Britain and Ireland 1789-1801 The Age of George III I am happy that you are using this web site and hope that you found it useful. Unfortunately, the cost of making this material freely available is increasing, so if you have found the site useful and would like to contribute towards its continuation, I would greatly appreciate it. Click the button to go to Paypal and make a donation. Britain and Ireland 1789-1801 In 1789 the French Revolution began and in 1793 France declared war against Britain. The ideas of the French Revolution -liberty, equality, fraternity and democracy - plus the religious link, were favoured by the Irish, and Ireland traditionally had been the back door to England. The Irish could see that religious inequality had been abolished in France and that a democratic government had been set up. Irish Roman Catholics wanted equality ; Irish Protestants wanted parliamentary reform. Both groups wanted economic reform. Many moderate Irish politicians wanted Catholic Emancipation and parliamentary reform , but thought that Ireland should support England in the crisis and wanted to preserve the link with Britain. However, there were others who were more extreme in their views.

Among these were Theobald Wolfe Tone and Lord Edward Fitzgerald who formed the United Irishmen in 1792 which aimed at 'breaking the connection with England, asserting the independence of our country, uniting all Irishmen in place of the denominations of Protestants and Catholics'. Wellington seemed to be in favour of Catholic Emancipation as early as 1793, when he took his seat in the Irish Parliament as Member for Trim, in Co. Meath. Two of his speeches early that year deal with the subject of Catholics and their rights. The first was in January, soon after he had taken his seat. The organisation tried to unite Dissenters and Catholics against Anglican rule, and it grew rapidly. Pitt moved equally quickly. In 1793 the Irish parliament was persuaded to pass the Catholic Relief Act which gave Catholics the right to vote. Voters still had to be 40/- freeholders, and Roman Catholics, although they could stand as candidates, were not allowed to take a seat in parliament. Catholic voters could realistically only vote for Protestants. Pitt's 1793 Act was only a part-solution.

In 1795 Earl Fitzwilliam was made Lord Lieutenant of Ireland. He was a Whig and an Irish absentee landowner who believed that Roman Catholics should have complete political equality. This he announced as a policy which raised hopes in Ireland, but Fitzwilliam was recalled within three months on the King's orders and in disgrace. After 1795 there were increasing incidents of sectarian violence in Ireland, exacerbated by the attempts of the United Irishmen to enlist French help in their struggle to free Ireland from English control. The Protestants in Ireland formed the Orange Order to safeguard Protestantism in Ireland which merely escalated the problem. In May 1798 an Irish rising occurred with the avowed aim of Catholic Emancipation and parliamentary reform. Many peasants joined because they wanted tithes to be abolished; some educated men wanted independence. Pitt believed that Ireland could not be allowed the luxury of an independent parliament, because the Irish might decide on an independent nation and make Ireland a base for England's enemies. Pitt therefore decided on an Act of Union which would totally tie Ireland to Great Britain In 1800 the Act of Union was passed by both the Irish and British parliaments despite much opposition.

It was signed by George III in August 1800 to become effective on 1 January 1801. Pitt intended to follow the Act of Union with other, more far reaching reforms, including Catholic Emancipation, but was thwarted by George III, who refused to break his Coronation Oath to uphold the Anglican Church . As early as February 6th, 1795, George III had expressed his opposition to the idea of ‘admitting Roman Catholics to vote in Parliament’. When Pitt wrote on 31 January 1801, saying that he would feel obliged to resign if the King would not allow some measure of emancipation to be passed at some time, George III replied in the following way.

Queen’s House, February 1, 1801 I should not do justice to the warm impulse of my heart if I entered on the subject most unpleasant to my mind without first expressing that the cordial affection I have for Mr Pitt, as well as high opinions of his talents and integrity, greatly add to my uneasiness on this occasion; but a sense of religious as well as political duty has made me, from the moment I mounted the throne, consider the Oath that the wisdom of our forefathers has enjoined the Kings of this realm to take at their Coronation, and enforced by the obligation of instantly following it in the course of the ceremony with taking the Sacrament, as so binding a religious obligation on me to maintain the fundamental maxims on which our Constitution is placed, namely the Church of England being the established one, and that those who hold employment in the State must be members of it, and consequently obliged not only to take oaths against Popery, but to receive the Holy Communion agreeably to the rites of the Church of England.

This principle of duty must therefore prevent me from discussing any proposition tending to destroy this groundwork of our happy Constitution, and much more so that now mentioned by Mr Pitt, which is no less than the complete overthrow of the whole fabric. (Public Records Office, Chatham Papers, C.IV) Northern Ireland Timeline | HistoryOnTheNet Northern Ireland Timeline St Patrick Saint Patrick brought Christianity to Ireland. Patrick had been had been taken to Ireland as a slave. He escaped to France where he studied to become a priest. He later returned to Ireland and successfully converted the people . 1170 First English involvement in Ireland Turlogh O'Connor overthrew Dermot MacMurrough King of Leinster, MacMurrough asked King Henry II of England for help. MacMurrough rewarded the English soldiers that helped him to regain his kingdom with land. 1171 Earl of Pembroke - Strongbow - King of Leinster When MacMurrough died, Strongbow proclaimed himself King of Leinster. After 1171 Irish Land seized by English Barons English Barons seized land in Ireland. 1300s All land in Ireland under English control.

English Barons continued to seize land in Ireland and by the 1300s they held nearly all land in Ireland. However, loyalty to England had weakened and many of the former English Barons now considered themselves Irish rather than English. 1400s English control confined to the Pale By the end of the fifteenth century English control was confined to a small area around Dublin. This area was known as the Pale. Those beyond the Pale were considered barbarians. 1534 Henry VIII took control in Ireland Ireland was ruled by the Earls of Kildare who were English noblemen who had settled in Ireland. Henry invaded and tried to take that control away. 1541 Henry VIII King of Ireland Henry VIII forced Ireland's government to declare him King of Ireland. Once declared King, Henry began to introduce new laws that increased English control of Ireland. Henry also tried, without success to introduce Protestantism to Ireland. 1500s English Monarchs continue to control Ireland After Henry VIII's death, his children, Edward VI, Mary I and Elizabeth I continued to try to increase English control in Ireland. Mary attempted to do this by using plantation - giving land in Ireland to settlers loyal to England.

