The flag of the Republic of Ireland, representing the 26 counties of the Republic of Ireland, formally adopted as the national flag by Bunreacht na hEireann (1937).

The green harp flag was first used by Irish Confederate troops in the Eleven Years War, and became the main symbol of Irish nationalism from the 17th century to the early 20th century.

Irish nationalism (Irish: N谩isi煤nachas 脡ireannach) is the nationalism of the Irish people and Irish culture. Since the partition of Ireland, the term generally refers to support for a united Ireland.

History[link]

Roots[link]

Ireland has been subject to varying degrees of rule from England since the late 12th century (See Norman Ireland). The Gaelic Irish resisted this conquest through military and other means, but were organized in small independent lordships and did not have a common political goal such as a centralised independent Irish state. Conflict over the English presence was exacerbated by the Protestant Reformation in England, which introduced a religious element to the 16th century Tudor conquest of Ireland, as almost all of the native Irish remained Catholic. In Ireland, many native Catholic landowners were dispossessed during the Plantations of Ireland when land was given to Protestant settlers from England and Scotland.^[1] In addition, the Plantation of Ulster, begun in 1609, "planted" a sizable colony of English and Scottish Protestant settlers into the north of Ireland.

The closest Gaelic lords came to waging an identifiably nationalist campaign against the English presence was the rebellion of Hugh O'Neill in the 1590s (known as the Nine Years War 1594-1603), which aimed to expel the English and make Ireland a Spanish protectorate.^[1] However, despite claiming to represent a movement of Irish Catholics against English Protestants, O'Neill's forces were a shifting coalition of clans and lords and many historians see O'Neill himself as being primarily motivated by personal ambition - specifically the securing of his authority over Tyrone in Ulster.^[2]

A more significant movement came in the 1640s, after the Irish Rebellion of 1641, when a coalition of Gaelic Irish and Hiberno-Norman Catholics set up a de facto independent Irish state to fight the Wars of the Three Kingdoms (see Confederate Ireland). The Confederate Catholics of Ireland, also known as the Confederation of Kilkenny, emphasised that Ireland was a Kingdom independent from England, though under the same monarch. They demanded autonomy for the Irish Parliament, full rights for Catholics and an end to the confiscation of Catholic owned land. The Confederate cause was destroyed in the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland (1649鈥�53) and the old Catholic landowning class was dispossessed permanently.

A similar Irish Catholic monarchist movement emerged in the 1680s and 90s, when Irish Catholic Jacobites supported James II after his deposition in the Glorious Revolution. The Jacobites demanded that Irish Catholics would be a majority in an autonomous Irish Parliament, that confiscated Catholic land would be restored and that the Lord Deputy of Ireland would in future be an Irishman. Similarly to the Confederates of the 1640s, the Jacobites were conscious of representing the "Irish nation", but were not separatists and largely represented the interests of the landed class as opposed to all the Irish people. Like the Confederates, they were also defeated in the Williamite war in Ireland (1689鈥�91). Thereafter, Irish government and landholding were dominated by the largely English Protestant Ascendancy. Catholics were discriminated against under the Penal Laws. See also History of Ireland 1536鈥�1691.

This coupling of religious and ethnic identity principally Roman Catholic and Gaelic, as well as a consciousness of dispossession and defeat at the hands of British and Protestant forces came to be seen as enduring features of Irish nationalism. However, the Irish Catholic movements of the 16th century were invariably led by a small landed and clerical elite. Professor Kevin Whelan has comprehensively traced the emergence of the modern Catholic-Nationalist identity that formed in 1760-1830.^[3] Irish historian Marc Caball on the other hand claims that "early modern Irish nationalism" began to be established after the Flight of the Earls (1607), based on the concepts of "the indivisibility of Gaelic cultural integrity, territorial sovereignty, and the interlinking of Gaelic identity with profession of the Roman Catholic faith".^[4]

Early nationalism: Grattan to O'Connell[link]

"Daniel O'Connell: The Champion of Liberty" poster published in Pennsylvania, 1847.

The Protestant dominated Irish Parliament of the eighteenth century repeatedly called for more autonomy from the British Parliament 鈥� particularly the repeal of Poynings' Law, which allowed the latter to legislate for Ireland. They were supported by popular sentiment that came from the various publications of William Molyneux about Irish constitution independence; this was later reinforced by Jonathan Swift's incorporation of these ideas into Drapier's Letters.^[5][6]

Parliamentarians who wanted more self government formed the Irish Patriot Party, led by Henry Grattan, who achieved substantial legislative independence in 1782-83. Grattan and radical elements of the 'Irish Whig' party campaigned in the 1790s for Catholic political equality and a reform of electoral rights.^[7] He wanted useful links with Britain to remain, best understood by his comment: 'The channel [Irish sea] forbids union; the ocean forbids separation'.

It is also argued today that Grattan's movement was not fully nationalist because many of its adherents were descended from the 'colonial minority' in Ireland. However, other nationalists such as Samuel Neilson, Theobald Wolfe Tone and Robert Emmet were also descended from colonial families that had arrived in Ireland since 1600. From Grattan in the 1770s to Parnell up to 1890, nearly all the leaders of Irish separatism were Protestant Nationalists.

Modern Irish nationalism with democratic aspirations began in the 1790s when Theobald Wolfe Tone founded the Society of the United Irishmen, and wanted to end discrimination against Catholics, in line with Grattan, and then to found an independent Irish Republic. Tone and most of the United Irish leaders were Protestants and inspired by the French Revolution, wanted a society without sectarian divisions, the continuation of which they attributed to the British domination over the country. They were sponsored by the French Republic which was then the enemy of the Holy See. The United Irishmen led an armed uprising in 1798 (See Irish Rebellion of 1798), which was repressed with great bloodshed. As a result, the Irish Parliament voted to abolish itself in the Act of Union of 1800-01 and thereafter Irish MPs sat in London. (See History of Ireland (1801-1922))

Two dominant forms of Irish nationalism arose from these events. One was a radical movement, known as Irish Republicanism, which advocated use of force to found a secular, egalitarian Irish Republic, advocated by groups such as the Young Irelanders, some of whom launched a rebellion in 1848.^[8]

The other nationalist tradition was more moderate, urging non-violent means to seek concessions from the British government.^[9] While both nationalist traditions were predominantly Catholic in their support base, the hierarchy of the Catholic Church were opposed to republican separatism on the grounds of its violent methods and secular ideology, while they usually supported non-violent reformist nationalism.^[10]

Daniel O'Connell was the leader of the moderate tendency. O'Connell, head of the Catholic Association and Repeal Association in the 1820s, '30s and '40s, campaigned for Catholic Emancipation - full political rights for Catholics - and then "Repeal of the Union", or Irish self-government under the Crown. Catholic Emancipation was achieved, but self-government was not. O'Connell's movement was more explicitly Catholic than its eighteenth century predecessors.^[11] It enjoyed the support of the Catholic clergy, who had denounced the United Irishmen and reinforced the association between Irish identity and Catholicism. The Young Irelanders when members of the Repeal Association, used traditional Irish imagery such as the Harp and located its mass meetings in sites such as Tara and Clontarf which had a special resonance in Irish history.

Repeal Association & Young Ireland[link]

In the late 19th century, Irish nationalism became the dominant ideology in Ireland, having a major Parliamentary party in the Parliament of the United Kingdom at Westminster that launched a concerted campaign for Repeal of the Act of Union or self-government. This period also saw the emergence of militant republican movement called the Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB) or Fenians, with an off-shoot named Clan na Gael in the United States, founded by exiled members of the Young Irelanders.

The Great Famine of 1845-49 caused great bitterness among Irish people against the British government, which was perceived as having failed to avert the deaths of up to a million people.^[12] Clan na Gael, led by John Devoy organised Irish veterans of the American Civil War to attack Canada, with the intention of demanding a British withdrawal from Ireland. The Irish Republican Brotherhood was set up in Ireland at the same time.

In Ireland itself, the IRB tried an armed revolt in 1867 but, as it was heavily infiltrated by police informers, the rising was a failure.^[13]

Land League[link]

Mass nationalist mobilisation began when Isaac Butt's Home Rule League (which had been founded in 1873 but had little following) adopted social issues in the late 1870s 鈥� especially the question of land redistribution.^[14] Michael Davitt (an IRB. member) founded the Irish Land League in 1879 during an agricultural depression to agitate for tenant's rights. Some would argue the land question had a nationalist resonance in Ireland as many Irish Catholics believed that land had been unjustly taken from their ancestors by Protestant English colonists in the 17th century Plantations of Ireland.^[15] Indeed, the Irish landed class was still largely an Anglo-Irish Protestant group in the 19th century. Such perceptions were underlined in the Land league's language and literature.^[16] However, others would argue that the Land League had its direct roots in tenant associations formed in the period of agricultural prosperity during the government of Lord Palmerston in the 1850s and 1860s, who were seeking to strengthen the economic gains they had already made.^[17] Following the depression of 1879 and the subsequent fall in prices (and hence profits), these farmers were threatened with rising rents and eviction for failure to pay rents. In addition, small farmers, especially in the west faced the prospect of another famine in the harsh winter of 1879. At first, the Land League campaigned for the "Three Fs" - fair rent, free sale and fixity of tenure. Then, as prices for agricultural products fell further and the weather worsened in the mid 1880s, tenants organised themselves by withholding rent during the 1886-1891 Plan of Campaign movement.

