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History and politics
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Timeline: History of Ireland
Delve into Irish history with our interactive timeline.
Take part nowTimeline: History of IrelandLevel: 1 Introductory
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The Good Friday Agreement - 20 Year Anniversary
10th April 2018 marks 20 years since the Good Friday Agreement was made.
Read nowThe Good Friday Agreement - 20 Year AnniversaryLevel: 1 Introductory
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How the Good Friday Agreement changed my life...
Quintin Oliver, who ran the non-party and cross-party YES Campaign in the 1998 Referendum, discusses how The Good Friday Agreement changed his life.
Read nowHow the Good Friday Agreement changed my life...Level: 1 Introductory
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Ireland and the Battle of The Somme
Why does the Battle of The Somme still matter so much in Ireland, for both the South and North?
Read nowIreland and the Battle of The SommeLevel: 1 Introductory
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Brexit and the Irish border
Dr Philp O'Sullivan reflects on the changing geographical relationship between the UK and Ireland.
Read nowBrexit and the Irish borderLevel: 1 Introductory
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Change in the West of Ireland
Introducing a collection of articles asking 'How can unique and distinctive regions, like the West of Ireland, retain the qualities that make them unique while continuing to modernise and interact with the wider world?'
Read nowChange in the West of Ireland
Do we use our buildings to declare who we are? How far does our heritage influence our collective identity? This insightful album reveals Ireland's shifting attitudes towards its cultural heritage. In 1922 when it broke free of British rule to become an independent nation state, the Irish nationalists abandoned high-profile buildings like Dublin Castle as it was symbolic of their British oppressors, and it fell into ruin. Yet they proudly restored older sites like Cashel and New Grange, which is even older than the pyramids, to emphasise an earlier romantic Irish past. In doing so they literally reconstructed their new identity through obliterating the memories they didn't want to keep and reinforcing those they did. Today, with the passing of time and after joining the EU, the neglected buildings no longer provoke associations with a painful colonial history. St Mary's Church is now appreciated as a bar as well as a work of art. Ireland has moved on, and now embraces all of its heritage. In the audio track, Anne Laurence, a History Professor at The Open University, elaborates on the issues addressed in the album. This material is drawn from The Open University course AA100 The arts past and present.
A look at three female Irish Poets – Ellen O'Leary, Katharine Tynan and Nuala Ní Dhomhnaill.
Arts and language
Health and social issues
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The realities of rural life in the 1950s-1980s
The period of the 1950s to 1980s was the beginning of modernisation in community life and farming and the development of manufacturing industry in the West of Ireland.
Watch nowThe realities of rural life in the 1950s-1980s -
Culture and regional distinctiveness
Culture and how language identifies that culture are key to understanding what makes a region unique.
Read nowCulture and regional distinctiveness -
The rural dimension – rundale in the West of Ireland
The rundale system once governed how farmland was distributed between tenants in Ireland. It supposedly died out in the 19th century, but this was not actually the case in some parts of the West of Ireland.
Read nowThe rural dimension – rundale in the West of Ireland -
The rural dimension – after rundale
How did the rural areas of Western Ireland change after the rundale system was replaced?
Watch nowThe rural dimension – after rundale -
A changing uniqueness – The changing ‘place’ of the West
The population of Western Ireland declined dramatically between 1891 and 1961. How do you think this affected Ireland as a whole?
Read nowA changing uniqueness – The changing ‘place’ of the West -
Synthesis as a way of understanding the changing uniqueness of rural Ireland
What is synthesis? Discover how this way of thinking helps us to understand more about the way in which places retain their uniqueness within wider systems of interdependence.
Take part nowSynthesis as a way of understanding the changing uniqueness of rural Ireland
Geology and environment
The geology of Northern Ireland
Discover the exceptional geological diversity of Northern Ireland.
Read now ❯The geology of Northern Ireland
Bird ringing in Bog Meadows
Bird ringing is a world-wide method of finding out where birds migrate and how population levels change. This video shows how it works in Bog Meadows, a city nature reserve a few metres from the M1 motorway in Northern Ireland.
Watch now ❯Bird ringing in Bog Meadows
Breaghmore Stone Circle
Discover the archaeological legacy of the first farmers in the landscape of Neolithic, Norman and Plantation farmers throughout Northern Ireland.
Watch now ❯Breaghmore Stone Circle
Rathlin Island and Lough Neagh
Learn about seabirds in enormous numbers, the changing appearance of the landscape as plant species changed with the changing temperatures and a relict fish that’s being conserved by local volunteers.
Watch now ❯Rathlin Island and Lough Neagh
Glenariff to Fermanagh
A look at Glenariff, one of the 9 Glens of Antrim, investigating how certain geological features managed to find their way to places they would not normally be.
Watch now ❯Glenariff to Fermanagh
Fermanagh: The backdrop to the G8 summit
Explore the hidden gems of Fermanagh in Northern Ireland, an inspired choice for the 2013 G8 summit.
Read now ❯Fermanagh: The backdrop to the G8 summitAge of revolution
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The Roots of the Irish Rebellion
What were the roots of the Irish Rebellion?
Read nowThe Roots of the Irish RebellionLevel: 1 Introductory
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War in Ireland
The conflict had a different complexion with the arrival of war in Ireland
Read nowWar in IrelandLevel: 1 Introductory
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Irish Plantations: By map
Developments in Ireland were a major factor in the English Civil War. Plot the impact of the war on Ireland as events unfolded with our series of maps of the Irish plantations
Read nowIrish Plantations: By mapLevel: 1 Introductory
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Ireland erupts
Never a quiet nation, once again the fate of all the Kingdoms is thrown into doubt when Ireland erupts
Read nowIreland eruptsLevel: 1 Introductory
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Truce in Ireland
While Charles enjoyed military success on the mainland, he attempted to secure a truce in Ireland
Read nowTruce in IrelandLevel: 1 Introductory
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What was the Easter Rising?
How close did the Easter Rising come to achieving the aims of its leaders?
Watch nowWhat was the Easter Rising?Level: 1 Introductory
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