Home > Background to the Conflict > Guide to Websites Containing Information on the Conflict and Politics in Northern Ireland

Guide to Websites Containing Information on the Conflict and Politics in Northern Ireland

* Material is added to this site on a regular basis, information on this page may change.

Page Compiled By: Martin Melaugh, Fionnuala McKenna, Brendan Lynn

See also:
Ó Dochartaigh, Niall. (2005) A Guide to Ulster Loyalism and Unionism Online. CAIN: <http://cain.ulster.ac.uk/loy/>

1. Introduction

This following page provides a guide to some of the information on the conflict and politics in Northern Ireland that is available at websites on the Internet. If you know of any other sites which you feel should be included please send an email message to CAIN.
The amount of information about Northern Ireland on the Web has increased considerably since 1996. There has also been an increase in the amount of information that relates to the conflict and politics in the region. This information varies in type from sites which have a sole interest in the conflict to those sites which, while not specifically concerned with 'the Troubles', do contain information of use to those with an interest in this topic. The range of institutions, groups and individuals providing this information is very wide. The quantity and quality of the information on the conflict also varies from site to site.
Some of the sites aim to provide objective information about 'the Troubles'. There are, of course, many sites that provide a more partisan view of aspects of the conflict. In common with other subjects covered on the Internet there is no arbitrator of what material appears. For those readers who do not have the time to perform their own trawl through web sites the following guide will act as a starting point.
Some of the links below may be 'broken' due to the speed with which web sites and web pages appear and disappear. Every attempt will will be made to keep the information up-to-date.

2. Key websites for Information on the Northern Ireland Conflict

Introduction
There are a number of websites which are exclusively devoted to information about the Northern Ireland conflict. There are a number of other sites, mainly departments and institutes within universities, that provide some information on the conflict and other incidental information such as the contact details of researchers working on this topic.

Main websites on the Northern Ireland Conflict

  • CAIN (Conflict Archive on the INternet) (1996-present)
    This page is part of the CAIN Web Service. The objective of CAIN is to provide a range of information and source material on the Northern Ireland conflict, politics, and society in the region via the Internet. New sections are added to the CAIN site on a regular basis.

The following centres / projects have relevant information in their own webpages within CAIN, or at external sites:

  • ARK Northern Ireland Social and Political Archive (2000-present)
    ARK is currently comprised of a number of associated web sites and services:
    Surveys

  • Central Community Relations Unit (CCRU; 1987-2000)
    This site provides a range of material related to community relations in Northern Ireland from 1987 to 2000. The work of CCRU has now been taken over by the Research Branch at the Office of the First Minister and Deputy First Minister.

  • Centre for the Study of Conflict (CSC) University of Ulster (1977-2000)
    Research into aspects of the Northern Ireland conflict was conducted in the Centre between 1977 and 2000. The Centre's web pages provide a range of information including extracts from the publications produced by the Centre.

  • The Cost of the Troubles Study (CTS) (1996-1999)
    This project looked at the impact of 30 years of violence on society in Northern Ireland.

  • Democratic Dialogue (DD) (1995-present)
    Democratic Dialogue was set up in 1995, as a think tank geared to stimulating fresh approaches to the political problems of Northern Ireland.

  • The EMU Promoting School Project (1994-2002)
    Education for Mutual Understanding

  • Future Ways Programme (1996-1998)

  • INCORE (International Conflict Research) was set up in 1993 by the University of Ulster and the United Nations University to undertake research and policy work that is useful to the resolution of ethnic, political and religious conflicts. INCORE hosts the Tip O'Neill Chair in Peace Studies which is funded by the American Ireland Funds to commemorate the former Speaker of the US House of Representatives.

  • Institute for Conflict Research (2001-2020)
    ICR was formally established in June 2001, although it had previously operated under the names of Templegrove Action Research (1994-96), The Cost of the Troubles Study (1996-99) and Community Conflict Impact on Children (1999-2001). The ICR ceased operation on 31 March 2020 (the ICR website closed in October 2021).

  • Linen Hall Library, Belfast. Among other resources the Linen Hall Library holds the Northern Ireland Political Collection. The Political Collection includes a range of ephemera material - political leaflets, posters, stickers, and greeting cards — but also collections of books, pamphlets, manifestos, photographs, and audio-visual items. The collection also houses the Northern Ireland Office (NIO) press cuttings service spanning the entire period of 'the Troubles'. On 22 January 2018 the library made a selection of materials, for the period 1990 to 1998, available on-line. It is entitled 'Divided Society' and is free to users in the UK and Ireland.

  • Northern Ireland Social Attitudes Survey (1989-1998)
    Details of seven surveys which looked at attitudes in Northern Ireland to a range of issues.

  • Templegrove Action Research Limited (1994-1996)
    This project examined the impact of segregation on communities in Northern Ireland.

  • Troubles Archive (2014-)
    The Troubles Archive was produced by the Arts Council of Northern Ireland and it holds a collection of artworks from artists who produced work during, and relating to, the Troubles in Northern Ireland.

    Other Sites with a Research Interest in the Northern Ireland Conflict

  • Centre d'Etudes Irlandaises, Centre of Irish Studies, Universite De Rennes, France. While the introduction is in French, there are a number of documents in English at this site. The site also provides details of various courses and public seminars available on the subject of Northern Ireland politics, and links to other related websites.

  • The Centre for Peace, Development and Social Justice, University of Limerick, Republic of Ireland. [Previously: Centre for Peace and Development Studies, originally established as the Irish Peace Institute Research Centre, UoL.] This site provides information on the range of courses available at post-graduate level. Although there is a global emphasis on the centre's research, many of the courses concentrate specifically on the conflict in Northern Ireland, and are aimed at developing a deeper understanding of how conflict develops and how it can be resolved.

  • Centre for Social Research, [Link not working] The Queen's University of Belfast, Northern Ireland. This research centre, established in 1990, acted as both a research centre and research resource centre, providing support for research within the school of social sciences at QUB. It also provided short courses and presentations relating to research in Northern Ireland and produced various reports.

  • The Constitution Unit at University College London. Contained on the site are 'Monitoring Devolution Quarterly Reports' on Northern Ireland. The first report was published in November 1999. The reports cover political and security developments in the region.

  • Department of Peace Studies and International Development, University of Bradford, England. [Formerly Department of Peace Studies.] This site provides information on a range of courses available at ungergraduate and postgraduate level relating to conflict and conflict resolution, politics and society in Northern Ireland.

  • Devolution and Constitutional Change [Link not working] An ESRC Research Programme. Among the information at this site are Devolution Briefings some of which relate to devolution in Northern Ireland

  • The Handa Centre for the Study of Terrorism and Political Violence (CSTPV) was founded in 1994 and is dedicated to the study of the causes, dynamics, characteristics and consequences of terrorism and related forms of political violence. Staff at CSTPV have researched the Northern Ireland conflict.

  • INCORE (INitiative on Conflict Resolution and Ethnicity), Ulster University, Northern Ireland

  • Institute of Irish Studies, The Queen's University of Belfast, Northern Ireland. This site provides details of the MA (Irish Studies) Programme, the PhD Programme, and Summer Schools, as well as details of research carried out by the Institute.

  • Institute of Irish Studies, University of Dublin (Trinity College Dublin), Republic of Ireland. The courses available at this site tend to concentrate on Irish culture, history and literature. Courses which relate more specifically to Northern Ireland are available through the university's Politics Department. [Link currently not working]

  • Institute of Irish Studies, University of Liverpool, England. This website provides information on a wide range of courses available at undergraduate level, relating to Irish history, literature and the Northern Ireland conflict. Postgraduate taught courses are offered in ethnic conflict.

  • Irish and Irish Immigration Studies, [link not working 1 August 2011] Southern Illinois University at Carbondale, USA. This site provides information on the courses available at undergraduate and postgraduate research level. The department concentrates mainly in the areas of Irish immigration, Irish history and literature.

  • Irish Centre for Migration Studies, [Link not working] University College Cork. This centre is active in teaching, research, organising conferences and other activities concerned with migration from Ireland.

  • Irish School of Ecumenics is a postgraduate institute of Trinity College Dublin. It offers an M.Phil. in Reconciliation Studies, an M.Phil. in International Peace Studies, and a Postgraduate Diploma in Conflict and Dispute Resolution Studies.

  • Irish Studies Centre, London Metropolitan University [Link not working]. This centre was established in 1986 and offers undergraduate and post-graduate courses in Irish history, culture and literature and the political history of Northern Ireland.

  • The Senator George J. Mitchell Institute for Global Peace, Security and Justice, Queen's University Belfast. "A home for inter-disciplinary research in areas of major societal change."

  • Spanish Association for Irish Studies (Asociación Española de Estudios Irlandeses - AEDEI). Publishes the scholarly journal 'Estudios Irlandeses' once a year.

Introduction
Irish university sites are an obvious source of information on the Northern Ireland conflict. Someone using the site may simply wish to consult the catalogue of the University's library or they may be looking to contact a member of staff. Some Universities have departments or research centres (see links mentioned above) that have an interest in the conflict and these may provide information on-line.
In addition to specialised centres, university departments such as, history, politics, peace studies, social studies, etc., may provide information of value. Some universities have adopted their own 'house style' for the web pages of academic departments. This has the benefit of providing some consistency to the information contained in the pages. The information is also usually of a high quality and regularly updated.
The links below may be extended in the future to include other university sites.


