Historical Timeline...
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8050BC to 2003AD
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knowing more about:-
Irish Immigration to and from Liverpool (UK)
The
City of Liverpool, located on the river Mersey, on the North
West Coastline of England, has long been a destination for Irish
migrants. It is difficult to define just how long the Irish have been
crossing the Irish Sea to settle in Liverpool. It is noted that there were already Irish names among the Liverpudlian Citizens as
early as:- 1378. A writer in 1795 already noticed the great influx of
Irish in the UK City. However large waves of immigration started only in
the late 18th Century. By far the greatest influx of Irish people to
live in Liverpool itself came during the years of the Great Famine in
the 1840's. However, this connection to the Irish migrants would lead the
Port of Liverpool to become the most important staging post for Irish
migrants on their way to North America or to settle elsewhere in England.
Incidentally there is now a memorial housed within the grounds
of:- St Luke's Church (Bombed Out Church) at the top of Bold
Street, within Liverpool City Center. 'cruise ships,'
Liverpool was also the port that the White
Star Line's Titanic was registered to. This British passenger liner sank in the North Atlantic Ocean after colliding with an iceberg during
her maiden voyage from Southampton, UK to New York City, US, in the
early morning of:- 15 April 1912. Its loss claimed many Irish
migrants and their families. Another famous Liner to be lost was
Canadian Pacific's Steamship Empress of Ireland. She had been sailing on
the Liverpool Quebec City run, forming a connection between transcontinental
railroad in Canada and Liverpool in the UK when when disaster struck
on:- 29 May 1914. At around 2am local time, She was involved in a
collision with the Norwegian collier SS Storstad and quickly sank under
the ice cold Saint Lawrence River. The loss of this Ocean Liner led to
the deaths of:- 1,012 of the 1,477 persons. Sadly, they say that disasters
come in threes and just a year after, Liverpool's shipping firms had
another tragedy. Cunard's Lusitania was heading back from the US when, on:- 7
May 1915, a single torpedo fired from the German U-boat U-20 slammed
into the starboard side of the Lusitania. This happened near the start
of World War 1 off the Southern Coast of Ireland. The ship listed and
sank in just 18 minutes. While 761 of those on board were rescued, most
were not so fortunate. This devastating loss combined with the effects
of the other losses was to lead to the beginning of the end of
Liverpool’s Edwardian heyday as a Liner Port and its influence on Irish
migration Obviously, World War 1 was to have a devastating
effect on the port in the long run. Another Irish connection to
Liverpool is the City's accent known as:- 'Scouse.'
Some language experts
have been able to identify a hybrid of Lancashire and Irish Gaelic. The dialect
is a relict of the great influx of Irish immigrants in the 19th Century
and shows that the new settlers were so numerous that they changed the
very speech of the local people.
Date
Historical Information
1800s
The 1st important influx started after the rebellion of 1798.
This marked the beginning of an unceasing immigration until it
was superseded by the beginning of mass emigration to America. By
the year 1800, the population was already approaching 80000;
doubling in less than 20 years and poor and immigrants were
crowded in the old part of the City. At this time Liverpool was
also in full expansion benefiting of the industrial revolution
with its seaport, and thus needed people. As Ireland belonged to
the United Kingdom, its people could move to Britain, and
especially Liverpool, very easily, in the same way as both the
Scottish and the Welsh did. The Irish immigrants rapidly bonded together in specific
areas of City, especially around Scotland Road and Vauxhall
Road. This quick expansion contributed to the development of a
disastrous unsanitary situation, infrastructure could not adapt and in the
absence of legislation, new housing did not respect the basic
rules of hygiene, being built back to back, without water
supply or sanitation. However at this time, the Irish population
had started playing an increasing important role within the
City's economic,
political, social and religious life. In
1841, 20% of the Irish living in England and Wales were found in
Merseyside.
