Breaking Patterns of Conflict: Britain, Ireland and the Northern Ireland Question

This book explores the roles of the British and Irish governments in pursuing political stability in Northern Ireland, a disputed region of the United Kingdom over which the Irish state has had a territorial claim. It analyzes the changes in the British and Irish states that facilitated the 1998 Good Friday Agreement and the later transformation of institutions and political relations in Northern Ireland and between the UK and Ireland. It uses a new oral archive of elite interviews to address a range of dimensions in which these changes are reflected.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 181 pages
Publication date: 18 December 2020
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd

The involvement of external powers and international organizations in the pursuit of conflict resolution and the establishment of stable and durable peace settlements is widely recognized. This book delves into an exceptional case where the sovereign state and a neighboring state collaborate to broker an agreed settlement in a disputed and conflict-ridden region. It examines the roles played by the British and Irish governments in their efforts to promote political stability in Northern Ireland, a contentious territory within the United Kingdom over which the Irish state claims territorial sovereignty.

The book explores the transformations within the British state, whose authority encompasses Northern Ireland, as well as the Irish state, which relinquished a strong formal but ineffective claim to jurisdiction over Northern Ireland in favor of a significant role in its political future. These changes ultimately paved the way for the successful negotiation of the 1998 Good Friday Agreement, followed by the subsequent institutional reforms and political reorganization in Northern Ireland and between the UK and Ireland.

This book stands out by utilizing a novel oral archive of elite interviews amassed over the past decade. The authors of the various chapters address a diverse range of dimensions in which these changes are reflected. These include fresh interpretations of the dynamics of the Northern Ireland conflict, particularly the evolving British-Irish relationship, new perspectives on the positions of governments and parties, and innovative analyses of the contributions of cross-border contacts in two areas where indirect but profound consequences are likely: television broadcasting and business cooperation.

This book was published as a special issue of Irish Political Studies.

Weight: 304g
Dimension: 155 x 233 x 16 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780367739461