The Troubles

Eimear O’Callaghan, a 16-year-old Catholic schoolgirl in Northern Ireland, watched the 6 o’clock news in horror. Earlier that day, January 30, 1972, thousands of demonstrators had gathered in the city of Londonderry, also called Derry, to protest for civil rights. Most of them were Catholic nationalists, and many wanted independence from the United Kingdom, a largely Protestant nation.

They were met with gunfire. British paratroopers, who were patrolling the march, shot at the protesters, killing 14 unarmed people, including seven teenagers. O’Callaghan and two of her younger brothers watched footage of the violence from their home in Belfast.

“It was just shock and terror and disbelief when we saw what had happened,” O’Callaghan, now 67, says. She recently published her diary from that year as a memoir entitled Belfast Days: A 1972 Teenage Diary. “To see the shootings, the killings, the bodies lying on the ground,” she adds, “I think it was probably the moment that we grew up.”

On January 30, 1972, Eimear O’Callaghan watched the 6 o’clock news in horror. The 16-year-old Catholic schoolgirl lived in Northern Ireland. Earlier that day, thousands of protestors had gathered in the city of Londonderry, also called Derry. They protested for civil rights. Most of those who came together were Catholic nationalists. Many of them wanted independence from the United Kingdom, a largely Protestant nation.

They were met with gunfire. British paratroopers were patrolling the march. They shot at the protesters, killing 14 unarmed people, including seven teenagers. O’Callaghan and two of her younger brothers watched footage of the violence from their home in Belfast.

“It was just shock and terror and disbelief when we saw what had happened,” O’Callaghan, now 67, says. She recently published her diary from that year as a memoir entitled Belfast Days: A 1972 Teenage Diary. “To see the shootings, the killings, the bodies lying on the ground,” she adds, “I think it was probably the moment that we grew up.”

That day 50 years ago would forever be known as Bloody Sunday, and it would go down in history as one of the darkest moments of the Northern Ireland Troubles. The Troubles was a three-decades-long period of sectarian violence in and around Northern Ireland—a time marked by riots, car bombings, arson, street shootings, and revenge killings that left some 3,600 dead. The events of Bloody Sunday would further inflame the violence, and the lives of innocent people would never be the same.   

“[Bloody Sunday] instantly became one of the most sensational events of the conflict,” says historian Robert Savage, interim director of the Irish Studies Program at Boston College. The repercussions of that violence, Savage adds, are still being felt today.

At issue during the Troubles was the question of who should control Northern Ireland. On one side were the mostly Catholic nationalists (also called republicans), who wanted to leave the U.K. and join a united Ireland, with its Catholic majority. On the other side were the loyalists (also called unionists), who were mostly Protestant and wanted to remain in the U.K.

That day 50 years ago would forever be known as Bloody Sunday. It would go down in history as one of the darkest moments of the Northern Ireland Troubles. The Troubles was a three-decades-long period of violence between groups in and around Northern Ireland. Riots, car bombings, arson, street shootings, and revenge killings marked the period. The violence left some 3,600 dead. The events of Bloody Sunday would add more fuel to the conflict. The lives of innocent people would never be the same.

“[Bloody Sunday] instantly became one of the most sensational events of the conflict,” says historian Robert Savage, interim director of the Irish Studies Program at Boston College. The effects of that violence are still being felt today, he adds.

At issue during the Troubles was the question of who should control Northern Ireland. On one side were the mostly Catholic nationalists (also called republicans). They wanted to leave the U.K. and join a united Ireland, with its Catholic majority. On the other side were the loyalists (also called unionists). They were mostly Protestant and wanted to remain in the U.K.

The conflict began in the late 1960s and lasted until the passage of a peace plan in 1998 (see timeline slideshow, below). But the roots of the Troubles go back further.

In the early 20th century, nationalists in Ireland began a movement for independence from Great Britain, which had ruled all of Ireland since 1541. However, in the north, there was a majority Protestant population, and many of those people had English or Scottish roots and wanted to remain tied to Britain.

The Irish War of Independence broke out in 1919 between the Irish Republican Army (I.R.A.) and British forces. Two years later, it ended with the Anglo-Irish Treaty, which split Ireland into two separate regions.

The predominantly Catholic South became the Irish Free State, and later the Republic of Ireland. The majority-Protestant Northern Ireland stayed united with Britain. However, Northern Ireland had a large minority of Catholic people who wanted independence. This tension would eventually boil over.