1850s
The 2nd and bigger mass influx resulted from the Irish Potato
Famine, which touched Ireland by the mid-1840s. Millions of
desperate Irish people crossed the Irish Sea on dodgy vessels
called:-
'coffin ships.' Very often these overloaded ships
reached Liverpool after losing a third of their passengers to
disease, hunger and other causes. Liverpool was for a lot of
them only a stage before emigrating to North America. In 1846
280,000 people entered Liverpool from Ireland of whom 106,000
moved abroad. During the 1st main wave of famine emigration
from January to June 1847, about 300,000 Irish refugees sailed
in the City and 130,000 emigrated. Those who stayed, crowded
in cellars and houses still in Vauxhall and Scotland Road area,
housed within escalating unsanitary situations, contributing to aggravate
Liverpool's problem of poverty and misery. It was calculated
that in 1847 there were 35 000 people, mainly Irish, living in
cellars, while some 5341 inhabited cellars described as:
'wells of stagnant water.
Great Famine of the 1840's
were
les felt, the waves of immigration decreased in
number and in size. Despite the end of the
Famine around:- 1849 to 1850,
many emigrated to the Americas though the
Port, but thousands stayed.
most of the Irish
remained in Liverpool and carried on integrating
with the local life,
creating the vibrant communities of the
North End and the Scotland Road area. Up to this point roughly
25% of
Liverpool's population was Irish born. A 1851 census for
Liverpool showed there were:- 43,000 Irish living in Liverpool,
mostly concentrated mostly within North.
They were ready to accept
any job, especially in the newly expanding
seaport, working on our infrastructure that is
still in use today, like the railroads and canals, as:-
'Navvies,'
1900s
In
the late 19th and early 20th Century, T.P. O'Connor belonged to
these important Irish personalities who played a major role in
the development of Anglo Irish relationships in Liverpool, but also in
Britain, as he was the chief spokesman for the Irish in Britain,
he also was the 1st Irish Nationalist MP. And until the
partition of Ireland in 1921, numerous Irish Nationalist
Councillors followed one another in Liverpool. "there
is abundant evidence … that a very grave injury is being done to
the prosperity of Merseyside and to its population"
In the 1970's, Channon noticed that still a
lot of girls arrived from Ireland with little
money and no experience of big City life. But
associations and organisations existed then to
protect them from the moral hazards of the
waterfront. He also added that without the
annual influx of girls from the other side of
the Irish Sea, Liverpool Hospitals would have
been critically short of Nurses under training
and domestic staff.
1903 to 1917
The "Three Graces"
THE landmark building were
constructed during Liverpool's Edwardian heyday, a period that
marked the peak of the City's influence as the:- "2nd
City
of the British Empire."
The physical
construction of the buildings; much like the miles of granite
dock walls; was heavily dependent on Irish "Navvies"
"packet" ships from both:- Dublin or Belfast. Many
of the Irish who arrived from Ireland also headed out of the UK
to location around the world, leaving England from Liverpool,
especially to America (USA) and Australia.
