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TODAY IS THE 100th anniversary of the creation of Northern Ireland, with the date set to be marked quietly.
Much like the day that NI was founded 100 years ago, there will be no huge celebrations or grand ceremonies today.
Very few people who were alive to witness the birthdate of Northern Ireland were aware it was a particularly significant day.
The Queen has sent her “warmest good wishes” to the people of NI today.
She referred to “treasured” memories she shared in Northern Ireland with her late husband, Prince Philip, and paid tribute to its people.
“This anniversary reminds us of our complex history, and provides an opportunity to reflect on our togetherness and our diversity,” the monarch said in a statement.
“It is clear that reconciliation, equality and mutual understanding cannot be taken for granted, and will require sustained fortitude and commitment.
“During my many visits to Northern Ireland, I have seen these qualities in abundance, and look forward to seeing them again on future occasions.”
Northern Ireland was created on 3 May 1921 when the Government of Ireland Act came into effect and partitioned the island of Ireland into two separate entities.
But the exact date of when NI was created has divided opinion.
The effect of the Government of Ireland Act split the 32 counties of Ireland into two, leaving Antrim, Armagh, Derry, Down, Fermanagh and Tyrone to form Northern Ireland.
Centenary commemorations have not escaped the effects of Covid-19 restrictions.
The pandemic has caused huge disruption to plans by unionist parties to mark the centenary event.
Tomorrow, a panel will examine the history of Northern Ireland.
The talk, involving a number of historians brought together to advise the UK government on the centenary, will take place live from the Ulster Museum.
The government’s plans to mark the centenary of the state’s foundation include a major business showcase in London, a £1 million (€1.15 million) Shared History Fund, a futuristic programme for young people, tree-planting projects, academic and historic events and an international church service for all denominations.
A total of £1 million has been awarded to 39 community projects to research and demonstrate what 100 years of Northern Ireland has meant to them and their community.
Belfast City Council will host an event at the City Hall marking the 100th anniversary of the opening of the Northern Ireland Parliament in the building on 22 June 1921 by King George V.
Every school will be presented with a native tree to plant in their grounds while an extensive young people’s programme will explore what the future will look like in the next 100 years.
The Centenary Rose, a flower the UK government said would represent reflection and hope, will be produced in Northern Ireland and planted in the gardens of the royal residence at Hillsborough Castle in Co Down.
A Centenary Rose will also be presented to the Queen for her own garden and there will be a decorative rose pin designed and produced in the UK, to be worn by VIPs at centenary events and given to programme participants.
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@Eoin Fitzgerald: It must of been a very sad day in the North to see 6 counties of a 9 country Ulster province been stripped away from the rest of Ireland.
Actually 6
@Eoin Fitzgerald: you’re idea of a shotgun wedding is delusional.
@Joe Johnson: The 10-o-clock news on BBC Radio 4 this morning referred to the centenary of ‘the nine counties’ of Northern Ireland. I am reminded of the time my father was cashing a cheque in London and the clerk asked him if Belfast was in Northern Ireland or the Republic?
@Tom Ripley: no .. 32
@Misty Eyed Mutton: You’re readily risible with your useless use of “you’re”. 32.
@Rúraíocht: nope 26 in Republic of Ireland and 6 in Northern Ireland which is part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Didn’t do junior cert geography?
@Patrick Brompton: l was in Wales once and the chemist asked was Dublin part of the UK. I was in a pharmacy and asked for an inhaler with my Irish medical subscription. I said, errrr no in amazement, and l didn’t get my inhaler. I went to the next pharmacy, and l got my inhaler using my Irish medical subscription.
@Tom Ripley: was making an ideological point
@Tom Ripley: and you advance that as an adult comment???? Get back to your train set.
@Tom Ripley: being fully pedantic, it would be 26 in Ireland and 6 in northern Ireland.
Being overtly pedantic, its 32 county boundaries in Ireland & 11 in northern Ireland. I guess if your politics is defined by GAA teams and legacy British administrations (where does the word county come from) rather than legal entities, then you can link it to 32. I’m in tir connail, by the way!
@Rúraíocht: I was making a realistic point
@Rúraíocht: when people start talking about ideological points things decend. Lenin Stalin Mao Pol pot Hitler all wanted to make ideological points. Average person on street isn’t ideological as long as they have fair society, roof over head, good income etc
@Tom Ripley: and 32 counties in Ireland, 26 +6=32,maths not your strong point.
@Daniel Roche: yup but context is important. 26 in our country. 6 in another.
Don’t think it will see another 100 to be honest.
