IRELAND AND THE UNITED KINGDOMWhat is the U.K.?

What are the member countries and their capitals?What is Great Britain?

What is the adjective of the United Kingdom?When was the country founded?

How has it changed?What is the Union Jack? What does it represent?What problems have there been between Ireland

and the United Kingdom?

The green represents the Gaelic tradition of Ireland and the orange represents the followers of William of Orange in Ireland, with white

representing peace between them.

IRELAND

1)What images spring to mind when you hear the country Ireland?2)What are the good things and bad things about Ireland?3)What is Ireland famous for?4)What do you know about Irish history?5)What images of Ireland do you have that are beautiful and mysterious?6)What do you think about Ireland?7)What has Ireland given to the world?8)Would you like to visit Ireland, or live there?9)What do you know about the economy of Ireland?10)Who are the most famous Irish people you know?

1)How different is Ireland from other European countries?2)What do you know about Ireland’s culture?3)Do you think Ireland is a good tourist destination?4)What do you think Ireland will be like 50 years from now?5)Does your country have good relations with Ireland?6)What does your country have in common with Ireland?7)What is your idea of a typical Irish person?8)What things about Ireland do you think Irish people are proud of?9)What do you know about Ireland’s geography?10)What would you like to ask an Irish person about Ireland?

Famous Irish People

In 1801 all of Ireland was formally integrated into the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, governed from London; the Irish Parliament was

closed and Irish Members sat at Westminster.The adjective used to describe the people was British.

The Union Jack is a combination of St. Andrew's Cross (Scotland), St. George's Cross (England), and St. Patrick's Cross (Ireland).

Catholics’ civil rights were severely impaired in this new state. For example, they had no right to education, could not enter into the professional classes

and could not sit in parliament

In 1823, an enterprising Catholic lawyer, Daniel O'Connell, known in Ireland as 'The Liberator' began an ultimately successful Irish campaign to achieve emancipation, and be seated in the parliament. This culminated in O'Connell's successful election in the Clare by-election, which revived the parliamentary efforts at reform. The Catholic Relief Act 1829 was eventually approved by the U.K. parliament under the leadership of Prime Minister, the Dublin born Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington.

Ireland's Great Famine, An Gorta Mór, struck the country severely in the period 1845-1849, with potato blight, exacerbated by the political and laisse-faire economic factors of the time leading to mass starvation and emigration.

British rule in Ireland was blamed.

The impact of emigration during and following the famine, as well as deaths caused for the blight, was severe; the population dropped from over 8 million

before the Famine to 4.4 million in 1911.

Gaelic or Irish, once the spoken language of the entire island, declined in use sharply in the nineteenth century as a result of the Famine and the creation

of the National School education system, which didn’t teach the vernacular. It was largely replaced by English. However, its beginning to make a comeback...

Sackville Street in Dublin in the United Kingdom, c. 1908

A failed militant attempt was made to gain separate independence for Ireland with the 1916 Easter Rising, an insurrection in Dublin. Though support for the

insurgents was small, the violence used in its suppression led to a swing in support of the rebels.

Unwilling to negotiate any understanding with Britain short of complete independence, the Irish Republican Army — the army of the newly declared Irish Republic — waged a guerrilla war, Irish War of Independence, until 1921.

In July 1921, the Irish and British governments agreed a truce that halted the war.

In December 1921, representatives of both governments signed an Anglo-Irish Treaty. This

created the Irish Free State, a self-governing Dominion of the Commonwealth of Nations in the manner of

Canada and Australia.

The newly formed nation declared itself a republic in

1949.

The six counties of the largely protestant north remained part of the United Kingdom of Great

Britain and Northern Ireland.

Bloody Sunday

The British army has committed many heinous acts of brutality on Irish soil. The two most notorious being the bloody Sunday events of 1920 and 1972.

The I.R.A. has also committed terrible atrocities.

For many, the struggle against British rule in Ireland continued, unabated, until the ceasefires of 1996. The peace process which ensued culminated in the good Friday agreement. This guaranteed the rights of all of Northern

Ireland’s citizens and put their destiny in their own hands.

This agreement, supported by the vast majority of both sides of the conflict, has led to an unprecedented 15 years of peace on the island.

The Queen’s historic visit to the Irish RepublicShe was the first British monarch to visit Ireland since its independence, and it could all have gone horribly wrong. Instead, it was pitch perfect, right from the emerald green dress she wore on arrival to that brief bow of respect at the garden of remembrance and the Gaelic introduction to her speech at Dublin castle.

Britain1)Is Britain great?2)What is the difference between Great Britain, England and the United Kingdom?3)What do you know about British food and weather?4)What would you like to do and see in Britain on a three-week holiday?5)How do you think British people would describe their country?6)Do you think Britain has too much political power in the world?7)Would you like to live in Great Britain?8)What parts of British culture are popular in your country?9)Does your country have good relations with Britain?10)What do you think when you the Union Jack?

Britain1)What do you know about Great Britain?2)How important is Britain in the world?3)How did Britain lose its empire?4)What has Great Britain contributed to the world?5)Would you like to speak with a British accent?6)Who is the most famous British person ever?7)What is Britain most famous for?8)What mistakes has Great Britain made?9)Do you like British fashion and music?10)What do you think of the British Queen?

FREEDOM DISCUSSION

1) What comes to mind when you hear the word ‘freedom’?

2) Do you have as much freedom as you want in your life?

3) Do you have as much freedom as you want in your country?

4) In what ways does your country take away your freedom?

5) Was there a time in your life when you had a lack of freedom?

6) Is everyone in your country equally free?

7) What would it be like to live where there is little freedom of choice?

8) Do men or women have more freedom in your country?

9) Can freedom damage a country?

10) Where in the world do you think is the greatest freedom?

FREEDOM DISCUSSION1) What is freedom?

2) How important is freedom for you?

3) Would you fight for your freedom?

4) Is working 40 hours a week closer to freedom or slavery?

5) What does freedom feel like?

6) Do you agree we must be free to bear arms (have a gun)?

7) How often do you think about freedom?

8) What kind of stories do you hear in the news related to freedom?

9) Do you think many people misunderstand the concept of freedom?

10) The philosopher Rousseau said “Man is born free, and everywhere he is in chains". What do you think of this?