion and kill some Protestant settlers.
1642
The Irish form an alliance called the Confederation of Kilkenny
Civil war begins in England. The king is preoccupied with the civil war and cannot divert many troops to Ireland. Nevertheless royalist troops under the Marquis of Ormond continue to fight the rebels.
The Scots also send an army to Ulster to protect the Scottish settlers.
1643 In September Ormond makes a truce with the Confederates to last for one year
1644 The king tells Ormond to make a permanent peace with the confederates
1646 The first Ormond peace. Ormond makes a peace treaty with the Confederates. However not all the Irish accept the treaty.
1647 Parliament sends troops to seize Dublin
1649
Following the execution of the king in January the royalists in Ireland rally. Ormond captures Drogheda and Dundalk. He lays siege to Dublin but is severely defeated at Rathmines. Cromwell leads an army to Ireland. He lays siege to Drogheda. When he captures the town townspeople are massacred and the town is plundered. Cromwell's men capture Wexford where he carries out another massacre. 1650 Cromwell leaves Ireland. His Son-in-law Henry Ireton takes over. 1653-1654 Cromwell decides to confiscate land held by Irish Catholics. Those landowners who can prove they did not take part in the rebellion of 1641 will be given new (less fertile) land west of the Shannon. 1660 Charles II becomes king 1662 The Act of Settlement raises hopes that King Charles will return confiscated land in Ireland to the original owners. However Charles shrinks from this policy fearing a Protestant backlash. 1665 The Act of Explanation forces most of the men granted land by Cromwell to hand over one third of it to compensate Catholics who did not participate in the 1641 rebellion but still had their land confiscated. 1681 St Oliver Plunket is executed 1688 The Catholic king James II flees from England. William of Orange is invited by parliament to replace him. 1689 James II lands in Kinsale. The siege of Derry takes place. 1690 The battle of the Boyne. James II is defeated. 1691 The battle of Aughrim. The army of James II is defeated. The siege of Limerick, the last part of Ireland to hold out for James II 1695 The first penal laws are passed. Catholic education is severely restricted. 1697 The Bishop's Banishment Act orders most of the Catholic clergy to leave Ireland. In fact many do not and in the 18th century Roman Catholicism is grudgingly tolerated. THE 18th CENTURY 1704 Further penal laws are passed. More restrictions are placed on Catholics. They are not allowed to buy land, inherit from Protestants or lease it for more than 31 years. They not allowed to leave land to a single heir but land must be divided among all their sons (or daughters if they don't have any). A 'sacramental test' means Catholics are not allowed to hold public office. The test also applies to Protestant dissenters (those who do not belong to the Church of Ireland) 1711 The linen board is formed in Dublin. During the 18th century there is a huge growth of the linen industry in Northern Ireland. 1719 Protestant dissenters are officially allowed to practice their religion. (Although there are still some restrictions on them). 1727 Catholics are deprived of the right to vote Ireland is struck by famine 1740-1741 A severe famine affects Ireland. About 400,000 people die. 1759 Guinness is brewed for the first time C. 1760 onwards Landowners enclose common land for grazing cattle. Men called whiteboys (because they wear white shirts or smocks to disguise themselves) destroy fences and attack cattle. 1770s Protestants form secret societies, the Oakboys and the Steelboys to protest about rents and rates 1778 A Catholic Relief Act allows Catholics to lease land for 999 years. They are also allowed to leave their land to single heir. 1780 Protestant dissenters are allowed to hold Public office. 1782 Catholics are allowed to buy land. Most restrictions on Catholic education and the Catholic clergy are removed. Poyning's Law is repealed. 1783 The Bank of Ireland opens 1791 The Society of United Irishmen is formed 1792 Catholics are allowed to practice as lawyers. Catholics are allowed to marry protestants. 1793 Catholics are allowed to vote 1795 The battle of the Diamond between 2 secret societies, the Catholic Defenders and the Protestant Peep O' Day boys. The Defenders are severely defeated. 1798 The Society of United Irishmen rebel but the rebellion is crushed at the battle of Vinegar Hill in June. Wolfe Tone commits suicide after being captured. THE 19th CENTURY 1800 The Act of Union joins England and Ireland (the act comes into effect in 1801) 1803 Robert Emmet's rising in Dublin. The rising is crushed and Emmet is executed. 1807 Famine in Ireland 1817 Famine and typhus in Ireland
1820s Agrarian unrest is led by a secret society called the Ribbonmen 1821-1822 Famine strikes Ireland again 1823 Daniel O'Connell founds the Catholic Association 1829 The Catholic Emancipation Act allows Catholics to enter parliament and to hold public office 1830-1834 Famine stalks Ireland again 1832 Cholera epidemic in Irish towns 1836 Famine strikes again 1838 Tithes (a tax of 1 tenth on farm produce paid to the Church of Ireland) are reduced by 25% 1840Young Ireland is founded 1843 The first railway in Ireland from Dublin to Kingstown opens 1841 The population of Ireland is 8,175,000 1845-1849 The potato blight causes a potato famine. Perhaps 1 million people die. Many more emigrate. The population of Ireland falls dramatically. The famine is at its worst in the West and Southwest of Ireland. 1848 The Treason-Felony Act is passed William O'Brien (1803-1864) attempts a rebellion known as 'the battle of the Widow McCormack's cabbage patch' in County Tipperary. He is later sentenced to transportation. 