She seized land in central Ireland, gave it to English settlers and renamed the land 'Queens County' and 'Kings County'. Elizabeth tried to establish Protestantism in Ireland by outlawing Catholic services and executing some Bishops and Priests. However, this only had the effect of uniting the Catholics more strongly against English rule. Late 1500s Ulster Revolts Shane O'Neill and Irish chieftain and later his son the Earl of Kildare led a series of revolts in Ulster protesting against English rule in Ireland. Summer 1610 Ulster Plantation began James I attempted to stop the Ulster revolts by using plantation. He gave land in Ulster to English and Scottish Protestant settlers and created a Protestant majority in Ulster. Catholics became worried as plantation increased fearing that they too would lose their land. October 1641 Ulster Rebellion The Irish in Ulster rebelled against English rule. The violence of the rebellion saw the deaths of many. In England it was alleged that the Catholics had massacred Protestants and many people wanted revenge.

11th September 1649 Massacre of Drogheda Oliver Cromwell took an army to Ireland determined to put an end to Irish revolts against English rule. He massacred a large number of Catholics at Drogheda as 'revenge' for the alleged massacre of Protestants in 1641. Cromwell then gave even more Irish land to English Protestants and new established anti-Catholic laws which took away many political rights. 23rd April 1685 James II King of England James II became King of England and Scotland. James was a Catholic and he abolished many of the anti-Catholic laws established in Ireland. November 1688 Glorious Revolution The British invited William of Orange to come take the throne of England and Scotland. When William arrived in England with his army, James II fled to Ireland. James II organised an army to help him fight William and regain the throne. However, many Protestants, especially those in Ulster supported William of Orange. 1st July 1690 Battle of the Boyne William's army defeated James II at this battle fought on the river Boyne in the North East of Ireland.

Many Ulster Protestants fought with William and they became known as Orangemen. The event is still commemorated today. Every 12th July Orangemen march through Ulster to mark the defeat of Catholic James II at this battle. 1703 Protestants own 90% of the land Over the past century, thousands of Catholics had been transported abroad or resettled in new areas and even more land had been seized by English Protestants. By 1703 90% of the land in Ireland was owned by English nobles to whom the Catholic peasants had to pay rent. 1695 - 1728 These were a series of laws passed against Catholics in Ireland including - Preventing Catholics from carrying weapons and owning horses worth more than £5 Restricting the rights of Catholics to education Restrict their rights to education. Preventing Catholics from buying land Stating that on death property should be equally divided between all sons rather than inherited by the eldest.

Banning Catholics from serving in the army Preventing Catholics from holding public positions Preventing Catholics from entering the legal profession Preventing Catholics from voting or serving as MPs January 1801 Act of Union This act abolished the Irish parliament and formally united Ireland and Great Britain to become the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland 1800s Unrest in Ireland Following the Act of Union there were a number of revolts in protest against the growing numbers of poor and homeless people in Ireland. English landlords had realised that they could earn more from their land by turning it into grazing land than they were receiving in rent from the Irish tenant farmers. In order to do this they had to evict the tenant farmers. Thousands of farmers and their families were simply thrown out onto the streets and their homes destroyed. 1845 - 1848 The Potato Famine Potato was the staple diet of the Irish. Although other crops such as wheat and oats as well as beef, mutton, pork and poultry were in plentiful supply, these were shipped abroad by the English landowners for profit, the Irish people mainly lived on potatoes. In 1845 the potato crop in Ireland was struck by a disease and half the crop failed.

The situation was worse in 1846 and 1847 leaving people starving. Around a million people emigrated to America and Canada. The British government did not send money to help the starving people fearing that they would use it to buy guns to revolt against English rule. Landowners continued to ship produce abroad. More than 1.5 million people starved to death. Those that survived were filled with hatred for the British government that had refused to help. 1875 Charles Stewart Parnell elected Irish MP Charles Stewart Parnell believed in Home Rule (that Ireland should be ruled by an Irish parliament and separately from Britain) and managed to convince the British Prime Minister William Gladstone to introduce a bill in Parliament. 8th April 1886 Gladstone again tried to introduce Home Rule for Ireland but was again defeated. 28th November 1905 Sinn Fein Formed The political party Sinn Fein, meaning 'we ourselves' was formed. Their aim - to free Ireland from British rule and gain independence for the whole of Ireland. April 1912 Third Home Rule Bill The proposals for Home Rule in Ireland were approved by Parliament. Home Rule was to become law in 1914.

January 1913 Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) formed The Protestants in Ulster made it known that they would resist any attempt to introduce Home Rule in Ireland. 1912 - 1920 New Plans for Home Rule with Partition It was clear that the Ulster Protestants would not accept Home Rule so in order to avoid violence, the British government came up with a new solution. Home Rule with Partition. Home Rule would be introduced in the South but six predominantly Protestant counties in the north would stay a part of the United Kingdom. This solution is largely the cause of the problems in Ireland that exist to this day. Nationalist remain committed to the idea of a united free Ireland, while Protestants are unwilling to accept anything less than partition. 25th November 1913 Irish Volunteers formed To show their support from Home Rule, many Catholics joined the British army to fight Germany. However, as it emerged that the UVF would try to block Home Rule militant groups formed from these volunteers to counter the UVF. They became known as the Irish volunteers.

24th - 29th April 1916 The Easter Rising & Foundation of IRA About a thousand rebels from the Irish Volunteers decided to take advantage of the fact that Britain was losing the war against Germany and proclaim an Irish Republic. Led by Patrick Pearse and James Connoly they seized Dublin's General Post Office on Easter Monday. British forces poured into Dublin including gunboats that fired on the rebels from the river Liffey. The fighting lasted five days and caused more than 400 deaths and 2,500 injuries. The rebels were forced to surrender. Those who had taken part in the Easter Rising became known as the Irish Republican Army. May 1916 Easter Rising Rebels executed Seventy rebels were sentenced to death by the British forces. Fifteen executions were carried out, the remainder, including Michael Collins, were imprisoned. The executions led to a rise in support for Sinn Féin. December 1920 Partition (Government of Ireland Act) The Government of Ireland Act introduced partition to Ireland. Two parliaments were introduced, one in Dublin to serve twenty-six counties and one in Belfast to serve six northern counties.

