It also involved their political representatives and various paramilitary groups on both sides, as well as British security forces. It resulted in over 3,000 deaths, migration of people and widespread destruction. It also involved the British and Irish governments in trying to find a solution that would end the Troubles.
What were they all about? The Troubles initially began with Catholic/nationalist demands for improved civil rights. These were resisted by some unionists who felt that the demands would give more power to nationalists and would undermine Northern Ireland. Demonstrations and riots arose from clashes between nationalists and unionists (or Loyalists), and the police. These led the British government to bring in the British army to protect the nationalist community. Paramilitary involvement in the conflict from both sides – the IRA on the nationalist
side, and the UVF (Ulster Volunteer Force) and UDA (Ulster Defence Association) on the unionist side, dramatically increased the levels of violence. The IRA also went beyond civil rights demands by looking for a united Ireland.
2Identify the causes of the Troubles in Northern Ireland
What Caused the Troubles? The Troubles had both long-term and short-term causes. The long-term causes went
back to the British use of conquest and colonisation in Ireland in the 16th and 17th
centuries. The short-term causes were those which led to nationalist demands for reform in Northern Ireland in the 1960s.
British Conquest and Colonisation
Growth of IRA Civil Rights Campaign Discrimination Separate Partition Communities