Militant nationalists such as the Fenians saw that they could use the groundswell of support for land reform to recruit nationalist support, this is the reason why the New Departure - a decision by the IRB to adopt social issues - occurred in 1879.^[18] Republicans from Clan na Gael (who were loath to recognise the British parliament) saw this as an opportunity to recruit the masses to agitate for Irish self government. This agitation, which became known as the "Land War", became very violent when Land Leaguers resisted evictions of tenant farmers by force and the British Army and Royal Irish Constabulary was used against them. This upheaval eventually resulted in the British government subsidising the sale of landlords' estates to their tenants in the Irish Land Acts authored by William O'Brien. It also provided a mass base for constitutional Irish nationalists who had founded the Home Rule League in 1873. Charles Stewart Parnell (somewhat paradoxically, a Protestant landowner) took over the Land League and used its popularity to launch the Irish National League in 1882 to campaign for Home Rule.

Cultural nationalism[link]

An important feature of Irish nationalism from the late 19th century onwards has been a commitment to Gaelic Irish culture. A broad intellectual movement, calling itself the Celtic Revival grew up in the late 19th century largely initiated by artists and writers of Protestant or Anglo-Irish background who were concerned with furthering Ireland's individual native and cultural identity. Other organisations for promotion of the Irish language or the Gaelic Revival were the Gaelic League and later Conradh na Gaeilge. The Gaelic Athletic Association was also formed in this era to promote Gaelic football, hurling and Gaelic handball and forbade its members from playing English sports such as association football, rugby union and cricket.

Most of the Cultural nationalists were English speakers and their organisations had little impact in the Irish speaking areas or Gaeltachta铆, where the language has continued to decline (see article). However, these organisations attracted large memberships and were the starting point for many radical Irish nationalists of the early twentieth century and especially in the leaders of the Easter Rising of 1916 such as Patrick Pearse,^[19]Thomas MacDonagh,^[20] and Joseph Plunkett. The main aim was to emphasise an area of difference between Ireland and England, but the majority of the population continued to speak English.

The cultural Gaelic aspect did not extend into actual politics; while nationalists were interested in the surviving Chiefs of the Name, the descendants of the former Gaelic clan leaders, the chiefs were not involved in politics, nor noticeably interested in the attempt to recreate a Gaelic state.

Home Rule beginnings[link]

Although Parnell and some other Home Rulers, such as Isaac Butt, were Protestants, Parnell's party was overwhelmingly Catholic. At local branch level, Catholic priests were an important part of it organisation. Home Rule was opposed by Unionists (those who supported the Union with Britain), mostly Protestant and from Ulster under the slogan, "Home Rule is Rome Rule."

At the time, some politicians and members of the British public would have seen this movement as radical and militant. Detractors quoted Charles Stewart Parnell's Cincinnati speech in which he claimed to be collecting money for "bread and lead". He was allegedly sworn into the secret Irish Republican Brotherhood in May 1882. However, the fact that he chose to stay in Westminster following the expulsion of 29 Irish MPs (when those in the Clan expected an exodus of nationalist MPs from Westminster to set up a provisional government in Dublin) and his failure in 1886 to support the Plan of Campaign (an aggressive agrarian programme launched to counter agricultural distress), marked him as an essentially constitutional politician, though not averse to using agitational methods as a means of putting pressure on parliament.

Coinciding as it did with the extension of the franchise in British politics 鈥� and with it the opportunity for most Irish Catholics to vote 鈥� Parnell's party quickly became an important player in British politics. Home Rule was favoured by William Ewart Gladstone, but opposed by many in the British Liberal and Conservative parties. Home Rule would have meant a devolved Irish parliament within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. The first two Irish Home Rule Bills were put before the House of Commons of the United Kingdom in 1886 and 1893, but they were bitterly resisted by an alliance of Liberal Unionists and British Conservatives.

Following the fall and death of Parnell in 1891 after a divorce crisis, which enabled the Irish Roman Catholic hierarchy to pressure MPs to drop Parnell as their leader, the Irish Party split into two factions, the INL and the INF becoming practically ineffective from 1892 to 1898. Only after the passing of the Local Government (Ireland) Act 1898 which granted extensive power to previously non-existent county councils, allowing nationalists for the first time through local elections to democratically run local affairs previously under the control of landlord dominated "Grand Juries", and William O'Brien founding the United Irish League that year, did the Irish Parliamentary Party reunite under John Redmond in January 1900, returning to its former strength in the following September general election.

Transformation of rural Ireland[link]

The first decade of the twentieth century saw considerable advancement in rural economic and social development in Ireland where 60% of the population lived.^[21] The introduction of local self-government in 1898 created a class of experienced politicians capable of later taking over national self-government in the 1920s. O'Brien's attainment of the 1903 Wyndham Land Act (the culmination of land agitation since the 1880s) abolished landlordism, and made it easier for tenant farmers to purchase lands, financed and guaranteed by the government. By 1914, 75 per cent of occupiers were buying out their landlords' freehold interest through the Land Commission, mostly under the Land Acts of 1903 and 1909.^[22] O'Brien then pursued and won in alliance with the Irish Land and Labour Association and D.D. Sheehan, who followed in the footsteps of Michael Davitt, the landmark 1906 and 1911 Labourers (Ireland) Acts, where the Liberal government financed 40,000 rural labourers to become proprietors of their own cottage homes, each on an acre of land. "It is not an exaggeration to term it a social revolution, and it was the first large-scale rural public-housing scheme in the country, with up to a quarter of a million housed under the Labourers Acts up to 1921, the majority erected by 1916",^[23] changing the face of rural Ireland.

The combination of land reform and devolved local government gave Irish nationalists an economic political base on which to base their demands for self-government. Some in the British administration felt initially that paying for such a degree of land and housing reform amounted to an unofficial policy of "killing home rule by kindness", yet by 1914 some form of Home Rule for most of Ireland was guaranteed. This was shelved on the outbreak of World War I in August 1914.

A new source of radical Irish nationalism developed in the same period in the cities outside Ulster. In 1896, James Connolly, founded the Irish Socialist Republican Party in Dublin. Connolly's party was small and unsuccessful in elections, but his fusion of socialism and Irish republicanism was to have a sustained impact on republican thought. In 1913, during the general strike known as the Dublin Lockout, Connolly and James Larkin formed a workers militia, the Irish Citizen Army, to defend strikers from the police. While initially a purely defensive body, under Connolly's leadership, the ICA became a revolutionary body, dedicated to an independent Workers Republic in Ireland. After the outbreak of the First World War, Connolly became determined to launch an insurrection to this end.

Home Rule crisis 1912-14[link]

Home Rule was eventually won by John Redmond and the Irish Parliamentary Party and granted under the Third Home Rule Act 1914. However, Irish self-government was limited by the prospect of partition of Ireland between north and south. This idea had first been mooted under the Second Home Rule Bill in 1893. In 1912, following the entry of the Third Home Rule Bill through the House of Commons, unionists organised mass resistance to its implementation, organising around the "Ulster Covenant". In 1912 they formed the Ulster Volunteers, an armed wing of both Ulster Unionism and the Orange Order who stated that they would resist Home Rule by force. British Conservatives supported this stance. In addition, British officers based at the Curragh indicated that they would be unwilling to act against the UVF should they be ordered to.

In response, Nationalists formed their own paramilitary group, the Irish Volunteers, to ensure the implementation of Home Rule. It looked for several months in 1914 as if civil war was imminent between the two armed factions. Only the All-for-Ireland League party advocated granting every conceivable concession to Ulster to stave off a partition amendment. Redmond rejected their proposals. The amended Home Rule Act was passed and placed with Royal Assent on the statute books, but was suspended after the outbreak of World War I in 1914, until the end of the war. This led radical republican groups to argue that Irish independence could never be won peacefully and gave the northern question little thought at all.

World War I and the Easter Rising[link]

The Irish Volunteer movement was divided over the attitude of their leadership to Ireland's involvement in World War I. The majority followed John Redmond in support of the British and Allied war effort, seeing it as the only option to ensure the enactment of Home Rule after the war, Redmond saying "you will return as an armed army capable of confronting Ulster's opposition to Home Rule". They split off from the main movement and formed the National Volunteers, and were among the 180,000 Irishmen who served in Irish regiments of the Irish 10th and 16th Divisions of the New British Army formed for the War.

A minority of the Irish Volunteers, mostly led by members of the Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB), refused to support the War and kept their arms to guarantee the passage of Home Rule. Within this grouping, another faction planned an insurrection against British rule in Ireland, while the War was going on. Critical in this regard were Patrick Pearse,^[24] Thomas MacDonagh, and Thomas Clarke. James Connolly, the labour leader, first intended to launch his own insurrection for an Irish Socialist Republic decided early in 1916 to combine forces with the IRB. In April 1916, just over a thousand dissident Volunteers and 250 members of the Citizen's Army launched the Easter Rising in the Dublin General Post Office and, in the Easter Proclamation, proclaimed the independence of the Irish Republic. The Rising was put down within a week, at a cost of about 500 killed, mainly unengaged civilians.^[25] Although the rising failed, Britain's General Maxwell executed fifteen of the Rising's leaders, including Pearse, MacDonagh, Clarke and Connolly, and arrested some 3000 political activists which led to widespread public sympathy for the rebel's cause. Following this example, physical force republicanism became increasingly powerful and, for the following seven years or so, became the dominant force in Ireland, securing substantial independence but at a cost of dividing Ireland.^[26]

The Irish Parliamentary Party was discredited after Home Rule had been suspended at the outbreak of World War I, in the belief that the war would be over by the end of 1915, then by the severe losses suffered by Irish battalions in Gallipoli at Cape Helles and on the Western Front. They were also damaged by the harsh British response to the Easter Rising, who treated the rebellion as treason in time of war when they declared martial law in Ireland. Moderate constitutional nationalism as represented by the Irish Party was in due course eclipsed by Sinn F茅in 鈥� a hitherto small party which the British had (mistakenly) blamed for the Rising and subsequently taken over as a vehicle for Irish Republicanism.

Two further attempts to implement Home Rule in 1916 and 1917 also failed when John Redmond, leader of the Irish Party, refused to concede to partition while accepting there could be no coercion of Ulster. An Irish Convention to resolve the deadlock was established in July 1917 by the British Prime Minister, Lloyd George, its members both nationalists and unionists tasked with finding a means of implementing Home Rule. However, Sinn F茅in refused to take part in the Convention as it refused to discuss the possibility of full Irish independence. The Ulster unionists led by Edward Carson insisted on the partition of six Ulster counties from the rest of Ireland^[27] stating that the 1916 rebellion proved a parliament in Dublin could not be trusted.

The Convention's work was disrupted in March 1918 by Redmond's death and the fierce German Spring Offensive on the Western Front, causing Britain to attempt to extend conscription to Ireland unwisely linked with immediate implementation of Home Rule. This "dual policy" was extremely unpopular, opposed both by the Irish Parliamentary Party under its new leader John Dillon, the All-for-Ireland Party as well as Sinn F茅in and other national bodies. It resulted in the Conscription Crisis of 1918. In May at the height of the crisis 73 prominent Sinn F茅iners were falsely arrested on the grounds of an alleged German Plot. Both these events contributed to a widespread rise in support for Sinn F茅in and the Volunteers.^[28] The Armistice ended the war in November followed by elections.

Militant separatism and Irish independence[link]

In the General election of 1918, Sinn F茅in won 73 seats, 25 of these unopposed, or statistically nearly 70% of Irish representation, under the British "First past the post" voting-system, but had a minority representation in Ulster. They achieved a total of 476,087 (46,9%) of votes polled for 48 seats, compared to 220,837 (21,7%) votes polled by the IPP for only six seats, who due to the "first past the post" voting system did not win a proportional share of seats.^[29] Unionists (including Unionist Labour) votes were 305,206 (30,2%)^[30]

The Sinn F茅in MPs refused to take their seats in Westminster, 27 of these (the rest were either still imprisoned or impaired) setting up their own Parliament called Dail 脡ireann in January 1919 and proclaimed the Irish Republic to be in existence. Nationalists in the south of Ireland, impatient with the lack of progress on Irish self-government, tended to ignore the unresolved and volatile Ulster situation, generally arguing that unionists had no choice but to ultimately follow. On September 11, 1919, the British proscribed the D谩il, it had met nine times, declaring it an illegal assembly, Ireland being still part of the United Kingdom. In 1919, a guerilla war broke out between the Irish Republican Army (IRA) (as the Irish Volunteers were now calling themselves) and the British security^[31] forces (See Irish War of Independence).

The campaign created tensions between the political and military sides of the nationalist movement. The IRA, nominally subject to the D谩il, in practice, often acted on its own initiative. At the top, the IRA leadership, of Michael Collins and Richard Mulcahy, operated with little reference to Cathal Brugha, the D谩il's Minister for Defence or 脡amon de Valera, the President of the Irish Republic - at best giving them a supervisory role.^[32] At local level, IRA commanders such as Dan Breen, Sean Moylan, Tom Barry, Sean MacEoin, Liam Lynch and others avoided contact with the IRA command, let alone the D谩il itself.^[33] This meant that the violence of the War of Independence rapidly escalated beyond what many in Sinn F茅in and D谩il were happy with.^[33] Arthur Griffith, for example, favoured passive resistance over the use of force, but he could do little to affect the cycle of violence between IRA guerrillas^[33] and Crown forces that emerged over 1919-1920. The military conflict produced only a handful of killings in 1919, but steadily escalated from the summer of 1920 onwards with the introduction of the paramilitary police forces, the Black and Tans and Auxiliary Division into Ireland. From November 1920 to July 1921, over 1000 people lost their lives in the conflict (compared to c.400 up to then).

At the same time, in Ulster in the north east, a sectarian war broke out, when in July 1920, loyalists, aided in some cases by the Ulster Special Constabulary, attacked the Catholic/Nationalist population in reprisal for IRA actions. This conflict, which ran roughly from the summer of 1920 to the summer of 1922, claimed a further 550 lives, of whom 58% were Catholic civilians. Nationalists portrayed this as "pogrom" and the D谩il organised a boycott of goods from Belfast in response.^[34]

Dividing Ireland[link]

This unreferenced section requires citations to ensure verifiability.

Meanwhile, the British tried to solve the conflict with another, fourth Home Rule Act. This was largely dictated by Unionist leader Sir Edward Carson and simplified by Sinn F茅in's abstentionism from Westminster. Carson secured a separate Home Rule regime for six of the nine Ulster counties (being the only four Unionist majority counties but also including two [4] counties with Nationalist majorities) as Northern Ireland, with the remaining 26 counties of Ireland forming Southern Ireland with its own institutions. This settlement, enshrined in the Government of Ireland Act 1920, was unacceptable to Irish nationalists, who sought to establish an independent and undivided Irish Republic. Elections to the Home Rule institutions were held in May 1921. The parliament of Northern Ireland first sat on 7 June, while most of the representatives elected unopposed for Southern Ireland, together with like-minded delegates from the north, constituted themselves as the Second D谩il and boycotted the devolved institutions. The legislation had allowed for a Council of Ireland that would enable cross-border links to be established, with a target of unity after 50 years, but this was also rejected.

Southern Ireland never became a functioning political entity, and, following a truce between the IRA and the British beginning on 11 July 1921, a political settlement was reached in the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921. Meanwhile, violence in the new territory of Northern Ireland continued. The Treaty offered Ireland as a whole independence within the British Commonwealth and a status comparable to that of Canada and Australia. The new "Irish Free State" would have control of its own army, police and economy, and British troops would be withdrawn.

Northern Ireland was to be permitted to opt out of this arrangement and remain as a separate entity within the UK. While in future years the resulting continuation of partition would prove the most enduringly controversial element of the settlement, the most contentious issue at the time was the link with the British Crown - the "Crown-in-Ireland" - to which Irish politicians would have to swear an oath of loyalty. To some, this was a betrayal of the cause of the Irish Republic. The issue of Northern Ireland was partially neutralised by a provision in the Treaty for a Boundary Commission that would redraw the border with Northern Ireland by 1925. It was widely believed that this would cede large parts of Northern Ireland to the Free State, and that Northern Ireland would cease to be an economically viable unit. In any event, the IRA were, under Michael Collins, already organising clandestine military operations against the Northern state by early 1922.

The Second D谩il ratified the treaty on 7 January 1922, and the subsequent general election on 16 June endorsed this decision. Anti-treaty "republicans", however, argued that the electorate only accepted the Treaty under threat of renewed war by the British. Anti-treaty politicians included the President of the D谩il, 脡amon de Valera, and two ministers, Cathal Brugha and Austin Stack. Collins tried to negotiate a compromise between the pro- and anti-Treaty factions - for example, by proposing a constitution containing no references to the King - but the British insisted on strict adherence to the Treaty settlement. The IRA Executive disavowed the authority of the D谩il in April 1922, and in July 1922, Collins, under pressure from the British, attacked anti-Treaty IRA units who had occupied the Four Courts building in Dublin. This led to the Irish Civil War, fought between the new Free State forces, composed of pro-treaty IRA men and others (including thousands of veterans of the First World War), and the majority of the old IRA, led by Liam Lynch, who rejected the Treaty. The war had petered out by spring 1923, and the anti-Treaty forces laid down their arms in May. The Civil War cost more lives than the War of Independence - its most famous casualty being Michael Collins - saw the commission of atrocities by both sides, and generated bitter divisions that disfigured Irish politics and society for most of the rest of the century. It also removed IRA pressure from Northern Ireland at a crucial time in the latter's history.

The Free State[link]

This unreferenced section requires citations to ensure verifiability.

After independence and the Civil War, and with the formation of D谩il 脡ireann (Irish Free State) after the Irish general election, 1923, the government pursued conservative economic and social policies and took a firm line against the republican movement.

In 1925, the Boundary Commission set up under the Treaty completed its report. Leaks to the press generated shock among some nationalists: instead of ceding large areas of the North to the Free State, the latter would receive only a small part of south Armagh and Fermanagh, and would actually lose part of eastern Donegal. As a result, the report was never published or acted upon. The Free State, the British and Northern Irish governments accepted the 1920 border almost exactly, and in return the Free State's obligation under the Treaty to pay part of the British national debt was cancelled. At the same time, the Council of Ireland was shelved.

The post-Civil War divisions in Irish nationalism, which also reflected earlier divisions between constitutional politicians and radical separatists, were institutionalised in the Free State's two main political parties, Cumann na nGaedheal (later becoming Fine Gael) and Fianna F谩il. The latter party was founded after Sinn F膰in voted in March 1926 to continue abstentionism from the Free State institutions. 脡amon de Valera resigned as its leader in response and set up a new, semi-constitutional republican party with a view to entering parliamentary politics. Up until the late 1930s, street violence between Free State and republican partisans was still common, especially between the quasi-fascist Blueshirts and the IRA. The latter's support, however, fell away after the creation of Fianna F谩il, which vigorously cracked down on it in the 1930s. The thirties also saw the onset of a period of extreme economic stagnation brought about by the Anglo-Irish Trade War.

The Free State had an intensely nationalistic culture. Irish was made compulsory in education and for all civil and public servants, although it has not been successfully revived as an everyday language yet. A Catholic ethos was also prominent in public life; divorce and contraception were banned, and a censorship system with heavily religious overtones was established.

"脡ire" and the Republic of Ireland[link]

This unreferenced section requires citations to ensure verifiability.