The twenty-six counties were known as the Irish Free State and were given a measure of independence. The government of these counties was known as the Provisional Government. The six northern counties were to remain part of the United Kingdom but they would have their own parliament, the Stormont. A Council of Ireland was set up to oversee measures common to both parts. Unionists (those who want to remain a part of the United Kingdom) support Partition but Republicanists (those who want all of Ireland to be a separate independent republic) oppose partition. 6th December 1921 Irish Free State Treaty This treaty between Britain and Ireland, legalised Partition. Violence, especially in the six northern counties escalated as Catholics showed their opposition to Partition. 1922 Civil War In early 1922 British forces began to leave Ireland. Their stations were handed over to the Irish Volunteers. However, the Volunteers were split between those that supported Partition and those that did not. Those that did became known as Free State soldiers while those that did not were known as Irregulars. Tension between the two groups escalated into violence which lasted for just over a year and left hundreds dead including Michael Collins leader of the Free State soldiers.

The violence was eventually put down by the Provisional Government and 1100 rebels were interned (imprisoned without trial). 21st December 1948 Creation of Republic of Ireland The Irish Free State was granted full independence from Britain under the terms of the Republic of Ireland Act. However, the six northern counties remained part of the United Kingdom. January 1967 Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association (NICRA) Formed The Northern Ireland Government was dominated by the Unionist party and as a part of the United Kingdom anti-Catholic laws that had been passed in the nineteenth century were still in force. The NICRA was largely based on the US Civil Rights Movement that fought for equality for black Americans and wanted to see the anti-Catholic measures abolished and equality for Catholics in Northern Ireland. 1968 Civil Rights Protests The first Civil Rights protest march took place in March. The second took place in Derry in October despite it being banned by the Minister for Home Affairs, William Craig, claiming that the movement was a front for the IRA. The Royal Ulster Constabulary were sent in to break up the march. They used excessive force, much of which was televised and broadcast worldwide.

The tactics of the RUC left Catholics fearful and untrusting of them. The British government could no longer take a back seat and forced the Stormont to make reforms, however, the changes were minimal and in no way met the demands of the Civil Rights Movement. 1969 Tension between Catholics and Protestants Catholic demands were no nearer being met and with the approach of the two main Unionist marches (the march of the Orangemen on July 12th and the march on August 12th to commemorate the siege of Derry in 1689 when apprentice boys closed the gates on King James) tension between Catholics and Protestants was high. August 12th - 15th 1969 Battle of Bogside As the Apprentice Boys marched past Catholic Bogside there were clashes which forced the intervention of the RUC. However, the rioting escalated and the police were stoned and petrol-bombed. The NICRA called on Catholics to take the pressure off Catholics in Bogside by mounting demonstrations in Belfast. Consequently there was rioting in Belfast as well and the RUC were unable to cope.

The Northern Ireland government had no choice but to call for British troops to be sent in to put down the riots. The first British troops arrived on the 15th August. In the Bogside area of Derry barricades were put up and neither the RUC nor British troops were permitted access to the Catholic area. In order to avoid further bloodshed the British troops allowed the 'no go' areas to stand. 28th December 1969 The IRA splits into two wings - the Marxist-oriented Official IRA and the more hard-line Provisionals. August 9th 1971 Internment Introduced The Civil Rights Movement continued to protest despite a ban being placed on all marches and the IRA continued to make attacks on British troops resulting in the death of a British soldier . In the face of increasing calls for internment for IRA members, it is introduced on 9th August 1971 and around 350 people were immediately arrested and interned. The following 48 hours saw violence and protests against internment that left 17 dead including 10 civilians. 1971 Protests Against Internment Throughout the remainder of the year protests against internment continued.

The protests included violence, withholding of council rents, strikes and resignations by officials. 30th January 1972 Bloody Sunday A march organised by the NICRA against Internment and the ban on marches took place in Derry. In order to ensure that the march was peaceful the IRA had promised to stay away. British soldiers had put up barricades to prevent the marchers entering the city centre square. A section of the marchers and some observers confronted soldiers manning the barricade. British paratroopers opened fire killing 14 and injuring 13 others. 1972 Direct Rule imposed Following Bloody Sunday there was a rise in support for the Provisional IRA. In February the British Embassy in Dublin was burnt. It was clear that the British government had to do something to try to quieten the situation. As a result, in March the Northern Ireland government was suspended - Northern Ireland was to be directly ruled from Westminster. One of the first actions by Westminster was to order the dismantling of the 'no-go' areas set up in 1969. The IRA responded by using increasing violence.

29th November 1974 Prevention of Terrorism Act With the British becoming increasingly active in Northern Ireland, the IRA launched a bombing campaign which targeted public areas both in Ireland and on the British mainland. Bombs exploded in Dublin, Monaghan, Guildford, Woolwich and Birmingham killing and injuring civilians. The government responded by introducing the Prevention of Terrorism Act which allowed suspects to be detained without charge for up to seven days 1980s Hunger Strikes In 1976 the British government had removed 'special prisoner status' for those imprisoned for political acts. The prisoners had campaigned for 'political prisoner status' since 1976 by using both the 'blanket protest' refusing to wear prison clothes and donning a blanket instead and the 'dirty protest' where prisoners refused to clean their cells and smeared excrement on the walls. When these had failed prisoners began going on hunger strikes. Bobby Sands was the first hunger striker in 1981. He and nine others died as a result of the hunger strike. They were considered martyrs - around 100,000 people attended Bobby Sands' funeral.

Although no concessions were won from the British government, support for the Political wing of the Provisional IRA increased considerably. 15th November 1985 Anglo-Irish Agreement Leaders of Britain and Ireland met to discuss the situation. The resulting Anglo-Irish agreement gave Dublin some control over Northern Ireland affairs. Unionists were outraged and the agreement was never fully implemented. 15th December 1993 Downing Street Declaration Following talks between the British Prime Minister and the Irish leader, this declaration was issued. It stated that the people of Northern Ireland should be free to decide their own future and that representatives of various groups should meet to discuss a solution. Sinn Fein was offered a seat provided that IRA violence was ended. As a result the IRA declared a cease fire in August 1994 and were followed a month later by a cease fire declaration from Loyalist groups. 1996 Peace Talks Multi-party peace talks began chaired by US senator George Mitchell. Mitchell proposed that disarmament should begin but this led to a stalling of the talks and the IRA broke its cease fire and violence resumed.

