34
votes
Accepted
Why were the Irish exempt from conscription during WWI?
Legally they were exempt because The Military Service Act (1916) applied to men "ordinarily resident in Great Britain" not men "ordinarily resident in the United Kingdom"
But practically, it would ...
- 1,070
33
votes
Why were the Irish exempt from conscription during WWI?
Traditionally, there had been no conscription in Ireland, at least not after the 17th century. Irish did serve in the British army, but only as volunteers. As an occupying country, Britain did not ...
- 104k
30
votes
Accepted
What made the English the dominant power of the British Isles?
To answer this question, you first have to answer another complex question: Who are the English?
This question turns out to be quite complex indeed because to this day scholars are unsure whether to ...
- 4,082
26
votes
What made the English the dominant power of the British Isles?
England lies in the warmest, richest, and most fertile parts of the British Isles. These are modern population figures, but they are indicative of past relative strengths:
England, 55 million; ...
- 104k
23
votes
Accepted
What was a turf rick in Ireland, circa 1833?
I found the answer to this while trying some other Google searches before posting my question. The answer is that "turf" is actually peat, which was the primary source of fuel in Ireland at ...
- 2,374
21
votes
Has a hereditary peer ever been promoted or demoted to a higher or lower rank?
Yes to the first.
Examples: the 1st Marquess of Montrose had inherited the title of Earl of Montrose from his father. The 4th Earl of Devonshire was made a Duke for his support of William III in the '...
- 339
19
votes
What made the English the dominant power of the British Isles?
The obvious reason for Scotland being "conquered" by England is that King James VI of Scotland was heir to the English throne, and upon the death of Elizabeth I of England (and Ireland) found himself ...
- 303
19
votes
Accepted
How frequently did monasteries attack other monasteries in Early Medieval Western Europe?
As far as I'm aware, this was something particular to the early Celtic church in Ireland.
Before I attempt to explain further I'd like to add an important caveat in regard to terminology:
These days,...
- 77.3k
19
votes
Has a hereditary peer ever been promoted or demoted to a higher or lower rank?
Someone who illustrates both aspects of the question is Thomas Wentworth, 1st Earl of Strafford who as an adviser to Charles I, progressed from Baronet, through Baron, Viscount and Earl, to being ...
- 31.4k
17
votes
Accepted
When did Robert Briscoe die?
30 May, 1969.
Here is a copy of an obit published in the Desert Sun, Volume 42, Number 256, 30 May 1969
This information is confirmed by multiple other posted obituaries in the
genealogical source, ...
- 38.7k
14
votes
What made the English the dominant power of the British Isles?
Scotland joining England and Wales:
The Darien Disaster was an ill-fated attempt to build a roadway across Central America by the Scots. It was backed by most of the Scottish nobility, and its failure ...
- 241
13
votes
Accepted
Why are Vikings singled out for raids in Britain and Ireland when records may indicate most raids were by local rulers?
The situation in early medieval Ireland was rather unique, as I explained in an answer to another question. The situation there was largely a legacy of the fact that the early monasteries had been ...
- 77.3k
10
votes
When did furniture become common in the homes of most people in the British Isles?
Furniture has of course been in use for thousands of years before the advent of Christianity.
The earliest excavation of furniture artifacts in Britain were found in Skara Brae, Scotland. It is ...
- 8,185
10
votes
Probation time in marriage?
Until 1603, Irish couples could divorce for several reasons (sterility/infertility, impotency, homosexuality, abortion, infanticide, flagrant infidelity, insanity, abandonment...).
Marriage was a ...
- 1,900
9
votes
Why was wearing an orange lily so offensive as to warrant assault in Ireland in 1845?
It has nothing to do with the flower, and everything with the colour. In the Republic of Ireland, the wearing of orange is frowned upon. The Orangeman or Orangeorder, are supporters of William III of ...
- 20.9k
8
votes
Accepted
What numerals did the people of Ireland use before Roman Numerals? (aka, did Ogham include numbers?)
No, Ireland had no written form of numerals until the adoption of Roman numerals.
The Ogam alphabet exhibits no numerals at all, from the earliest sources the alphabet only has 20 letters, with five ...
7
votes
On what basis do some historians accuse the British government of genocide during the great Irish famine?
The other answer notes that this remains a controversial subject, and has already presented most of the evidence used by nationalist historians to make the case that the "Irish Potato Famine", or "...
- 77.3k
7
votes
When did the round house fall out of vernacular use throughout Britain and Ireland?
The names and dates of these archaeological periods can be contested, but as a preliminary, we are concerned here with the:
Nordic Bronze Age (c. 1700 BCE - c. 500 BCE)
Pre-Roman Iron Age (c. 500 BCE ...
- 27.6k
7
votes
Accepted
Why was wearing an orange lily so offensive as to warrant assault in Ireland in 1845?
1845 in the Uk, particularly Ireland, was a year of heightened Protestant versus Roman Catholic antagonism. This is because the government of the UK, with Sir Robert Peel as Prime Minister, had ...
- 1,149
7
votes
Accepted
Why were monasteries built in obscure places around Ireland?
Quite simply, because monks wanted to live a quiet life in spiritual reflection, and get on with their work. They felt this was best done in isolation.
YourIrishCulture
Many monasteries had been ...
- 3,134
7
votes
Has a hereditary peer ever been promoted or demoted to a higher or lower rank?
Peers have often been promoted by being granted another peerage with a higher rank.
In some cases, a peerage can be inherited by someone who already holds another peerage title.
So a number of peers ...
- 19.1k
6
votes
Accepted
Sources on St. Patrick
St Patrick is recognized as a saint of various Christian denominations, including the Catholic and Orthodox Churches.
It is generally accepted that he died on March 17 493, but that actual date and ...
- 1,900
6
votes
When did furniture become common in the homes of most people in the British Isles?
SHORT ANSWER
The available sources suggest that even Iron Age roundhouses had some basic furniture such as benches and that, among the poor at least, the quantity (and probably the quality) of ...
- 108k
6
votes
Accepted
Did the IRA attempt to point out the innocence of the Guildford 4 or Birmingham 6?
There was at least one occasion when a member of the IRA publically stated that the Guildford Four had been wrongly convicted.
During the trial of the Balcombe Street gang in 1977, Joe O'Connell made ...
- 769
5
votes
Non Altered European Castles
You might like one of my local fortifications (The Portsmouth area is a fortification rich area with forts/castles dating from the 3rd to the 19th and probably 20th Century, all worth a look), ...
- 2,029
5
votes
Accepted
Did IRA bombings in Great Britain lead to Hibernophobia?
IRA bombings did increase Hibernophobia in Great Britain, as one would expect.
John O'Beirne Ranelagh's "A Short History of Ireland" (Third Edition, Cambridge University Press, 2012. Page 217) makes ...
- 1,485
5
votes
Accepted
Probation time in marriage?
Citing the work is really critical. Knowing the title permits me to access the Wikipedia page which gives me the legal statue under which the marriage occurred.
According to Irish “Brehon Laws,” a ...
MCW♦
- 32.3k
5
votes
Accepted
Was the mortality rate among Irish emigrants to Canada really ten times those to America? If so, why?
The ships that were used for the transport to Canada were called Coffin Ships. A genealogy page has this to say concerning these vessals
And so the first ships were commissioned and set sail, ...
- 38.7k
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible