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Neil Jordan directs Liam Neeson in the surrender of Dublin Castle Delivering the History curriculum through Ireland Year 9 A World Study after 1900 Why has Irish history been interpreted so differently? Jordans Michael Collins by Peter Agnew Elton High School Bury Bury Pilot Scheme Bury Education Department Ireland in Schools

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Neil Jordan directs Liam Neeson in the surrender of Dublin Castle

Delivering the History curriculum through IrelandYear 9A World Study after 1900

Why has Irish history beeninterpreted so differently?

Jordan�s Michael Collins

by

Peter AgnewElton High SchoolBury

Bury Pilot SchemeBury Education Department ’Ireland in Schools�

Contents

About this enquiry 1

What Irish children learned in their History lessons 3

Sources 5

Films as interpretations of history 6

Memories of Irish history: the potato famine of 1846 7

Remembering the Easter Rising, 1916 9

Why is Bloody Sunday so famous 10

How similar are the IRA and the UVF 12

End of unit evaluation 14

Agnew, Michael Collins (Yr 9), page 1

About this enquiry

A World Study after 1900

This enquiry uses the film Michael Collins as way of probing how Irish History can be, and is, interpreted inso many different ways. (There is a very helpful critique of the film in ’Framing History. Neil Jordan�s MichaelCollins� by Luke Gibbons in History Ireland, Spring 1997, 47-51.)

It is part of the Year 9 Scheme of Work on a World Study after 1900. It follows the general pattern of theHistory curriculum at Key Stage 3 at Elton High School which revolves around a series of main enquiries or keyquestions.

The Year 9 scheme of work, a World Study after 1900, is arguably the most important unit in Key Stage 3 andwe have chosen to frame it loosely around a quest to see how the twentieth century should be interpreted.

There are nine main enquiries, including the Irish unit:

1. Was the Edwardian Age Golden?2. Why was the Battle of the Somme so important in History?3. Why has Irish History been interpreted so differently?4. How did Hitler come to power?5. Why was there a Second World War?6. How was the Second World War fought and won?7. How should the Holocaust be remembered?8. Did America win the Cold War?9. Should the twentieth century be called the ’Century of Human Rights�?

Where the Scheme of Work fits in

These enquiries come after the National Curriculum study unit 12, Britain 1750-1900. Students will have lookedat the growth of trade and industry in the nineteenth century and the most recent enquiry considered whetherBritain had become a fairer society in the nineteenth century. The study on extending the franchise in thenineteenth century feeds directly to the work on Suffragettes.

In future, the inclusion of the Irish Famine in the study of Britain 1750-1900, will help students understand morereadily the issues involved in the Irish drive for independence.

Links

In the scheme of work as a whole, the literacy opportunities and links with numeracy, ICT, citizenship and othersubjects are many. The richness of the Irish sources and the range of issues raised by conflict within Irelandand the clash between Irish nationalism and British imperialism enhances such opportunities.

Time

The Irish unit occupies three of the thirty weeks devoted to the World Study after 1900, which gives three lessoneach of seventy minutes.

The requires tight organisation and time management, which is managed by devoting each lesson to clearlydefined questions, as outlined in the table below.

Students have enjoyed working on Ireland so much that the study of Ireland in being extended in the earlieryears.

Agnew, Michael Collins (Yr 9), page 2

Week Key questions & skills Learning outcomes Teaching strategies Possible homework

1 Why has Irish History been interpreted sodifferently? Why was there such a furore over the film’Michael Collins� ? ’Why are there twodifferent views of what happened in Irelandbefore 1916? Skills involved: understanding wheredifferent interpretations arrive from. Makingdeductions.Linking causes.

Pupils will be able to understand and use keyvocabulary including: Interpretations,Nationalist, Unionist, Fenian, Rebellion,Home Rule. Pupils will be able to show why there aremore Unionists living in the North of Irelandand what grounds Irish people like Collinshad for wanting to break away from Britishcontrol in the early 1900s.

Look at Modern Minds p. 42 with the pupils. Try to get them to answer thequestion; What sort of man was Michael Collins? Support with clip fromfilm which shows IRA violence. Pupils should be confused... They needthe background. Introduce blurb from Warner Bros. (OHT) Try readingthis in different voices. This should show the contentious nature of the filmas interpretation. The second part of the lesson is aimed at showing why two young people,both born and brought up in Ireland, could have very different views onIrish History. There is a special w/s for this. To conclude this week�s work, pupils should finish the table on p45 ofMM. (Less able groups could have the left hand column filled in beforehand.)

Worksheet on the IrishPotato famine. Pupilshave to produce a flowchart showing the causesand consequences of thefamine.

Words Interpretations, Nationalist, Unionist, Fenian, Rebellion, Home Rule.

2 Why was there an Easter Rising of 1916?How has the Easter Rising beenremembered? How significant was the Easter Rising? Whowere the Heroes in the War of Independence?Does the Michael Collins film excuse hisviolence during the war?Skills involved: as week 1 plusunderstanding how different interpretationsresult in myths. Forming judgements and substantiating them.

Pupils should be able to use long andshort-term factors to explain why there was arising in 1916. They should be able todescribe the bias of the film clips of theRising and the War (namely Bloody Sunday)in order to shape their understanding ofCollins� role. They should be able to argueboth for placing a high and low degree ofSIGNIFICANCE on the Easter Rising. Theyshould be able to explain why both eventshave been interpreted differently byUnionists and Nationalists.

Pupils to be given several statistics about the Rising together with statisticsabout the Battle of the Somme. Which was more momentous? Thedifficulty in ascribing significance can be emphasised by contrasting thetime given over to the Rising by Michael Collins film and the film: RebelHeart. There is a w/s on Bloody Sunday investigating how it has beenremembered. The next section of the lesson could be spent watching one or two clipsfrom the Michael Collins film, analysing the way that the director buildsup a sympathetic portrait of Collins. This can lead to an extension of theprevious week�s work looking at how different communities have regardedboth the rising and the war.

The other ’ BloodySunday� Can be set as aHW to contrast with the1920 one. More ablepupils can research thison the internet, but otherscan be given a collectionof sources and be askedto sort them out in to’evidence of the event�and ’later interpretations�e.g U2 song

Words Retribution, Bias.

3 How has Ireland�s bloody past affected lifefor people in Ireland today? What causes violence in Northern Irelandtoday? How has History been remembered bydifferent communities in Ulster. Skills involved: inference from pictorialsources. Interpretations of history Linking KeyFeatures together, understanding why theTroubles started in the 1960 (more able).

All pupils will be able to give some reasonswhy Protestant and Catholic communities inUlster live separate lives. All will be able toshow why murals in the differentcommunities choose to depict differentevents from History. Some pupils will haveprogressed further and will be able to showsimilar reasons for people from bothcommunities to become involved in violenceand terrorism. Most pupils should be able toexplore ways forward in N. Ireland.

Using the two videos from Mr Monk�s collection (LOYALISTS andPROVOS) pupils should record separately in a table the reasons theterrorists interviewed give for their involvement in terrorist acts.LITERACY work can focus on grouping these different reasons underheadings. There is a w/s for the less able allowing these ideas to beattached to the IRA or UVF in speech bubbles. The next stage is toexamine a series of murals in N. Ireland (2 good ones in MM but PA hasOHTs of others) before asking pupils to explain the message of each one.Finally. a brainstorm of possible solutions to the problems can be mademore interesting by dividing the class into two and giving each sideopinion cards for the Protestant and Catholic community members andasking them to comment on the solutions that the teacher proposes.

Design a Peace mural.Revise for a simple teston what pupils havelearned in this unit onIreland.