10th April 1998 Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement In 1997 the British government proposed a resumption of peace talks. Once again Sinn Féin were invited on condition that a six-week cease fire had been observed. In July 1997 the IRA announced the cease fire. After months of discussion a settlement is reached on Good Friday 1998. Terms in Brief: GREAT BRITAIN THE BRITISH ISLES THE UNITED KINGDOM BRITISH ISLANDS GREAT BRITAIN, THE UNITED KINGDOM, THE BRITISH ISLES, BRITISH ISLANDS Many are not aware of the precise meaning of the term "Great Britain". Even many British are unaware of the precise reality that the term expresses. Try asking a person living in the United Kingdom the exact meaning of the expression they have on their passports: "The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland". Many will not be able to provide an adequate answer. No wonder, therefore, that confusion also exists outside the United Kingdom and that in other European countries people erroneously group together the English, Scottish and Welsh under the word in their own language meaning "English".

Hence, for example, the French commonly group them together in the term "anglais" and the Italians "inglesi"). This can be a cause of offence for the Scottish and the Welsh. Here we shall try to explain the meaning of the terms "Great Britain", "United Kingdom", "British Islands" and "British Isles" as wells as the political and geographical realities that they express. Great Britain Great Britain is the largest island in Europe. "Great Britain" is the collective name for the three countries of England, Scotland and Wales. It also includes the small adjacent islands but it does not include the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man. The term "Great Britain" came into being when England and Scotland became a single kingdom under King James VI of Scotland who also became King James I of England, after the death of Queen Elizabeth I in 1603. It must be remembered, however, that this was not a political union but merely the union of the crowns of the two countries. Politically they were still two states, each with its own Parliament. 1 Political union came about only during the reign of Queen Anne, in 1707.

It was in this year that the Scottish Parliament assembled for the last time and the formal union of Parliaments was effected. It was on 1 May of that same year that the "United Kingdom of Great Britain" came into existence. Under Edward I the conquest of Wales was completed and Wales was united to England under Henry VIII, the second monarch descended from the Welsh House of Tudor. 2 This union was ratified by two Acts of Parliament in 1536 and again in 1543. The adjective "British" The adjective "British" is, of course, used in relation to Great Britain but there is also a common tendency to use it when referring to issues relating to both Great Britain and the United Kingdom. This is inaccurate and from a legal point of view erroneous. Sometimes, however, in legislation the term "British" is used to refer to the United Kingdom as a whole, especially in matters relating to the question of nationality. 3 The United Kingdom The United Kingdom is made up of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

The official name "United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland" came into use in 1922 after the constitution of the Irish Free State (1922-1937), the former name of the Republic of Ireland. The whole of Ireland had been united to Great Britain by an Act of Parliament in 1800 and which took effect in January 1801. 4 However, this union had never been popular in Ireland and became the target of Irish Nationalist leaders ever since. The union of the whole of Ireland with Great Britain lasted until the constitution of the Irish Free State. The Treaty that sanctioned the separation laid down that the six counties in the north should remain united to Great Britain hence constituting Northern Ireland, part of the United Kingdom but not part of Great Britain. Therefore, the United Kingdom of Great Britain, used to indicate the political union of England, Scotland and Wales, was expanded, in the 20th century, to include Northern Ireland: the "United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland" as it now appears on passports. When speaking of the United Kingdom and its constituent parts it is important to use the correct terminology.

In 1969 the Royal Commission on the Constitution was set up with the aim of examining the relation between central legislature and government on one hand and the "several countries, nations and regions of the United Kingdom" on the other. The words "countries", "nations" and "regions" reveal a certain vagueness which was eventually resolved by the Report of the Commission. 5 The Isle of Man and the Bailiwicks of Jersey and Guernsey are not part of Great Britain, they are not part of the United Kingdom and neither are they part of the European Union. They are self-governing British Crown dependencies. The British Islands The expression "British Islands" has been defined in the Interpretation Act 1978 as meaning the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man. The Republic of Ireland is not included in this definition. The British Isles The expression "British Isles" is geographical and not political.

They are a group of islands off the northwest coast of Europe consisting of Great Britain, the whole of Ireland, the Orkney and Shetland Islands, the Isle of Man, the Inner and Outer Hebrides, the Isle of Wight, the Scilly Islands, Lundy Island, the Channel Islands and many other smaller islands. A list of the main islands of Great Britain is to be found on another page on this site. Notes 1 Art. 1 of the Treaty of Union between England and Scotland in 1707. 2 The Tudor dynasty was descended from the Welsh adventurer Owen Tudor (c. 1400-1461). Wales had already been conquered by Edward I and the conquest was sealed with the Statute of Rhuddlan, also known as the Statute of Wales, in 1284. In the first half of the sixteenth century, under the reign of Henry VIII, acts of union were passed and Wales sent representatives to the English Parliament. After the union of the two countries Wales had no effective government and Welsh laws and administration were replaced by the English. The Welsh saw this as an annexation of their country. 3 Cfr.

Interpretation Act 1978, Sched. 1. By the British Nationality Act 1981, s. 50 (1), the United Kingdom includes the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man for the purposes of nationality law. 4 Art. 1 of the Act of Union created the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Since medieval times Ireland had had its own Parliament. By the end of the 18th century this Parliament had enjoyed only limited power due to political pressure from England. After the break with Rome during the reign of Henry VIII and particularly after Cromwell, the Irish Parliament effectively became the voice of the Protestant minority in Ireland as all members of Parliament had to take the Oath of Supremacy recognising the monarch as head of the Church. This was obviously incompatible with the Roman Catholic religion of the vast majority of Irishmen. An interesting allegorical account of the English treatment of Ireland inspired by the planned union of England and Scotland can be found in Jonathan Swift's The Story of the Injured Lady.

To complement the ideas contained in this tract, written from the point of view of a member of the Anglo-Irish community, one might also read one or two Irish ballads in which the indigenous Irish abhorred their increasing dependence on England. Swift's The Story of the Injured Lady and the Irish ballads are available on the site "Irish Literary Texts". 5 The report of the commission does much to clarify the question of terminology. It speaks of the four "countries" that make up the United Kingdom: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. RJW History of Ireland 1800 - 1877: The Act of Union and the Great Famine Next > The drastic action that was taken was the Act of Union, passed in 1800. It formed a new country ("The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland") by uniting England, Wales, Ireland and Scotland. A new flag - the Union Jack - was created for it which had components from the flags of each member state. All regional parliaments were abolished, and instead the entire UK was to be ruled from a centralised London parliament.

