259 Formal Talks at Stormont

After the announcement on Friday 29th August, 1997 by Marjorie (Mo) Molam, then Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, that the Irish Republican Army (IRA) ceasefire had been sufficiently well observed for Sinn Féin (SF) to enter the multi-party talks, Sinn Féin (SF) signed up to the Mitchell Principles and entered the multi-party-talks at Stromont

#86 Bloody Friday

21st July 1972, Belfast. The IRA planted and exploded 22 bombs in 75 minutes, killing 9 people and injuring 130 others. This event was particularly chaotic die to the number of hoax calls that were made in order to confuse the security services. This event was a direct response to the events of Bloody Sunday;

#248 Drumcree 1995

There were also disturbances and blocked roads across Northern Ireland as protests were organised by loyalists insupport of the Orange Order. On the 9th July 1995, there was a standoff between the RUC and the Orange Order who wished to undertake a marching route along the Garvaghy Road, a mainly Nationalist area.

Box Art

63 The Battle of St Matthew’s

Enshrined in Republican lore, this event saw the Provisional IRA, for five hours, defend its Nationalist community from the grounds of St Matthew’s Catholic Church as Loyalist riot￾ers made incursions into Catholic Short Strand area of East Belfast. Of the six people killed that day, five were Protestants killed by the IRA. The Nationalist community

Loyalists

9 1966 UVF Formed and Declare War The Ulster Volunteer Force was a loyalist paramilitary organisation formed in 1966 by Gusty Spence, a former soldier. With the direct aim of maintaining Northern Ireland’s role as part of the United Kingdom, it saw itself as justified in eliminating the IRA’s Republican intention of bringing about a

1959 Westminster General Election

UPRG

163 Ulster Political Research Group ‘Beyond the Religious Divide’ . This advisory group was set up in conjunction with the Ulster Defence Association and this report was an attempt to define a political path to be taken by them. The document’s main conclusion is for an Independent Northern Ireland to be realised through political means.

72 The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP)

The Democratic Unionist Party was created by Desmond Boal and Ian Paisley, evolving from the Protestant Unionist Party.It was directly opposed to the Stormont Unionists, who were open to Power Sharing with Republican and Nationalists, and equally objected to the Republic of Ireland having any involvement in Northern Ireland’s affairs. It campaigned against the 1973

138 Sinn Fein Incident Centres

Sinn Féin was given a concrete presence in the community when the IRA declared a ceasefire in 1975. ‘Incident centres’ were set up to communicate potential confrontations to the British authorities. They were manned by Sinn Féin, which had been legalised the year before by Secretary of State, Merlyn Rees.