Act of Union (1800)
British rule over Ireland had been a constant since the 12th century, in varying manifestations [1]. By the 16th century, Ireland was regularly being colonized by the British under Queen Elizabeth I [2]. Once the colonization of Ireland had begun, the Protestant Church of Ireland was formed on the vastly Catholic Island . This of course set the stage for the Irish dichotomy that would dictate Anglo-Irish politics for centuries to come [3]. In the early 1600’s King James I began giving away large plantations to Protestants mainly from Scotland and England [4]. As a result of these plantations, and a restriction on Catholic voting rights and ability to run for office, a wealthy minority of Protestants wielded power over the largely Catholic peasant population [5]. Over the course of the next few centuries, British rule in Ireland either through Parliament in Westminster, or the Irish Parliament in Dublin, both waxed and waned, but was never completely absent. In 1782, it looked as if Ireland would be freer from British rule than it had been in centuries. The Constitution of 1782 was signed, thereby granting the Irish Parliament complete independence from British authority; although, allegiance to the British Crown and Penal Laws against Catholics still existed [6}. Irish autonomy from British Parliament was fleeting however, as a result of the 1798 Uprising of the United Irishmen. The uprising was due to Irish resentment over the treatment and lack of political freedoms of Catholics in Ireland [7]. The rebellion was quickly put down, but its effects were irreversible. The Irish population was split between the revolutionaries who fought for Catholic emancipation, and the Loyalist Protestants. Being that the Protestants had sole control of the politics in Ireland, solidarity with the British was inevitable. Out of fear of further Catholic Uprisings in Ireland, or even worse, French invasion, the Act of Union was signed in 1800 thereby combining the two Islands into the United Kingdom [8]. Under the Act of Union, Irish Parliament was abolished completely, and Ireland was represented in London [9]. Ireland had lost all traces of the autonomy it had gained just eighteen years prior. Once again Britain reasserted direct control over Ireland, and it was this sort of control, under the Act of Union, that set the stage for the Irish Home Rule Movement.
[1] Hollis, Daniel Webster. 2001. The History of Ireland. Westport, Conn: Greenwood Press, 2001. 35.
[2] Ibid., 48
[3] Moody, T. W., and F. X. Martin. " In The Course of Irish History, 2011 rev. and enl. ed. Niwot, Colo.: Published in association with Radio Telefís Éireann by Roberts Rinehart Publishers ;, 2011, 218.
[4] Hollis, The History of Ireland, 51-52.
[5] Jackson, Alvin. Home Rule: An Irish History, 1800-2000. New York: Oxford University Press, 2003, 20.
[6] Moody and Martin, The Course of Irish History, 203.
[7] Ibid., 212-213.
[8] Ibid., 215.
[9] Alvin. Home Rule: An Irish History, 1800-2000, 43.
[2] Ibid., 48
[3] Moody, T. W., and F. X. Martin. " In The Course of Irish History, 2011 rev. and enl. ed. Niwot, Colo.: Published in association with Radio Telefís Éireann by Roberts Rinehart Publishers ;, 2011, 218.
[4] Hollis, The History of Ireland, 51-52.
[5] Jackson, Alvin. Home Rule: An Irish History, 1800-2000. New York: Oxford University Press, 2003, 20.
[6] Moody and Martin, The Course of Irish History, 203.
[7] Ibid., 212-213.
[8] Ibid., 215.
[9] Alvin. Home Rule: An Irish History, 1800-2000, 43.