155-425: [REDACTED] United Kingdom [REDACTED] Republic of Ireland The Ulster Volunteer Force ( UVF ) is an Ulster loyalist paramilitary group based in Northern Ireland . Formed in 1965, it first emerged in 1966. Its first leader was Gusty Spence , a former Royal Ulster Rifles soldier from Northern Ireland. The group undertook an armed campaign of almost thirty years during The Troubles . It declared
310-673: A ceasefire in 1994 and officially ended its campaign in 2007, although some of its members have continued to engage in violence and criminal activities. The group is a proscribed organisation and is on the terrorist organisation list of the United Kingdom . The UVF's declared goals were to combat Irish republican paramilitaries – particularly the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) – and to maintain Northern Ireland's status as part of
465-828: A fair trial . The English monarchs, through inheritance of substantial territories in France and claims to the French crown, were also heavily involved in conflicts in France, most notably the Hundred Years' War , while the Kings of Scots were in an alliance with the French during this period. Early modern Britain saw religious conflict resulting from the Reformation and the introduction of Protestant state churches in each country. The English Reformation ushered in political, constitutional, social and cultural change in
620-521: A subpolar oceanic climate . Higher elevations in Scotland experience a continental subarctic climate and the mountains experience a tundra climate . The prevailing wind is from the southwest and bears frequent spells of mild and wet weather from the Atlantic Ocean, although the eastern parts are mostly sheltered from this wind. Since the majority of the rain falls over the western regions,
775-604: A welfare state was established, and a comprehensive, publicly funded healthcare system, the National Health Service , was created. The rise of nationalism in the colonies coincided with Britain's much-diminished economic position, so that a policy of decolonisation was unavoidable. Independence was granted to India and Pakistan in 1947. Over the next three decades, most colonies of the British Empire gained their independence, and many became members of
930-626: A "senior Loyalist figure". Fifty-year-old Stockman was stabbed more than 10 times in a supermarket in Belfast; the attack was believed to have been linked to the Moffett killing. On 25–26 October 2010, the UVF was involved in rioting and disturbances in the Rathcoole area of Newtownabbey with UVF gunmen seen on the streets at the time. On the night of 20 June 2011, riots involving 500 people erupted in
1085-460: A crisis which would so undermine confidence in O'Neill's ability to maintain law and order that he would be obliged to resign". There were bombings on 30 March, 4 April, 20 April, 24 April and 26 April. All were widely blamed on the IRA, and British troops were sent to guard installations. Unionist support for O'Neill waned, and on 28 April he resigned as Prime Minister. On 12 August 1969, the " Battle of
1240-581: A formal statement of decommissioning was read by Dawn Purvis and Billy Hutchinson . The IICD confirmed that "substantial quantities of firearms, ammunition, explosives and explosive devices" had been decommissioned and that for the UVF and RHC, decommissioning had been completed. The UVF was blamed for the shotgun killing of expelled RHC member Bobby Moffett on the Shankill Road on the afternoon of 28 May 2010, in front of passers-by including children. The Independent Monitoring Commission stated Moffett
1395-458: A leading republican which left three Catholic civilians dead. The UVF also attacked republican paramilitaries and political activists. These attacks were stepped up in the late 1980s and early 1990s, particularly in the east Tyrone and north Armagh areas. The largest death toll in a single attack was in the 3 March 1991 Cappagh killings , when the UVF killed IRA members John Quinn, Dwayne O'Donnell and Malcolm Nugent, and civilian Thomas Armstrong in
1550-463: A leading role in the movement to abolish slavery worldwide through the blockade of Africa and pressing other nations to end their trade with a series of treaties. In 1800 the parliaments of Great Britain and Ireland each passed an Act of Union, uniting the two kingdoms and creating the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland on 1 January 1801. After the defeat of France at the end of
1705-476: A loyalist splinter group calling itself the "Real UVF" emerged briefly to make threats against Sinn Féin in County Fermanagh. In the twentieth IMC report, the group was said to be continuing to put its weapons "beyond reach", (in the group's own words) to downsize, and reduce the criminality of the group. The report added that individuals, some current and some former members, in the group have, without
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#17327726015551860-853: A policy of splendid isolation in Europe, and attempted to contain Russian influence in Afghanistan and Persia , in what came to be known as the Great Game . During this time, Canada , Australia and New Zealand were granted self-governing dominion status. At the turn of the century, Britain's industrial dominance became challenged by the German Empire and the United States . The Edwardian era saw social reform and home rule for Ireland become important domestic issues, while
2015-507: A result of a shortage of workers in the 1950s, the government encouraged immigration from Commonwealth countries . In the following decades, the UK became a more multi-ethnic society. Despite rising living standards in the late 1950s and 1960s, the UK's economic performance was less successful than many of its main competitors such as France, West Germany and Japan. The UK was the first democratic nation to lower its voting age to 18 in 1969. In
2170-716: A sergeant in the UDR and a member of the Brigade Staff, who served as the brigade's commander, until he was shot dead in July 1975. From that time until the early 1990s the Mid-Ulster Brigade was led by Robin "the Jackal" Jackson , who then passed the leadership to Billy Wright . Hanna and Jackson have both been implicated by journalist Joe Tiernan and RUC Special Patrol Group (SPG) officer John Weir as having led one of
2325-811: A series of connected wars (including the English Civil War ) which led to the temporary overthrow of the monarchy, with the execution of King Charles I , and the establishment of the short-lived unitary republic of the Commonwealth of England , Scotland and Ireland. Although the monarchy was restored , the Interregnum along with the Glorious Revolution of 1688 and the subsequent Bill of Rights 1689 in England and Claim of Right Act 1689 in Scotland ensured that, unlike much of
2480-481: Is only the one specific nominal term 'Great Britain' which invariably excludes Northern Ireland". The BBC historically preferred to use "Britain" as shorthand only for Great Britain, though the present style guide does not take a position except that "Great Britain" excludes Northern Ireland. The adjective "British" is commonly used to refer to matters relating to the United Kingdom and is used in law to refer to United Kingdom citizenship and nationality . People of
2635-538: Is ranked 2nd out of 180 countries in the Environmental Performance Index . A law has been passed that UK greenhouse gas emissions will be net zero by 2050. England accounts for 53 per cent of the UK, covering 50,350 square miles (130,395 km ). Most of the country consists of lowland terrain, with upland and mountainous terrain northwest of the Tees–Exe line which roughly divides
2790-599: Is sometimes used as a loose synonym for the United Kingdom as a whole. The word England is occasionally used incorrectly to refer to the United Kingdom as a whole, a mistake principally made by people from outside the UK. The term "Britain" is used as a synonym for Great Britain , but also sometimes for the United Kingdom. Usage is mixed: the UK Government prefers to use the term "UK" rather than "Britain" or "British" on its website (except when referring to embassies), while acknowledging that both terms refer to
2945-579: Is the Isle of Wight . Scotland accounts for 32 per cent of the UK, covering 30,410 square miles (78,772 km ). This includes nearly 800 islands , notably the Hebrides , Orkney Islands and Shetland Islands. Scotland is the most mountainous constituent country of the UK, the Highlands to the north and west are the more rugged region containing the majority of Scotland's mountainous land, including
