Historians believe that the first people to live in Ireland came from the European mainland about 6000 B.C. They settled on the northeast coast, near what is now Larne in Northern Ireland, and then moved inland along the rivers. They lived by hunting and fishing. These first settlers were followed by people who grew crops and raised animals. Later, people who made gold ornaments, pottery, and tools settled in the country.

About 400 BC, Celtic tribes from Britain and the European mainland invaded Ireland. The Celts gained control of the island and divided it into small kingdoms called tuatha. The rulers of the kingdoms often fought over their territories and boundaries. One ruler was given the title ard-ri (high king).

Saint Patrick brought Christianity to Ireland in the A.D. 400's. Saint Patrick was born in Britain and was taken to Ireland as a slave in the early 400's. After six years of slavery, he escaped to France, where he studied for the priesthood. He returned to Ireland as a Christian missionary in 432. The Irish accepted Christianity and came to regard Patrick as their patron (guardian) saint. Today, his feast day, March 17, is celebrated as a national holiday.

Saint Patrick also introduced the Roman alphabet and Latin literature into Ireland. After his death, about 461, Irish monasteries flourished as centers of learning.

The Viking raiders. About 795, Vikings began raiding the east and south coasts of Ireland. They settled near harbors and established Ireland's first towns, including what are now Cork, Dublin, Limerick, and Waterford. They also raided the countryside, robbing and destroying monasteries. At first, the Irish people could do little to defend themselves against the well-armed Vikings. But in 1014, the Irish high king, Brian Boru, organized the princes of several kingdoms and defeated the Vikings at Clontarf (now part of Dublin). The Vikings were allowed to remain in their seaport towns and, in time, were absorbed by the Irish people.

The Norman invaders. In the 1160's, the high king, Turlough O'Connor, overthrew Dermot MacMurrough, king of Leinster in southeastern Ireland. Dermot asked Henry II, the Norman king of England, for help in regaining his kingdom. Henry gave Dermot permission to recruit Norman soldiers, and Dermot promised the Normans a share of the land they helped him reconquer. With Norman help, he recovered his kingdom in 1170.

After Dermot died in 1171, a Norman baron named Strongbow declared himself king of Leinster. Other Norman barons then also seized Irish land. Henry II wanted to be sure that the barons remained loyal to him, so he traveled to Ireland in 1171 and forced them to recognize him as lord of Ireland.

By the 1300's, the Normans held nearly all of Ireland. But the Normans' loyalty to England weakened as they intermarried with the Irish and adopted their language and customs. By the early 1400's, England actually controlled only a small area around Dublin called the Pale.

ORDER OF THE ORANGE

The Orange Order is a Protestant organization in Northern Ireland. It has long sought to keep Protestants in power in the country and to maintain Northern Ireland's union with Britain. The Orange Order was founded in 1795 by Anglican Protestant farmers in County Armagh, Ireland, in what is now the southern part of Northern Ireland. It grew out of a conflict between Protestant and Roman Catholic farmers who were bidding to become tenants on the same farmlands. The Protestant farmers joined together to drive Catholic families out of the region.

The organization was named for William of Orange. William was the Protestant leader of the Netherlands who, in 1689, overthrew James II, the Catholic king of England, Scotland, and Ireland.

The Orange Order of Northern Ireland is organized into units called lodges. It has about 1,500 lodges and about 100,000 members. The members, called Orangemen, parade through Protestant and Catholic neighborhoods during the "marching season" of July. They sing and carry banners to celebrate past Protestant victories over Catholics.

The IRA is a secret military organization that has long sought to unite the independent country of Ireland with Northern Ireland, which is a part of the United Kingdom. Northern Ireland is made up of six counties in the northeastern corner of the island of Ireland. Ireland, officially called the Republic of Ireland, is made up of 26 counties that occupy the rest of the island. The IRA and its political wing, called Sinn Fein, also oppose the current government of Ireland.

The IRA was formed in 1919 as an unofficial military force that aimed to gain independence for Ireland. At that time, the combined area of present-day Ireland and Northern Ireland was a single country ruled by the British. Most of the people in what is now Northern Ireland were Protestants, and most of those in what is now Ireland were Roman Catholics. The British government had proposed that Ireland remain united with Britain but take control of its own domestic affairs. However, most of the Protestants in the northeastern province of Ulster opposed this plan because they did not want to be a minority in a Roman Catholic nation.

In 1919, the IRA began a guerrilla war for independence from British rule. The IRA harassed the police and military with ambushes and sudden raids. In 1920, the British government passed the Government of Ireland Act. The act divided Ireland into two states, each with limited powers of self-government. Under the act, the six northeastern counties were separated from the rest of Ireland and became Northern Ireland. The southern Catholic majority rejected the act and demanded a single, united Irish republic. The guerrilla war continued until July 1921, when British and Irish leaders declared a truce and agreed to the Anglo-Irish Treaty. This treaty, which was signed on Dec. 6, 1921, made Ireland a dominion--that is, a self-governing country owing allegiance to the British Crown. The dominion was called the Irish Free State.