A British soldier hides behind a bush while a woman mows the lawn during The Troubles, 1973

 

A British soldier hides behind a bush while a woman mows the lawn during The Troubles, 1973

The Troubles was a conflict in Northern Ireland between 1968 and 1998. It was a domestic war that saw tensions between Protestants and Catholics reach a critical point which resulted in 3,500 deaths. The Troubles saw two ethnic groups, Catholics (who saw themselves are Irish) and Protestants (who saw themselves are British), fight over traditional values which were influenced by earlier historical events. Northern Ireland is part of the United Kingdom, and Catholics experienced a lot of discrimination from the British government. Many Catholics in Northern Ireland felt isolated as they believed the land they lived on belonged to the Republic of Ireland. In 1968, after several riots and civilian battles, radical hardline groups emerged to fight for the traditional values they believed in. The Irish Republican Army (Catholic) and the Ulster Volunteer Force (Protestant) both emerged as the dominant groups representing the values they stood for (It is important to note that there were many factions of IRA. However, the Provisional IRA were the largest and most powerful of them all). The British army saw action in Northern Ireland to keep the peace but often abused Catholics and sided with Protestants. These paramilitary groups would cause a massive amount of death and suffering, mainly civilians who had nothing to do with the conflict. Both of these groups are registered as domestic terrorist groups in Ireland. Both used guerilla tactics such as remote bombs, ambush attacks, and urban warfare. The picture above shows how people in Northern Ireland are so used to the conflict and tension that they do everyday things while the British soldiers are on edge. Photographer: Phillip Jones Griffiths Source: encyclopedia