3100-598: Is the highest peak in Wales. Wales has over 1,680 miles (2,704 kilometres) of coastline including the Pembrokeshire Coast . Several islands lie off the Welsh mainland, the largest of which is Anglesey ( Ynys Môn ). Ulster Volunteers The Ulster Volunteers was an Irish unionist , loyalist paramilitary organisation founded in 1912 to block domestic self-government (" Home Rule ") for Ireland , which
3255-588: The 1884 Reform Act championed by William Gladstone granting suffrage to a majority of males for the first time. The British population increased at a dramatic rate, accompanied by rapid urbanisation , causing significant social and economic stresses. By the late 19th century, the Conservatives under Benjamin Disraeli and Lord Salisbury initiated a period of imperial expansion in Africa , maintained
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#17327726015553410-534: The Atlantic slave trade , mainly between 1662 and 1807 when British or British-colonial slave ships transported nearly 3.3 million slaves from Africa. The slaves were taken to work on plantations , principally in the Caribbean but also North America . However, with pressure from the abolitionism movement , Parliament banned the trade in 1807, banned slavery in the British Empire in 1833, and Britain took
3565-650: The Battle of Culloden in 1746, after which the Scottish Highlanders were forcibly assimilated into Scotland by revoking the feudal independence of clan chiefs . The British colonies in North America that broke away in the American War of Independence became the United States . British imperial ambition turned towards Asia, particularly to India . British merchants played a leading part in
3720-663: The Cairngorms , Loch Lomond and The Trossachs and Ben Nevis which at 1,345 metres (4,413 ft) is the highest point in the British Isles. Wales accounts for less than 9 per cent of the UK, covering 8,020 square miles (20,779 km ). Wales is mostly mountainous, though South Wales is less mountainous than North and mid Wales . The highest mountains in Wales are in Snowdonia and include Snowdon ( Welsh : Yr Wyddfa ) which, at 1,085 metres (3,560 ft),
3875-523: The Commonwealth of Nations . The UK was the third country to develop a nuclear weapons arsenal (with its first atomic bomb test, Operation Hurricane , in 1952), but the post-war limits of Britain's international role were illustrated by the Suez Crisis of 1956. The international spread of the English language ensured the continuing international influence of its literature and culture . As
4030-767: The European Convention on Human Rights . The UK remained a great power with global diplomatic and military influence and a leading role in the United Nations and NATO . The UK broadly supported the United States' approach to the " war on terror " in the early 21st century. British troops fought in the War in Afghanistan , but controversy surrounded Britain's military deployment in Iraq , which saw
4185-583: The European Union (EU) in 1992, the UK was one of the 12 founding member states. From the late 1960s, Northern Ireland suffered communal and paramilitary violence (sometimes affecting other parts of the UK) conventionally known as the Troubles . It is usually considered to have ended with the 1998 Belfast "Good Friday" Agreement . Following a period of widespread economic slowdown and industrial strife in
4340-494: The Falkland Islands , leading to the 10-week Falklands War in which Argentine forces were defeated. The inhabitants of the islands are predominantly descendants of British settlers, and strongly favour British sovereignty, expressed in a 2013 referendum . From 1984, the UK economy was helped by the inflow of substantial North Sea oil revenues. Another British overseas territory, Gibraltar , ceded to Great Britain in
4495-545: The French Revolutionary Wars and Napoleonic Wars (1792–1815), the United Kingdom emerged as the principal naval and imperial power (with London the largest city in the world from about 1830). Unchallenged at sea , British dominance was later described as Pax Britannica ("British Peace"), a period of relative peace among the great powers (1815–1914) during which the British Empire became
4650-684: The Intelligence Corps and/or the RUC Special Branch according to the PFC. In 1974, hardliners staged a coup and took over the Brigade Staff. This resulted in a sharp increase in sectarian killings and internecine feuding, both with the UDA and within the UVF itself. Some of the new Brigade Staff members bore nicknames such as "Big Dog" and "Smudger". Beginning in 1975, recruitment to the UVF, which until then had been solely by invitation,
4805-765: The Irish Unionist Alliance ) and James Craig , supported sub rosa by figures such as Henry Wilson , Director of Military Operations at the British War Office . At the start of 1912, leading unionists and members of the Orange Order (a Protestant fraternity ) began forming small local militias and drilling . On 9 April Carson and Bonar Law , leader of the Conservative & Unionist Party , reviewed 100,000 Ulster Volunteers marching in columns. On 28 September, 218,206 men signed
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4960-650: The Labour Party emerged from an alliance of trade unions and small socialist groups in 1900, and suffragettes campaigned for women's right to vote. Britain was one of the principal Allies that defeated the Central Powers in the First World War (1914–1918). Alongside their French, Russian and (after 1917) American counterparts, British armed forces were engaged across much of the British Empire and in several regions of Europe, particularly on
5115-704: The October 1974 general election , polling 2,690 votes (6%). However, the UVF spurned the government efforts and continued killing. Colin Wallace , a member of the Intelligence Corps, asserted in an internal memo in 1975 that MI6 and RUC Special Branch formed a pseudo-gang within the UVF, designed to engage in violence and to subvert the tentative moves of some in the UVF towards the political process. Captain Robert Nairac of 14 Intelligence Company
5270-647: The Representation of the People Act 1918 . After the war, Britain became a permanent member of the Executive Council of the League of Nations and received a mandate over a number of former German and Ottoman colonies. Under the leadership of David Lloyd George , the British Empire reached its greatest extent, covering a fifth of the world's land surface and a quarter of its population. By
5425-673: The Roman departure was followed by Anglo-Saxon settlement . In 1066, the Normans conquered England . With the end of the Wars of the Roses the English state stabilised and began to grow in power, resulting by the 16th century in the annexation of Wales , the domination of Scotland , and the establishment of the British Empire . Over the course of the 17th century, the role of the British monarchy
5580-463: The Royal and Parliamentary Titles Act 1927 created the present United Kingdom. The UK became the first industrialised country and was the world's foremost power for the majority of the 19th and early 20th centuries, particularly during the " Pax Britannica " between 1815 and 1914. At its height in the 1920s, the British Empire encompassed almost a quarter of the world's landmass and population, and
5735-747: The Short Strand area of East Belfast . They were blamed by the PSNI on members of the UVF, who also said UVF guns had been used to try to kill police officers. The UVF leader in East Belfast, who is popularly known as the "Beast of the East" and "Ugly Doris" also known as by real name Stephen Matthews, ordered the attack on Catholic homes and a church in the Catholic enclave of the Short Strand. This
5890-463: The Soviet Union formed in 1941, leading the Allies against the Axis powers . There were eventual hard-fought victories in the Battle of the Atlantic , the North Africa campaign and the Italian campaign . British forces played important roles in the Normandy landings of 1944 and the liberation of Europe . The British Army led the Burma campaign against Japan, and the British Pacific Fleet fought Japan at sea. British scientists contributed to
6045-414: The Ulster Constitution Defence Committee (UCDC). It set up a paramilitary-style wing called the Ulster Protestant Volunteers (UPV). The 'Paisleyites' set out to stymie the civil rights movement and oust Terence O'Neill , Prime Minister of Northern Ireland . Although O'Neill was a unionist, they saw him as being too 'soft' on the civil rights movement and too friendly with the Republic of Ireland . There