For most Irish, there wasn't a noticeable difference, but it meant the Irish government representatives could not pass laws on their own. In 1813, a man named Sir Robert Peel set up a law-enforcing force in Ireland. Its job was to arrest those who broke the law and generally manage crime prevention. This force was known as the 'Peelers' or the 'Bobbies', and later became known as the Police. It was the world's first Police force and, by 1822, most countries has followed suit and set up their own. The hated penal laws were still in force in Ireland in the early 1800s. These discriminated against non-Anglicans, principally Catholics and Presbyterians. It had been promised that they would be abolished with the Act of Union. However, this did not happen and it took the actions of Daniel O'Connell to lead a campaign for emancipation that captured the English public's imagination and led to the necessary legislation being passed in 1829. The importance of emancipation to the Irish people was recognised when the main street in Dublin was re-named after O'Connell after independence in 1921.

In 1800 the population of Ireland was between 4 and 5 million, with 200,000 in Dublin. However the Industrial revolution and especially the Irish Linen industry expanded explosively in the first half of the century, and this allowed the population to increase dramatically. By 1841, there were 8,175,000 people in Ireland. (This compares to the 1996 figure of 5,162,535.) Most Irish landlords were Protestants, simply because the law forbade Catholics from owning land. The Irish peasants themselves, who were both Protestant and Catholic, ate potatoes almost exclusively, since land was scarce and potatoes were an intensive crop. However, in 1845 a fungal disease called 'phytophthora infestans', or 'potato blight' struck and wiped out a third of the potato crop in Ireland. This was a disaster to the peasants who relied upon it. Those who lived near towns were better off, since towns had other sources of food, but things got very bad for those living in rural areas. By 1846, potato supplies had sold out and many people began to slowly starve.

The British government stepped in and imported �100,000 worth of maize from America to feed the starving, and this helped prevent mass death for the first year of the Famine. However, the crop of 1846 also failed and this time wiped out almost all the potatoes in Ireland. Thousands of people simply starved, particularly in rural areas. Many also died from typhus, scurvy and dysentery. The British set up soup-kitchens and workhouses for the poor but they drastically underestimated the scale of the disaster, and many people did not receive any aid at all. The problem was compounded by landlords who evicted Peasants who could not pay the rent because they had no potatoes to sell. Fortunately the crop of 1847 was good, and, although the 1848 crop failed, the starvation was never so bad as in 1846. (Note: This site contains a dedicated Famine section for those who are seeking more information). Many thousands of Irish decided to cut their losses and set sail on emigration boats to America. This is the origin of about half of what is now referred to as 'Irish America'.

Hundreds of Irish died on the ships which were so overcrowded that they became known as 'coffin ships'. By 1851, the population had fallen 25% to 6,000,000 and the emigration continued until around 1900, by which time only 4,500,000 Irish remained in Ireland. This left huge chunks of abandoned farmland and even today, large areas of derelict farmland can be seen in Mayo and Galway. Many Irish felt that the British could have done more and this caused a lot of anti-British sentiment to arise, particularly in Ireland and among the Irish who had gone to America. While there is little doubt that the British could have done more to prevent the mass deaths in Ireland, some blame must also be attributed to the over-reliance of the rural Irish on a single food crop and on the lack of communication routes with England, meaning that many in Britain were genuinely unaware of what was happening in rural Ireland. Most visitors to Ireland stayed in the cities, which were largely unaffected by the famine.

In 1858 a new group calling themselves the Irish Republican Brotherhood or the 'Fenians' was formed with the aim of creating an independent Irish republic by force. Unlike previous groups, the IRB had a large support base, particularly from the Irish who had gone to America. In 1867 they staged an uprising but it was easily defeated by the British. The Fenians went into the background for the next 30 years, but it still existed. The IRB was the first group to add a religious (pro-Catholic/anti-Protestant) slant to Republicanism, and this widened the gap between the 2 religious groups who shared Ireland. National Parliaments: United Kingdom National Parliaments: United Kingdom Executive Branch Summary The United Kingdom’s Parliament took centuries to develop into the institution that it is today, and its role continues to evolve. Created initially as a way to allow the Crown to collect taxes from his or her subjects, the powers of Parliament gradually expanded to supplement and then act on behalf of the Crown in almost all areas. Parliament has met at Westminster, in London, for centuries.

The electoral process is heavily regulated by legislation and the “first past the post” system was recently affirmed by a national referendum. The frequency that Parliament must call elections was recently affirmed in statute as being every five years. I. Background The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (UK) is the collective name of four countries—England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. The four separate countries were united under a single Parliament in London, known as the Parliament at Westminster, through a series of Acts of Union. [1] The UK has undergone a period of devolution over the past twenty years with the creation of a Scottish Parliament, a National Assembly in Wales, and an Assembly in Northern Ireland. The UK does not have a formal written constitution; thus, there is no provision that specifically allocates responsibilities and powers to the legislative or executive branches. Instead, the distribution of responsibilities is governed by long-established custom and conventions. It is customary law that the Crown, as the head of state, acts on the advice of the relevant Ministers. [2] A.

Establishment Of The Legislature The year 2015 marked the 750th anniversary of the Parliament that was summoned by the baronial leader Simon De Montfort in 1265. [3] While this was not the first Parliament seen in England, as “there is no date that marks the exact beginning of parliament,” [4] this Parliament is seen as the prototype for Parliament as we know it today, [5] in that it included representatives from counties and towns across England, demonstrating to the King that he could no longer make decisions for the entire country without input from a wide group of people. [6] B. General History and Development The Magna Carta of 1215 limited the methods by which the King could collect monies, and this limitation on money-collection methods was reaffirmed by the Magna Cartas issued in 1216 and 1217. This limitation forced the King to turn to taxation, which required the consent of his subjects. In 1265, King Henry III was held captive and a revolutionary regime headed by Simon de Montford confirmed the Magna Carta in a Parliament comprised of elected knights and townsmen.

[7] The Magna Carta was confirmed again by Edward I, Henry II’s son, in the Parliaments of 1297 and 1300. [8] The centuries that followed involved power struggles between the Crown (the King—see Part II, below) and Parliament. In the year 1376, the Parliament known as “The Good Parliament” showed for the first time that it had the potential to limit the powers of the Crown by prosecuting royal officials through a newly created procedure of impeachment. [9] The sixteenth century saw the Reformation, where King Henry VIII rejected the Catholic Church and established a national, royal church, later to become known as the Church of England, which served to enhance the standing of Parliament. [10] Parliament was still summoned primarily to provide the King with the ability to tax his subjects, the revenues from which were commonly used to conduct wars.