Words IRA, UVF

Agnew, Michael Collins (Yr 9), page 3

What Irish children learned in their history lessons

In 1916, a group of Irish Nationalists tried to take over control of their country from the British. Up to that time,the whole of Ireland was part of the British Empire and was run by the British Government in London. TheNationalists wanted Ireland to be an independent country run by the Irish. Another group of people who livedin Ireland wanted Ireland to remain part of the British Empire. They liked the UNION Ireland had with Britain.They called themselves the Unionists.

Your task

Read the introductions of the two people here. Both were at school in Ireland in 1904 and were in Year 9. Theywere in different schools of course. They are both being told the ’facts� of Irish History. In their own exercisebooks they write down their opinions of these facts.

Michael CollinsNATIONALIST

Came from a poor farming familyin Cork in south Ireland. Hisfamily were Catholic and he wastaught by a Nationalist teacher.He felt the British had invadedand used the Irish and that theyhad no right to rule Ireland.

In the 1530s, the English did aterrible because....................................................................................................................................................................................................................

Queen Elizabeth had no right todo what she did all those yearsago because....................................................................................................................................................................................................................

Lesson 1England tried to make the Irishfollow English customs in the1530s, because they did notwant Irish Catholics to rebelagainst them. Ireland was allCatholic at this time.

Lesson 2Irish Catholic lords rebel againstEnglish rule in the 1590s.Elizabeth does not want theSpanish to use Ireland as a wayof attacking England. Elizabethtakes land away from IrishCatholics and gives it to ScottishProtestants. Some of the bestfarmland goes to these newlandowners, under the rule of afew Protestants.

Beatrice StuartUNIONIST

Beatrice came from a rich farmingfamily in Antrim in NorthernIreland. Her family had originallycome from Scotland and beengiven the land hundreds of yearsago by Queen Elizabeth I.Beatrice�s family were Protestantas were all her friends.

It�s a good thing the English didthis because....................................................................................................................................................................................................................

It�s no wonder that Elizabethgave land to my ancestors fromScotland because....................................................................................................................................................................................................................

Agnew, Michael Collins (Yr 9), page 4

Michael Collins

NATIONALIST

Cromwell was a cold bloodedmurderer because....................................................................................................................................................................................................................

William of Orange was no herobecause he....................................................................................................................................................................................................................

The British were treating theIrish ..................... at this timebecause....................................................................................................................................................................................................................

The poor Irish tenants have beentreated unfairly because....................................................................................................................................................................................................................

I wish we has Home Rulebecause....................................................................................................................................................................................................................

Lesson 3In 1649, after the English CivilWar, the Irish Catholicsrebelled. Oliver Cromwell ledan army over from England tostop the rebellion. In the townof Drogheda, 3000 Irish peoplewere killed. Later in 1690, theProtestant king of England,William of Orange defeated anIrish army of rebels led by aCatholic ex king of England.

Lesson 4After 1800, the Irish were ableto vote for Protestant Membersof Parliament to go to London.In 1829, Catholics wereallowed to become MPs Therewas to be no parliament inIreland however.

Lesson 5In the 1800s, most of the landwas owned by Protestants.When the Catholic tenantfarmers could not pay theirrent, they were evicted by theirlandlords. This situation had gota little better by 1900, but bythat time there were many IrishMPs who wanted Ireland tohave it�s own parliament(Home Rule). The Britishgovernment were worriedabout a group of extremenationalists called FENIANS.The Fenians had tried to takeover Ireland by force in 1867.The British government did notwant to give in to Home Rule.

Beatrice StuartUNIONIST

These Catholics just don� t learn. Cromwell had every right to....................................................................................................................................................................................................................

If it were not for William ofOrange, we Protestants wouldhave....................................................................................................................................................................................................................

1829 was a very worrying yearfor my ancestors....................................................................................................................................................................................................................

I think that the Britishgovernment has every right to bestrict with Ireland and not toallow Home Rule because....................................................................................................................................................................................................................

Agnew, Michael Collins (Yr 9), page 5

THE FENIAN GUY FAWKES

Sources

A. A British cartoon of an Irish nationalist(republican), December 1867

B. Map showing those parts of Ireland whichwere given to English and Scottish settlers

The cartoon was published in the satirical magazine,Punch, 28 December 1867, at the time of a Fenianrising in Ireland and a bombing campaign in England.