In 1937, the Fianna F谩il government secured the enactment of a new constitution, drafted mainly by 脡amon de Valera. Under this document, the Free State was replaced by a new political regime named simply "Ireland" ("脡ire" in Irish) which claimed jurisdiction over the whole of the island. The last-mentioned provision enormously antagonised Unionists in Northern Ireland, who viewed it as an illegal extraterritorial claim, and it was eventually revised in the 1990s under the terms of the Belfast Agreement.

It was also in the 1930s that the Irish government recovered control of the "Treaty Ports" from the British. This helped the Irish state to maintain a policy of neutrality in World War II. At the same time, the Fianna F谩il governments of de Valera interned and executed IRA men for attacks on Northern Ireland.

In 1940, the government of Neville Chamberlain promised to accept the principle of a united Ireland and to work towards achieving the same in return for Irish participation in the War. De Valera refused.

In 1948, the First Inter-Party Government pulled Ireland out of the Commonwealth and formally declared that the Irish state was a Republic. The British government of Clement Attlee responded to this unilateral move by giving the Northern Unionists a guarantee that they would not be forced into a united Ireland without their agreement.

Northern Ireland[link]

This unreferenced section requires citations to ensure verifiability.

In Northern Ireland, the mainly Catholic nationalist community formed a minority in a largely Protestant and Unionist state. From 1922 onwards, the northern unionists never felt persuaded to join the Republic for any reason, and their position became entrenched. Most nationalists were of a moderate outlook. In 1918, they had largely voted for the constitutional Nationalist Party rather than Sinn F茅in, a pattern repeated in subsequent years. They did not generally support the IRA's "Border Campaign" in the 1950s. Even after the outbreak of the "Troubles" in the late 1960s, Sinn F茅in failed to win a majority of Catholic votes until 2001, by which time it had moved away somewhat from its violent past.

The IRA became increasingly oriented towards Marxist politics in the late 1960s, leading to a split between the left-wing Official IRA and the more traditionally nationalistic Provisional IRA in 1969. The "Officials" largely ceased armed activity in 1972.

In the meantime, left-wing activists, inspired more by contemporary student radicalism and the American civil rights movement than by traditional Irish nationalism, had launched a campaign for civil rights for the nationalist population. Starting from 1968, this professedly cross-community campaign ignited fears of IRA-inspired subversion among Unionists, and the resulting violent backlash in turn revived the Provisional IRA (the "Provos") as an armed or terrorist force. The PIRA launched a violent campaign against the state of Northern Ireland, with the aim of creating a new, all-Ireland Irish Republic. The "Troubles" that emerged from these struggles lasted until the late 1990s. (See History of Northern Ireland.)

In the meantime, Northern Ireland's Nationalist Party (a very different entity from the pre-partition Nationalist Party) began to be seen as an irrelevance, and was replaced as the majority voice of moderate nationalism by John Hume's Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) in the 1970s.

The SDLP advocated power-sharing with Unionists within Northern Ireland. While many northern nationalists came to support the IRA, whom they perceived as their defenders, especially in the early years of the Troubles, Sinn F茅in did not take part in electoral politics. Sinn F茅in candidates began to displace the SDLP from some nationalist constituencies after the 1981 Irish Hunger Strike, when the IRA hunger striker Bobby Sands was elected to the British Parliament in a by-election. In the by-election that followed Sands's death, Owen Carron, who had been Sands' campaign manager, won with an increased number of votes.^[35] This awakened the Sinn F茅in leadership under Gerry Adams to the possible gains they could make in future elections and by a political, as distinct from "military", strategy. Since the IRA ceasefire of 1994, Sinn F茅in have become the largest nationalist party in the Northern Ireland, overtaking the SDLP in 2001. They have also won an improved share of votes in the Republic of Ireland.

In 1998, both Sinn F茅in and the SDLP signed the Belfast Agreement, which instituted power sharing within a devolved government in Northern Ireland. Sinn F茅in says that its long term goal is still a united Ireland. The implementation of the Belfast Agreement has been the subject of protracted struggles over the last few years, and continues to be so at the present time.

Note that Ulster nationalism is not a part of the phenomenon of Irish nationalism but rather a different take on the status of Northern Ireland.

Present day[link]

This unreferenced section requires citations to ensure verifiability.

Political parties seen as representing the moderate nationalist tradition include Fine Gael and the SDLP. The main parties currently representing Irish republicanism are Fianna F谩il and Sinn F茅in.

Republic of Ireland[link]

This unreferenced section requires citations to ensure verifiability.

Irish nationalism has changed dramatically since the Free State era, and particularly since the 1960s, with growing prosperity signalling new economic and social priorities. A changing relationship with Northern Ireland has also had its effect.

Emotional allegiances and rivalries dating from the Civil War have faded to a large extent, but the influence of the Civil War is still apparent in the differing interpretations of the State's history espoused by Fine Gael, whose predecessors founded the Free State, and Fianna F谩il, the descendants of the Anti-Treaty Republicans. Both parties, however, aspire to a United Ireland. Irish Governments have stated since the Anglo-Irish Agreement of 1985 that they will respect the will of the people of Northern Ireland to decide its future. However, the Agreement also stated that the Irish government had a legitimate role in Northern Irish politics as "advisor". In 1998, as part of the Good Friday Agreement, Articles 2 and 3 of the Constitution of Ireland, which claimed de jure sovereignty over Northern Ireland and created great resentment among unionists, were amended to remove the explicit territorial claim.

Until 1985, the militant republican party Sinn F茅in refused to take its seats in the Republic's legislature, continuing the policy of their predecessors in the 1920s, due to their refusal to recognise the legitimacy of the Irish state. This stance is now maintained only by the small Republican Sinn F茅in party, though Sinn F茅in itself still at certain times takes an ambivalent attitude towards recognising the legitimacy of the State.

Irish nationalists, on the whole, have not viewed integration into the European Union as a threat to Irish sovereignty. Several reasons can be advanced to explain this. Firstly, Ireland until recently, was a net beneficiary of EU funds. Secondly integration into the European project has meant that Ireland is less dependent on Britain, economically and politically.

Nationalism in many modern European countries may find expression in hostility towards foreign immigration - for example, in the Front National of Jean Marie Le Pen in France. At present, this is not true of Irish nationalism, despite large and rapid immigration into Ireland in recent years. Currently, no major Irish nationalist party campaigns explicitly against immigration. This does not, however, mean that there is no anti-immigrant sentiment in Ireland. In 2004, Ireland revoked, in a referendum, a clause in the constitution added in 1998 that said that anyone born in Ireland was automatically an Irish citizen. The concern of the Irish people was that this was subverting the control of immigration by entitling any couple who had a child to stay in the country, regardless of their legal status. This referendum was opposed by the Labour Party and Sinn F茅in and has drawn criticism from some human rights bodies, including Amnesty International as it has led to a situation where Irish citizens are being deported, with their parents, to countries where they may have no right of citizenship.

Northern Ireland[link]

This unreferenced section requires citations to ensure verifiability.

Northern Ireland is still part of the United Kingdom, but has a substantial nationalist minority who would prefer to be part of a united Ireland. In Northern Ireland, the term "nationalist" is used to refer either to the Catholic population in general or the supporters of the moderate Social Democratic and Labour Party. "Nationalism" in this restricted meaning refers to a political tradition that favours an independent, united Ireland achieved by non-violent means. The more militant strand of nationalism, as espoused by Sinn F茅in, is generally described as "republican" and was regarded as somewhat distinct, although modern Sinn F茅in is a constitutional party committed to exclusively peaceful and democratic means^[36].

For historical reasons outlined above, almost all nationalists in Northern Ireland are Catholics. The traditional nationalist view of Northern Ireland was that it was created artificially out of the only part of Ireland that had a Protestant and Unionist majority. According to this view, the last time that an all Ireland election happened was in the December 1918 election, when a majority of seats (73 out of 105 seats) with 46.9% of votes in Ireland went to Sinn F茅in and for Irish independence. This view has been superseded by the Good Friday Agreement of 1998, which was supported by the Irish government and both Sinn F茅in and the SDLP, and was endorsed by referendums held simultaneously in both parts of the island. The Agreement stipulates that the status of Northern Ireland cannot be changed without the expressed consent of a majority within Northern Ireland. In theory, northern nationalists are now committed to "power sharing" with unionists, with a long term goal of a united Ireland achieved with unionist consent.

There is a perception among some nationalists, and among informed opinion in Great Britain, that Catholics will come to outnumber Protestants in the coming decades, with the result that a majority in Northern Ireland will favour a united Ireland. Catholic religious affiliation, however, does not translate straightforwardly into support for a united Ireland, and opinion south of the border is also somewhat ambivalent towards the prospect, which would entail a significant financial burden for the southern 26 counties.

Criticism of Irish nationalism[link]

Irish nationalism has been criticised as failing to take into account the diversity and complexity of the cultural and religious identities of people living on the island of Ireland, and in particular those of the people of Northern Ireland.

The most obvious challenge to traditional conceptions of Irish nationalism is posed by the Protestant population of Northern Ireland. While Irish nationalists consider this community as composed of fellow Irishmen and Irishwomen, most (but not all) Northern Ireland Protestants consider themselves to be primarily or exclusively Britons, or identify as neither but as Ulstermen instead:

• A 1971 study found that only 20% of Protestants named "Irish" as the way they thought of themselves.^[37]
• The 1984 report of the nationalist New Ireland Forum recognised that Unionists generally regard themselves as being British (but also stated that they generally regard themselves as Irish).^[38]
• Four polls taken between 1989 and 1994 revealed that when asked to state their national identity, over 79% of Northern Ireland Protestants replied "British" or "Ulster" with 3% or less replying "Irish".^[39]
• A 1999 survey revealed that 78% of Protestants felt "Strongly British", while 51% felt "Not at all Irish" and 41% only "weakly Irish".^[40][41]
• Data from other studies up to 2006 confirms the predominantly British identity of Protestants.^[42][43][44]

The polls also show that not all Northern Ireland Catholics consider themselves to be Irish, and some consider themselves British to a certain degree.

