Outline of the Troubles
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to the Troubles.
The Troubles – historical ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland that lasted about 30 years from the late 1960s to 1998. Also known internationally as the Northern Ireland conflict, it is sometimes described as an "irregular war" or "low-level war". The conflict began in the late 1960s and is usually deemed to have ended with the Good Friday Agreement of 1998. Although the Troubles mostly took place in Northern Ireland, at times violence spilled over into parts of the Republic of Ireland, England, and mainland Europe.
Main articles
Paramilitaries
Laws in both the Republic of Ireland and the UK proscribe (ban) membership of a number of Irish republican and Ulster loyalist groups. Several other smaller paramilitary factions have appeared throughout the Troubles, and some groups have used cover-names to deflect responsibility for attacks.
In this context, operational refers to the period during which the 'official' paramilitary campaign was conducted.
Republicans
| Name | Initials | Operational |
|---|---|---|
| Saor Éire | SÉ | 1967–1975 |
| Provisional Irish Republican Army | PIRA | 1970–2005 |
| Official Irish Republican Army | OIRA | 1970–1972 |
| Irish National Liberation Army | INLA | 1974–2009 |
| Irish People's Liberation Organisation | IPLO | 1986–1992 |
| Continuity Irish Republican Army | CIRA | 1994– |
| Real Irish Republican Army | RIRA | 1997– |
| Óglaigh na hÉireann (Real IRA splinter group) | ONH | 2009– |
Umbrella groups
Loyalists
| Name | Initials | Operational |
|---|---|---|
| Ulster Protestant Volunteers | UPV | 1966–1969 |
| Ulster Volunteer Force Red Hand Commando | UVF RHC | 1966– 1972–2007 |
| Ulster Defence Association Ulster Freedom Fighters | UDA UFF | 1971– |
| Ulster Resistance | UR | 1986–? |
| Loyalist Volunteer Force | LVF | 1996–2005 |
| Orange Volunteers | OV | 1998– |
| Red Hand Defenders | RHD | 1998– |
Umbrella groups
Cover names used by paramilitaries
- Protestant Action Force – Used by the UVF to claim sectarian attacks.
- South Armagh Republican Action Force – Used by the PIRA's South Armagh Brigade to claim sectarian attacks in the mid-1970s
- Catholic Reaction Force – Used by the INLA to claim sectarian attacks.
- Armagh People's Republican Army & People's Liberation Army – was used by the INLA to claim some of their earliest attacks, mostly in 1975.
- Ulster Freedom Fighters – Used by the UDA to claim violent attacks.
- Red Hand Brigade – Was used as a cover by the Glenanne gang members who carried out the Dublin and Monaghan bombings in May 1974.[1]
Periods of activity
In the table below:
- The period of activity for republican groups is shown in green.
- The period of activity for loyalist groups is shown in orange.
- The period of ceasefire is shown in grey.
| Group | Year | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 70 | 71 | 72 | 73 | 74 | 75 | 76 | 77 | 78 | 79 | 80 | 81 | 82 | 83 | 84 | 85 | 86 | 87 | 88 | 89 | 90 | 91 | 92 | 93 | 94 | 95 | 96 | 97 | 98 | 99 | ||
| Provisional IRA | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Official IRA | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| UVF | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| UDA | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| INLA | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| IPLO | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Continuity IRA | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Real IRA | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| LVF | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
State security forces
United Kingdom
Northern Ireland
- Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC)
- Ulster Special Constabulary (USC) – to 30 April 1970
- Northern Ireland Prison Service (NIPS)
- Ulster Defence Regiment (UDR) – from 1 January 1970 to 30 June 1992
- Royal Irish Regiment (RIR) – from 1 July 1992
Republic of Ireland
- Irish Army
- Garda Síochána (police)
Political parties
Listing includes brief summary of ideology and position on the Good Friday Agreement 1998.
Pro-Agreement
- Sinn Féin (SF). President: Gerry Adams. Militant nationalist. Associated with the Provisional IRA. Translation from Irish: "We Ourselves".
- The Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP). Leader: Colum Eastwood. Moderate centre-left nationalist.
- The Workers' Party (WP). President: Mick Finnegan. Marxist nationalist. Formerly Official Sinn Féin.
Anti-Agreement
- The Irish Republican Socialist Party (IRSP). Militant socialist nationalist. Political wing of INLA. Have been on ceasefire since 1998.
- Republican Sinn Féin (RSF). President: Des Dalton. Militant nationalist. Associated with the Continuity IRA.
- The 32 County Sovereignty Movement (32CSM). President: Francis Mackey. Militant nationalist. Associated with the Real IRA.
- The Republican Network for Unity (RNU). Militant nationalist. Accused by Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) of being the political wing of Óglaigh na hÉireann (Real IRA splinter group), however this is rejected by both groups.
Pro-Agreement
- The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP). Leader: Peter Robinson. Radical populist unionist. Originally anti-Agreement.
- The Ulster Unionist Party (UUP). Leader: Tom Elliott. Moderate conservative unionist.
- The Progressive Unionist Party (PUP). Leader: Billy Hutchinson. Moderate centre-left unionist. Political wing of Ulster Volunteer Force.
- The Conservative Party also organises and contests elections in Northern Ireland. Moderate unionist.
Anti-Agreement
- Traditional Unionist Voice (TUV). Leader: Jim Allister. Old school loyalist.
Other
- The Alliance Party of Northern Ireland. Leader: David Ford. Liberal cross-community. Pro-Agreement
- The Green Party. Environmentalist. Pro-Agreement.
- Ulster Third Way. Supports Northern Ireland independence.
Political structures
Northern Ireland government
1921–1972
1998–
Northern Ireland legislatures
1921–1972
The Parliament of Northern Ireland:
1972–1998
- The Northern Ireland Assembly (1973–1974)
- The Northern Ireland Constitutional Convention (1975–1976)
- The Northern Ireland Assembly (1982–1986)
- The Northern Ireland Forum (1996–1998)
1998–
Republic of Ireland government
- Taoiseach (prime minister)
- Department of Defence
- Department of Foreign Affairs
- Dáil Éireann (assembly)
- Seanad Éireann (senate)
United Kingdom government
- Prime Minister
- The Ministry of Defence (MOD)
- The Northern Ireland Office (NIO)
- The House of Commons
- The House of Lords
- The Northern Ireland Affairs Committee (House of Commons)
- The Northern Ireland Grand Committee (House of Commons)
Peace process
Co-operative bodies
Key steps in the peace process
- Sunningdale Agreement (1973)
- Anglo-Irish Agreement (1985)
- Downing Street Declaration (1993) and principle of consent
- Establishment of the IICD (1997)
- Belfast Agreement (1998)
- Amendment of Articles 2 and 3 (1999)
- Establishment of the Independent Monitoring Commission (2003)
- IRA ceasefire and decommissioning (2005)
- St Andrews Agreement (2006)
Cultural and religious organisations
Religious
Sporting
- The Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA)
Unionist/Protestant
Nationalist/Catholic
- The Ancient Order of Hibernians (AOH)
References
- "Interim Report on the Report of the Independent Commission of Inquiry into the Dublin and Monaghan Bombings" (PDF). Joint Committee on Justice, Equality, Defence and Women’s Rights. Oireachtas. December 2003 – via Conflict Archive on the Internet (CAIN).
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