1998 in Northern Ireland
Encyclopedia
Events
- 9 January - BritishUnited KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
Secretary of State for Northern IrelandSecretary of State for Northern IrelandThe Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, informally the Northern Ireland Secretary, is the principal secretary of state in the government of the United Kingdom with responsibilities for Northern Ireland. The Secretary of State is a Minister of the Crown who is accountable to the Parliament of...
, Mo MowlamMo MowlamMarjorie "Mo" Mowlam was a British Labour Party politician. She was the Member of Parliament for Redcar from 1987 to 2001 and served in the Cabinet as Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Minister for the Cabinet Office and Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster.Mowlam's time as Northern...
, visits loyalistUlster loyalismUlster loyalism is an ideology that is opposed to a united Ireland. It can mean either support for upholding Northern Ireland's status as a constituent part of the United Kingdom , support for Northern Ireland independence, or support for loyalist paramilitaries...
prisoners in the MazeMaze (HM Prison)Her Majesty's Prison Maze was a prison in Northern Ireland that was used to house paramilitary prisoners during the Troubles from mid-1971 to mid-2000....
prison. Afterward loyalists agree to attend the Stormont talks. - 20 February - Sinn FéinSinn FéinSinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...
is excluded from the Northern IrelandNorthern IrelandNorthern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
talks for two weeks. Protests in BelfastBelfastBelfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
follow. - 10 April - Good FridayGood FridayGood Friday , is a religious holiday observed primarily by Christians commemorating the crucifixion of Jesus Christ and his death at Calvary. The holiday is observed during Holy Week as part of the Paschal Triduum on the Friday preceding Easter Sunday, and may coincide with the Jewish observance of...
: the British and IrishIrish GovernmentThe Government of Ireland is the cabinet that exercises executive authority in Ireland.-Members of the Government:Membership of the Government is regulated fundamentally by the Constitution of Ireland. The Government is headed by a prime minister called the Taoiseach...
governments and all the political parties in the Northern Ireland (except the Democratic Unionist PartyDemocratic Unionist PartyThe Democratic Unionist Party is the larger of the two main unionist political parties in Northern Ireland. Founded by Ian Paisley and currently led by Peter Robinson, it is currently the largest party in the Northern Ireland Assembly and the fourth-largest party in the House of Commons of the...
) sign the Belfast AgreementBelfast AgreementThe Good Friday Agreement or Belfast Agreement , sometimes called the Stormont Agreement, was a major political development in the Northern Ireland peace process...
. - 19 May - John HumeJohn HumeJohn Hume is a former Irish politician from Derry, Northern Ireland. He was a founding member of the Social Democratic and Labour Party, and was co-recipient of the 1998 Nobel Peace Prize, with David Trimble....
and David TrimbleDavid TrimbleWilliam David Trimble, Baron Trimble, PC , is a politician from Northern Ireland. He served as Leader of the Ulster Unionist Party , was the first First Minister of Northern Ireland , and was a Member of the British Parliament . He is currently a life peer for the Conservative Party...
join U2U2U2 are an Irish rock band from Dublin. Formed in 1976, the group consists of Bono , The Edge , Adam Clayton , and Larry Mullen, Jr. . U2's early sound was rooted in post-punk but eventually grew to incorporate influences from many genres of popular music...
on stage in BelfastBelfastBelfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
as they make a direct appeal to young voters in Northern Ireland to vote 'yes' in the referendum on the Good Friday Agreement. - 22 May - The Belfast AgreementBelfast AgreementThe Good Friday Agreement or Belfast Agreement , sometimes called the Stormont Agreement, was a major political development in the Northern Ireland peace process...
is endorsed in a referendum by people northNorthern IrelandNorthern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
and southRepublic of IrelandIreland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
of the border. - 25 June - The people of Northern IrelandNorthern IrelandNorthern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
go to the polls to elect a new AssemblyNorthern Ireland Assembly election, 1998-Seats summary:-Details:Although the SDLP won the most first preference votes, the Ulster Unionists won the most seats in the Assembly. This has been attributed to several reasons, including:...
. - June - Crumlin Road CourthouseCrumlin Road CourthouseThe Crumlin Road Courthouse was designed by the architect Charles Lanyon and completed in 1850. It is situated across the road from the Crumlin Road Gaol and the two are linked by an underground passage....
is closed and the site is eventually sold to a private developer. - 12 July- Three young children are killed in a loyalist arson attack in BallymoneyBallymoneyBallymoney is a small town in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It had a population of 9,021 people in the 2001 Census. It is currently served by Ballymoney Borough Council....
. - 15 August - 29 people die in a bomb explosionOmagh bombingThe Omagh bombing was a car bomb attack carried out by the Real Irish Republican Army , a splinter group of former Provisional Irish Republican Army members opposed to the Good Friday Agreement, on Saturday 15 August 1998, in Omagh, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. Twenty-nine people died as a...
near the centre of OmaghOmaghOmagh is the county town of County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It is situated where the rivers Drumragh and Camowen meet to form the Strule. The town, which is the largest in the county, had a population of 19,910 at the 2001 Census. Omagh also contains the headquarters of Omagh District Council and...
