Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland consists of the north-eastern section of the island of Ireland. It is often called Ulster. Ulster was the name of a large province of British-controlled Ireland until 1920. In 1920, Great Britain separated Northern Ireland from the rest of Ireland in order to create separate governments for the predominantly Protestant north and the mostly Roman Catholic south. The majority of the Northern Irish people, who are protestants of English or Scottish descent, supported the separation. But many Roman Catholics in both the north and the south refused to accept the division. In 1921, the south became the self-governing Irish Free State, now the independent Republic of Ireland. Northern Ireland continues to be united with Great Britain.

Beginning in 1921, militant Irish groups, particularly the Irish Republican Army (IRA), attacked British government army in Northern Ireland, hoping to force the British to give up control. In the 1960's, the Roman Catholic minority held marches demanding an end to economic and political discrimination. The police reacted with violence. In 1972 Britain established direct rule over Northern Ireland. The violence continued until 31 August, 1994 when the IRA declared a stop of war. In February 1995, the British and Irish governments invented a peace plan. But in 1996 IRA exploded a bomb in London. Northern Ireland is a land of rolling plains and low mountains. The fertile plains cover the central part of the country. Green valleys and low mountains lie along the country's coast. The countryside оГNorthern Ireland is dotted with lakes called loughs.

About 20 per cent of the people live in Belfast, the capital and the largest city. Belfast is also the country's manufacturing and trading center, many of mills, shipyards, and aircraft plants are located there. However, the country's economy depends mainly on service industries, which employ about 75 per cent of the workers.

Agriculture is also an important industry. About 30 per cent of the population lives in rural areas. Life in Northern Ireland is more like British life then like life in the Republic of Ireland. Such sports as soccer, cricket, and golf are popular pastimes, and pubs play an important role in social life.

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