6200-402: The Ulster Covenant , vowing to use "all means which may be found necessary to defeat the present conspiracy to set up a Home Rule Parliament in Ireland", with the support of 234,046 women. In January 1913, the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) was formally established by the Ulster Unionist Council . Recruitment was to be limited to 100,000 men aged from 17 to 65 who had signed the Covenant, under
6355-417: The Ulster Defence Regiment (UDR), a regular Army regiment consisting of Northern Irish reservists . From late 1975 to mid-1977, a unit of the UVF dubbed the Shankill Butchers (a group of UVF men based on Belfast's Shankill Road) carried out a series of sectarian murders of Catholic civilians. Six of the victims were abducted at random, then beaten and tortured before having their throats slashed. This gang
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6510-405: The Western Front . After the war, the British Government decided to partition Ireland into two self-governing regions: Northern Ireland (which overall had a Protestant/unionist majority) and Southern Ireland . However, by 1920 the Irish War of Independence was raging and the Irish Republican Army (IRA) was launching attacks on British forces in Ireland. In response, the UVF was revived. It
6665-449: The Western Front . The high fatalities of trench warfare caused the loss of much of a generation of men, with lasting social effects in the nation and a great disruption in the social order. Britain had suffered 2.5 million casualties and finished the war with a huge national debt. The consequences of the war persuaded the government to expand the right to vote in national and local elections to all adult men and most adult women with
6820-408: The coastline paradox . It is connected to continental Europe by the Channel Tunnel , which at 31 miles (50 km) (24 miles (38 km) underwater) is the longest underwater tunnel in the world. The UK contains four terrestrial ecoregions: Celtic broadleaf forests , English Lowlands beech forests , North Atlantic moist mixed forests , and Caledonian conifer forests . The area of woodland in
6975-436: The largest protest in British history in opposition to the government led by Tony Blair . The Great Recession severely affected the UK economy. The Cameron–Clegg coalition government of 2010 introduced austerity measures intended to tackle the substantial public deficits. Studies have suggested that policy led to significant social disruption and suffering. A referendum on Scottish independence in 2014 resulted in
7130-512: The 16th century and established the Church of England . Moreover, it defined a national identity for England and slowly, but profoundly, changed people's religious beliefs. Wales was fully incorporated into the Kingdom of England , and Ireland was constituted as a kingdom in personal union with the English crown. In what was to become Northern Ireland, the lands of the independent Catholic Gaelic nobility were confiscated and given to Protestant settlers from England and Scotland. In 1603,
7285-401: The 1713 Treaty of Utrecht, is a key military base . A referendum in 2002 on shared sovereignty with Spain was rejected by 98.97% of voters in the territory. Around the end of the 20th century, there were major changes to the governance of the UK with the establishment of devolved administrations for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The statutory incorporation followed acceptance of
7440-406: The 1970s, the Conservative government of the 1980s led by Margaret Thatcher initiated a radical policy of monetarism , deregulation, particularly of the financial sector (for example, the Big Bang in 1986) and labour markets, the sale of state-owned companies (privatisation), and the withdrawal of subsidies to others. In 1982, Argentina invaded the British territories of South Georgia and
7595-476: The 5th century) united with the Picts to create the Kingdom of Scotland in the 9th century. In 1066, the Normans invaded England from northern France. After conquering England , they seized large parts of Wales , conquered much of Ireland and were invited to settle in Scotland, bringing to each country feudalism on the Northern French model and Norman-French culture. The Anglo-Norman ruling class greatly influenced, but eventually assimilated with,
7750-471: The Bogside " began in Derry . This was a large, three-day riot between Irish nationalists and the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC). In response to events in Derry, nationalists held protests throughout Northern Ireland, some of which became violent . In Belfast, loyalists responded by attacking nationalist districts. Eight people were shot dead and hundreds were injured. Scores of houses and businesses were burnt out, most of them owned by Catholics. In response,
7905-403: The British Army and RUC. The first British soldier to be killed by the Provisional IRA died in February 1971. That year, a string of tit-for-tat pub bombings began in Belfast. This came to a climax on 4 December, when the UVF bombed McGurk's Bar , a Catholic-owned pub in Belfast. Fifteen Catholic civilians were killed and seventeen wounded. It was the UVF's deadliest attack in Northern Ireland, and
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#17327726015558060-479: The British Army during the war, the unionist leadership wanted to preserve the UVF as a viable force, aware that the issue of Home Rule and partition would be revisited when the war ended. There were also fears of a German naval raid on Ulster and so much of the UVF was recast as a home defence force. World War I ended in November 1918. On 1 May 1919, the UVF was 'demobilised' when Richardson stood down as its General Officer Commanding . In Richardson's last orders to
8215-401: The British Army was deployed on the streets of Northern Ireland and Irish Army units set up field hospitals near the border. Thousands of families, mostly Catholics, were forced to flee their homes and refugee camps were set up in the Republic of Ireland. On 12 October, a loyalist protest in the Shankill became violent. During the riot, UVF members shot dead RUC officer Victor Arbuckle. He
8370-436: The British Army, the Auxiliaries , and the RIC ). The Government of Ireland Act 1920 provided for two Home Rule parliaments: one for Northern Ireland and one for Southern Ireland . The unionist-dominated Parliament of Northern Ireland chose to remain a part of the United Kingdom. As a response to IRA attacks within Ulster, the Ulster Unionist Council officially revived the UVF on 25 June 1920. Many Unionists felt that
8525-416: The British Army, the Northern Ireland Secretary Peter Hain announced that the British government no longer recognised the UVF ceasefire. On 12 February 2006, The Observer reported that the UVF was to disband by the end of 2006. The newspaper also reported that the group refused to decommission its weapons. On 2 September 2006, BBC News reported the UVF might be intending to re-enter dialogue with
8680-410: The British Government to impose Home Rule on Ulster. Later that year, Irish nationalists formed a rival militia, the Irish Volunteers , to safeguard Home Rule. In April 1914, the UVF smuggled 25,000 rifles into Ulster from Imperial Germany . The Home Rule Crisis was interrupted by the First World War . Much of the UVF enlisted with the British Army 's 36th (Ulster) Division and went to fight on
8835-464: The Brittonic area mainly to what was to become Wales , Cornwall and, until the latter stages of the Anglo-Saxon settlement, the Hen Ogledd (northern England and parts of southern Scotland). Most of the region settled by the Anglo-Saxons became unified as the Kingdom of England in the 10th century. Meanwhile, Gaelic speakers in north-west Britain (with connections to the north-east of Ireland and traditionally supposed to have migrated from there in
8990-399: The Catholic civil rights movement had escalated its protest campaign, and O'Neill had promised them some concessions. In March and April that year, UVF and UPV members bombed water and electricity installations in Northern Ireland, blaming them on the dormant IRA and elements of the civil rights movement. Some of them left much of Belfast without power and water. The loyalists "intended to force
9145-481: The Chief of Staff. These men had overthrown the "hawkish" officers, who had called for a "big push", which meant an increase in violent attacks, earlier in the same month. The UVF was behind the deaths of seven civilians in a series of attacks on 2 October. The hawks had been ousted by those in the UVF who were unhappy with their political and military strategy. The new Brigade Staff's aim was to carry out attacks against known republicans rather than Catholic civilians. This
