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The Changeling interpretation of Hibernia's history is clouded by myth and magic, yet the Dreaming reveals what it wants to be known as and when it sees fit. |
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Chronological list of dates of Irish History |
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c.3000BC |
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Megalithic tombs first constructed. |
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c.700BC |
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Celts arrive from parts of Gaul and Britain. Ireland divided into |
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provinces. |
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c. AD350 |
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Christianity reaches Ireland. |
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432 |
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Traditional date for the arrival of St. Patrick in Ireland. |
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700-800 |
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Irish monasticism reaches its zenith. |
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795 |
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Full-scale Viking invasion. |
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1014 |
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Brian Boru/ defeats Vikings at Clontarf, but is murdered. |
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1169 |
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Dermot MacMurrough, exiled king of Leinster, invites help from |
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'Strongbow'. |
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1172 |
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Pope decrees that Henry II of England is feudal lord of Ireland. |
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1366 |
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Statutes of Kilkenny belatedly forbid intermarriage of English |
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and Irish. Gaelic culture unsuccessfully suppressed. |
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1534-40 |
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Failed insurrection by Lord Offaly. |
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1541 |
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Henry VIII proclaimed king (rather than feudal lord) of Ireland |
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1558-1603
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Reign of Elizabeth I. Policy of Plantation begins. System of |
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counties adopted. |
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1595-1603 |
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Failed uprising of Hugh O'Neill. |
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1607 |
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Flight of the Earls; leading Ulster families go into exile. |
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1641 |
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Charles I's policies cause insurrection in Ulster and Civil War in |
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England. |
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1649 |
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Cromwell invades Ireland. |
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1653 |
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Under the Act of Settlement Cromwell's opponents stripped of |
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land. |
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1689-90 |
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Deposed James II flees to Ireland; defeated at the Battle of the |
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Boyne. |
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1704 |
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Penal Code enacted; Catholics barred from voting, education and |
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the military. |
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1775 |
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American War of Independence foments Irish unrest. |
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1782 |
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Grattans Parliament persuades British to declare Irish indep- |
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endence, but in name only. |
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1795 |
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Foundation of the Orange Order. |
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1798 |
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Wolfe Tone's uprising crushed. |
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1801 |
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Ireland becomes part of Britain under the Act of Union. |
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1829 |
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Catholic Emancipation Act passed after Daniel O'Connell elected |
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as MP. |
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1845-48 |
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The Great Famine. |
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1879-82 |
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The Land War; Parnell encourages boycott of repressive |
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landlords. |
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1914 |
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Implementation of Home Rule postponed because of outbreak of |
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World War I. |
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1916 |
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Easter Rising. After the leaders are executed public opinion |
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backs independence. |
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1920-21 |
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War between Britain and Ireland; Irish Free State and Northern |
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Ireland created. |
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1922 |
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Civil war breaks out. |
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1932 |
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De Valera elected. |
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1969 |
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Rioting between Catholics and Protestants in Northern Ireland. |
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British troops called in. |
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1971 |
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Provisional IRA begins campaign to oust British troops from |
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Ireland. |
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1972 |
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UK and Republic of Ireland join European Community. 'Bloody |
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Sunday' in Derry. |
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1985 |
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Anglo-Irish Agreement signed. |
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1994 |
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Peace Declaration and IRA cease-fire. |
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The Celts believed themselves to be descendants of the Goddess and God of the underworld, Dealgnaid and her consort Parthalon. They came to Ireland from the west, the recognized home of the dead. The Partholans were believed to have carved the face of Ireland out of the bareness and created the lakes, rivers, and green groves, and brought with them the animals and fish.
First came Formorians who brought a plague to Partholan and his legions. The Formorians, who were in essence sea creatures, soon left Ireland empty for further occupation; partially due to their conflict with Finn MacCool, a giant who inhabited and protected Ireland. Today the Formorians are sea monsters or faeries who rove the Irish coast.
The second invader race was the Nemed, named for their leader, a cousin of Partholan. The Nemed were a dark people who came to Ireland from the south (many scholars believe they may have been would-be invaders from the Iberian Peninsula in what is now Spain). Sadly for the Nemed, they were unsuccessful and the Formorians killed all but thirty men. The Nemed's greatest contribution to Irish paganism was belief in the Morrigu, a fierce triple goddess which consisted only of crone aspects. The names of the Morrigu are Babd, Nemain, and Macha.
The Firbologs came next. Another faery invader race they play a very small role in the mythological history of the Ireland, and are often considered inferior. The Firbologs were inept warriors, and apparently failed so miserably in their endeavor that even the few remaining Formorians did not bother with them.
Then came the Tutha De Danann, the last faery race of Ireland, with them came most of the goddesses and gods of the Irish pantheon. Arriving at Bealtaine, they had defeated the remaining Formorians and the inept Firbolgian fighters by the Summer Solstice. Their goddess, Dana, became the first Great Mother goddess of Ireland. Dana, later renamed Brigid, was the goddess of childbirth, poetry, music, creative endeavors, smithing, crafting, metallurgy, animal husbandry, and agriculture.
Unlike the Partholand, Nemed, and Firbologs, the Tutha De Danann came from the heavens, the direction of the elusive fifth element, spirit. In the form of a circle, the Tutha created four great cities, each presiding over a separate race of fey: Falias, Finias, Gorias, and Murias. Eventually, they too were defeated and went underground where they remain today as the faery folk of Ireland.
It was the Tutha who gave the right of ruler ship to the high kings. The Lia Fail, or Stone of Destiny, was stood upon by the kings at coronation. This stone did exist, and was used in Scotland as late as the tenth century to crown Scottish royalty; it can still be seen if one travels to Perth. This myth implies the much earlier concept that it was Dana who was the true giver of royal authority. The idea that a king must have a queen to rule comes from the ancient belief that all things, living or inanimate, were born of the Great Mother deity. |
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