[11] By the early seventeenth century, Parliament had become a prominent part of the political landscape, which led to confrontations between the King and leading Members of Parliament [12] and the outbreak of two civil wars, the latter resulting in the beheading of King Charles I on January 3, 1649. [13] The period 1649–60 was known as the Interregnum, when England was ruled as a Republican nation. Power was vested mainly in the “Rump Parliament,” which abolished both the House of Lords and the Monarchy. In 1653, Oliver Cromwell forcibly dissolved the Rump Parliament, and army commanders appointed 140 members to a new assembly, known as the “Barebones Parliament.” This Parliament appointed Cromwell as Lord Protector of England, Scotland, and Ireland. The Protectorate Parliament succeeded the Barebones Parliament; however, it was not a success and paved the way to military rule, which was extremely unpopular. The Rump Parliament was later reinstated and, voted that the government should be led by a king, returned Charles II, the son of Charles I, to the throne.

[14] The return from republican state to monarchy became known as the Restoration. Charles II called few Parliaments and was succeeded by James II. James II was unpopular and was eventually overthrown by Prince William of Orange, the leader of the Dutch Republic. With William’s consent, a new Parliament was called in 1689 and offered the Crown to William and his wife, Mary. [15] The Act of Union of 1707 [16] united the country of Scotland with England and Wales to form the country of Great Britain. This Act was followed almost one hundred years later by the Act of Union 1801, which united the entire country of Ireland with Great Britain. [17] Later, the majority of Ireland would become an independent country, [18] leaving a small section of the north, known as Northern Ireland, as part of Great Britain, to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The government continued to evolve over the next three centuries, and its powers steadily expanded while the powers of the Crown were diminished, to the extent that, today, the role of the Monarch is largely ceremonial. C.

Moving Parliament The British Houses of Parliament are located at the Palace of Westminster. Members of the House of Lords and the House of Commons sit in separate chambers within the building. Parliament is assembled by a writ of summons from the Crown that names the day and place of the meeting, which has traditionally been at the Palace of Westminster. [19] There are no specific laws that grant or deny Parliament the authority to continue its responsibilities if it cannot meet due to some event or emergency situation, although decisions can be taken only with a quorum of forty. [20] Despite this restriction, the number of House Members present cannot formally be counted; [21] however, there are a number of ways a quorum can be ascertained, notably through a division. [22] If a quorum is not met, the business before the House stands over to another sitting, and the House proceeds to the next item of business. [23] There was a confidential plan for the evacuation of Parliament to a secret location (later revealed as Stratford-upon-Avon) prior to the commencement of World War II, although this plan was never used.

[24] During the war, Parliament was forced to convene outside of its traditional setting after the chambers of the House of Commons were destroyed during an air raid. Until it was rebuilt in 1950, the House of Commons sat at Church Road House, which was made an annex of Westminster. This adjustment resulted in the meeting place of the House remaining technically unchanged. [25] The House of Lords made its chambers available for use by the House of Commons and moved its sittings to the King’s Robing Room. For the remainder of the war years there was a ban on disclosing the location of Parliament. [26] Back to Top II. Constitutional Status and Role The UK is a constitutional monarchy. The Crown is the Head of State and has legal powers, although these are now largely ceremonial. The Crown must act upon the advice of its Ministers, who form the executive and are appointed by the Prime Minister. Ministers are typically elected Members of Parliament and thus are required to answer for their actions in Parliament.

[27] The term “Crown” often refers interchangeably to either the Monarch or executive, although as the powers of the Monarch have been drastically reduced, the term is used primarily to refer to the executive branch of the government, which is deemed to act on the Monarch’s behalf. Back to Top III. Structure and Composition The UK has a bicameral Parliament consisting of the House of Lords (the Upper House composed of both hereditary and life peers [28] ) and the House of Commons (the elected Lower House). The legislature debates issues and votes upon bills. A bill is generally first debated in the House of Commons and, if passed by a majority vote, continues to the House of Lords, which debates it and recommends changes or amendments. The bill then passes back to the House of Commons, which considers any amendments. If both Houses agree, the bill receives Royal Assent and becomes law. There are currently 650 Members of the House of Commons and 790 Members of the House of Lords who are eligible to sit.

[29] The number of Members of the House of Commons has varied, and section 11 of the Parliamentary Voting System and Constituencies Act 2011 reduces the number of Members to six hundred, although this provision has yet to come into effect. [30] The major parties within the UK, in order of seats won in the 2015 election, are the Conservative party, the Labour Party, the Scottish National Party, the Liberal Democrats, the UK Independence Party, the Green Party, the Democratic Unionist Party, Plaid Cymru (the Party of Wales), Sinn Fein, the Ulster Unionist Party, and the Independent Party. [31] There are a number of smaller parties, such as the Monster Raving Looney Party, but these are niche parties that are often not represented in Parliament. As there are 650 seats in Parliament, 326 seats are needed to obtain a majority of the House. The party that gets the majority of votes goes on to form the government. A. Committees There are numerous parliamentary committees that discuss the reform or creation of new laws and policies and are pivotal to the development of new legislation.

The committees generally consist of between ten to fifty Members of Parliament who examine government expenditure, policy, and laws in detail, and make recommendations and proposals regarding steps that should be taken to correct any issues. [32] There are Joint Committees, which consist of Members of both Houses—the Commons and the Lords. General Committees work within the Commons and consider proposed legislation. These General Committees include those that used to be known as Standing Committees. There are three Grand Committees that consider questions on Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. [33] B. Leadership and Whips in the House of Commons The House of Commons is led by the Speaker of the House, who is responsible for chairing and leading debates, and keeping order in the Commons. This is the highest role within the House of Commons, and the Speaker of the House must remain impartial. [34] Parliamentary Whips serve a number of important roles in Parliament. They work to get the government’s business through Parliament, by securing majority votes on the government’s legislative policy and programs.

