Brandon Foster

Professor Raymond
UWRT 1104
12 March 2017
The Flag of Ireland
My Dads side of the family comes from a Scotch-Irish descent. I chose to research and

learn more about the country of Ireland. The flag of Ireland is tri-color, and has three equally

sized rectangles of different colors. The colors from left to right are green, white, and orange.

From the source I used, I discovered that this flag was first used in 1848. I also learned that each

of the colors has a specific meaning. The green rectangle on the left represents the Roman

Catholics who are native to the country of Ireland. The orange rectangle on the right represents

the group of Protestants that came and settled in Ireland. Finally, the rectangle of white

represents the peace between these two groups (Irelands Flag). I found the meanings behind

each of the colors very interesting and I thought they were well represented on the flag. I also

wanted to find out if there were any past flags used in Ireland and what meanings they had. I

found that Ireland had a solid green flag with a gold harp in the center. The green represented the

Irish Catholics and was meant to carry an overall sense of nationalism for that group of people. I

researched and found out that this green flag was not as popular and not as well respected as the

current tri-color flag (Brunner). I knew prior to my research that there were two different

religious groups in Ireland, but I never knew that they were represented on the flag. I really

found the meaning and significance of this flag to be fascinating. I also researched the national

anthem of Ireland and learned more about it. I found that the anthem is very controversial and

only appeals to certain groups of people in the country. The lyrics consist of militaristic subjects,

which many people in modern society do not think fits a proper national anthem. There have
actually been recent conversations and debates about Ireland adopting a new national anthem,

one that fully unites all of the people in the country (Sherry, 2013). Finally, I also researched

citizenship in the country of Ireland. It is possible for people to become citizens of the country.

People who are born in Ireland are typically granted citizenship, and others seeking citizenship in

Ireland can apply for it (Becoming an Irish Citizen). I knew very little about the history of

Ireland before I started my research for this writing prompt. I found the history of the flag to be

the most interesting thing that I discovered.

 Works Cited

"Becoming an Irish Citizen." Citizens Information. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Mar. 2017.

Brunner, Borgna. "Irish Flag." Infoplease. Infoplease, n.d. Web. 12 Mar. 2017.

"Ireland's Flag." Ireland's Flag - EnchantedLearning.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Mar. 2017.

Sherry, Ruth. "The Story of the National Anthem." History Ireland. N.p., 08 Mar. 2013. Web. 12

Mar. 2017.