Northern Ireland

Republic of Ireland

4. Governments sites

Introduction
Official information relevant to the Northern Ireland conflict is available from a number of government departments. In addition there are a number of official agencies that contain relevant information.

The Stormont Papers (1921-1972)

In November 2006 the Parliamentary Papers of the devolved government of Northern Ireland (the Stormont government) from 7 June 1921 to the dissolution of Parliament on 28 March 1972 were made available online. The 92,000 printed pages of Parliamentary Papers are now indexed and searchable.

Main Government Sites

... Information on the House of Commons and the House of Lords

  • Northern Ireland Affairs Committee
    ... A Committee appointed by the House of Commons to examine the expenditure, administration and policy of the Northern Ireland Office (NIO); administration and expenditure of the Crown Solicitor’s Office; and other matters within the responsibilities of the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland.

Number 10 Downing Street
... Information about, and from, the Prime Minster and the Cabinet
Public Sector Institutions
... Information on UK public sector bodies
Northern Ireland Affairs Committee, Commons Select Committee
... details on the working of the select committee (reports and press releases)
Northern Ireland Legislation
... full text (from 1996 onwards) of legislation specific toNorthern Ireland

Other Government Agencies and Non-Departmental Public Bodies

Security Services

Policing Links

5. Political Parties

Introduction
The political parties have moved quickly to try and take advantage of the publicity value of the Internet. At the very least, each of the sites provides information on how to contact the party and names the main officers. Some of the parties provide substantial information in the form of policy papers, press releases, etc.

Northern Ireland

Republic of Ireland


Other Parties

6. News Agencies

Introduction
Sites established by newspapers, magazines, and broadcasting companies, provide a reasonable source of up-to-date news stories. Some sites provide the full text of articles that appear, for example, in the equivalent newspaper, while other sites provide an abstract or digest. Most sites provide archives of previous news stories.
There tends to be more coverage on Northern Ireland matters in the Irish sites than in those in Britain. However the different perspective can prove useful. Sites elsewhere in the world are only likely to cover major events.

Northern Ireland

  • The Andersonstown News (Weekly Newspaper) Now a subscription service to full text - only headlines and short abstract available free.

  • The Belfast Telegraph (Daily Newspaper) The site provides free access to full text of selected articles in current newspaper. [This site did contain an archive of issues dating back to 13 November 1995; currently unavailable.]

  • Newsletter (Daily Newspaper) The site provides free access to full text of selected articles in current newspaper.

  • British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) Northern Ireland

    • On-Line News Service   A daily news service from BBC Northern Ireland

    • Ten Chapters of the Northern Ireland Troubles (released in 2019)

    • BBC Rewind - "Rewind is a web portal which allows the public to search previously unavailable archive material. It contains thousands of items of audio-visual recordings reflecting life and events in Northern Ireland from 1952 to December 1979." 

    • Aspects of Northern Ireland's history (Plantation, Easter Rising, and The Troubles) from BBC NI Learning

    • a state apart   A site associated with the CD-ROM (released in 1998) of the same title. The web site aims to update the CD and provides an "analysis of the Belfast / Good Friday Agreement".

    • Eyewitness   Information on Northern Ireland aimed at young people.

  • Fortnight (Magazine) An independent review of politics and the arts in Ireland. It was founded in 1970 and the last issue was published in 2012. Content from back issues is available from the JSTOR archive: www.jstor.org

  • The Irish News (Daily Newspaper) The site provides free access to full text of selected articles in current newspaper. There is also a subscription service.

  • Ulster Television news (part of ITV). provides daily news coverage.

See also:

  • Newshound an Internet site that provides a list of daily links to the major news items about Northern Ireland in a range of newspapers. [Link re-directs to Irish Central]

  • PaceMaker Press International Ltd. One of the main photographic agencies in Northern Ireland. [Now requires login details] (See also the photographs of Victor Patterson.)

  • An Phoblacht / Republican News (Weekly Newspaper) This website provides the current issue and an archive of selected stories from back issues from 1997.

  • Irish Republican News On-line Newspaper. The website provides the current issue and an archive of back issues from 2003.

Republic of Ireland

  • The Irish Independent (Daily Newspaper)

  • The Irish Times (Daily Newspaper) Much of the paper's content is again available on-line. There is also a subscription service to the 'epaper'. [This website did provide a free searchable archive containing the full text of articles, from 3 January 1996; payment now required to view full articles. The site also has a 'breaking news' service.]

