Ireland is an islet located in the northwestern part of continental Europe. It is Europe’s third biggest island and tee world’s twenty-fifth biggest island. The greater island of Great Britain lies in the eastern direction of Ireland and it is segregated from it by the Irish Sea.

The islet is separated amid the Republic of Ireland politically. The Republic of Ireland encompasses 5/6th portion of the island. The northern island forms a component of the untied kingdom. The country boasts of having 6.4 million inhabitants, with 4.6million people occupying the Republic of Ireland and 1.8 million residing in Northern Island.

Ireland is bounded by moderately low lying mountains and a number of traversable rivers expanding inland. Lush foliage also covers the island. In the 13th century the invasion of Norman paved way for the resurgence of Gaels. In the 1500s, irregular war spanning over a period of six decades led to the dominance of the British subsequent to 1653.In the concluding year of the 17th century, a Protestant English rule system was intended to significantly create difficulty for the Protestant dissidents and the Catholic majority. In 1801, Ireland became a portion of the United Kingdom.

In the initial years of the twenty century, a war of independence led to the island’s partition and the emergence of an Irish free state. The free Irish state gained much sovereignty in the following years. The Northern Ireland remained a component of the United Kingdom and witnessed civil instability from the later part of the 1960s up to the 1990s. The civil unrest got reduced with reaching of a 1998 political accord. Both the parts of Ireland became a constituent of European Economic Community.

Capital: Dublin (largest city)

Language: English

Religion: Protestants, Catholics,


History

Until the end of the final ice age, some 9000 years ago, a major portion of Ireland was covered with ice. There were low sea levels and like Great Britain, Ireland was a component of continental Europe. After 8000 BC, the people of Mesolithic Stone Age began to arrive and in the Neolithic Age about 4,500 to 4,000 BC, agriculture was practised, and from the Iberian Peninsula, livestock like goats, cattle, sheep and cereals were introduced. Barley and wheat became the staple crop in between the period of 3,500 and 3,000 BC.

The utilization of metal characterized the Bronze Age, about 2,500 BC, with technology altering the daily life of the people by means of invention like harnessing oxen, wheel, brewing alcohol, weaving textiles, and skilled metalworking, which led to the creation of innovation tools and weapons together with jewellery like torcs, brooches and excellent gold ornaments.

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Henry VIII, the emperor of England belonging to the Tudor dynasty, created the ‘king of Ireland’ title in the year 1542. During the later part of sixteenth century the English rule was enlarged and strengthened in Ireland. In the 17th century the religious conflicts led to the profound sectarian separation in Ireland. The spiritual allegiance decided the sensitivity in rule of loyalty to the Irish parliament and the emperor.

The nineteenth and the twentieth century witnessed the augment of contemporary Irish nationalism mainly amid the population of Roman Catholics. After a series of political event and civil unrest, and war, the nation was formally declared as Republic of Ireland in 1949.

During the Second World War, Ireland remained neutral, but it gave secret support to the allies.