The conflict began in the late 1960s and lasted until the passage of a peace plan in 1998 (see timeline slideshow, below). But the roots of the Troubles go back further.

In the early 20th century, nationalists in Ireland began a movement for independence. Great Britain had ruled all of Ireland since 1541. But there was a majority Protestant population in the north. Many of those people had English or Scottish roots and wanted to remain tied to Britain.

The Irish War of Independence broke out in 1919 between the Irish Republican Army (I.R.A.) and British forces. Two years later, it ended with the Anglo-Irish Treaty. That agreement split Ireland into two separate regions.

The majority Catholic South became the Irish Free State. Later, it became the Republic of Ireland. The majority-Protestant Northern Ireland stayed united with Britain. But Northern Ireland had a large minority of Catholic people who wanted independence. This tension would one day boil over.

By the 1960s, life in Northern Ireland was extremely segregated.

“I didn’t know any Protestants,” O’Callaghan, the author from Belfast, remembers. “Growing up, schools were segregated. The city was segregated. There were areas that we didn’t venture into.”

The Catholic minority faced discrimination, including the lack of equal votes in local elections and equal consideration for jobs. So Catholic activists in Northern Ireland launched a civil rights movement—inspired in part by the one in the U.S.—protesting for equal rights and independence. They frequently faced violence from the police and Protestant loyalists who feared losing their traditional power and becoming a minority in a unified Ireland.

In August 1969, British leaders sent the army to Northern Ireland after a riot broke out in Londonderry between Catholics and Protestants. In response, a new I.R.A. called the Provisional I.R.A. emerged. The paramilitary group waged guerrilla warfare against the British Army to try to achieve its goal of independence. Protestant paramilitary groups retaliated with violence of their own.

The period known as the Troubles was underway. To try to quell the fighting, the British Army constructed “peace walls,” creating physical barriers between Protestant and Catholic communities. The Northern Ireland government also instituted a policy of jailing suspected nationalists and I.R.A. members without trial, resulting in many people being dragged from their homes and wrongfully imprisoned.

It was this policy of internment that inspired the march in Derry on January 30, 1972—the day that would become Bloody Sunday. Northern Ireland’s government had banned such protests, and the British Army arrived to police the demonstration. As the march got underway, some of the protesters hurled stones at the troops. The soldiers responded with tear gas, rubber bullets, water cannons—and more than 100 rounds of gunfire.

By the 1960s, life in Northern Ireland was very segregated.

“I didn’t know any Protestants,” O’Callaghan, the author from Belfast, remembers. “Growing up, schools were segregated. The city was segregated. There were areas that we didn’t venture into.”

The Catholic minority faced unjust treatment, including the lack of equal votes in local elections and equal consideration for jobs. So Catholic activists in Northern Ireland launched a civil rights movement. They were inspired in part by the one in the U.S. The activists protested for equal rights and independence. They often faced violence from the police and Protestant loyalists. The Protestants feared losing power and becoming a minority in a unified Ireland.

In August 1969, a riot broke out in Londonderry between Catholics and Protestants. Afterward, British leaders sent the army to Northern Ireland. In response, a new I.R.A. called the Provisional I.R.A. emerged. The paramilitary group waged war against the British Army to try to achieve its goal of independence. Protestant paramilitary groups responded with violence of their own.

The period known as the Troubles was underway. To try to curb the fighting, the British Army constructed “peace walls.” These physical barriers created divides between Protestant and Catholic communities. The Northern Ireland government also began a policy of jailing suspected nationalists and I.R.A. members without trial. This resulted in many people being dragged from their homes and wrongfully imprisoned.

It was this policy of internment that inspired the march in Derry on January 30, 1972—the day that would become Bloody Sunday. Northern Ireland’s government had banned such protests. That’s why the British Army arrived to police the march. As things got underway, some of the protesters threw stones at the troops. The soldiers responded with tear gas, rubber bullets, and water cannons. They also fired more than 100 rounds of gunfire.

Bloody Sunday increased support for the I.R.A., fueled anti-British sentiment, and unleashed a surge of violence. On July 21, the I.R.A. detonated about two dozen bombs in Belfast, killing nine and injuring dozens more, in a day known as Bloody Friday.

Attacks by both the I.R.A. and loyalist paramilitary groups—such as the Ulster Defence Association—escalated throughout the year. In 1972 alone, at least 467 people were killed in the fighting, most of them civilians.

O’Callaghan’s once-peaceful city of Belfast felt like it was descending into a civil war zone, with innocent people on both sides caught in the crossfire.

