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The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was formed in 1801 from the merger of the Kingdom of Great Britain (itself a merger of the former Kingdoms of Scotland and England in 1707) and the Kingdom of Ireland. The merger was facilitated by the decision of the Irish Parliament in College Green, Dublin in August 1800 to vote itself out of existence by passing the Act of Union. Whilst the Irish Free State became independent in 1922 the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland continued in name however until 1927 when it was renamed as the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in accordance with the Royal and Parliamentary Titles Act.Union Flag ( 1606- 1800)
Under the terms of the merger, Ireland was to be represented by over 100 MPs in the united parliament, meeting in the Palace of WestminsterClock Tower and New Palace Yard from the west The Palace of Westminster on the banks of the River Thames in Westminster, London, is the home of the House of Commons and the House of Lords, which, together with the Queen, form the Parliament of the United. Part of the trade-off was to be the granting of Catholic EmancipationCatholic Emancipation was a process in Great Britain and Ireland in the late 18th century and early 19th century which involved reducing and removing many of the restrictions on Roman Catholics which had been introduced by the Act of Uniformity and the Te. However, this was blocked by King George IIIGeorge III (George William Frederick) ( 4 June 1738 29 January 1820) was King of Great Britain, and King of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until 1 January 1801, and thereafter King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland until his death. He was c who argued that emancipating Roman Catholics would breach his Coronation Oath .
Generations of Irish leaders campaigned to establish home government in Ireland. Daniel O'ConnellDaniel O'Connell ( August 6, 1776 May 15, 1847), known as The Liberator was Ireland's predominant politician in the first half of the nineteenth century. A critic of violent insurrection in Ireland, he once said that the freedom of Ireland was not worth t successfully forced the British Government to grant Catholic EmancipationCatholic Emancipation was a process in Great Britain and Ireland in the late 18th century and early 19th century which involved reducing and removing many of the restrictions on Roman Catholics which had been introduced by the Act of Uniformity and the Te finally in 1829Events January 8 Hanging of body-selling murderer William Burke his associate William Hare, who testified against him, is released January 19 Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's Faust premieres March 4 Andrew Jackson succeeds John Quincy Adams as the President o. However, his campaign to 'repeal' the Act of Union failed. Later leaders, such as Charles Stewart ParnellCharles Stewart Parnell ( June 27 1846 October 6 1891) was an Irish political leader and one of the most important figures in nineteenth century Ireland and the United Kingdom. William Ewart Gladstone thought him the most remarkable person he had ever met, campaigned for a version of Irish self-government called Home Rule within membership of the United Kingdom, which was nearly achieved in the 1880's under the (British) ministry of W.E. Gladstone . However, the measure was defeated in Parliament, and following the ascension of the Conservatives to the majority, the issue was buried as long as their party was in power.
right St. Patrick's saltire (also called St. Patrick's Cross)
In 1919, Irish MPs elected to Westminster formed a unilaterally independent Irish parliament, Dáil Éireann with an executive under the President of Dáil Éireann, Eamon de Valera. A War of Independence was fought between 1919 and 1921. Finally in December 1922, twenty-six of Ireland's counties exited from the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and formed an independent Irish Free State. Six counties, called Northern Ireland, remained in the United Kingdom, which was renamed the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in 1927, as part of a fundamental revision of royal, state and dominion titles. As part of the change, the King ceased to be monarch in the various dominions (each of which was seen as inferior to the United Kingdom) and became king of each dominion separately, becoming King of Ireland, King of Australia , King of Canada, King of New Zealand, etc., replacing the concept of a shared crown with a shared monarch wearing separate crowns.