, County TyroneCounty TyroneHistorically Tyrone stretched as far north as Lough Foyle, and comprised part of modern day County Londonderry east of the River Foyle. The majority of County Londonderry was carved out of Tyrone between 1610-1620 when that land went to the Guilds of London to set up profit making schemes based on...
, caused by the Real IRA. - 3 September - U.S. PresidentPresident of the United StatesThe President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Bill ClintonBill ClintonWilliam Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
of the United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
visits Omagh and views the bomb damage. - 16 October - John HumeJohn HumeJohn Hume is a former Irish politician from Derry, Northern Ireland. He was a founding member of the Social Democratic and Labour Party, and was co-recipient of the 1998 Nobel Peace Prize, with David Trimble....
and David TrimbleDavid TrimbleWilliam David Trimble, Baron Trimble, PC , is a politician from Northern Ireland. He served as Leader of the Ulster Unionist Party , was the first First Minister of Northern Ireland , and was a Member of the British Parliament . He is currently a life peer for the Conservative Party...
are announced as the winners of the Nobel Peace PrizeNobel Peace PrizeThe Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes bequeathed by the Swedish industrialist and inventor Alfred Nobel.-Background:According to Nobel's will, the Peace Prize shall be awarded to the person who...
. - 10 December - John HumeJohn HumeJohn Hume is a former Irish politician from Derry, Northern Ireland. He was a founding member of the Social Democratic and Labour Party, and was co-recipient of the 1998 Nobel Peace Prize, with David Trimble....
and David TrimbleDavid TrimbleWilliam David Trimble, Baron Trimble, PC , is a politician from Northern Ireland. He served as Leader of the Ulster Unionist Party , was the first First Minister of Northern Ireland , and was a Member of the British Parliament . He is currently a life peer for the Conservative Party...
are presented with the Nobel Peace PrizeNobel Peace PrizeThe Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes bequeathed by the Swedish industrialist and inventor Alfred Nobel.-Background:According to Nobel's will, the Peace Prize shall be awarded to the person who...
at a ceremony in OsloOsloOslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
, NorwayNorwayNorway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
.
Football
- Irish League
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- Winners: CliftonvilleCliftonville F.C.Cliftonville Football & Athletic Club is a semi-professional, Northern Irish football club playing in the IFA Premiership. Founded on 20 September 1879 by John McCredy McAlery in the suburb of Cliftonville in north Belfast, it is the oldest football club in Ireland and celebrated its 130th...
- Winners: Cliftonville
- Irish CupIrish CupFor the equivalent tournament in the Republic of Ireland, see FAI Cup.The Irish Cup is the national cup knock-out competition in Northern Irish football. Inaugurated in 1881, it is the fourth oldest national cup competition in the world...
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- Winners: GlentoranGlentoran F.C.Glentoran F.C. is a semi-professional, football club in Northern Ireland. The club was founded in 1882 and plays its home games at the Oval in east Belfast. Club colours are green, red, and black.Glentoran's biggest rivals are Linfield...
1 - 0 GlenavonGlenavon F.C.Glenavon F.C. is a semi-professional, Northern Irish football club playing in the IFA Premiership. The club, founded in 1889, hails from Lurgan and plays its home matches at Mourneview Park...
(after extra time).
- Winners: Glentoran
Deaths
- 2 September - Jackie BlanchflowerJackie BlanchflowerJohn "Jackie" Blanchflower was a Northern Irish football player. He graduated from Manchester United's youth system and played for the club on 117 occasions, before his career was cut short due to injuries sustained in the Munich air disaster...
, footballer (b.19331933 in Northern Ireland-Events:*31 January - Start of rail strike disrupting the rail network.*7 April - Rail strike ends.*Castlederg and Victoria Bridge Tramway ceases operations.*Construction of the Craigavon Bridge in Derry is completed....
). - 13 November - Valerie HobsonValerie HobsonValerie Hobson was a British actress who appeared in a number of British films during the 1940s and 1950s...
, actress (b.19171917 in Ireland-Events:*3 February - Count George Noble Plunkett, father of Joseph Mary Plunkett, wins Roscommon North on abstentionist Sinn Féin platform.*7 March - David Lloyd-George announces that Britain is ready to confer self-government to the parts of Ireland that wants it. The north-eastern part will not...
).
Full date unknown
- Sean McAloonSean McAloonSean McAloon was a piper and pipe maker from Ireland. Originally from the Rosslea area of County Fermanagh, McAloon's first instrument was the fiddle. However, he is best known as a master of the Uilleann pipes. He emigrated to the United States in 1964, but after a year he returned to Ireland...
, Uillean piperUilleann pipesThe uilleann pipes or //; ) are the characteristic national bagpipe of Ireland, their current name, earlier known in English as "union pipes", is a part translation of the Irish-language term píobaí uilleann , from their method of inflation.The bag of the uilleann pipes is inflated by means of a...
and pipe maker (b.19231923 in Northern Ireland-Events:*28 May - The government releases two captured documents issued by the IRA on 24 May. The letters, signed by Éamon de Valera and Frank Aiken call for the dumping of arms and the ending of armed struggle...
).