9300-439: The House of Commons, the second because of the veto power of the Tory-dominated House of Lords , however since the crisis caused by the Lords' rejection of the " People's Budget " of 1909 and the subsequent passing of the Parliament Act , the House of Lords had seen their powers to block legislation diminished and so it could be expected that this Bill would (eventually) become law. Home Rule was popular in all of Ireland apart from
9455-465: The IRA returned fire. Thirteen Catholics and five Protestants were killed in a week of violence. In August 1920, the UVF helped organise the mass burning of Catholic property in Lisburn . This was in response to the IRA assassinating an RIC Inspector in the town. By the end of August 1920 an estimate of the material damage done in Belfast, Lisburn and Banbridge was one million pounds. That October, armed UVF members drove off an IRA unit that had attacked
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#17327726015559610-407: The Independent International Commission on Decommissioning, with a view to decommissioning of their weapons. This move came as the organisation held high-level discussions about its future. On 3 May 2007, following recent negotiations between the Progressive Unionist Party (PUP) and Irish Taoiseach Bertie Ahern and with Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) Chief Constable Sir Hugh Orde ,
9765-401: The Internet (CAIN), the UVF killed 17 active and four former republican paramilitaries. CAIN also states that republicans killed 15 UVF members, some of whom are suspected to have been set up for assassination by their colleagues. According to journalist and author Ed Moloney , the UVF campaign in Mid- Ulster in this period "indisputably shattered Republican morale", and put the leadership of
9920-452: The Manhattan Project whose task was to build an atomic weapon. Once built, it was decided, with British consent, to use the weapon against Japan. The UK was one of the Big Three powers (along with the US and the Soviet Union) who met to plan the post-war world ; it drafted the Declaration by United Nations with the United States and became one of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council . It worked closely with
10075-425: The Name of Great Britain". The term "United Kingdom" has occasionally been used as a description for the former Kingdom of Great Britain , although its official name from 1707 to 1800 was simply "Great Britain". The Acts of Union 1800 formed the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland . Following the partition of Ireland and the independence of the Irish Free State in 1922, which left Northern Ireland as
10230-436: The PSNI and on residents of the Short Strand enclave took place. There were also reports that UVF members fired shots at police lines during a protest. The high levels of orchestration by the leadership of the East Belfast UVF, and the alleged ignored orders from the main leaders of the UVF to stop the violence has led to fears that the East Belfast UVF has now become a separate loyalist paramilitary grouping which doesn't abide by
10385-433: The RIC barracks in Tempo, County Fermanagh . The sluggish recruitment to the UVF and its failure to stop IRA activities in Ulster prompted Sir James Craig to call for the formation of a new special constabulary . In October 1920, the Ulster Special Constabulary (USC) formed, intended to serve as an armed reserve force to bolster the RIC and fight the IRA. Spender encouraged UVF members to join it and many did, although
10540-621: The RIC, being mostly Roman Catholic (though this was not the case with regards to Ulster) as a whole, would not adequately protect Protestant areas. In early July, the UUC appointed Lieutenant Colonel Wilfrid Spender as the UVF's Officer Commanding. At the same time, announcements were printed in unionist newspapers calling on all former UVF members to report for duty. However, this call met with limited success; for example, each Belfast battalion drew little more than 100 men each and they were left mostly unarmed. The UVF's revival also met with little backing from unionists in Great Britain. During
10695-399: The Republic having more involvement in Northern Ireland. Along with the UDA, it helped to enforce the strike by blocking roads, intimidating workers, and shutting any businesses that opened. On 17 May, two UVF units from the Belfast and Mid-Ulster brigades detonated four car bombs in Dublin and Monaghan . Thirty-three people were killed and almost 300 injured. It was the deadliest attack of
10850-425: The Republic of Ireland during December 1972 and January 1973, when it detonated three car bombs in Dublin and one in Belturbet , County Cavan , killing a total of five civilians. It would attack the Republic again in May 1974, during the two-week Ulster Workers' Council strike . This was a general strike in protest against the Sunningdale Agreement , which meant sharing political power with Irish nationalists and
11005-495: The Scottish electorate voting by 55.3 to 44.7% to remain part of the United Kingdom. In 2016, 51.9 per cent of voters in the United Kingdom voted to leave the European Union . The UK left the EU in 2020. On 1 May 2021, the EU–UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement came into force. The COVID-19 pandemic had a severe impact on the UK's economy , caused major disruptions to education and had far-reaching impacts on society and politics in 2020 and 2021. The United Kingdom
11160-707: The Troubles . On 18 June 1994, UVF members machine-gunned a pub in the Loughinisland massacre in County Down , on the basis that its customers were watching the Republic of Ireland national football team playing in the World Cup on television and were therefore assumed to be Catholics. The gunmen shot dead six people and injured five. The UVF agreed to a ceasefire in October 1994. More militant members of
11315-481: The Troubles. There are various allegations that elements of the British security forces colluded with the UVF in the bombings. The Irish parliament 's Joint Committee on Justice called the bombings an act of "international terrorism" involving members of the British security forces. Both the UVF and the British government have denied the claims. The UVF's Mid-Ulster Brigade was founded in 1972 in Lurgan by Billy Hanna,
11470-501: The UK has the world's sixth-largest economy by nominal gross domestic product (GDP). It is a nuclear state , and is ranked fifth globally in military expenditure . The UK has been a permanent member of the UN Security Council since its first session in 1946. It is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations , Council of Europe , G7 , OECD , NATO , Five Eyes , AUKUS and CPTPP . British influence can be observed in
11625-484: The UK in 2023 is estimated to be 3.25 million hectares, which represents 13% of the total land area in the UK. Most of the United Kingdom has a temperate climate, with generally cool temperatures and plentiful rainfall all year round. The temperature varies with the seasons seldom dropping below 0 °C (32 °F ) or rising above 30 °C (86 °F). Some parts, away from the coast, of upland England, Wales, Northern Ireland and most of Scotland, experience
11780-961: The UK into lowland and upland areas. Lowland areas include Cornwall , the New Forest , the South Downs and the Norfolk Broads . Upland areas include the Lake District , the Pennines , the Yorkshire Dales , Exmoor , and Dartmoor . The main rivers and estuaries are the Thames , Severn , and the Humber . England's highest mountain is Scafell Pike , at 978 metres (3,209 ft) in the Lake District; its largest island
11935-503: The USC did not engulf the bulk of the UVF (and other loyalist paramilitary groups) until early 1922. Craig hoped to "neutralise" the loyalist paramilitaries by enrolling them in the C Division of the USC, a move that was backed by the British government. Historian Michael Hopkinson wrote that the USC, "amounted to an officially approved UVF". Unlike the RIC, the USC was almost wholly Protestant and
12090-563: The UVF ceasefire or the Northern Ireland Peace Process. United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland , commonly known as the United Kingdom ( UK ) or Britain , is a country in Northwestern Europe , off the coast of the continental mainland . It comprises England , Scotland , Wales , and Northern Ireland . The UK includes the island of Great Britain ,
