Irish Republic

GEOGRAPHICAL AND POLITCAL DIVISION RELIEF:  The Republic of Ireland occupies about five-sixths of the total area of Ireland. The rest of the island – the larger part of the province of Ulster- is occupied by Northern Ireland. People usually call Ireland the Emerald Island because of its beautiful green countryside, the Romans used to call it Hibernia, poets have named it Erin, while the name of the island in Gaelic is Eire.
The Republic of Ireland is about half the size of England. It consists of four provinces (Ulster, Munster, Leinster, Connaught) and 26 counties. It is mainly a lowland, with a central plain broken (planina, přerušovaná) by hills and surrounded by not very high mountains along the coast. The highest peak is Carrantuohill in the county of Kerry.  Like in Great Britain the western coasts are extremely divided into a lot of peninsulas (poloostrov), bays(zaliv) and fjords. One of their most exciting features (znak) are the Cliffs of Moher in County Clare in the southern province of Munster. Ireland has numerous lakes and considerable areas of  bogs (mokřina). It is from this wet ground, where the peat (rašelina) can be dug out (vykopat). In Ireland peat has been used for centuries by poor people as a substitute for coal.
The Shannon, the longest river in the British Isles, rises (pramenit) in the northwest and flows south. The river Liffey flows into the Irish Sea at Dublin.
HISTORY: In the fifth century BC Ireland was invaded by the Gales and the Celts, two peoples speaking the same language and with the similar culture but divided into a lot of small clans, always fighting one against the other. In the fifth century AD St Patrick and other monks brought Christianity to Ireland and he country become the cradle of European monasticism, in the Middle Ages Irish monks founded monasteries all over Europe: St Gall in Switzerland, St Columba in Bobbio, Italy, St Killian in Wurzburg, Germany and many others. From the 8th and 10th century was attacked by the Vikings. In 1002 King Brian Boru defeated he Vikings and become the king of Ireland, but the peace did not come.  There were many small kingdoms and they fought continuously. In 1167 the Anglo-Normans came to Ireland to make peace and were assimilated by the local population. They brought the English parliament, law and system of administration to the island. In1541 Henry the VIII declared himself the King of Ireland. Irish lands, especially in Ulster, were confiscated  and colonized with Protestant English and Scottish people who, because of religious differences were never assimilated into the native population and began to fight against the Irish. Eventually, in 1601, the army of Elizabeth I defeated the Irish and the island was governed by the English Parliament. In 1800, with Act of Union, Ireland came under direct British rule. A devastating potato famine in the 1840s killed thousands and thousands of Irish and forced millions to emigrate, mainly to he North America. The Irish never accepted the Act of Union and there had been sporadic armed rebellions in the 19th century. In 1916 an armed rising was put down, but with the elections of 1918 the first Parliament was established. In 1921 the Irish Free State was founded, but Ulster, after a civil war and by means of a referendum, remained in the United Kingdom. In 1949 the Irish Free State declared itself the Republic of Ireland.
CLIMATE: Thanks to the influence of the warm waters of the Gulf Stream, the climate is mild, more temperate(mírné) than in any country in Europe of the same latitude (zeměpisná šířka). As the island is small and no part of it is more than 110 km from the sea, temperature is the same all over the country. There is considerable rainfall, especially in the west, because of the winds blowing from the Atlantic Ocean. Along the western coasts there can be as many as 222 rainy days in the year.
PEOPLE: The Republic of Ireland has a population of about three and half million, with an average density of 49 people per square kilometre. About 60 per cent of the inhabitants live in towns in the south and east of the country, in Dublin, the capital city with a population of about 550,000, in Cork, in Waterford and in Limerick. Apart from these four, no other towns have a population over 25,000. In fact Ireland is a country of small market towns. The great majority of the Irish people are Catholic(95%), but there are also Anglicans, Presbyterians, Methodists and Jews. The official languages are Irish Gaelic and English. But Gaelic, a Celtic language, is spoken only in some western districts.
ECONOMY: The economy of the Irish Republic is still largely based on agriculture. Cattle and sheep rearing is the most important agriculture activity in Ireland. Industry is closely connected with agriculture and zootechnical production: many industries are concerned of agricultural  products like a butter, cheese and cream, the production of  tinned meat and the brewing (vaření) of beer from hops. Other important industrial activities are engineering, textile manufacturing and chemicals. Ireland is poor in natural resources and especially in minerals. The traditional source of energy, peat, which covers large parts of the central plain, is used to generate electricity.
GOVERNMENT: The Republic of Ireland is a parliamentary democracy. The President, who is the head of state, is elected directly by the people, not by parliament, for no more than two terms, each of seven years. Parliament consist of two Houses: the Senate and the House of Representatives. The members of the Senate are nominated partly by Prime Minister and partly by some professional and academic groups: the members of the House of Representatives are elected by anyone over 18 .The head of government is Prime Minister. Among the political parties of Ireland the greatest attention is attracted (přitahovaná) by Sinn Fein supporting IRA, one wing of terrorist methods in its fight for the reunification (znovusjednocení) of Ireland. The Irish flag is a tricolor with vertical stripes of green, white and orange. The  official  languages are Gaelic and English.
DUBLIN:   Dublin is a capital and the chief port of the Republic of Ireland. It is a colourful city situated at the mouth of the river Liffey. By international standards, it is a small and compact town, easy to walk around and admire the architecture. Many of the public building were built in the eighteen century in neo-classical style, which gives the city much of its elegance. The medieval (středověký) castle was largely rebuilt in the 1750s, it used to be the official residence of the English viceroys (místokrál) when Ireland was under British rule. Trinity College, which has a Corinthian facade, was founded by Elizabeth I: by tradition it is the Protestant university of Dublin, while University College is the Catholic one. The library of trinity contains many ancient books and documents, among which the Book of Kells, a precious illuminated manuscript dating back to the eighth century. Other important buildings south of the river are the two cathedrals: Christ Church and St Patrick’s , only a short distance from each to other. Church-going is an important part of everyday life in Ireland: most Irish people are Catholics who crowd (naplnit) into their churches on Sundays and closely follow the Pope’s teachings. But they also like talking, laughing an pub life n general. Dublin has always been famous for its pubs, which amount to something like 600. The best-known among them is Davy Byrnes, which is connected with James Joyce. Another attraction of the city is the Guinness Brewery, which was founded in the 1759 and still is the largest brewery (pivovar) in the world. The General Post Office in O`Connell Street is another famous landmark in the history  of Ireland: it was the central point of rebellion against the British in 1916. The building, which was heavily bombed and finally destroyed by fire, has been reconstructed as it was originally.  Dubliners, like all Irish people, are very friendly and warm towards visitors.