1848-1850 Cholera epidemics 1850 The Irish Franchise Act greatly increases the number of people allowed to vote 1851 The population of Ireland has fallen to 6,552,000 1854 The Catholic University of Ireland opens Oscar Wilde is born 1858 The Irish Republican Brotherhood is formed 1867 Fenian rising 1869 The Church of Ireland is disestablished 1870 Gladstone's Land Act gives tenant farmers the right to compensation if they have made improvements to the land The Home Government Association is formed 1873 It is replaced by the Home Rule League 1879 The Irish National Land League is formed. It demands the 'three f's', fair rent, fixity of tenure and free sale of land. 1880 A new verb enters the language 'to boycott'. Charles Stewart Parnell, the leader of the Land League declares that if a tenant is evicted and somebody else takes over the land that person is to be ostracised. The first person so treated is a Captain Boycott. 1881 The Land Law Act grants the '3 f's'. The Land Commission is formed to fix rent and to give loans to purchase land. Parnell is imprisoned 1882 James Joyce is born Parnell is released 1884 The franchise is extended again The Gaelic Athletic Association is founded 1885 Under the Ashbourne Act loans are given to tenant farmers to buy their land. The loans are to be repaid at low rates of interest 1886 The first Home Rule bill is rejected by the British parliament 1890 Michael Collins is born Oscar Wilde publishes The Picture of Dorian Gray Parnell is named as co-respondent in a divorce case 1891 Another Land Act makes more money available to tenant farmers to buy land 1893 The Gaelic League is founded The second Home Rule bill is passed by the British House of Commons but is rejected by the House of Lords Another Land Act makes it easier for tenant farmers to borrow money to buy their land 1898 The Irish Local Government Act gives Ireland local government similar to the English system THE 20th CENTURY 1900 Oscar Wilde dies 1903 A final Land Act makes it still easier for tenant farmers to obtain loans and buy their land. As a result millions of acres change hands by 1921 1905 Sinn Fein is founded 1909 The Irish Transport and General Workers Union is founded 1913 The Ulster Volunteer Force is founded Tram strike in Dublin A third Home Rule bill is passed by the British parliament. However the act is put on hold in September because of the outbreak of the First World War. 1916 The Easter Rising James Joyce publishes A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man 1919 The Irish Volunteers are renamed the Irish Republican Army A number of Sinn Fein MPs were elected to the British parliament in December 1918. However they refuse to take their seats. Instead they form their own parliament in Dublin called the Dail Eireann. Eammon de Valera is elected president of the Dail. 1919-1921 The War of Independence. The IRA fights a guerrilla war against the British. 1920 Ireland is partitioned. The Government of Ireland Act forms 2 parliaments in Ireland. One in the North and one in the South. Both are to have their own prime minister. However both are to be subordinate to the British parliament. The 'Black and Tans' are formed to reinforce the Royal Irish Constabulary 1921 The Northern parliament meets for the first time. Sinn Fein win almost all the seats for the Southern parliament but they refuse to take their seats. Instead they carry on meeting in the Dail Eireann. A truce is made between the IRA and the British An Anglo-Irish treaty partitions Ireland 1922 The Dail agrees to the treaty but civil war begins between those who accept the treaty and those who don't Michael Collins is killed The Garda Siochana is formed James Joyce publishes Ulysses
1923 The civil war ends A Censorship of Films Act is passed William Butler Yeats wins the Nobel Prize for Literature 1925 George Bernard Shaw wins the Nobel Prize for Literature 1926 Fianna Fail is founded 1929 The Shannon hydro-electricity scheme is finished 1932-1937 Eamon De Valera is Prime Minister 1936 The IRA is banned in the Irish Free State Aer Lingus is founded 1937 A new constitution comes into force. The Irish Free State becomes Eire. Douglas Hyde is the first president. 1937-1948 de Valera is Taoiseach 1939 James Joyce publishes Finnegans Wake 1941 A German air raid kills 34 people in Dublin James Joyce dies 1949 The Republic of Ireland Act makes Eire a republic 1951-1954 de Valera is Taoiseach again 1955 Ireland joins the United Nations 1957-1959 de Valera is Taoiseach for the 3rd time 1959-1973 de Valera is President 1961 RTE begins broadcasting 1969 Beginning of 'The Troubles' in Northern Ireland 1972 'Bloody Sunday' in Derry. Fourteen people are killed when the British 1st Parachute Regiment opens fire on demonstrators. Gaelic Radio begins 1973 Ireland joins the EEC (forerunner of the EU) 1974 The sale of contraceptives to married people is legalised 1982 Corporal punishment ends in Irish schools 1985 The Anglo-Irish agreement 1990-1997 Mary Robinson is President of Ireland 1990s Ireland experiences rapid economic growth. It is called the Celtic Tiger. 1994 Cease fire in Northern Ireland 1995
Seamus Heaney wins the Nobel prize for Literature The Irish people vote in a referendum to allow divorce 1996 Gaelic T.V. begins 1997 Mary McAleese becomes President 1998 The Good Friday Agreement is signed THE 21st CENTURY 2004 In a referendum the Irish people vote to stop automatically granting citizenship to anyone born in the country. 2005 Cork is made European Capital of Culture. The EU recognises Irish as a working language. Click below to read the histories of: