British People of Irish Descent

British People Of Irish Descent

Irish people in Great Britain are members of the Irish diaspora who reside in Great Britain, the largest island and principal territory of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

The Irish have a long history in Great Britain, owing to the close proximity of the islands of Ireland and Great Britain, and the various political entities that have ruled them. Ireland was a feudal Lordship of the Kings of England between 1171 and 1541; a Kingdom in personal union with the Kingdom of England and Kingdom of Great Britain between 1542 and 1801; and politically united with Great Britain as the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland between 1801 and 1922. Today, Ireland is divided between the independent Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, which is part of, and is administered by, the UK.

Today, millions of residents of Great Britain are either from the island of Ireland or have Irish ancestry. It is estimated that as many as six million people living in the UK have an Irish grandparent.

Read more about British People Of Irish Descent:  History, Medieval Era, Early Modern Times, 19th Century Onwards, Terminology, 2001 Census, Places With Significant Irish Population, Culture and Influence, Notable Britons With Irish Ancestry

Famous quotes containing the words british, people, irish and/or descent:

    “Death is an incident producing clay. Use it, mold it, learn from it.”
    —John Gilling, British screenwriter. Dr. Knox (Peter Cushing)

    “... the next war will be a war in which people not armies will suffer, and our boasted, hard-earned civilization will do us no good. Cannot the women rise to this great opportunity and work now, and not have the double horror, if another war comes, of losing their loved ones, and knowing that they lifted no finger when they might have worked hard?”
    —Eleanor Roosevelt (1884–1962)

    “O Paddy dear, an’ did ye hear the news that’s goin’ round?
    The shamrock is by law forbid to grow on Irish ground!
    No more Saint Patrick’s Day we’ll keep, his colour can’t be seen,
    For there’s a cruel law agin the wearin’ o’ the Green!”
    —Unknown. The Wearing of the Green (l. 37–40)

    “When power becomes gracious and descends into the visible—such descent I call beauty.”
    —Friedrich Nietzsche (1844–1900)