The 1998 Belfast Agreement, which is endorsed by the Northern Ireland nationalist parties (the SDLP and Sinn F茅in) and the main parties in the Republic of Ireland, recognises the validity of alternative loyalties, containing a commitment to "recognise the birthright of all the people of Northern Ireland to identify themselves and be accepted as Irish or British, or both, as they may so choose, and accordingly confirm that their right to hold both British and Irish citizenship is accepted by both Governments and would not be affected by any future change in the status of Northern Ireland.".^[45]

Official declarations of this sort, however, do not necessarily reflect the practical outlook or conduct of the nationalist community in Northern Ireland. A 1997 publication by Democratic Dialogue stated that "It is clear that many in Northern Ireland are willing to tolerate the Other's cultural identity only within the confines of their own core ideology... most nationalists have extreme difficulty in accepting unionists' Britishness or, even if they do, the idea that unionists do not constitute an Irish ethnic minority which can ultimately be accommodated within the Irish nation...." The publication also stated that "Irishness is a highly contested identity, subject to fundamentally different nationalist and unionist perceptions which profoundly affect notions of allegiance and group membership".^[46]

Irish nationalist organizations (1791-present)[link]

19th Century

• Irish Confederation
• Irish Independence Party
• Irish National Invincibles

20th century

• Clann na Poblachta
• Saor Eire
• Saor Uladh
• Republican Congress
• People's Democracy
• Provisional Irish Republican Army
• Official Irish Republican Army
• Social Democratic and Labour Party
• Workers' Party of Ireland
• Irish Republican Socialist Party
• Irish National Liberation Army
• Continuity Irish Republican Army
• Real Irish Republican Army
• 32 County Sovereignty Movement

See also[link]

• Robert Erskine Childers
• Mary Alden Childers
• Michael Corcoran
• Thomas Davis
• Kevin Izod O'Doherty
• Michael Doheny
• Charles Gavan Duffy
• James Fintan Lalor
• Terence MacManus
• John Martin
• Thomas Francis Meagher
• John Mitchel
• D. P. Moran
• John Dooley Reigh
• Patrick O'Donoghue
• John Edward Pigot
• Thomas Devin Reilly
• Irish Race Conventions
• Protestant Irish nationalists
• Cultural imperialism
• Welsh nationalism
• Scottish nationalism
• Cornish nationalism
• Celtic League
• List of active autonomist and secessionist movements

Notes[link]

External links[link]

• Irish Nationalism (Archived 2009-10-31) - ninemsn Encarta (short introduction)

Ireland

File:Ireland rugby.png
Union	Irish Rugby Football Union
Emblem(s)	The Shamrock
Ground(s)	Aviva Stadium, Dublin
Coach(es)	Declan Kidney
Captain(s)	Rory Best[1](for Brian O'Driscoll[2]and Paul O'Connell[3])
Most caps	Ronan O'Gara (121)
Top scorer	Ronan O'Gara (1,075)
Most tries	Brian O'Driscoll (45)
Team kit Change kit
First international
England 7 鈥� 0 Ireland  (15 February 1875)
Largest win
United States 3 鈥� 83 Ireland  (10 June 2000)
Largest defeat
New Zealand 63 鈥� 15 Ireland  (15 November 1997)
World Cup
Appearances	7/7 (First in 1987)
Best result	Quarter Finals, 1987, 1991, 1995, 2003, 2011.

The Ireland national rugby union team represents the island of Ireland (both Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland) in rugby union. The team competes annually in the Six Nations Championship (which they have won eleven times outright and shared eight times) and every four years in the Rugby World Cup, where they reached the quarter-final stage in all but two competitions (1999 and 2007). Ireland is also one of the four unions that make up the British and Irish Lions 鈥� players eligible to play for Ireland are also eligible for the Lions. Eight former Ireland players have earned induction into the International Rugby Hall of Fame, with five of them also having earned induction into the IRB Hall of Fame.

Outside centre Brian O'Driscoll, the current captain and Ireland's current all-time leader in tries, is considered one of the best rugby players in the world and led Ireland to only their second Grand Slam in March 2009. He was also captain of the Lions on their 2005 tour of New Zealand, although his on-field captaincy was cut short by a controversial injury in the Lions' first Test. O'Driscoll was succeeded as Lions captain for their 2009 tour of South Africa by his current teammate, lock Paul O'Connell. Keith Wood, O'Driscoll's predecessor as Ireland captain before retiring in 2003, was the inaugural IRB International Player of the Year in 2001.

Ireland's highest ever position in the IRB World Rankings is third, which they reached in 2003 and 2006.

History[link]

Early years[link]

Caid is an ancient sport played in Ireland with strong similarities to rugby; it was played within a defined space and between a predetermined number of players. The Cork-born Reece Lockhart founded a club at Joe's chipper in 1854, in Cork. By 1867, Trinity second XV were playing matches against St. Columba鈥檚 College and Hume High Street, two Leinster schools and, importantly for the game in the north of the country, Royal School, Dungannon. Following the adoption of a set of official rules in 1868, rugby football began to spread quickly throughout Ireland.

First Ireland rugby team: played Engla Its is obvious that andrew pryor is the greatest ever rugby player [ openside flanker]on 19 February 1875 and lost by 2 goals and a try to nil

In 1874, the Irish Football Union (reconstituted as the Irish Rugby Football Union after unification with the North of Ireland Union) was formed. Ireland lost their first test match against England 7鈥�0 at the Oval on 15 February 1875. Both teams fielded 20 players in this match^[4] as was customary in the early years of rugby union; it was not until 1877 that the number of players was reduced from 20 to 15. Ireland's first home game was also against England in the same year held at the Leinster Cricket Club in Rathmines as Lansdowne Road was deemed unsuitable. The first match at Lansdowne Road was held on 11 March 1878 with England beating Ireland by 2 goals and 1 try to nil.

It was not until 1881 that they first won a test, against Scotland at Ormeau in Belfast. Ireland turned up two men short for their game in Cardiff in 1884 and had to borrow two Welsh players. The first victory Ireland had at Lansdowne Road took place on 5 February 1887. It was also their first win over England, by two goals to nil. On the third of March 1888, Ireland recorded their first win over Wales with a goal, a try and a drop goal to nil.

In 1894 for the first time, Ireland followed the Welsh model of using seven backs instead of six. After victory over England at Blackheath, Ireland won back-to-back matches for the first time when recording their first win over Scotland on 24 February 1894. Ireland went on to beat Wales in Belfast and win the Triple Crown for the first time.

In the 1890s Rugby was primarily a game for the Protestant middle class, the only Catholic in Edmund Forrest鈥檚 1894 team was Tom Crean. Of the eighteen players used in the three games, thirteen were from three Dublin clubs 鈥揥anderers, Dublin University and Bective Rangers 鈥� and the remaining five were from Ulster. They went on to win the Home international championship twice more before the old century was out (1896 and 1899), so that by 1900 all four of the Home Unions had tasted success at a game that was growing in popularity with players and spectators.

Twentieth century[link]

1920 illustration of the Ireland versus Wales rugby match

Such was the level of interest in the visit of the first All Blacks team to Dublin in November 1905 that the IRFU made the match the first all-ticket rugby international in history. Ireland played only seven forwards, copying the then New Zealand method of playing a "rover". The game ended New Zealand 15 Ireland 0.

On 20 March 1909, Ireland played France for the first time, beating them 19鈥�8. This was Ireland's biggest victory in international rugby at that time, their highest points tally and a record five tries. 30 November 1912 was the first time the Springboks met Ireland at Lansdowne Road, the 1906 tour game having been played at Ravenhill. Ireland with seven new caps were overwhelmed by a record margin of 38鈥�0, still a record loss to South Africa who scored 10 tries. In 1926, Ireland went into their final Five Nations match unbeaten and with the Grand Slam at stake lost to Wales in Swansea. Ireland again came close to a grand slam in 1927 when their sole loss was an 8鈥�6 defeat by England.

Post war[link]

Ireland's finest hour arguably came in 1948 when, inspired by tactician and fly-half Jack Kyle, they beat France in Paris, England at Twickenham and a 6鈥�0 win over Scotland at Lansdowne Road. They clinched their first Grand Slam in the Five Nations with a win against Wales at Ravenhill, Belfast. Ireland were champions and Triple Crown winners again in 1949.

The Irish used only 19 players in clinching the 1949 Championship and Triple Crown, only the fourth time that the Triple Crown had been retained.

In 1951, Ireland were once more crowned outright Five Nations champions and were unbeaten going into their final game. They failed to win the Grand Slam or Triple Crown following a 3鈥�3 draw with Wales in Cardiff.

The year of 1952 saw only Ireland's second overseas tour, the first for over half a century 鈥� as they headed to Argentina for a nine-match trip which included two Test matches. Ireland won six, drew two and lost one of the matches, their Test record being won one, drawn one.

On 27 February 1954, Ireland were due to play Scotland at Ravenhill in Belfast. The new Irish captain, Jim McCarthy, told IRFU president Sarsfield Hogan that the eleven Republic-based players would not stand for "God Save the Queen" alongside the Scottish team. It was agreed that an abbreviated anthem, known in Ulster as "the Salute", would be played that afternoon and that the Irish team would never play again at Ravenhill. Ireland went on to beat Scotland 6鈥�0 but did not play in Northern Ireland again until 2007.^[5]

On 18 January 1958 Ireland beat Australia 9鈥�6 in Dublin, this was the first time a major touring team had been defeated.