1800 onwards
Railways and Canals
Helping to move the British Industrial Revolution forward were
essential canals providing, cheap bulk transport to and from the
Port of Liverpool and other major Ports and Cities throughout
Britain. Irish navvies (short for:- "navigators"
1880
The Liverpool Irish Centre
St Michael’s Irish Centre (often simply called the:-
'Liverpool
Irish Centre' was originally built in the late 19th
Century (specifically around 1880). It was initially constructed
as a School (St Michael’s Roman Catholic School) but it
didn't become the:- "Irish Centre"
1800 to present day
The Orange Order and 12 July Parades
The institutional presence of the:-
'Orange Order' 'Orange
Lodge' "Mother Province"
'Order in England.' 'Battle of the Boyne' '12th July Parades,' The
Glorious Twelfth' "The Troubles" in the
1800 to present day
St Patrick's Day
Parades - The Emerald Connection
Liverpool's St Patrick's Day Parade is not
merely a modern festival, but a deep seated tradition that
reflects centuries of:- migration, struggle, and eventual
celebration. Early celebrations started between:- 1845 and 1852,
and were often informal or religious in nature, centred around
the various Catholic Parishes within the growing City. However,
as the Irish community integrated and found its political voice,
these gatherings evolved into more public displays of cultural
pride. Throughout the late 19th and early 20th Centuries, St
Patrick's Day in Liverpool was marked by processions involving:-
Irish Nationalist groups, benevolent societies, and marching
bands. However, the tradition faced periods of decline,
particularly during the mid-20th Century and the height of:-
"The Troubles" in Northern Ireland, when public
displays of Irishness in British cities could sometimes be met
with political sensitivity. The modern era of the Parade saw a
significant resurgence in the 1990s. As Liverpool moved towards
its designation as the European Capital of Culture in 2008,
there was a renewed focus on celebrating the:- "diaspora"
"Scouse" identity is, at its heart, a beautiful blend
of English and Irish soul.
1800 to present day
P olitical
Tensions
While modern
Parades are celebrated as inclusive cultural festivals, the
history of sectarian marching in Liverpool, specifically
involving the Orange Lodge and Irish Nationalist groups, was
historically fraught with frequent violence, particularly
between the mid-19th Century and the early 20th Century. During
the peak of the Irish Home Rule movement, violence typically
flared around both the:- 17 March and 12 July Parades. As the
Irish population swelled following the Famine, friction
intensified to the point that major riots in July 1835 led
authorities to attempt a ban on such marches. This volatility
continued through the 1850s, with the 1859 Orange Riots
highlighting how these processions served as territorial claims
over specific:- 'North End' 'Twelfth of July' (It should be noted that it was not
always by true adherents of the Orange Lodge) , causing local residents to view the influx
with a mixture of fear and disdain. Even into the 21st Century,
the Southport Parade remains a divisive event; while many attend
for the pipe bands, others cite ongoing issues with anti social
behaviour and the disruption of Town's historic Lord Street.
Back in Liverpool, the sectarian violence began to subside after
the 1st World War due to the:- '1922 Partition of
Ireland,' 'Scouse
Irish Culture.'
Date
Location
Significance of Conflict
12 July 1835
Liverpool
"Orange Riots"
break out, leading to
the first major attempts to ban parades.
12 July 1876
Liverpool and Southport
The largest Orange procession
in English history (approx. 8,000 people) caused
massive logistics and order issues.
17 March 1909
Liverpool
Sectarian tension peaks; the
City is described as being in a state of:-
"civil war."
12 July 2017
Liverpool
Violence outside
The Liffey Public House,
located on
Renshaw Street showed that, while rare, flashpoints
still exist.
1960 onwards
De-escalation of Religious Tensions
The start of de-escalations of tensions
between the Protestant and Roman Catholics communities within
the City came with the aftermath of the 2nd World War as the
City started its slow recovery. Many of the old divisions,
that had seen whole streets in Everton that had been entirely
Orange or entirely Roman Catholic were broken up in the
slum clearance programmes of the 1960s. But, tensions still
simmered. It wasn't until both Archbishop Derek
Worlock (Catholic) and Bishop David Sheppard (Anglican)
affectionately known by locals as:- "Fish 'n' Chips" "format" "Better Together" "Mersey Miracle" "Fight for Justice" Timeline of Key Events...
1975 to 1976 Sheppard and Worlock
are appointed; they famously meet over a bottle of wine to
begin their partnership. 1981 The duo acts as:-
"honest brokers" 1982 Pope John Paul II visits
Liverpool, famously walking down Hope Street from one
cathedral to the other. 1988 They co-author the book Better
Together, which outlined their philosophy of ecumenical
cooperation. 1994 They were jointly awarded the
Freedom of the City, the 1st time this honor was given to
2 people together.
The Three Graces on the Pier Head, Liverpool.
