why is the british still in ireland and prods think they are british when they are actually irish?

Answer 1

As an Irish man I can understand the complexities that is evident when other Countries try to work out what Ireland / N.Ireland and Britian is all about..It would take too long to explain 800 years of strife between us all.. All I can say is that we have a much welcomed peace among us now ..Northern Ireland has been transformed since The republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland had a referendum and this referendum voted in favour of The Republic giveing up its right to claim right over N/Ireland and therefore allowing the people of northern Ireland to determine its own future, It also allowed for a power shareing executive to be established between two opposing enemies from the North and South of Ireland. Direct rule from Britian was therefore transfered from Downing street to Northern Ireland so now Northern Ireland is now running its own affairs with its own Government..The future of northern Ireland will be determined at the Ballot Box if The Island of Ireland is to ever become united as one United Ireland.. There will no longer be any interference from anyone and hopefully no more war...Hope that explains it somehow.. And mister John below, You say A united Ireland didnt work, how would you know ? It didnt work under British rule either.. British rule only caused war and mahem for all involved.. You dont invade other peoples countries especially Ireland and expect everything to be Tickety Boo..

Answer 2

When you say "British" I assume you mean the British Government still maintaining rule over the Province of Northern Ireland (9 of the 12 counties of Ulster). You are right in assuming it is to protect the Protestant "Irish" although most of these are descended from Scottish immigrants brought in to dilute the majority irish population. However because the latter are mostly staunch Catholics they tend to have larger families so the balance is inexorably turning.

Add to that the fact that both the Republic and the Province are in the EU and the whole question of sovereignty becomes a bit academic. As an Englishman married to an Irishwoman and who has travelled in both realms of Hibernia I long for the day when there is a United Ireland - I really do not think that the Protestant minority have much to fear from this and it would enable the British Government to turn its mind to English and Welsh issues (Scotland is already leaving!)

Answer 3

Don't follow the question. who are prods . Ordinary people ,from England ,Wales or Scotland may choose to live in Ireland for different reasons, similarly many Irish people choose to live on this side of the Irish Sea. What difference is there between the people of either countries

Answer 4

The British are still in Northern Ireland because when the Irish Home Rule Bill was first put to the British Parliament various Conservative elements in the establishment of the day threatened Civil War. In order to get the Act through Parliament on, I believe, the second attempt, a compromise was reached that allowed the six Northern Counties to remain within the United Kingdom. The original intention was to give Home Rule to the whole of Ireland. Various attempts had been made to give Ireland limited regional self government, known as home rule, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The First Home Rule bill proposed in 1886 had been defeated in the British House of Commons following a split in the Liberal Party, while the Second Home Rule Bill, having been passed by the Commons in 1893 was vetoed by the House of Lords. The 1912 bill was stalled by the same body. However a revolutionary change in the British Constitution in 1911 had removed the Lords' ability to veto bills, replacing it with a delay of three parliamentary sessions. Though rejected by the Lords in 1912 and 1914, it was approved over the Lords' rejection in 1914, and received the Royal Assent of King George V immediately before the outbreak of the First World War. Because of the continuing threat of civil war in Ireland, King George called the Buckingham Palace Conference where Nationalist and Unionist leaders were invited to seek agreement. The conference eventually failed.

Rather than try to amend the 1914 Act, and face the same problems over its contents with the House of Lords and a possible three session delay in the enactment of the amendments, Prime Minister David Lloyd George abandoned the 1914 Act and started again with a new Bill, The Government of Ireland Act 1920.

The Act divided Ireland into two territories, Southern Ireland and Northern Ireland, each intended to be self-governing except in areas specifically reserved to the Parliament of the United Kingdom: chief amongst these were matters relating to the Crown, to defence, foreign affairs, international trade, and currency.

"Southern Ireland" was to be all of Ireland except for "the parliamentary counties of Antrim, Armagh, Down, Fermanagh, Londonderry and Tyrone, and the parliamentary boroughs of Belfast and Londonderry" which were to constitute "Northern Ireland". Northern Ireland as defined by the Act, amounting to six of the nine counties of Ulster, was seen as the maximum area within which Unionists could be expected to have a safe majority. This was in spite of the fact that counties Fermanagh and Tyrone had Catholic Nationalist majorities.

The reason for the division of Ireland, rather than the original intention of the First and Second Home Rule Bills of giving the whole of the island of Ireland independance as a single entity, was to appease the Unionists and the Conservative elements in the British establishment, who had threatened Civil War in the UK, by creating a Northern Irish enclave in which the Unionists, (those wishing to stay within the United Kingdom), were guaranteed a political majority and thereby a permanent link to the United Kingdom, the British Parliament and the Crown.

Long winded I know, but accurate.


And as to why the Protestants in the North think they are British, see the above and secondly the majority are descendants of Scots from the West Coast of Scotland.

Answer 5

Prods are protestants!
He is referring to the Catholic Protestant divide in Northeren Ireland. And he is right Protestants still believe they are British (most anyways) I think they still believe this are they are so narrow minded and believe what they want to believe even if they are 100% wrong, theyw ill fight and kill just so they dont have to swallow they're pride and face the fact they are Irish and not British!

Answer 6

Better men than you or I have tried to understand the Irish both Protestant and Catholic. They are among the nicest and most generous people you could wish to meet except too one another. There are peace deals galore but you can give them any name you like you will not eradicate 400 years of mutual hate and mistrust for a long time yet

Answer 7

Most of Ireland has moved on and is a progressive all inclusive nation. The Brits are now our equal and closest brothers and sisters. There are a minority of small minded people who still live in the past saying asking a question such as this. We are kicking their arses in Rugby, having a few pints after the match and getting on grandly. and long may it last. Thanks to Bertie and Tony, great work lads.

Answer 8

Morwood
there was a united Ireland....it didn't work!

Answer 9

thats the first i heard of an irish person saying they are british as i heard majority of the irish hate the english because of the war that happened some time ago so they all sing ira songs which basiclly says kill the fu**ing english.