@Darren Anthony Corr: I wouldn’t think so myself. How long exactly, hard to say. If the shinners get the border poll they will probably lose it pushing it back a while. Kinda same as what happened in Scotland
@Darren Anthony Corr: As things are presently, another 100 … of what time unit…? Could be either weeks or months. :)
@Tom Ripley: 100% – SF are the biggest reason why there won’t be a united Ireland in the short term.
@Tom Ripley:
It’s too soon for a border poll. I’d prefer in 10-20 years. NI society needs to find a middle ground and integrate further. Basically Northern Ireland needs to unite before the island of Ireland does.
As much as I want reunification, I know that any border poll right now will not only be incredibly divisive at a time when communities are already divided, but also the majority to carry a border poll just isn’t even there yet. SF will always campaign for a UI, that’s the core aim of their party and of course when they are doing well in the polls and looking like a majority in the next Assembly Election they will be calling for a poll.
However events in Great Britain (Scottish Independence) may accidentally hasten the speed at which a border poll needs to happen so the conversation should at the very least be had.
@Darren Anthony Corr: oh yeah agree people can converse away about it. I’d like to see Ireland pulling in the one direction but people are far from ready. People actually think that tricolour will be flying over all of Ireland. That won’t happen, new flag new state. As much as many up da Ra types don’t want to hear it, the unionists are Irish too. Many thugs in their mix yes but essentially they are Irish and their views count too. It’s about education and getting them to see that they can be happy and flourish in new Ireland. I couldn’t car less about orange marches. Let them have them. It’s history, wasn’t me they beat.
To get one Ireland people will need to give up and accept a lot of changes. Not there yet. 30 years maybe
@Tom Ripley: about the flag, it’s green, white and orange?
@James Lough: SF will probably be the biggest party after next years Assembly elections and hold First Minister position.
SF as the biggest party in NI in perpetuity, that’s what unionists are looking at.
Who knows what unionists reaction will bem
@Eoin Hennigan: it is but do you think it would be acceptable to everyone on the island? We all know the answer there. If your willing to say yes you could live with a new federal state then you’re ready for what’s coming in future.
@Teresa Ryan: they may well be and I am a realist there is a possibility that SF could form a government here after next GE. It’s very possible, I’ll admit I think it’s bad idea but one can’t be in denial. It’s very strong possibility. But even then you would probably seen them forced to change from what they are now. At that point gloves are off and they have to face up to all the wrongdoing and secret will probably come out that were unknown. When your top dog everyone will be sniping. Pardon the pun.
Oh Irish politics will be very very interesting over next decade.
Creation? Or was it taken/robbed? What’s the opinion?
@IrelandForChange: if you’re a prod/loyalist it was created. If you’re a Catholic/nationalist it was robbed. For me it was robbed.
@IrelandForChange: It was the usual British tactics of divide and rule.
@Joe Johnson: Actually, no, thats not what happened.
@IrelandForChange: There was no clear nation state in its place before its creation, so it was created.
@Tom Ripley: and how did that happen originally clown
@Eoin Fitzgerald: my grandfathers land was in Donegal one minute and then split across two states.
@Tom Ripley: “the majority in the North were unionist” if there was an outright majority in the North, 9 counties would have separated, not 6. The majority of people on the island were Catholic, I believe there was an election in 1918, how did that go.
@Gerrard: when Diarmait mac Murchada invited the English in. They came on invite funny that.
@O Swetenham: the majority of people in the world are Chinese so I guess we should just join with China
@Tom Ripley: oh good one, what a perfect analogy. If you’re trying to sound smart, try harder.
@Rúraíocht: how did that work regarding taxes and what not ? Would it depend on what side the home was on to which government you paid the bills ?
@Tom Ripley: Well Tom, as you seem to enjoy technicalities so much, Northern Ireland is not British, it has never been British. The United Kingdom is made up of Britain and Northern Ireland. If Northern Ireland was British, as you put it, there would be no need for the term United Kingdom or UK.
@Cian Nolan: the majority of public representatives in northern Ireland issued a clause that allowed them to cede from Ireland. while the English govt facilitated it, it was Irishmen in northern Ireland that created their statelet.
@Tomo: The United Kingdom of GB and Ireland. There’s your answer.
@Cian Nolan: the DUP have seats hold votes in Westminster. People in NI are entitled to British passports. It’s justice system is British. The flag over city hall is union jack. Sorry buddy it’s British.
@IrelandForChange: well it was founded or created. There was never a united all island of Ireland country before the Brits relatives arrived here. There was plenty of loosely tied kingdoms here certainly, there was a united administration under the Brits but never a full unified independent island state, controlled and run by the lrish themselves.