Sixties and Seventies[link]

Ireland managed just three victories in the Five Nations Championship; against England in 1961, Wales in 1963 and England again in 1964. There were also draws against England and Wales at Lansdowne Road to the end of 1964.

1965 saw an improvement as Ireland drew with France before beating England and Scotland, only for their Triple Crown hopes disappear against Wales in Cardiff. On 10 April 1965 Ireland recorded their first ever win over South Africa. The match, held at Lansdowne Road, was heading for a draw with the score at six points each, when Tom Kiernan won the match for Ireland with a late penalty. Ireland beat Australia again in Dublin in 1967 and became the first of the home nations to win in the Southern Hemisphere when they beat Australia in Sydney in May 1967.

On 26 October 1968, Ireland made it four successive wins over the Wallabies with a 16鈥�3 win at Lansdowne Road.

In 1969, Ireland claimed a 17鈥�9 victory over France at Lansdowne Road in the Five Nations, a first victory over Les Bleus in 11 years. They were again unbeaten going into their final game in Cardiff but Wales denied them a Grand Slam for the third time. In the autumn of 1969, the Irish Rugby Football Union decided to appoint a coach for the national team for the first time, the role went to Ronnie Dawson.

The 1972 Five Nations Championship was not completed when Scotland and then Wales refused to play in Ireland following threatening letters to players, purportedly from the IRA. The championship remained unresolved with Wales and Ireland unbeaten. In 1973, despite similar threats, England fulfilled their fixture and were given a standing ovation that lasted for five minutes. Ireland won 18鈥�9 and at the after-match dinner the England captain, John Pullin famously remarked "We might not be very good but at least we turn up". Ireland came close to a first win over the All Blacks on 20 January 1973 but with the score at 10鈥�10 an Irish conversion attempt was pushed wide by a gust of wind. In the final match of the 1974 season, Ireland won their first Five Nations Championship since 1951.

Roly Meates was national coach from 1975 to 1977 and Noel Murphy from 1977 to 1980. Willie John McBride was coach until 1984.

Eighties and Nineties[link]

In 1982 Ireland came close to winning a Grand Slam but were beaten by France in Paris. They beat Scotland, Wales and England to win the championship and their first Triple Crown in 33 years.

Three years after their last Triple Crown win, Ireland, coached by Mick Doyle, came out in 1985 and won the Championship and the Triple Crown again. They beat Scotland and Wales. The French again prevented Ireland from claiming a Grand Slam after a 15鈥�15 draw in Dublin. Ireland played England at Lansdowne Road and won the championship with a last minute drop goal from Michael Kiernan. The match ended 13鈥�10 to Ireland. It was Ireland's last silverware until 2004.

Ireland were whitewashed in the 1986 Five Nations Championship but on 1 November 1986, Ireland made history when they scored 10 tries against Romania in a 60鈥�0 win. It was the biggest win in international rugby at the time, equalling the French record set in 1967.

At the inaugural World Cup in 1987, two straightforward victories over Tonga and Canada were enough to see Ireland through to the quarter-finals, when they travelled to Sydney to face the joint hosts Australia, only to be beaten 33鈥�15.

In the Five Nations, England and France were dominant throughout the decade, resulting in the others scrapping around for the odd Championship title. Ireland didn't manage to win the trophy once in the whole decade and worse never finished outside the bottom two.

The second Rugby World Cup took place in Britain, Ireland and France in 1991. Ireland found themselves in the same pool as Scotland. After two easy wins over Japan and Zimbabwe, Scotland sneaked a 24鈥�15 win at Murrayfield. Ireland played the Wallabies at Lansdowne Road in the quarter final and appeared to be on the verge of a shock victory over Australia, when Michael Lynagh scored the winning try to clinch a 19鈥�18 win for Australia.

At the 1994 Five Nations Championship, Ireland beat Will Carling's all-conquering England at Twickenham.

At the 1995 World Cup in South Africa, Ireland were in a group containing the All Blacks and Wales. In a close game in Johannesburg, Ireland sneaked through 24鈥�23 against Wales to make their third consecutive quarter-final appearance. Unfortunately France proved too strong, with Ireland going down 36鈥�12.

Professional Era[link]

Ireland playing at Croke Park.

The start of the professional era was disappointing for Ireland who finished bottom in the Five Nations Championship three years in succession (1996, 1997 and 1998). Englishman Brian Ashton was head coach between 1997 and 1998, but after a series of disappointing results resigned barely 12 months into the six year contract he had been awarded by the IRFU. Warren Gatland took over as coach in 1998, but was unable to produce immediate success and 1999 was the first time Ireland failed to reach the last eight at a Rugby World Cup. From this nadir, however, Irish rugby improved rapidly. With the advent of professionalism, the Irish Rugby Football Union decided to convert the four representative provincial sides into de facto club sides, with the financial capacity to retain top talent in Ireland, yet retaining strong links with amateur clubs and schools to enable young talent to be brought up through the ranks. The close geographical proximity of most of the Irish international squad helped cement relationships between the players in a way that would not have been possible had they left for English, French and Southern Hemisphere clubs. The later formation of the Celtic League (Now called the RaboDirect Pro12 for sponsorship reasons) cemented this strategy by ensuring that provincial sides had a regular schedule of competitive rugby.

The 1999 World Cup was staged in Wales though Ireland played all their pool games in Dublin. A defeat to the Wallabies meant Ireland having to go down the play-off route. Playing away from Lansdowne Road for the first time in the competition, Ireland were beaten 28鈥�24 by Argentina in Lens.

The advent of the new Six Nations format coincided with this Irish resurgence, and they became the strongest of the Celtic nations. In 2001 the rugby union season was disrupted due to the foot and mouth crisis in Britain. Ireland were good enough to beat France but were unable to play Scotland until the Autumn and were caught cold losing 32鈥�10. They were still good enough to beat England, spoiling their hopes of a Grand Slam, and finishing second on points difference. Eddie O'Sullivan took over as coach from Warren Gatland in November 2001 following the New Zealander's sacking.

The 2003 Six Nations Championship came down to the wire with Ireland and England playing a Grand Slam decider at Lansdowne Road. England, however, won 42鈥�6. That defeat ended an unbeaten run that stretched back 10 Tests to their Rugby World Cup qualifiers warm up against Romania in September 2002 and included defeats of Pool A rivals Australia and Argentina at Lansdowne Road. In 2004 they lost their opening game against France but became the first team to beat England following their World Cup win. They finished second in the table behind France and won the Triple Crown.

In 2005 Ireland were considered slight favourites entering the Six Nations Championships, and won their first three matches, including a 19鈥�13 defeat of England in Dublin. However, Ireland's dreams of their first Grand Slam since 1948 were ended with a 26鈥�19 home loss to France. In the final round, Wales defeated Ireland 32鈥�20 at Millennium Stadium in Cardiff to win the Grand Slam. Ireland finished in 3rd place. In 2006, Ireland showed the capacity to play top class rugby, but only inconsistently 鈥� a rout of Wales was balanced by uncertain victories against England, Scotland and Italy and a comprehensive defeat by winners France. Ireland finished second and won the Triple Crown for the second time in three years, incidentally the first ever time a trophy had been awarded for the feat.

Ireland scrum against Scotland during the 2007 Six Nations Championship.

They then embarked on their annual tour to the southern hemisphere. There they ran New Zealand close twice before a tired Ireland were thumped by the Wallabies in Perth. They returned to their clubs before they gathered once more for the last Autumn Internationals at Lansdowne Road. The South Africans came with an experimental side with an eye on the 2007 World Cup, which was soundly beaten by the Irish 32鈥�15. Next to Lansdowne were Australia with a much more formidable squad. The weather ruined what many had tipped to be the battle of the backlines, although Geordan Murphy finished off a world class move in their 21鈥�6 victory. That win propelled Ireland to a best ever height of 3rd in the IRB World Rankings. In the final international match at Lansdowne, Ireland thumped the Pacific Islanders 61鈥�17, with Paddy Wallace putting in a man of the match performance with 26 points. The win completed a hat-trick of victories.

Paul O'Connell winning the lineout against Argentina

In March 2007 the IRFU created the "High Performance Select Group" of up and coming Irish players who have been earmarked for future Irish teams. This group includes Luke Fitzgerald, Barry Murphy, Tommy Bowe, Rob Kearney, Daniel Riordan, Stephen Ferris, Roger Wilson,and Jamie Heaslip, some of whom have already been capped. The aim of the group is to provide these young players with the support and infrastructure available to the senior squad and to ease their future transition into the Irish team.^[6]

With the announcement of the rebuilding of Lansdowne Road, a new venue was required to stage Ireland's home internationals. While Ireland are planning to play one of their warm up matches for the 2007 World Cup at Ravenhill, the only stadium in Ireland capable of holding major rugby internationals was Croke Park, home of the Gaelic Athletic Association. To accommodate this, the GAA temporarily relaxed its rule governing the playing of so-called "foreign games" on its property. Initially, two Six Nations games were played at Croke Park during 2007; the first was a 17鈥�20 loss to France, and the second a 43 to 13 win over England.

Ireland began their 2008 Six Nations Campaign with a narrow win over Italy.^[7] France then edged Ireland out in Paris,^[8] before they went on to beat Scotland in Dublin,^[9] Ireland then lost to eventual Grand Slammers Wales and England.