Plantation was adopted by the Tudors and Stuarts to’civilize� and control Ireland and to provide an outlet forthe surplus population of England and Scotland.

C. A Protestant description of what CatholicIrish people did when they rebelled in 1641

D. A description of what Oliver Cromwell�ssoldiers did at Drogheda in 1649

The soldiers threw down their armson an offer of quarter. The enemyentered the Mill Mount withoutresistance. They put every soldier tothe sword and all the citizens whowere Irish, man, woman and child.

The inscription reads ’They have set men and women onhot gridirons to make them confess where their moneywas.�

This was written by the Earl of Clarendon in 1668-70.He was in France with Charles I�s son at the time of theIrish rebellion. He was a friend of the Duke of Ormond,the Protestant commander of the Royalist army whichfought Cromwell.

Agnew, Michael Collins (Yr 9), page 6

Films as interpretations of history Michael Collins

This controversial film charts the life of the founder of the IRA. Does it make him look glamorous?

Clip number 1 Michael Collins taking files from the archive in the castle and then demanding files on British soldiers.

This clip makes paramilitary activity look .....................

Clip number 2 English soldiers open fire on the public.

This clip makes the English soldiers look .....................

Clip number 3 A maid steals papers from the bin of the chief of secret police.

This clip makes terrorism look .....................

Clip number 4Collins and the IRA volunteers in the warehouse.

This makes terrorism look .....................

Clip number 5 The clerk who let Collins into the castle is hanged.

This clip makes the Protestants look .....................

Clip number 6 The murder of the chief of secret police.

This makes paramilitary activity look .....................

Clip number 7Collins being romantic.

This makes Collins look .....................

Overall I think Michael Collins in this film is shown as being .....................

Overall the film makes terrorism look .....................

Many critics have said that the film is not historically accurate. Some say it distorts history and makes amurderer look glamorous. This part of history is still very sensitive as the relatives of the victims are still alive.Indeed people are still dying.

Should this film be banned because it is offensive to those who have lost relatives at the hands of the IRA?

Explain whether you agree with this point of view using details from the film to back up your argument.

Agnew, Michael Collins (Yr 9), page 7

A drawing of starving children,printed in the Illustrated LondonNews in 1846.

Causes Effects

The Irish Potato Famine

of 1846

IDEAS BOX Over a million people died. Many Irish people could only afford to eat potatoes. Thousandsof Irish people were evicted from their homes. A disease struck the potato crop in 1846. Over a million Irish emigrated. Many Irish farmers had to farm poor quality land.

Memories of Irish historyThe potato famine of 1846(A famine is when a large number of people starve to death)

In the first part of the 19th century, Ireland�s population was rising fast. This wasdespite the fact that most of the Catholic Irish were tenants who lived on poorfarmland. They had lived on poor farmland ever since British Protestantlandowners had taken over their land in the 1600s. The Irish were able to havelarge families however, because these poor farmers lived almost entirely onpotatoes, and a field of potatoes produces a lot of food. The Protestant landownersencouraged their tenants to grow potatoes.

Ireland�s farmers also grew corn, but this was paid as rent to the Protestantlandlords, so the Irish people were forced to live on potatoes. In 1846, disasterstruck. The potato crop caught a disease and failed all over Ireland. Thousands ofIrish people began to starve. Many were forced to eat their corn which they weresaving to pay the landlord. Without corn to pay as rent, thousands of Irish farmerswere EVICTED from their farms. The WORKHOUSES of Ireland were unable tocope with the thousands of homeless and starving people.

The scale of the famine shocked many people in Britain. However, the price of corn in Britain was so high, thatthe government could not buy enough to give to the Irish. Even after the government finally brought the priceof corn down and sent it to Ireland, it was too late for many.