12245-466: The UVF has killed more than thirty people since its 1994 ceasefire, most of them Protestants. The feud between the UVF and the LVF erupted again in the summer of 2005. The UVF killed four men in Belfast and trouble ended only when the LVF announced that it was disbanding in October of that year. On 14 September 2005, following serious loyalist rioting during which dozens of shots were fired at riot police and
12400-449: The UVF made a statement that they would transform to a "non-military, civilianised" organisation. This was to take effect from midnight. They also stated that they would retain their weaponry but put them beyond reach of normal volunteers. Their weapons stock-piles are to be retained under the watch of the UVF leadership. In January 2008, the UVF was accused of involvement in vigilante action against alleged criminals in Belfast. In 2008,
12555-539: The UVF who disagreed with the ceasefire, broke away to form the Loyalist Volunteer Force (LVF), led by Billy Wright . This development came soon after the UVF's Brigade Staff in Belfast had stood down Wright and the Portadown unit of the Mid-Ulster Brigade, on 2 August 1996, for the killing of a Catholic taxi driver near Lurgan during Drumcree disturbances. There followed years of violence between
12710-661: The UVF, he stated: Existing conditions call for the demobilisation of the Ulster Volunteers. The Force was organised, to protect the interests of the Province of Ulster, at a time when trouble threatened. The success of the organisation speaks for itself, as a page of history, in the records of Ulster that will never fade. In the December 1918 general election , Sinn Féin —an Irish republican party who sought full independence for Ireland—won an overwhelming majority of
12865-453: The UVF, the UDA (the largest loyalist group) and Ulster Resistance. The arms are thought to have consisted of: The UVF used this new infusion of arms to escalate their campaign of sectarian assassinations. This era also saw a more widespread targeting on the UVF's part of IRA and Sinn Féin members, beginning with the killing of senior IRA member Larry Marley and a failed attempt on the life of
13020-620: The UVF. However, 57 of the 70 officers at the Army's headquarters in Ireland chose to resign rather than enforce Home Rule or take on the UVF. The following month, the UVF smuggled 20,000 German rifles with 3,000,000 rounds of ammunition into the port of Larne . This became known as the Larne gunrunning . The Ulster Volunteers were a continuation of what has been described as the "Protestant volunteering tradition, in Ireland", which since 1666 spans
13175-402: The United Kingdom and that elsewhere "British government" is used at least as frequently as "United Kingdom government". The UK Permanent Committee on Geographical Names recognises "United Kingdom", "UK" and "U.K." as shortened and abbreviated geopolitical terms for the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in its toponymic guidelines; it does not list "Britain" but notes that "it
13330-524: The United Kingdom is London , whose wider metropolitan area is the largest in Western Europe , with a population of 14.9 million. The cities of Edinburgh , Cardiff , and Belfast are the national capitals of Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland, respectively. The lands of the UK have been inhabited continuously since the Neolithic . In AD 43 the Roman conquest of Britain began;
13485-411: The United Kingdom is 1339.7 hours, which is just under 30% of the maximum possible. The hours of sunshine vary from 1200 to about 1580 hours per year, and since 1996 the UK has been and still is receiving above the 1981 to 2010 average hours of sunshine. Climate change has a serious impact on the country. A third of food price rise in 2023 is attributed to climate change. As of 2022, the United Kingdom
13640-436: The United Kingdom use several different terms to describe their national identity and may identify themselves as being British , English , Scottish , Welsh , Northern Irish , or Irish ; or as having a combination of different national identities. Settlement by Cro-Magnons of what was to become the United Kingdom occurred in waves beginning by about 30,000 years ago. The island has been continuously inhabited only since
13795-587: The United Kingdom's 10th and 16th (Irish) Divisions . By the summer of 1916, only the Ulster and 16th divisions remained, the 10th amalgamated into both following severe losses in the Battle of Gallipoli . Both of the remaining divisions suffered heavy casualties in July 1916 during the Battle of the Somme and were largely wiped out in 1918 during the German spring offensive . Although many UVF officers left to join
13950-685: The United Kingdom. The 1928 Equal Franchise Act gave women electoral equality with men in national elections. Strikes in the mid-1920s culminated in the General Strike of 1926 . Britain had still not recovered from the effects of the First World War when the Great Depression (1929–1932) led to considerable unemployment and hardship in the old industrial areas, as well as political and social unrest with rising membership in communist and socialist parties. A coalition government
14105-474: The United Kingdom. It was responsible for more than 500 deaths. The vast majority (more than two-thirds) of its victims were Irish Catholic civilians, who were often killed at random. During the conflict, its deadliest attack in Northern Ireland was the 1971 McGurk's Bar bombing , which killed fifteen civilians. The group also carried out attacks in the Republic of Ireland from 1969 onward. The biggest of these
14260-640: The United States to establish the IMF , World Bank and NATO . The war left the UK severely weakened and financially dependent on the Marshall Plan , but it was spared the total war that devastated eastern Europe. In the immediate post-war years, the Labour government under Clement Attlee initiated a radical programme of reforms, which significantly impacted British society in the following decades . Major industries and public utilities were nationalised ,
14415-628: The acquisition and settlement of overseas colonies , particularly in North America and the Caribbean. Though previous attempts at uniting the two kingdoms within Great Britain in 1606, 1667, and 1689 had proved unsuccessful, the attempt initiated in 1705 led to the Treaty of Union of 1706 being agreed and ratified by both parliaments. On 1 May 1707, the Kingdom of Great Britain was formed,
14570-618: The attacks. In the 1980s, the UVF was greatly reduced by a series of police informers . The damage from security service informers started in 1983 with "supergrass" Joseph Bennett's information, which led to the arrest of fourteen senior figures. In 1984, the UVF attempted to kill the northern editor of the Sunday World , Jim Campbell after he had exposed the paramilitary activities of Mid-Ulster brigadier Robin Jackson . Another loyalist paramilitary organisation called Ulster Resistance
14725-947: The attempted attack was a protest against the Irish Army units "still massed on the border in County Donegal ". In December, the UVF detonated a car bomb near the Garda central detective bureau and telephone exchange headquarters in Dublin. In January 1970, the UVF began bombing Catholic-owned businesses in Protestant areas of Belfast. It issued a statement vowing to "remove republican elements from loyalist areas" and stop them "reaping financial benefit therefrom". During 1970, 42 Catholic-owned licensed premises in Protestant areas were bombed. Catholic churches were also attacked. In February, it began to target critics of militant loyalism –
14880-480: The authorities to make no more speeches of appeasement. We are heavily armed Protestants dedicated to this cause. On 27 May, Spence sent four UVF members to kill IRA volunteer Leo Martin, who lived in Belfast. Unable to find their target, the men drove around the Falls district in search of a Catholic. They shot John Scullion, a Catholic civilian, as he walked home. He died of his wounds on 11 June. Spence later wrote "At
15035-561: The command of Lieutenant-General Sir George Richardson KCB. William Gibson was the first commander of the 3rd East Belfast Regiment of the Ulster Volunteers. The Ulster Unionists enjoyed the wholehearted support of the British Conservative Party, even when threatening rebellion against the British government. On 23 September 1913, the 500 delegates of the Ulster Unionist Council met to discuss
