The outside world arrived on the island with the conquest of Britain by William of Normandy, with large chunks of land granted to Norman lords after the 1169 invasion. Subjugation to England fuelled the fires of revolt during the early modern period, with Henry VIII’s English Reformation further muddying the waters. Finally, the Irish Roman Catholic population was totally excluded from power and local rebellions became the norm. From the early 17th century, brutal and largely unsuccessful methods were used to persuade Ireland’s people to convert to Protestantism, with the Plantations policy the most damaging.

Religious persecution became the norm, amid growing resentment and hatred of the English by Irish Catholics. Civil war broke out in 1641, resulting in a brief period of Catholic majority rule, after which the land was re-conquered by Oliver Cromwell’s armies and all Catholic Irish-owned lands confiscated. Anti-Catholic repression and struggles with the English Crown characterized the late 17th century, culminating in the Williamite War between deposed King James II of England and King William of Orange. The decisive 1690 Battle of the Boyne saw James defeated, and the Battle of Aughrim a year later smashed any hopes of Irish Catholic landowners. Harsh penal laws were reintroduced by the Protestant elite and, from 1801 to 1922, the island was ruled by London.