Over ONE MILLION Irish people starved to death in the famine. Many more lost their homes and farms is theybecame evicted from the land. Over a million Irish decided that the only way out of their misery vas toEMIGRATE abroad. About 75% went to the USA, but others went to live in English cities like Liverpool andLondon.

Tasks

1. Put the title ’The Irish famine of 1846� in your books along with today�s date and underline it.

2. Your first task is to make a diagram to show the causes and effects of the famine. In your book copy hisdiagram. Then in the bubbles on the left, write down the causes. Use the ideas box to choose causes nthe bubbles on the right, write down the effects. Use the ideas box to choose effects

Agnew, Michael Collins (Yr 9), page 8

A people whose lands and lives are owned by others are very unsafe. The Irish famineof 1846 showed this. The corn crops were enough to feed everybody, but the landlordswould have their rents in spite of the famine. They took the whole harvest and lefthunger to those who raised it. If the people of Ireland had been the landlords ofIreland, not a single human creature would have died of hunger.

D

B

CA E

3. Now you have completed your diagram, label the causes LONG TERM or SHORT TERM. TheLong Term Causes are the causes which had been making things tough for the Irish for yearsbefore the famine. The Short Term Causes are the things that sparked off the famine.

4. Look at the picture of the starving children on the first page. Do you think the artist wanted thereaders of the newspaper in London to feel sorry for the Irish OR to hate the Irish? Explain youranswer.

5. Look at the picture at the foot of this page. It shows a family being thrown out of their house afterthe famine because they cannot pay their rent. DESCRIBE what you can see happening at (a) ,(b), (c), (d), (e).

6. Read this source. It was written by an Irish Nationalist in the 1860s.

Who does this author blame for the famine? Explain your answer.

7. Why might memories of the famine make cause disagreement between Irish Nationalists and IrishProtestant Unionists?

Agnew, Michael Collins (Yr 9), page 9

Remembering the Easter Rising, 1916

Extract from the Irish Independent newspaper printed on the fiftieth anniversary of the Rising in 1966.

DUBLIN FLAMES KINDLED A NATION�S SPIRITFifty years ago in Dublin, seven men with a dream led out a small armyof Irishmen and women - that Ireland might be free. The dream was anage-old one,

THE DREAMThe dream of a free Ireland, obeying no other authority except her own;a Republic in which the Irish people would resume their rightful heritageas owners and rulers of the land.

This was the dream of Pearse, Connolly, Clarke, Plunkett, MacDonagh,McDermott and Ceannt. By force of arms they set out to make reality ofthe dream. After their fight and their deaths things were never the sameagain in Ireland. The nation had been set upon a road on which therecould be no turning back. Ireland could never again be cheated.

During the Rising, the leaders printed a PROCLAMATION, which setout Ireland�s RIGHT to be a free country.

We declare the right of the people of Ireland to the ownershipof Ireland, and to ... the control of Ireland�s future, to besovereign and indefeasible (true) .The long usurpation of that right by a foreign people andgovernment has not extinguished the right, nor can it ever beextinguished except by the destruction of the Irish people.

This Proclamation was signed in blood by the seven leaders of theRising. Scores of others also sacrificed their lives for it, hundreds moresuffered imprisonment and internment, thousands forfeited freedom,comfort and careers to carry its term into effect.

Are we today fully mindful of what occurred in that Easter Week of1916? Have we forgotten the dream for which these men died?

Agnew, Michael Collins (Yr 9), page 10

Catholic housing in Londonderry, NorthernIreland

There was no breakdown in armydiscipline ... soldiers who identifiedarmed IRA gunmen fired upon them inaccordance with their orders. Eachsoldier was his own judge of whether hehad identified a gunman.

It was a massacre. I saw no shooting atthe troops. I only saw army shooting.The British army should hang it�s headin shame after today�s disgustingviolence. They shot indiscriminately andeverywhere around them without anyprovocation.

Why is Bloody Sunday so famous?

You are now going to study another Bloody Sunday. This one took place in Londonderry inNorthern Ireland in 1972.