15190-516: The conflict, loyalists set up small independent "vigilance groups" in many parts of Ulster. Most of these groups would patrol their areas and report anything untoward to the RIC. Some of them were armed with UVF rifles from 1914. There were also a number of small loyalist paramilitary groups, the most notable of which was the Ulster Imperial Guards , who may have overreached the UVF in terms of membership. Historian Peter Hart wrote
15345-424: The deadliest attack in Belfast during the Troubles. The following year, 1972, was the most violent of the Troubles. Along with the newly formed Ulster Defence Association (UDA), the UVF started an armed campaign against the Catholic population of Northern Ireland. It began carrying out gun attacks to kill random Catholic civilians and using car bombs to attack Catholic-owned pubs. It would continue these tactics for
15500-736: The decades-long process of European integration , the UK was a founding member of the Western European Union , established with the London and Paris Conferences in 1954. In 1960 the UK was one of the seven founding members of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), but in 1973 it left to join the European Communities (EC). In a 1975 referendum 67% voted to stay in it. When the EC became
15655-444: The early 20th century, although in the words of a member of the previous organisation "the present para-military organisation ... has no connection with the U.V.F. of which I have been speaking. Though, for its own purposes, it assumed the same name it has nothing else in common." It was led by Gusty Spence , a former Royal Ulster Rifles soldier from Northern Ireland. Spence claimed that he was approached in 1965 by two men, one of whom
15810-483: The eastern parts are the driest. Atlantic currents, warmed by the Gulf Stream , bring mild winters, especially in the west where winters are wet and even more so over high ground. Summers are warmest in the southeast of England and coolest in the north. Heavy snowfall can occur in winter and early spring on high ground, and occasionally settles to great depth away from the hills. The average total annual sunshine in
15965-594: The first year, Britain and its Empire continued the war against Germany. Churchill engaged industry, scientists and engineers to support the government and the military in the prosecution of the war effort. In 1940, the Royal Air Force defeated the German Luftwaffe in the Battle of Britain . Urban areas suffered heavy bombing during the Blitz . The Grand Alliance of Britain, the United States and
16120-538: The flag from nationalist politicians. During the Belfast City Hall flag protests of 2012–13, senior UVF members were confirmed to have actively been involved in orchestrating violence and rioting against the PSNI and the Alliance Party throughout Northern Ireland during the weeks of disorder. Much of the UVF's orchestration was carried out by its senior members in East Belfast, where many attacks on
16275-597: The following of these groups: Also occasionally targeted [by the IRA] were Ulster Protestants who saw the republican guerrilla campaign as an invasion of their territory, where they formed the majority. Loyalist activists responded by forming vigilante groups, which soon acquired official status as part of the Ulster Special Constabulary. These men spearheaded the wave of anti-Catholic violence that began in July 1920 and continued for two years. This onslaught
16430-587: The formal control it exerted over its own colonies, British dominance of much of world trade meant that it effectively controlled the economies of regions such as East Asia and Latin America . Throughout the Victorian era , political attitudes favoured free trade and laissez-faire policies. Beginning with the Great Reform Act in 1832, Parliament gradually widened the voting franchise , with
16585-479: The formation of the Campaign for Social Justice , there had been a growing civil rights campaign in Northern Ireland, seeking to highlight discrimination against Catholics by the unionist government of Northern Ireland . Some unionists feared Irish nationalism and launched an opposing response in Northern Ireland. In April 1966, Ulster loyalists led by Ian Paisley , a Protestant fundamentalist preacher, founded
16740-762: The global hegemon and adopted the role of global policeman. From 1853 to 1856, Britain took part in the Crimean War , allied with the Ottoman Empire against Tsarist Russia , participating in the naval battles of the Baltic Sea known as the Åland War in the Gulf of Bothnia and the Gulf of Finland , among others. Following the Indian Rebellion in 1857 , the British government led by Lord Palmerston assumed direct rule over India . Alongside
16895-672: The homes of MPs Austin Currie , Sheelagh Murnaghan , Richard Ferguson and Anne Dickson were attacked with improvised bombs. It also continued its attacks in the Republic of Ireland, bombing the Dublin-Belfast railway line, an electricity substation, a radio mast, and Irish nationalist monuments. The IRA had split into the Provisional IRA and Official IRA in December 1969. In 1971, these ramped up their activity against
17050-403: The kingdoms of England, Scotland and Ireland were united in a personal union when James VI, King of Scots , inherited the crowns of England and Ireland and moved his court from Edinburgh to London; each country nevertheless remained a separate political entity and retained its separate political, legal, and religious institutions. In the mid-17th century, all three kingdoms were involved in
17205-408: The last retreat of the ice around 11,500 years ago. By the end of the region's prehistoric period , the population is thought to have belonged largely to a culture termed Insular Celtic , comprising Brittonic Britain and Gaelic Ireland . The Roman conquest , beginning in 43 AD, and the 400-year rule of southern Britain , was followed by an invasion by Germanic Anglo-Saxon settlers, reducing
17360-463: The legal and political systems of many of its former colonies , and British culture remains globally influential, particularly in language , literature , music and sport . English is the world's most widely spoken language and the third-most spoken native language . The Acts of Union 1707 declared that the Kingdom of England and Kingdom of Scotland were "United into One Kingdom by
17515-530: The local cultures. Subsequent medieval English kings completed the conquest of Wales and tried unsuccessfully to annex Scotland . Asserting its independence in the 1320 Declaration of Arbroath , Scotland maintained its independence thereafter, albeit in near-constant conflict with England . In 1215 the Magna Carta was the first document to state that no government was above the law, that citizens have rights protecting them and that they were entitled to
17670-744: The major part of the British Isles archipelago and includes the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern one-sixth of the island of Ireland and some smaller surrounding islands. It lies between the North Atlantic Ocean and the North Sea with the southeast coast coming within 22 miles (35 km) of the coast of northern France, from which it is separated by the English Channel . The Royal Greenwich Observatory in London
17825-619: The mid-1920s, most of the British population could listen to BBC radio programmes. Experimental television broadcasts began in 1929 and the first scheduled BBC Television Service commenced in 1936. The rise of Irish nationalism , and disputes within Ireland over the terms of Irish Home Rule , led eventually to the partition of the island in 1921. A period of conflict in what is now Northern Ireland occurred from June 1920 until June 1922. The Irish Free State became independent, initially with Dominion status in 1922, and unambiguously independent in 1931 . Northern Ireland remained part of
17980-773: The north-eastern part of the island of Ireland , and most of the smaller islands within the British Isles , making up a total area of 94,354 square miles (244,376 km ). Northern Ireland shares a land border with the Republic of Ireland ; otherwise, the United Kingdom is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean , the North Sea , the English Channel , the Celtic Sea , and the Irish Sea . The United Kingdom had an estimated population of over 68.2 million people in 2023. The capital and largest city of both England and