In March 2008, Eddie O'Sullivan resigned as Ireland coach after the disappointing Six Nations and World Cup campaigns.^[10]

Declan Kidney was subsequently appointed as manager but did not take up this role formally until after Ireland's tour of New Zealand and Australia (losing to the All Blacks 21鈥�11 and Australia 18鈥�12). His first official game in charge was against Canada at Thomond Park which Ireland won 55鈥�0.^[11]

Ireland won the 2009 Six Nations Championship and Grand Slam by beating Wales at the Millennium Stadium 15鈥�17 on 21 March 2009, the first time they had won the championship since 1985, and the first time they had won the Grand Slam since 1948. Ireland also became only the second team (after Wales in 2005) to win a Six Nations Grand Slam after playing more away games than at home.^[12][13] The Ireland team arrived home on 22 March 2009 at Dublin airport to a heroes welcome. Afterwards around 18,000 fans turned out at the Mansion House to greet the team after clinching the first Grand Slam for Ireland in 61 years.^[14] After Autumn Series victories against Fiji and South Africa, and a draw against Australia, Ireland ended 2009 unbeaten.

Ireland began the 2010 Six Nations with a home game against Italy, winning 29鈥�11. Their second game was away to France in a match which many saw as the decider for this years competition. France ran out comfortable winners, the final score being 33鈥�10. After a one week break Ireland were away to England. In a close game Ireland eventually emerged victorious, a Tommy Bowe try and Ronan O'Gara conversion winning the match 16鈥�20. After another one week break Ireland were back at Croke Park against Wales. Ireland were winners, beating Wales 27鈥�12 after a Man-of-the-Match performance from Tomas O'Leary.^[15] Ireland's final game of the Six Nations, and the last ever game at Croke Park, was against Scotland. Ireland went into the match with a 5th Triple Crown in sight but were undone by a 79th minute Dan Parks penalty, which gave the Scots a 20鈥�23 victory.^[16]

Ireland began their 2010 Summer Tests with a non-cap friendly against the Barbarians, which they lost 23鈥�29 despite a characteristic fight-back in the second half. Their next game saw them take on New Zealand. An injury hit side fielded a number of inexperienced or uncapped players, and Ireland were duly thrashed 66鈥�28, their heaviest ever defeat, though a spirited come back in the second half gained them a lot of deserved credit, with tries from O'Driscoll, Bowe and D'Arcy after Tuohy's first half try. Jamie Heaslip was also sent off in the 15th minute so Ireland were at a numerical disadvantage. Ireland's next game was against New Zealand Maori. The side was captained by Geordan Murphy and fielded many inexperienced players. The game was level at 18鈥�18 at half-time thanks to Jonathan Sexton's boot, but the Maori eventually won 31鈥�28. Ireland's next game, and last of the Summer Tests, was against Australia which they lost 22鈥�15.

Ireland began their 2010 Autumn Tests with a 21鈥�23 defeat to South Africa, the first international at the new Aviva Stadium. Ronan O'Gara won his 100th cap for Ireland during the game. Ireland's next game was against Samoa, which they won 20鈥�10. Ireland's third game of the 2010 Autumn Tests was against New Zealand, which the All-Blacks won 18鈥�38. Ireland's final game of the 2010 Autumn Tests was against Argentina, which Ireland won 29鈥�9.

The 2011 Six Nations Championship began for Ireland against Italy in Rome, where a late Ronan O'Gara drop goal secured an 11鈥�13 win for Ireland. Ireland lost 22鈥�25 to France in their second match, the first Six Nations match to be played at the Aviva Stadium. Ireland next played Scotland at Murrayfield, defeating the Scots 18鈥�21. Wales defeated Ireland 19鈥�13 at the Millenium Stadium. During the game, Ronan O'Gara became the first Irishman, and only the fifth player, to cross the 1,000-point barrier in international rugby, and Brian O'Driscoll equalled the Four/Five/Six Nations all-time record for tries scored. Ireland's final game was against England, who were chasing their first Grand Slam in eight years. Ireland won 24鈥�8 to ruin England's hopes, Brian O'Driscoll scored his 25th Championship try to set a new record, and Ronan O'Gara made his 56th Championship appearance to equal the record of countryman Mike Gibson.

Ireland's 2012 Six Nations Championship campaign began with 21-23 defeat at the hands of Wales.^[17]Ireland's second game, away to France, was called off due to a frozen pitch.^[18]Ireland beat Italy 42-10 in their second fixture of the 2012 Six Nations.^[19]Ireland's third game was the re-arranged fixture against France at the Stade de France, which was drawn 17-17.^[20]Ireland beat Scotland 32-14 in their Round 4 game.^[21]Ireland's final 2012 Six Nations game was away to England, which the hosts won 30-9, meaning Ireland finished third overall with two wins, one draw and two defeats.^[22]

Flags and anthems[link]

Flag of the IRFU

The Irish rugby union team is one of a few national sporting teams on the island that draws widespread support in both Northern Ireland and the Republic, and from both nationalist and unionist communities. As Ireland represents players from different sovereign territories, there has been controversy over the flags and anthems. When Irish internationals were played alternately in Belfast and Dublin, the British national anthem was played for matches in Belfast and the national anthem of the Republic of Ireland "Amhr谩n na bhFiann" was played for matches in Dublin. No anthem was played at away games.

Since April 1995, a specially composed anthem, "Ireland's Call" has been used by the Irish team in away games.^[23] This has prompted some players and supporters from the Republic to complain that "Amhr谩n na bhFiann" should be played.^[24] At games played in Dublin "Ireland's Call" is always used alongside "Amhr谩n na bhFiann".^[25] This use of "Amhr谩n na bhFiann" has caused similar complaints from players and supporters from Northern Ireland.^{[citation needed]} With Ireland's friendly game against Italy in the run up to the 2007 Rugby World Cup scheduled to be held in Belfast, there were calls for "God Save the Queen" to be used alongside "Ireland's Call" but this was turned down by the IRFU^[26] with the explanation given that it was not a 'home' match because the team would be playing "outside Ireland".^[27]

Similarly, the Irish tricolour, the official flag of the Republic of Ireland, is flown only when playing in the Republic. A flag with symbols representing the four provinces of Ireland is flown alongside the Irish tricolour in Dublin, and is used exclusively when playing elsewhere.^{[citation needed]} At some matches, the standard of the island's rugby union governing body, the Irish Rugby Football Union, is displayed on the field during pre-match ceremonies.^{[citation needed]}

At the 2011 Rugby World Cup, the Ireland team entered the field of play at the beginning of their matches with the Irish tricolour and the Flag of Ulster,^{[citation needed]} to which the six Irish counties in Northern Ireland belong.

Home grounds[link]

Lansdowne Road, the home of Irish rugby, seen here during a Munster-Leinster game.

The traditional home of Irish rugby is Lansdowne Road in Dublin, where most of Ireland's home matches were held. The stadium was rebuilt between 2007 and 2010. Naming rights were sold to an insurance company, and the venue is now referred to as the Aviva Stadium. The original stadium, owned by the Irish Rugby Football Union, was built in 1872, and so the venue continues to hold the distinction as the oldest still in use for international rugby. In 1878 the ground hosted its first rugby Test, with Ireland playing host to the English (the first representative rugby match had taken place prior to the Test, a game between Ulster and Leinster). Lansdowne Road had a capacity of just over 49,000 before it was demolished in summer 2007. The redeveloped stadium seats 51,700 and was opened in May 2010. The final Irish Test prior to work commencing on the remodelled stadium was against the Pacific Islanders in late 2006. With Lansdowne Road unavailable for use, Ireland was without a suitable home ground for the subsequent Six Nations. The Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) owned Croke Park (an 82,500 capacity stadium) was made available for Ireland's two home games against France and England in 2007. It was the first time ever that rugby was played at the venue. Croke Park remained in use for Ireland's Six Nations matches and other major Tests until the completion of the redevelopment at Lansdowne Road.

Aviva Stadium, on Lansdowne Road.

The first Ireland match at the rebuilt stadium was against reigning World Cup champions South Africa on 6 November 2010.South Africa won the match 23鈥�22. Because of the historic significance of this match, South Africa announced that they would wear their change strip to allow Ireland to wear their home green; normally, the home team change their colours in case of a clash.^[28]

Although Ireland has never totally hosted the Rugby World Cup, select games from both the 1991 and 1999 World Cups were played throughout venues in Ireland. Pool B in 1991 was mainly played in Ireland and Scotland, with two games at Lansdowne Road (involving Ireland) and one (Zimbabwe v Japan) played at Ravenhill, Belfast. A quarter-final and a semi-final were also hosted by Dublin. A similar system was used in 1999, though in addition to Lansdowne and Ravenhill, Thomond Park was also a venue. Lansdowne Road was also the host of a quarter-final in 1999. Ireland were set to host matches at Lansdowne Road for the 2007 World Cup, but due to scheduling conflicts with the reconstruction of the stadium, they decided they were not in a position to host any.^[29]

Record[link]

Six Nations[link]

Brian O'Driscoll lifting the 2009 Six Nations Grand slam trophy.

Ireland's Grand slam trophy haul in 2009

The Six Nations Championship, held every year in February and March is Ireland's only annual tournament. It is contested against England, France, Italy, Scotland and Wales. Ireland was a member of the inaugural Home Nations in 1883 鈥� with France and Italy joining later to form the Five and Six Nations respectively. Ireland won their first championship in 1894, winning the Triple Crown also. Ireland's first Grand Slam occurred in the 1948 season and their second in the 2009 season. In total Ireland have been champions on eleven occasions.