The background

After 1921, most of Ireland became independent and the British pulled out. Michael Collinsand his fellow nationalists had won a famous victory!

However, the North of Ireland remained part of the UK. This was becausethere were many Protestant Unionists living in Northern Ireland who did notwant to become part of an Ireland ruled by mainly Catholic nationalists.

For the Catholics living in Northern Ireland,life was tough. Protestant people tended tohave the best jobs and houses. They evencontrolled most of the town councils and thepolice.

In the late 1960s, the Catholics in NorthernIreland started to campaign for-more rights.They went on marches and sometimes rioted.Many joined the IRA to use violence to get

what they wanted. The British sent more soldiers to Northern Ireland, but thisdid not stop the Catholics from protesting.

On 30 January 1972, a huge march took place in Londonderry. The British armyhad banned the march because they thought that the IRA would cause trouble andkill people.

What happened?

As the crowd marched from the Catholic housing estate of the Bogside towards the city centre, they came upagainst army barricades. Shots rang out, people started screaming and in a short time 13 people lay dead, killedby army bullets. Seven of the dead were under 18 years old.

Questions

1. Put the title, ’Why is Bloody Sunday� so famous in your exercise book and underline it.

2. Look at the two accounts of what happened. One was written by a Catholic priest who was on the marchand one was written by the British government investigation into what happened.Which one is which? Start your answer like this:

Agnew, Michael Collins (Yr 9), page 11

A B

3. This poster was produced by Sinn Fein (the Catholic Nationalist -Republican - political party) in 1986.a. Why are the words ’Shot on Sight� written over the coffins?b. Why do you think Sinn Fein want people to remember Bloody

Sunday even 11 years after the event?

4. The poster below was made in 1997. It is advertising a march inLondonderry to remember Bloody Sunday.a. Why does the poster show dove�s feathers fluttering down?b. Does this poster want us to remember Bloody Sunday in the same

way as the first poster?

5. Look at the picture of the girl carrying flowers at the top of thisworksheet. This picture was taken in 2000 on a march to rememberBloody Sunday. This girl is younger than you and was not around in1972. Why then do you think she was taking part in this march?

6. CHOOSE ONE OF THE NEXT TWO QUESTIONSEithera. Now you have looked at the Bloody Sunday of 21 November 1920 and the Bloody Sunday of 30

January 1972, how similar do you think both events are?orb. Do you think it is a good idea to remember events like Bloody Sunday in marches every year?

Agnew, Michael Collins (Yr 9), page 12

How similar are the IRA and the UVF? Name: ............................

As you learned last week, when Ireland achieved independence from Britain in 1921, the North of Irelandcontinued to be ruled by Britain. 66% of the people in the North are Protestants. They are afraid that if theirpart of Ireland lost its links with Britain and became ruled by the south, their way of life would disappear. 34%of the people in the North of Ireland are Catholic. Most of them are nationalists and they want the North ofIreland to become part of the south.

In the late 1960s, trouble began between the Catholics and the Protestants of Northern Ireland. Two paramilitaryorganisations were set up to fight for what each side wanted. The Irish Republican Army (IRA) tried to continuewhat Collins had done earlier in the century. The Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) fought to keep Ulster British.

Task

Look at these two people. They are both paramilitaries. Since they use terror and killing to get what they want,they are often called terrorists. However, they would not admit to being terrorists. They think that they areFREEDOM FIGHTERS. Use a pencil to shade in the motives bubbles. These show the reasons why they takepart in paramilitary activities. Then underline the actions bubbles. These show what they do. Now join eachbubble to the correct person. Some bubbles can go to both people.

An IRA member. 25 yearsold. Lives in the Bogsidearea of Londonderry(Catholic)

A member of the UVF. 25years old. Lives in theShankill road area ofBelfast (Protestant)

My friend�s brother was killed by British troops on BloodySunday.

For hundreds of years, my people have marched downthe street to celebrate the victory of King William overthe Catholic rebels. Now the British tell us we must notmarch into Catholic areas.

The Catholics will destroy our way of life if they get intopower.