18135-565: The northeast of Ulster. While Catholics were the majority in most of Ireland, Protestants were the majority in the six counties that became Northern Ireland as well as in Great Britain . Many Ulster Protestants feared being governed by a Catholic-dominated parliament in Dublin and losing their local supremacy and strong links with Britain. The two key figures in the creation of the Ulster Volunteers were Edward Carson (leader of
18290-463: The only part of the island of Ireland within the United Kingdom, the name was changed in 1927 to the "United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland". Although the United Kingdom is a sovereign country, England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are also widely referred to as countries . The UK Prime Minister's website has used the phrase "countries within a country" to describe the United Kingdom. Some statistical summaries, such as those for
18445-443: The orders from above, continued with "localised recruitment", and although some continued to try and acquire weapons, including a senior member, most forms of crime had fallen, including shootings and assaults. The group concluded a general acceptance of the need to decommission, though there was no conclusive proof of moves towards this end. In June 2009 the UVF formally decommissioned their weapons in front of independent witnesses as
18600-541: The practicalities of setting up a provisional government for Ulster, should Home Rule be implemented. On 25 November 1913, partly in response to the formation of the UVF, Irish nationalists formed the Irish Volunteers – a militia whose role was to safeguard Home Rule. In March 1914, the British Army's Commander-in-Chief in Ireland was ordered to move troops into Ulster to protect arms depots from
18755-581: The republican movement under intense pressure to "do something", although this has been disputed by others. In 1990, the UVF joined the Combined Loyalist Military Command (CLMC) and indicated its acceptance of moves towards peace. However, the year leading up to the loyalist ceasefire, which took place shortly after the Provisional IRA ceasefire, saw some of the worst sectarian killings carried out by loyalists during
18910-442: The rest of Europe, royal absolutism would not prevail, and a professed Catholic could never accede to the throne. The British constitution would develop on the basis of constitutional monarchy and the parliamentary system . With the founding of the Royal Society in 1660, science was greatly encouraged. During this period, particularly in England, the development of naval power and the interest in voyages of discovery led to
19065-413: The rest of its campaign. On 23 October 1972, the UVF carried out an armed raid against King's Park camp, a UDR/ Territorial Army depot in Lurgan. They managed to procure a large cache of weapons and ammunition including L1A1 Self-Loading Rifles , Browning pistols , and Sterling submachine guns . Twenty tons of ammonium nitrate was also stolen from the Belfast docks. The UVF launched further attacks in
19220-406: The result of the Acts of Union 1707 between the Kingdom of England and Kingdom of Scotland . In the 18th century, cabinet government developed under Robert Walpole , in practice the first prime minister (1721–1742). A series of Jacobite uprisings sought to remove the Protestant House of Hanover from the throne and restore the Catholic House of Stuart . The Jacobites were finally defeated at
19375-415: The same logo, but there are no organisational links between the two. By 1912, the Irish Parliamentary Party (IPP), an Irish nationalist party which sought devolution ( Home Rule ) for Ireland , held the balance of power in the Parliament of the United Kingdom . In April 1912, Prime Minister H. H. Asquith introduced the third Home Rule Bill . Previous Home Rule Bills had fallen, the first rejected by
19530-444: The seats in Ireland. Its members refused to take their seats in the British Parliament and instead set up their own parliament and declared independence for Ireland . The Irish Volunteers was ostensibly reconstituted as the Irish Republican Army (IRA), the military of the self-declared Republic. The Irish War of Independence began, fought between the IRA and the forces of the Crown in Ireland (consisting of various forces including
19685-407: The small village of Cappagh. Republicans responded to the attacks by assassinating senior UVF members John Bingham , William "Frenchie" Marchant and Trevor King as well as Leslie Dallas, whose purported UVF membership was disputed both by his family and the UVF. The UVF also killed senior IRA paramilitary members Liam Ryan, John 'Skipper' Burns and Larry Marley . According to Conflict Archive on
19840-520: The time, the attitude was that if you couldn't get an IRA man you should shoot a Taig , he's your last resort". On 26 June, the group shot dead a Catholic civilian and wounded two others as they left a pub on Malvern Street, Belfast. Two days later, the Government of Northern Ireland declared the UVF illegal. The shootings led to Spence's being sentenced to life imprisonment with a recommended minimum sentence of twenty years. Spence appointed Samuel McClelland as UVF Chief of Staff in his stead. By 1969,
19995-436: The twelve NUTS 1 regions , refer to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland as "regions". Northern Ireland is also referred to as a "province". With regard to Northern Ireland, the descriptive name used "can be controversial, with the choice often revealing one's political preferences". The term "Great Britain" conventionally refers to the island of Great Britain, or politically to England, Scotland and Wales in combination. It
20150-419: The two organisations. In January 2000 UVF Mid-Ulster brigadier Richard Jameson was shot dead by a LVF gunman which led to an escalation of the UVF/LVF feud. The UVF was also clashing with the UDA in the summer of 2000. The feud with the UDA ended in December following seven deaths. Veteran anti-UVF campaigner Raymond McCord , whose son, Raymond Jr., a Protestant, was beaten to death by UVF men in 1997, estimates
20305-413: The units that bombed Dublin. Jackson was allegedly the hitman who shot Hanna dead outside his home in Lurgan. The brigade formed part of the Glenanne gang , a loose alliance of loyalists which the Pat Finucane Centre (PFC) has linked to 87 killings in the 1970s. The gang comprised, in addition to members the UVF, rogue elements of the UDR and RUC, all of which were allegedly acting under the direction of
20460-450: The various Irish Protestant militias founded to defend Ireland from foreign threat. References to the most prominent of these militias, the Irish Volunteers , was frequently made, and there were also attempts to link the activities of the two. The third Home Rule Bill was eventually passed despite the objections of the House of Lords , whose power of veto had been abolished under the Parliament Act 1911 . While Carson had hoped to have
20615-426: The whole of Ulster excluded, he felt a good case could be made for the six Ulster counties with unionist, or only slight nationalist, majorities. However, in August 1914 the Home Rule issue was temporarily suspended by the outbreak of World War I and Ireland's involvement in it. Many UVF men enlisted in the British Army, mostly with the 36th (Ulster) Division of the ' New Army '. Others joined Irish regiments of
20770-418: Was alleged to have been involved in several UVF operations. The UVF was banned again on 3 October 1975 and two days later twenty-six suspected UVF members were arrested in a series of raids. The men were tried, and in March 1977 were sentenced to an average of twenty-five years each. In October 1975, after staging a counter-coup, the Brigade Staff acquired a new leadership of moderates with Tommy West serving as
20925-523: Was an Ulster Unionist Party MP, who told him that the UVF was to be re-established and that he was to have responsibility for the Shankill. On 21 May, the group issued a statement: From this day, we declare war against the Irish Republican Army and its splinter groups. Known IRA men will be executed mercilessly and without hesitation. Less extreme measures will be taken against anyone sheltering or helping them, but if they persist in giving them aid, then more extreme methods will be adopted. ... we solemnly warn
21080-416: Was chosen as the defining point of the Prime Meridian at the International Meridian Conference in 1884. The United Kingdom lies between latitudes 49° and 61° N , and longitudes 9° W and 2° E . Northern Ireland shares a 224-mile (360 km) land boundary with the Republic of Ireland. The coastline of Great Britain is 11,073 miles (17,820 km) long, though measurements can vary greatly due to
