Paragraph on Irish culture

The Story of Ireland 

 

The most fascinating aspect of Irish culture that I learned about by watching the Story of Ireland was that almost every famous person mentioned in Irish history was someone driven by a struggle for power. Looking at the special period of Ireland's history which was shown in the second part of the series beginning in the 12th century and ending with the victory of English troops over the Irish and Spanish in 1603, several warring powers can be observed. A man named Diarmuid Mac Murrough can be considered a good example of a man struggling for power in the middle of the 12th century. When he lost his kingdom of Leinster to his enemies he did everything to regain it. He even asked the Anglo-Norman king Henry II for help. Gaining more power might have also been a motive for Richard de Clare, known as Strongbow, to lead the invasion of the Anglo-Norman army. A piece of Irish land and Mac Murrough's daughter Aoife were promised to him, if he was victorious. The subsequent invasion changed Irish history and culture forever and led to a long-lasting conflict between Ireland and England. History shows that power can drive people to act in a way that not only affects their neigbourhood bun can even lead to unforseeable changes in a whole country.