	England	France	Ireland	Italy	Scotland	Wales
Tournaments	112	82	112	13	112	112
Outright Wins (Shared Wins)
Home Nations	5 (4)	-	4 (3)	-	9 (2)	7 (3)
Five Nations	17 (6)	12 (8)	6 (5)	-	5 (6)	15 (8)
Six Nations	4	5	1	0	0	3
Overall	26 (10)	17 (8)	11 (8)	0 (0)	14 (8)	25 (11)
Grand Slams	12	9	2	0	3	11
Triple Crowns	23	N/A	10	N/A	10	20

World Cup[link]

Ireland and Australia contesting a line-out in the 2011 Rugby World Cup

Ireland have competed at every Rugby World Cup tournament. The furthest they have progressed is the quarter-finals, which they have made five times out of seven. They have finished top of their pool once, in 2011, after beating pool favourite Australia.

After a loss to Wales in the first tournament, held in Australia and New Zealand in 1987, Ireland finished second in their pool but were then knocked out by Australia in their quarter final in Sydney. In 1991 Ireland again lost only one match in pool play, this time to Scotland. They again met the Australians in the quarter-finals, who defeated them by one point. Runner-up in their pool in 1995 to the All Blacks, Ireland were defeated by France in their quarter-final in Durban.

Ireland finished second in their pool in 1999, behind Australia and went into the quarter-final play-offs (a system exclusive to the 1999 tournament). There they lost to Argentina, and thus, not being a quarter-finalists, they were not given automatic entry into 2003. They defeated Russia and Georgia to go through as Europe 1. They finished second to Australia in their pool, and were knocked out by France in the quarter finals.

They started in the so-called "Group of death" with hosts France, Argentina, Namibia and Georgia in the 2007 World Cup. They played Namibia (the lowest ranked team in the World Cup) in their opening game on 9 September which resulted in a 32鈥�17 win.^[30] Their progress was then put into doubt when they beat Georgia 14鈥�10, not obtaining a bonus point.^[31] France's victory over Namibia 87鈥�10 put Ireland's progression from the group in doubt, and this was compounded when Ireland lost to the French 25鈥�3.^[32] Entering their last group match against Argentina, needing four tries to secure a bonus point without allowing Argentina anything, Ireland were defeated by 30 points to 15 and crashed out at the pool stage for the first time.^[33]

IRB World Rankings v t e
Top 25 Rankings as of 19 March 2012[34]
Rank	Change*	Team	Points
1		New Zealand	91.43
2		Australia	87.99
3		South Africa	84.34
4		England	83.62
5		Wales	83.32
6		France	81.91
7		Argentina	80.28
8		Ireland	79.85
9		Tonga	76.63
10		Samoa	75.81
11		Italy	74.17
12		Scotland	73.86
13		Canada	72.92
14		Japan	70.45
15		Georgia	70.26
16		Fiji	68.78
17		United States	65.63
18		Romania	63.81
19		Spain	62.57
20		Namibia	61.24
21		Uruguay	60.47
22		Russia	60.12
23		Chile	59.52
24		Belgium	58.88
25		Portugal	57.75
*Change from the previous week
Ireland's Historical Rankings
Source: IRB - Graph updated to 23/01/2012[34]

Ireland were in Pool C for the 2011 Rugby World Cup in New Zealand, with Australia, Russia, USA and Italy. Their first pool game was against the USA on 11 September, which ended in a 22鈥�10 victory for Ireland.^[35] Ireland's second pool game was against the reigning Tri Nations champions Australia. Despite being underdogs, Ireland recorded their first victory over Australia at a World Cup with a superb 15鈥�6 win.^[36] Ireland comfortably beat Russia 62鈥�12 in their third Pool C game.^[37] Ireland secured first place in Pool C with a 36鈥�6 win over Italy. This victory ensured that Ireland went through to the World Cup quarter finals as group winners for the first time in their World Cup history.^[38] Ireland lost their quarter final to Wales 10鈥�22.^[39]

Overall[link]

Their Test record against all nations: As of 18 March 2012^[40]

Against	Played	Won	Lost	Drawn	Win %
Argentina	12	7	5	0	58.33%
Australia	30	9	20	1	31.66%
Canada	5	4	0	1	90.00%
England	126	46	72	8	39.68%
Fiji	3	3	0	0	100.00%
France	90	29	55	6	35.55%
Georgia	3	3	0	0	100.00%
Italy	21	18	3	0	85.71%
Japan	5	5	0	0	100.00%
Namibia	4	2	2	0	50.00%
New Zealand	24	0	23	1	0.00%
New Zealand Natives	1	0	1	0	0.00%
Pacific Islanders	1	1	0	0	100.00%
Presidents XV	1	0	0	1	50.00%
Romania	8	8	0	0	100.00%
Russia	2	2	0	0	100.00%
Samoa	5	4	1	0	80.00%
Scotland	127	57	65	5	46.85%
South Africa	20	4	15	1	22.50%
Tonga	2	2	0	0	100.00%
United States	7	7	0	0	100.00%
Wales	118	47	65	6	42.37%
Zimbabwe	1	1	0	0	100.00%
Total	616	259	327	30	44.48%

Current squad[link]

Ireland initial squad for the clash against the Barbarians was announced on the 15 May, no Leinster players were selected due to the RaboDirect PRO12 final. ^[41][42] Ireland's 29-man squad for the for three-test tour of New Zealand was named on the 21 May. Four additional players are to be added to the squad. ^[43] Stephen Ferris was ruled out of the tour due to a calf injury, he was replaced by McLaughlin. ^[44] The additional players were Wilkinson, McCarthy, Henry and Marshall. Loughney was also included to provide cover for Ross. ^[45]

Head Coach: Declan Kidney
Note: Flags indicate national union for the club/province as defined by the International Rugby Board.

Player Position Date of Birth (Age) Caps Club/province Rory Best Hooker (1982-08-15) 15 August 1982 (age 29) 59 Ulster Sean Cronin Hooker (1986-05-06) 6 May 1986 (age 26) 19 Leinster Mike Sherry Hooker (1988-06-18) 18 June 1988 (age 24) 0 Munster Declan Fitzpatrick Prop (1983-07-12) 12 July 1983 (age 28) 0 Ulster Cian Healy Prop (1987-10-07) 7 October 1987 (age 24) 30 Leinster Ronan Loughney Prop (1984-11-01) 1 November 1984 (age 27) 0 Connacht Mike Ross Prop (1979-12-21) 21 December 1979 (age 32) 20 Leinster Brett Wilkinson Prop (1983-11-29) 29 November 1983 (age 28) 0 Connacht Mike McCarthy Lock (1981-11-27) 27 November 1981 (age 30) 4 Connacht Donncha O'Callaghan Lock (1979-03-24) 24 March 1979 (age 33) 85 Munster Donnacha Ryan Lock (1983-12-11) 11 December 1983 (age 28) 18 Munster Dan Tuohy Lock (1985-06-18) 18 June 1985 (age 27) 2 Ulster Chris Henry Flanker (1984-10-17) 17 October 1984 (age 27) 1 Ulster Kevin McLaughlin Flanker (1984-09-20) 20 September 1984 (age 27) 2 Leinster Sean O'Brien Flanker (1987-02-14) 14 February 1987 (age 25) 19 Leinster Jamie Heaslip Number 8 (1983-12-15) 15 December 1983 (age 28) 48 Leinster Peter O'Mahony Number 8 (1989-09-17) 17 September 1989 (age 22) 4 Munster Paul Marshall Scrum-half (1985-07-26) 26 July 1985 (age 26) 0 Ulster Conor Murray Scrum-half (1989-04-20) 20 April 1989 (age 23) 9 Munster Eoin Reddan Scrum-half (1980-11-20) 20 November 1980 (age 31) 42 Leinster Ronan O'Gara Fly-half (1977-03-07) 7 March 1977 (age 35) 121 Munster Jonathan Sexton Fly-half (1985-07-11) 11 July 1985 (age 26) 29 Leinster Darren Cave Centre (1987-04-05) 5 April 1987 (age 25) 2 Ulster Gordon D'Arcy Centre (1980-02-10) 10 February 1980 (age 32) 68 Leinster Keith Earls Centre (1987-10-02) 2 October 1987 (age 24) 30 Munster Brian O'Driscoll Centre (1979-01-21) 21 January 1979 (age 33) 117 Leinster Fergus McFadden Wing (1986-06-17) 17 June 1986 (age 26) 11 Leinster Andrew Trimble Wing (1984-10-20) 20 October 1984 (age 27) 46 Ulster Simon Zebo Wing (1990-03-16) 16 March 1990 (age 22) 0 Munster Rob Kearney Fullback (1986-03-26) 26 March 1986 (age 26) 38 Leinster

• The following players were selected for Barbarians match only.

Note: Flags indicate national union for the club/province as defined by the International Rugby Board.

Player Position Date of Birth (Age) Caps Club/province John Muldoon Flanker (1982-11-30) 30 November 1982 (age 29) 3 Connacht James Coughlan Number 8 (1980-12-09) 9 December 1980 (age 31) 0 Munster Nevin Spence Centre (1990-04-26) 26 April 1990 (age 22) 0 Ulster Paddy Wallace Centre (1979-08-27) 27 August 1979 (age 32) 29 Ulster Craig Gilroy Wing (1991-03-11) 11 March 1991 (age 21) 0 Ulster

Notable players[link]

Hall of Fame[link]

Eight former Ireland players have been inducted into the International Rugby Hall of Fame. Five of these have also had the added honour of induction into the IRB Hall of Fame鈥擪yle in 2008;^[46] McBride, Millar and O'Reilly in 2009;^[47] and Gibson in 2011.^[48]

British and Irish Lions[link]

The following Ireland players have represented the British and Irish Lions.^[49]