21235-412: Was endorsed by Gusty Spence, who issued a statement asking all UVF volunteers to support the new regime. The UVF's activities in the last years of the decade were increasingly being curtailed by the number of UVF members who were sent to prison. The number of killings in Northern Ireland had decreased from around 300 per year between 1973 and 1976 to just under 100 in the years 1977–1981. In 1976, Tommy West
21390-404: Was formed in 1931. Nonetheless, "Britain was a very wealthy country, formidable in arms, ruthless in pursuit of its interests and sitting at the heart of a global production system." After Nazi Germany invaded Poland in 1939, Britain entered the Second World War . Winston Churchill became prime minister and head of a coalition government in 1940. Despite the defeat of its European allies in
21545-487: Was formed on 10 November 1986. The initial aim of Ulster Resistance was to bring an end to the Anglo-Irish Agreement . Loyalists were successful in importing arms into Northern Ireland. The weapons were Palestine Liberation Organisation arms captured by the Israelis and sold to Armscor , the South African state-owned company which, in defiance of a 1977 United Nations arms embargo, set about making South Africa self-sufficient in military hardware. The arms were divided between
21700-403: Was greatly mistrusted by Catholics and nationalists. Following IRA attacks, the USC often carried out revenge killings and reprisals against Catholic civilians. In his book Carson's Army: the Ulster Volunteer Force 1910–22 , Timothy Bowman gave the following as his last thought on the UVF during this period: It is questionable the extent to which the UVF did actually reform in 1920. Possibly
21855-403: Was in retaliation for attacks on Loyalist homes the previous weekend and after a young girl was hit in the face with a brick by Republicans. A dissident Republican was arrested for "the attempted murder of police officers in east Belfast" after shots were fired upon the police. In July 2011, a UVF flag flying in Limavady was deemed legal by the PSNI after the police had received complaints about
22010-410: Was involved in some sectarian clashes and minor actions against the IRA. However, this revival was largely unsuccessful and the UVF was absorbed into the Ulster Special Constabulary (USC), the new reserve police force of Northern Ireland. A loyalist paramilitary group calling itself the Ulster Volunteer Force was formed in 1966. It claims to be a direct descendant of the older organisation and uses
22165-401: Was killed by UVF members acting with the sanction of the leadership. The Progressive Unionist Party 's condemnation, and Dawn Purvis and other leaders' resignations as a response to the Moffett shooting, were also noted. Eleven months later, a man was arrested and charged with the attempted murder of the UVF's alleged second-in-command Harry Stockman , described by the Belfast Telegraph as
22320-478: Was led by Lenny Murphy . He was shot dead by the IRA in November 1982, four months after his release from the Maze Prison . The group had been proscribed in July 1966, but this ban was lifted on 4 April 1974 by Merlyn Rees , Secretary of State for Northern Ireland , in an effort to bring the UVF into the democratic process. A political wing was formed in June 1974, the Volunteer Political Party led by UVF Chief of Staff Ken Gibson, which contested West Belfast in
22475-657: Was now left to the discretion of local units. The UVF's Mid-Ulster Brigade carried out further attacks during this same period. These included the Miami Showband killings of 31 July 1975 – when three members of the popular showband were killed, having been stopped at a fake British Army checkpoint outside Newry in County Down . Two members of the group survived the attack and later testified against those responsible. Two UVF members, Harris Boyle and Wesley Somerville , were accidentally killed by their own bomb while carrying out this attack. Two of those later convicted (James McDowell and Thomas Crozier) were also serving members of
22630-428: Was part of an Ulster Unionist counter-revolution, whose gunmen operated almost exclusively as ethnic cleansers and avengers. The UVF was involved in sectarian clashes in Derry in June 1920. Catholic homes were burned in the mainly-Protestant Waterside area, and UVF members fired on Catholics fleeing by boat across the River Foyle . UVF members fired from the Fountain neighbourhood into adjoining Catholic districts, and
22785-415: Was reduced, particularly as a result of the English Civil War . In 1707, the Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Scotland united under the Treaty of Union to create the Kingdom of Great Britain . The Acts of Union 1800 incorporated the Kingdom of Ireland to create the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland in 1801. Most of Ireland seceded from the UK in 1922 as the Irish Free State , and
22940-468: Was replaced with "Mr. F" who is alleged to be John "Bunter" Graham , who remains the incumbent Chief of Staff to date. West died in 1980. On 17 February 1979, the UVF carried out its only major attack in Scotland , when its members bombed two pubs in Glasgow frequented by Irish-Scots Catholics. Both pubs were wrecked and a number of people were wounded. It claimed the pubs were used for republican fundraising. In June, nine UVF members were convicted of
23095-581: Was the largest empire in history . However, its involvement in the First World War and the Second World War damaged Britain's economic power and a global wave of decolonisation led to the independence of most British colonies. The United Kingdom is a constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy . The UK has three distinct jurisdictions: England and Wales , Scotland , and Northern Ireland . Since 1999, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have their own governments and parliaments which control various devolved matters. A developed country ,
23250-542: Was the 1974 Dublin and Monaghan bombings , which killed 34 civilians, making it the deadliest terrorist attack of the conflict. The no-warning car bombings had been carried out by units from the Belfast and Mid-Ulster brigades . The Mid-Ulster Brigade was also responsible for the 1975 Miami Showband killings , in which three members of the popular Irish cabaret band were shot dead at a bogus security checkpoint by gunmen wearing military uniforms. Two UVF men were accidentally blown up in this attack. The UVF's last major attack
23405-433: Was the 1994 Loughinisland massacre , in which its members shot dead six Catholic civilians in a rural pub. Until recent years, it was noted for secrecy and a policy of limited, selective membership. Since the ceasefire, the UVF has been involved in rioting, drug dealing, organised crime, loan-sharking and prostitution. Some members have also been found responsible for orchestrating a series of racist attacks. Since 1964 and
23560-415: Was the first RUC officer to be killed during the Troubles. The UVF had launched its first attack in the Republic of Ireland on 5 August 1969, when it bombed the RTÉ Television Centre in Dublin. There were further attacks in the Republic between October and December 1969. In October, UVF and UPV member Thomas McDowell was killed by the bomb he was planting at Ballyshannon power station. The UVF stated that
23715-432: Was the first country in the world to use an approved COVID-19 vaccine , developing its own vaccine through a collaboration between Oxford University and AstraZeneca , which allowed the UK's vaccine rollout to be among the fastest in the world. The total area of the United Kingdom is approximately 94,354 square miles (244,376 km ), with a land area of 93,723 square miles (242,741 km ). The country occupies
23870-399: Was then part of the United Kingdom . The Ulster Volunteers were based in the northern province of Ulster . Many Ulster Protestants and Irish unionists feared being governed by a nationalist Catholic -majority parliament in Dublin and losing their links with Great Britain . In 1913, the militias were organised into the Ulster Volunteer Force ( UVF ) and vowed to resist any attempts by
24025-408: Was to be much overlap in membership between the UCDC/UPV and the UVF. On 7 May 1966, loyalists petrol bombed a Catholic-owned pub in the loyalist Shankill area of Belfast . Fire engulfed the house next door, badly burning the elderly Protestant widow who lived there. She died of her injuries on 27 June. The group called itself the "Ulster Volunteer Force" (UVF), after the Ulster Volunteers of
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