[35] The Chief Whip also has an advisory role, informing the Cabinet about the “acceptability of its legislative proposals to the parliamentary party.” [36] The Chief Whip must also work to set out the schedule for the government’s program of business [37] and is directly responsible to both the Prime Minister and the Leader of the House. The Chief Whip must also liaise with Ministers regarding parliamentary business that affects their departments. [38] Back to Top IV. Elections Parliamentary elections were first introduced in medieval England as a solution from the Crown, who was required to obtain consent from Parliament to directly tax his subjects. [39] These elections evolved over time to have a detailed set of rules and procedures that continue to be refined today. National elections are known as General Parliamentary Elections. [40] The Fixed Term Parliaments Act 2011 established five-year fixed-term Parliaments, with the election occurring on the first Thursday of May, five years after the last election was held. [41] The political party that wins the most seats during this election goes on to form the government. A principle of the British system of government is that the government of the day must have the confidence of the House of Commons.

As noted above, the government is formed by the party that wins the majority of seats during the general election. A “hung Parliament” results when no party wins a majority during the election. A report from the House of Commons states that “there are four likely outcomes. These [are] . . . (a) a minority government; (b) a coalition; (c) a failure to produce a government at all; or (d) two or more of these things during the lifetime of a parliament.” [42] A hung Parliament occurred during the 2010 election, and the Conservative Party and Liberal Democrats went on to form a coalition government. [43] Prior to the Fixed Term Parliaments Act 2011, the maximum duration of a Parliament was five years, at which point Parliament automatically expired. [44] This rarely happened, however, and elections would generally occur after Parliament was dissolved, either through Royal Proclamation [45] or upon the advice of the Prime Minister. [46] The effect of the Proclamation was to vacate all the seats in the House of Commons and require a general election for the Commons.

Because there was no set timetable for when an election should be held, other than it should occur within the five-year maximum term of Parliament, the Prime Minister had a political and tactical advantage of deciding the date of the general election, although generally the election was announced in the spring in which the Parliament was due to expire. The last general election was held on May 7, 2015, and the Conservative party won 330 seats, accounting for 36.9% of votes. This secured a majority in the House for the Conservatives by twelve seats, the first time this party has secured a majority government since 1992. The next election will occur in accordance with the requirements established by the Fixed Term Parliaments Act 2011, and will take place the first Thursday in May 2020. [47] A. Electoral System In the UK, the electoral system used is that of a simple majority (plurality) for each constituency, more commonly known as the “first past the post” system. The candidate who wins the largest number of votes from his or her constituency is to Parliament. The political party that wins the most votes goes on to form the government.

A referendum was held in 2011 in which voters were asked if they wished to change the electoral system from the first past the post system to an alternative voting system. Voter turnout was higher than expected at 41%, with an overwhelming majority of 67.9% of voters rejecting a change in the electoral system. [48] Eligibility to vote in general elections in the UK is subject to a number of criteria. Primarily, the individual wishing to vote must be registered in the register of parliamentary electors for his or her relevant constituency. [49] To be able to register his or her name in the register of parliamentary electors, the individual must be a British subject, which includes Commonwealth citizens, [50] or a citizen of the Republic of Ireland residing in Britain, [51] and be eighteen years or older. A British citizen residing overseas can vote for up to fifteen years after he or she leaves the country. [52] Individuals who are disqualified from voting are Members of the House of Lords, legal or illegal immigrants, individuals of unsound mind, individuals guilty of corrupt or illegal practices in elections, and prisoners detained while serving their sentence.

This latter restriction is currently under review as a result of a successful challenge before the European Court of Justice, although the current government has stated it has no plans to provide prisoners with a vote. [53] B. Electoral Districts Electoral Districts in the UK are known as parliamentary constituencies, with each constituency electing one Member of Parliament. There are currently 650 constituencies in the UK, with the average population represented by a Member of Parliament being 68,000. [54] The breakdown of Members of Parliament representing the countries of the UK is as follows: 533 in England, 59 in Scotland, 40 in Wales, and 18 in Northern Ireland. [55] The distribution of these seats is under continuous review by four nondepartmental government bodies, known as the Boundary Commissions. The Boundary Commissions recommend changes to the boundaries of the constituencies they are responsible for reviewing to ensure that each Member of Parliament represents a proportionate number of constituents who are eligible to vote. [56] C. Registering to Vote Provisions for the registration of voters in the UK are made through regulations under the Representation of the People Act 1983.

[57] In the UK, local councils maintain voter registration lists (commonly known as the “electoral roll” or “electoral register”). The information held on the electoral roll is used for general elections, European Parliament elections, local government elections and, depending upon the persons’ place of residence, elections to the National Assembly for Wales or the Scottish Parliament. [58] Voter registration is not automatic and requires positive action (registration) on behalf of the individual wishing to vote. The electoral roll is compiled from three main sources: An annual canvass conducted by the Local Council between August and November. Voter registration forms are delivered to homes in the Local Councils area. Households are required by law to complete and return the form listing all their residents who are eligible to vote on October 15 of that year. [59] If the information on the form received by the household is accurate, registration can be renewed by phone or the Internet. Rolling registration by individual voters, who can register at any time by completing a registration form and sending it to the local electoral registration office. Online registration by individual voters, who can register at any time by completing and submitting an online registration form.

[60] The penalty for failing to complete the voter registration form or for providing false information is a fine of up to £1,000 (approximately US$1,500). [61] Additionally, failure to register results in the individual not being able to vote in any election, and also has a negative impact on his or her ability to obtain credit, as credit reporting agencies use the electoral roll to verify names and addresses of credit applicants. [62] The electoral register can be updated on a rolling basis with additions, deletions, or amendments. Individuals who move out of the voting district can submit a new voter registration form to be listed on the electoral register in their new district. Applicants must provide their old address so that the Electoral Registration Officer of the new district can notify the old district of the move. [63] D. Voter Turnout There were 45,325,100 UK parliamentary voters in 2014; [64] 66.1% of the electorate voted during the general election in 2015, the highest turnout in eighteen years. [65] E.

Replacing Members of Parliament Once elected, Members of Parliament cannot directly resign their seat. [66] The only way that a seat can be vacated is through death, disqualification, dissolution, expulsion, or elevation to the Peerage. When a parliamentary seat becomes vacant, a writ for a by-election is issued. [67] To prevent long-standing vacancies of seats, these writs are normally issued within three months of the vacancy. [68] If the vacancy occurs during a parliamentary recess, the Speaker of the House is permitted to issue a writ for election during this time. [69] There appears to be no legislation or procedure to replace a large number of MPs. It is likely that the normal procedure for appointing MPs through by-elections would be followed in these circumstances. For example, in 1985, fifteen members of the Unionist Party vacated their seats in protest over the Anglo-Irish Agreement. As technically Members of Parliament are not permitted to reign from their seats, a legal loophole was used by these members, whereby they were appointed to an office for profit under the Crown, which disqualified them from sitting an am MP. By-elections were subsequently held to fill the vacancies.

