Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
Ireland fields a single national rugby team and a single association, the Irish Rugby Football Union, governs the sport across the island. The Irish rugby team have played in every Rugby World Cup, making the quarter-finals in eight of them. [196] Ireland also hosted games during the 1991 and the 1999 Rugby World Cups (including a quarter-final).
The location of Ireland An enlargeable map of the Republic of Ireland. The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Ireland: Republic of Ireland – country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern side of the island.
Ireland (Irish: Éire [ˈeːɾʲə] ⓘ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (Poblacht na hÉireann), [a] is a country in Northwestern Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 counties of the island of Ireland, with a population of about 5.4 million. [4]
Ireland was a separate kingdom ruled by King George III of Britain; he set policy for Ireland through his appointment of the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland or viceroy. In practice, the viceroys lived in England and the affairs in the island were largely controlled by an elite group of Irish Protestants known as "undertakers."
In the 18th and early 19th centuries, Ireland experienced a major population boom as a result of the Agricultural and Industrial Revolutions. In the 50-year period 1790–1840, the population of the island doubled from 4 million to 8 million. At its peak, Ireland's population density was similar to that of England and continental Europe.
Ireland's geological history includes a wide range of elements, from volcanism and tropical seas to the last glacial period. Ireland was formed in two distinct parts, which slowly joined, uniting about 440 million years ago. As a result of tectonics and the effect of ice, the sea level has risen and fallen.
That legislation described Ireland as the Republic of Ireland but did not change the country's name. The international and diplomatic functions previously vested in or exercised by the king were now vested in the President of Ireland who finally became unambiguously the Irish head of state.
Ireland is a place where religion and religious practice have long been held in high esteem. The majority of people on the island are Roman Catholics; [30] however, there are significant Protestant and Orthodox minorities. Protestants are mostly concentrated in Northern Ireland, where they long made up a plurality of the population. [31]