“There were nights when you lay in bed, listening to gunfire,” she recalls. “It just became a part of the normal routine.”

Throughout the 1970s, ’80s, and into the ’90s, the I.R.A. continued its guerrilla warfare against the British Army. Terrorist activity by the I.R.A. and loyalist paramilitary groups surged, with hundreds of civilians killed in Ireland’s city streets and pubs, and bombings in public spaces in England. O’Callaghan remembers living in constant fear.

As the death toll rose, negotiations between leaders from the British Parliament and the different political parties in Ireland repeatedly fell through. Then, finally, in 1998, a peace plan called the Good Friday Agreement was reached.

Bloody Sunday increased support for the I.R.A., fueled anti-British sentiment, and led to a surge of violence. On July 21, the I.R.A. set off about two dozen bombs in Belfast. The blasts killed nine and injured dozens more. The day became known as Bloody Friday.

Attacks by both the I.R.A. and loyalist paramilitary groups—such as the Ulster Defence Association—escalated throughout the year. In 1972 alone, at least 467 people were killed in the fighting. Most of them were civilians.

O’Callaghan’s once-peaceful city of Belfast felt like it was becoming a civil war zone. Innocent people on both sides were caught in the crossfire.

“There were nights when you lay in bed, listening to gunfire,” she recalls. “It just became a part of the normal routine.”

Throughout the 1970s, ’80s, and into the ’90s, the I.R.A. continued to fight against the British Army. Terrorist activity by the I.R.A. and loyalist paramilitary groups surged. Hundreds of civilians were killed in Ireland’s city streets and pubs. And numerous bombings happened in public spaces in England. O’Callaghan remembers living in constant fear.

As the death toll rose, talks between leaders from the British Parliament and the different political parties in Ireland fell through time after time. Then, finally, in 1998, a peace plan called the Good Friday Agreement was reached.

The settlement created a power-sharing government in Northern Ireland between loyalists and nationalists. It also allows for the possibility of unification between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland if the majority of voters in both places favor it.

The agreement put an end to the brutal fighting. However, sporadic instances of sectarian violence have occurred since. Sinn Fein, the nationalist Republican party, arose as the political wing of the I.R.A. A political struggle between Sinn Fein and the Democratic Unionist Party remains.

In the most recent elections in May, Sinn Fein won the majority of seats in the Northern Ireland Assembly for the first time. Political tensions in Northern Ireland have also been exacerbated by Brexit, the U.K.’s recent split from the European Union (E.U.). Brexit has been unpopular in Northern Ireland among nationalists, who want to remain tied to the Republic of Ireland and the rest of the E.U. Many unionists have also grown frustrated with Brexit because it’s made it more difficult for goods to pass between Northern Ireland and the U.K.*

The treaty created a power-sharing government in Northern Ireland between loyalists and nationalists. It also allows for the possibility of unification between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland if the majority of voters in both places favor it.

The agreement put an end to the brutal fighting. But unexpected violence among groups has occurred since. Sinn Fein, the nationalist Republican party, arose as the political wing of the I.R.A. A political struggle between Sinn Fein and the Democratic Unionist Party remains.

In the most recent elections in May, Sinn Fein won the majority of seats in the Northern Ireland Assembly for the first time. Political tensions in Northern Ireland have also been strained by Brexit, the U.K.’s recent split from the European Union (E.U.). Brexit has been unpopular in Northern Ireland among nationalists. They want to remain tied to the Republic of Ireland and the rest of the E.U. Many unionists have also grown frustrated with Brexit. That’s because it’s made it more difficult for goods to pass between Northern Ireland and the U.K.*

These developments have raised the possibility of a new push for Irish reunification sometime in the future. Some experts also fear that violence could flare up again.

All the while, Northern Ireland is still trying to come to terms with the violence of its past. For many there, the memories of the Troubles are still raw.

“The violence, for the most part, is over,” says Savage, the historian. “But the society in Northern Ireland is still deeply divided.”

These changes have raised the chance of a new push for Irish reunification sometime in the future. Some experts also fear that violence could flare up again.

All the while, Northern Ireland is still trying to come to terms with the violence of its past. For many there, the memories of the Troubles are still raw.

“The violence, for the most part, is over,” says Savage, the historian. “But the society in Northern Ireland is still deeply divided.”

^{* Before Brexit, trade flowed freely between Northern Ireland and Ireland, and between Northern Ireland and the rest of the U.K. Now goods passing between mainland Britain and Northern Ireland are subject to border checks.}