  • The Sunday Business Post (Weekly Newspaper)

  • RTE Online (Television and radio broadcasting company); see also RTE Interactive News

  • RTE Archives - "RTÉ Archives is home to Ireland’s largest collection of audiovisual material. Combining hundreds of thousands of hours of moving image and sound recordings together with significant collections of photographs, manuscripts and administrative documents." It contains special 'Exhibitions' such as Civil Rights in Northern Ireland, and collections such as the News Collection.


Britain

  • The BBC, (British Broadcasting Corporation)

  • On the Record Interviews from the political magazine programme - contains interviews on Northern Ireland affairs

  • Channel 4 (Broadcasting company)

  • The Economist

  • Electronic Telegraph, The Daily Telegraph (Newspaper) This site provides an archive containing the full text of articles from 1994.

  • The Financial Times (Newspaper) This site provides an archive containing the full text of articles from July 1996.

  • The Guardian (Newspaper) This site does not currently have an archive of past articles, but it does provide a specialist archive of politics articles published between 25 February 1997 - 28 November 1997. It also includes a separate section on Northern Ireland

  • Independent (Newspaper) has a section of recent news stories about Ulster

  • ITN, Independent Television News (Broadcasting company) has a section on the Northern Ireland conflict.

  • New Statesman and Society (Magazine)

  • The Observer (Newspaper)

  • The Times (Newspaper) This site provides an archive containing the full text of articles from 1 January 1996.


Other Countries

7. Other Groups and Individuals

Introduction
The following are links to miscellaneous groups and individuals where a researcher may obtain information on the Northern Ireland conflict. This set of links is not yet complete.


Other Sources of Information on Northern Ireland

8. Discussion Lists and Newsgroups

Introduction
There are a number of discussion lists and newsgroups which, while not specific to the Northern Ireland conflict, do cover some topics of interest. All of the advantages and disadvantages that apply to these type of services in general, are true of those devoted to Irish studies. Up-to-date information on list servers can be found at listserv@listserv.net to which you should send a one-line message list/global topic replacing the word topic with, for example, irish.

Discussion Lists

  • Irish and British History
    h-albion@h-net.msu.edu

    Irish Interest
    ireland_list@email.rutgers.edu
    irl-discussion@lists.cc.utexas.edu

    Irish Politics
    irl-pol@home.ease.lsoft.com
    irl-pol@listserv.hea.ie

    Irish Studies (mainly Irish literature)
    irish-studies@ebbs.english.vt.edu

Newsgroups

9. Some Irish History Sites

Most of the information at CAIN covers the period of the Northern Ireland conflict (1968 to the present). The following sites have links to information on earlier Irish history.

Aspects of Northern Ireland's history
(Plantation, Easter Rising, and The Troubles) from BBC NI Learning

Irish History on the web
http://wwwvms.utexas.edu/~jdana/irehist.html [Link not currently working]

Old Ireland: History of Ireland and the Irish Race
http://www.ireland.org/ [Link not currently working]

Timeline of Irish History
http://www.rootsweb.com/~fianna/history/index.html

Ireland facts and history
http://www.angelfire.com/ca/irelandhistory/1998.html

Text of the Penal Laws
LAWS IN IRELAND FOR THE SUPPRESSION OF POPERY commonly known as the PENAL LAWS

CAIN - chronology of events in Irish history 1170-1967
http://cain.ulster.ac.uk/othelem/chron/ch67.htm

10. Some 'All things Irish' sites

This list is just a few of the many web sites that provide information and additional links about Irish life, culture, shopping, travel and job opportunities for both the Republic and Northern Ireland.

  • Browse Ireland [Link not working 23 August 2016]
    Described as a "Yahoo-type website directory for people looking for Irish websites".

  • Ireland Lookup
    An Irish business directory site.

  • Ireland On-line [Link not working 1 August 2011]
    A site that gives basic information on Ireland such as the latest news, weather and sports information. Also has interactive, kids and member homepage sections.

  • Irish News Internet Directory [Link not working 1 August 2011]
    Provides a directory of links by subject classification on matters related to Ireland.

  • Niceone.com - Ireland's Internet Directory
    Just as its name implies; a directory of general information, arts, entertainment, religion, business, shopping and more. Also has a news column for latest headline news for Ireland.

  • Total Ireland: The Best of Ireland
    This site has links to over 4400 Irish-related sites. The bottom of the index page has city-specific links that are especially helpful.

CAIN contains information and source material on the conflict and politics in Northern Ireland.
CAIN is based within Ulster University.