History of Ireland

Union With Great Britain. During the 1700’s the British kept tight control over Ireland and limited the powers of the Irish Parliament. Many Irish Protestants objected to the restrictions, and Parliament, led by Henry Grattan, demanded legislative freedom. Great Britain met the demands in 1782, and the all-Protestants Irish Parliament ruled the country for the next 18 years. Parliament restored to Catholics their rights to hold land and lifted the restrictions on their religious right. But it refused to give them any political rights.
Some Protestants in Parliament tried to gain more rights for Catholics. After their attempts failed, they formed a group called the United Irishmen. At first, this group sought equal rights for all Irish people. Later, it demanded complete independence for Ireland from British rule. In 1798, the United Irishmen staged an unsuccessful rebellion. After the rebellion, the British Prime Minister, William Pitt, persuaded the British and Irish parliaments to pass the Act of Union. Under the act, which went into effect in 1801, Ireland officially became part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. The Irish Parliament was then ended, and Ireland sent representatives to the British Parliament. In 1829, Daniel O’Connell, an Irish Catholic leader, helped Catholics win the right to serve in the British Parliament and to hold other public offices.