History of Ireland
History
Ireland was far from Europe, close to England, and now it's torn between the two. Far from Europe meant that only a small assortment of plants and animals managed to colonize the island before melting glaciers flooded any land routes to England and the mainland. One result - no snakes in Ireland. They just didn't make it here in the short space of time between ice and island.
The handful of species that did arrive thrived. The native landscape was dominated by mature oak forests. About 9,000 years ago people landed on the East and South East coasts and gradually worked inland, slashing and burning as they went. The giant Irish Elk, with its vast antler spread, died out about this time.
Farmers
A robust hunter gatherer society was eventually replaced by more settled farmers and metal workers. These folks erected huge stone edifices like the burial mound at Newgrange long before the pyramids, or even Stonehenge, were built. The pattern of society set at that time remains largely unchanged in the countryside - scattered farms with a central place of worship tieing the community together.
Rome? Didn't happen here. The Celts came, though, bringing iron and a language that is still spoken in small pockets of the nation. Christian missionaries such as Saint Patrick converted the local kings, and monastic settlements served as administrative centers of power for several hundred years.
The English
The 1100's brought the English, or more accurately, the Normans. Their castles began to dot the countryside, and an uneasy accommodation began between native clans and the conquerors. A meld of the two cultures ensued, but under Elizabeth the Great, new English armies gradually conquered all.
Ireland remained Catholic while England turned to Protestantism. Deposed English kings found the restive populace a natural source of manpower. Cromwell invaded and put the countryside to torch, killing thousands. When William of Orange triumphed over the Catholic armies of
Ireland was far from Europe, close to England, and now it's torn between the two. Far from Europe meant that only a small assortment of plants and animals managed to colonize the island before melting glaciers flooded any land routes to England and the mainland. One result - no snakes in Ireland. They just didn't make it here in the short space of time between ice and island.
The handful of species that did arrive thrived. The native landscape was dominated by mature oak forests. About 9,000 years ago people landed on the East and South East coasts and gradually worked inland, slashing and burning as they went. The giant Irish Elk, with its vast antler spread, died out about this time.
Farmers
A robust hunter gatherer society was eventually replaced by more settled farmers and metal workers. These folks erected huge stone edifices like the burial mound at Newgrange long before the pyramids, or even Stonehenge, were built. The pattern of society set at that time remains largely unchanged in the countryside - scattered farms with a central place of worship tieing the community together.
Rome? Didn't happen here. The Celts came, though, bringing iron and a language that is still spoken in small pockets of the nation. Christian missionaries such as Saint Patrick converted the local kings, and monastic settlements served as administrative centers of power for several hundred years.
The English
The 1100's brought the English, or more accurately, the Normans. Their castles began to dot the countryside, and an uneasy accommodation began between native clans and the conquerors. A meld of the two cultures ensued, but under Elizabeth the Great, new English armies gradually conquered all.
Ireland remained Catholic while England turned to Protestantism. Deposed English kings found the restive populace a natural source of manpower. Cromwell invaded and put the countryside to torch, killing thousands. When William of Orange triumphed over the Catholic armies of