Not much to celebrate really; it’s hardly been a glowing success.
Shouldn’t that be annexation.
@Pat Casey: Technically, I think, the annexation was in 1801, with the Act of Union (a process so foul even it’s supporters spoke ill of it). Which would mean that 1921 was less a creation date, than a reduction-of-the-land-held-as-a-result-of-other-bad-stuff-that-we-did date. Can’t think of any reason why they would use that more accurate title… ;)
@Fachtna Roe: *wouldn’t use.
100 years of prolonged British occupation.
Rather than pander to Unionists in the event of a United Ireland. They should become Irish like the rest of us or return to their beloved UK.
@Munster1: Why didn’t no one else think of that? Problem solved.
@Munster1: and that, that attitude right there, is the biggest obstacle there is to a united Ireland. Who wants to be part of a society that openly rejects them?
@Pseud O’Nym: Exactly, well said. People who hold opinions like that and similar others are what will hold this whole project back. It just feeds unionists with ammo & doesn’t offer the UI side anything. Not the smartest bunch but more education is needed, which is possible.
@Fenston Barcley: I do agree with you, but for the sake of historical accuracy it’s probably best to point out that 100 years ago the ammo was of a different kind, provided by the British Army. And that was used, in pogroms against the native Irish, etc. It’s worrying to think that was only 3 generations ago.
@Fachtna Roe: oh FFS. Not even one generation ago both sides were bombing innocent civilians. There’ll be a lot of forgiveness needed from *both* ends of the spectrum for a united Ireland to work. Problem is that a lot of people only want to forgive and forget the actions of *one* side.
@Fenston Barcley: exactly, it’s just education needed. On both sides, so many up da Ra dole merchants thing it’s simple solution
Creation.
1.
The action or process of bringing something into existence.
Colonize
1.
Send settlers to (a place) and establish political control over it.
@Robert Thomas: Which one applies to Israel/Palestine?
What an absolute success that was and still is. Eeeugh
Never heard of it
@Ciarán: edgy
Interesting comments which are slanted by our few of history and our current location in time, set aside emotion for a moment. In 1921 Ireland was similar to Scotland and Wales are now without an independent government. The island was part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. The concept of annexation is incorrect as this island was already annexed in total. Before WW1 the majority were content to be within that Union. I believe the divide was more about economics then religion or political belief. NI had most of Ireland heavy industries and coal supplies. It could have been that simple.
@Paul Clancy: In 1921 Ireland was two years into the War of Independence. The division was along religio-political lines, not economic ones.
@Derek Walsh Ⓥ: many of the republican leaders were Protestant which is a commonality amongst most of the rebellions here. At best religion was a second consideration. Economics will always be the first decider.
@Paul Clancy: You are forgetting that the first Northern Ireland Prime Minister James Craig spoke of Stormont as ‘a Protestant Parliament for a Protestant people’. There was real fear in the North of domination of the Free State (as it became) by the Roman Catholic Church. They were not wrong about that.
Happy birthday northen Ireland 100 yrs wow time flys, from your big sister in the South of Ireland
Perhaps if Poots wins the leadership of the D.U.P. he’ll want a celebration on 23rd of October to commemorate the creation of the World.—-According to the reasoning of Bishop James Usher, it was created on 23rd Oct in the year 4002 B.C.
The unionists are not celebrating today, even they know the last 100 years is nothing to be proud of.
100 years of apartheid
Nothing to celebrate here, no benefit for being a separate country, pointless to be honest
@Mickomacko: UK is the country, not NI just in case you think NI is a country
The only way out of it IMO.
4 states, the provinces, within a sovereign state, Ireland. Bit like the States! Let’s face it, for such a small place we do have 4 completely different mindsets. (added bonus, not having to listen to the Healy Rae’s)
@Tony Harris: that idea was put forward during the 70s and rejected
@Nigel Hayden: And so was the Sunningdale agreement. It was about a power-sharing Northern Ireland Executive and a cross-border Council of Ireland. This was rejected by the Loyalists. As Seamus Mallon famously described the good Friday agreement as ‘Sunningdale for slow learners’. You never know what could work . When you are trying to deal with a group that celebrate triumphalism of events that happened over 300 years ago it won’t be easy.
@Brian Shea: their lost 300 years ago but nobody told them
@Tony Harris: only for the Healy-Rea’s the country people would have nobody to speak up for them
Norn Iron watabaytyee derdlerdle
Sitchyayshin
NI was not created 100 year ago its closer to 13 billion years ago!
Happy birthday brothers nd sisters,it wont be long befor you are home with the 26
Happy birthday brothers nd sisters 32 soon come home
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