Michael Collins showed us; that the only way to get theBritish out of Ireland is to use violence and kill soldiers.

The British government says that we must give morepower and money to Catholics. We cannot do this andwill fight them.

In 1982, the IRA prisoner, Bobby Sands starved himselfto death in prison to try and get the British out. What ahero! I wish I could be so brave.

I will paint "Up the IRA" on a Protestant�s house to scarethem and get them to leave our town.

I�ve just heard that the IRA have planted a bomb inManchester. The murderers. Don�t worry, we�ll get even!

Our soldiers get treated quite well in prison. I don�tworry about getting caught. Ours is a cause worthfighting for.

I know someone who can get me a gun. If I join our sideI can fight for our freedom and I�ll be a hero.

Somebody in my street had their house burned down bymembers of the UVF. When we find out who they are,they won�t walk again.

Agnew, Michael Collins (Yr 9), page 13

My young brother has just painted kerbstones in ourstreet Red, White and Blue. The police didn�t stop him.They support us.

I went to a Protestant school. As far as I�m concerned, allCatholics are Papists (followers of the Pope) and I hatethem all.

My grandfather told me some great tales about killingBritish soldiers back in 1919. This makes me feel muchbetter about what I do.

The Protestants have always had the best jobs and thebest land around here. It will only end when we joinwith the south of Ireland.

I went into a Catholic pub the other day and shot 2 men.I didn�t feet any sympathy. I am a soldier and this is awar. All Catholics are supporters of the IRA.

I went to a Catholic school. I don�t know any Protestants.I hate them all.

Just look at how the British treated us during the potatofamine. They left us to starve. I hate the British for that.

What were the main reasons the paramilitaries had for getting involved in killing? Give four reasons.

What should Britain do?

Here are some ideas about how to stop the violence. For each solution however, are the problems. Match eachsolution with a possible problem. The first has been done for

Possible solution Possible problem

Take all British soldiers out of Ireland. Too many havebeen murdered. Leave the Catholics and Protestantsto fight it out.

If the British execute terrorists, it make them look likemartyrs (dying for a cause). Thousands of young menmight rush to join the terrorists.

Get Northern Ireland to run its own government madeup of equal numbers of Nationalists and Unionists.

War might break out between the IRA and the UVF.The UVF will feel let down by Britain and might startbomb attacks in British Cities.

Send more soldiers to Ireland. Bring back hanging forany terrorist caught with guns or bombs.

This might make both sides target the British army andgovernment with their guns and home-made bombs.

Ban the marches by both Catholics and Protestants.Ban the paintings on houses. These cause a lot of badfeeling and wind each side up.

There would be a great deaf of quarrelling sinceUnionists and Nationalists hate each other.

As you can see, there is no easy solution. Unless you have any ideas ....

Agnew, Michael Collins (Yr 9), page 14

End of unit evaluation Name: ............................

Key words

Complete these sentences.

1. A Unionist is an Irish person who wants Ireland to be ....................................................................

2. A Nationalist is an Irish person who wants Ireland to be ....................................................................

3. The letters IRA stand for ....................................................................

4. Is the UVF, a Protestant or a Catholic terrorist organisation?....................................................................

Key bits of history

5. Why is Michael Collins seen as a hero by many Catholics living in Ireland today?

....................................................................................................................................................................

6. Why do Catholics living in the North of Ireland want people to remember what happened on BloodySunday in Londonderry in 1972?

....................................................................................................................................................................

7. Which part of Ireland is still ruled by Britain today? ....................................................................

MuralsYou have seen how Catholics and Protestants use murals to remind people of their history and beliefs. Imaginethat you live in Northern Ireland. Some Catholics in your street want to paint a picture from the film, MichaelCollins, on the end wall of a house. Explain whether you think it is a good idea or a bad idea to paint a pictureshowing Michael Collins as a hero.

I think you should/should not paint this picture because

Studying Northern IrelandWhy do you think it is important far us to understand what it is going on in Northern Ireland?