During World War II, many seats were left vacant when MPs were involved in government services or became active members of the armed forces. The government formed a coalition in 1940 and agreed upon an electoral truce, during which the parties agreed not to contest by-elections. Instead, the local constituency association of the party that had won the seat in the last election nominated a candidate. [70] However, despite this agreement, some elections were still contested when parties considered that the candidate was too radical. Back to Top V. Legislative Process Legislative powers in England and Wales are vested in Parliament. Like the US, the legislature is bicameral. Passing an Act of Parliament requires the consent of both Houses of Parliament—the House of Lords and House of Commons—and then the Act must be given Royal Assent. [71] There are many stages that a Bill must pass through in each house of Parliament before it will receive Royal Assent and enter into law. The various stages occur in each House. The bill is first introduced and read and then debated. It then passes to the committee stage, where it is examined in depth.

Once the committee stage is completed, the bill goes to the report stage and then back to be read and debated again before it is passed over to the other house, where this process occurs again. It is a principle that the supreme authority of the Queen in Parliament is sovereign, which means that Parliament alone has the authority, with Royal Assent, to enact or repeal legislation. [72] Some argue that this sovereignty has been eroded as Parliament no longer has exclusive legislative control over many areas now that the UK has joined the European Union (EU) and permits it to directly impose enforceable rights and obligations. [73] In addition, the courts have ruled that EU law has precedence over the national law of the UK when there are inconsistencies. [74] Despite a ruling from the House of Lords stating that it could not overturn an Act of Parliament and grant “rights directly contrary to Parliament’s sovereign will,” [75] in cases where national law directly conflicts with obligations imposed by EU law, the European Court of Justice has “affirmed . . .

that a national court which, in a case concerning [European] Community law, was precluded from granting interim relief by a rule of national law, must set aside that rule.” [76] Private Members’ bills may also be put forward by Members of Parliament who are not Ministers. These bills are afforded significantly less time in Parliament for debate and discussion and, as a result, are rarely enacted, but they frequently serve to raise awareness of an issue. [1] Back to Top VI. Executive Branch The Crown is the Head of State and has legal powers, although these are now largely ceremonial. The Crown must act upon the advice of its Ministers, who form the executive and are appointed by the Prime Minister. Ministers are typically elected Members of Parliament and thus are required to answer for their actions in Parliament. The term “Crown” often refers interchangeably to either the Monarch or executive; because the powers of the Monarch have been drastically reduced, however, the term is primarily used to refer to the executive branch of the government, which is deemed to act on the Monarch’s behalf and is responsible for policy making.

The actual role of the executive is not defined in legislation and, in response to a question in the House of Commons calling on the Prime Minister to define his role, Prime Minister Tony Blair noted that the Prime Minister’s roles “including the exercise of powers under the royal prerogative, have evolved over many years, drawing on convention and usage, and it is not possible precisely to define them.” [1] One of the most important powers vested in the executive is the power to send forces into armed conflict. In Britain, this power rests with the Prime Minister, who may technically exercise it without formal parliamentary approval. The government has recently conducted a public consultation on its powers to go to war and has stated that it believes that the ability to exercise the prerogative power to deploy the armed forces without requiring any formal parliamentary agreement is an outdated state of affairs in a modern democracy. It has proposed that a detailed House of Commons resolution should set out the processes Parliament should follow in order to approve any commitment of Armed Forces into armed conflict. [1] One major contrast with the US system of government is that the English courts can challenge the constitutionality of legislation only with regard to its compatibility with EC law.

The incorporation of the European Convention on Human Rights into the national law by the Human Rights Act 1998 gave British citizens a number of directly enforceable rights. [80] However, owing to the sovereignty of Parliament—the principle that Parliament is legislatively supreme and thus there are no legal restrictions on the matters it may legislate—judges cannot strike down an Act of Parliament if it finds it to be unconstitutional or invalid, even if they find it to be incompatible with the Human Rights Act. When the House of Lords does declare an Act to be incompatible with the Human Rights Act, the result is that Parliament must determine how to address the incompatibility. The operation of this procedure substantially altered the relationship between the executive and judiciary, and initially caused some friction, particularly with regard to the government’s robust antiterrorism legislation.

In 2004 the House of Lords declared that the government’s system of “preventive detention” for terrorist suspects was not compatible with the European Convention on Human Rights, resulting in a period of open hostility from members of the executive towards the judiciary, with the Secretary of State reportedly claiming they were “fed up with having to deal with a situation where Parliament debates issues and judges overturn them.” [81] The Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales was allegedly referred to by a member of the executive as being a “muddled and confused old codger.” [82] In a statement that demonstrates a significant difference between the role of the courts in the US and the UK, a member of the British executive claimed that “if public policy can always be overridden by individual challenge through the courts, then democracy itself is under threat.” [83] The position of the principle of parliamentary sovereignty was reiterated by the executive, which stated that “it is ultimately for Parliament to decide whether and how we should amend the law.” [84] Senior Foreign Law Specialist January 2016 [1] Stat Wallie 1284, 12 Edw.

1 (repealed); Union with Scotland Act 1706, 6 Ann c. 11, as amended; Union with Ireland Act 1800, 38 & 40 Geo. 3 c. 67; Government of Ireland Act 1920, 10 & 11 Geo. 5 c. 67 (repealed), , archived at . [2] “There is a well-established rule that the making of a treaty is an Executive act, while the performance of its obligations, if they entail alteration of the existing domestic law, requires legislative action.” Att’y Gen. for Canada v. Att’y Gen. for Ontario [1937] A.C. 326 [347] (H.L.). [3] History of Parliament Trust, The Story of Parliament, foreword (2015). [4] Id. at 8. Page 12 of this book notes that the first Parliament could be dated to the reign of King Athelstan (924–39), but this “Parliament” was a royal assembly of nobles and churchmen rather than a parliament as would be recognized today.

Question: In what year was the Irish parliament abolished and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland come into being?
Answer: 1800