The Roots of The Ulster Scots People The ancient kindred peoples of Northern Ireland Many people ask themselves. What is the conflict in Northern Ireland all about ? Who has the most right to live on this island ?. Who are the Ulster Scots people and what of their history ?. We all have the right to live on this island In peace and no one has the right to deny the people that right. But there are those who feel this land belongs exclusively to them and that the British people have no right to be here and this includes the Ulster Scots. Some people would for political reasons say the Ulster Scots people were planted in Ireland by the English in the 1600s. While others would deny their Existence altogether. This is a short historical booklet which may explain some of the more complex points regarding the Ulster Scots people Ulster Ulster is set on the North Eastern corner of Ireland, facing Scotland across a narrow sea ( 11 Miles ) and separated from the rest of Ireland by a zone of hills called the Drumlins. P.L Henry( a prominent historian ) has described the difference between Ulster and the rest of Ireland as “ One of the most deeply rooted ancient, and from a literary point of view, most productive facts of Irish history.” Furthermore “Ulster’s bond with Scotland counterbalances her lax ties with the rest of Ireland” Pre Celtic Ireland In 6,000 BC Ireland was covered in dense forests of Pine and Hazel, Oak and Elm .About this time the first people crossed over from Scandinavia to Britain and made their way across the narrow sea ( 11 Miles ) from Scotland to Ulster. Because of the thick forests these people travelled along the river’s and lakes and along the Sea-coasts. They made their way up the river Bann to Lough Neagh and spread slowly Southwards. They were Hunters and Fishermen and lived besides lakes and rivers. According to scholars they were tall, broad shouldered and large chested. Their forehead was broad and high, their hair was Brown, Fair, and often Red and their eyes light mixed Blue. Their skin was typically inclined to freckling and very fair. (Celts & Normans by Gearoid MacGearaitt. Ma ( Gill & McMillan press).1969 The first recorded map of Ireland by the Greek Ptolomy note Britannica in the centre. 600 BC the Celts come to Ireland Historians are not sure when the Celts came to Ireland and Britain. It is probable that the first important group of Celts came to Ireland from the lands about the Rhine, up the North sea and across Britain to Ireland we believe they came about 600 BC. (Celts & Norman’s by Gearoid MacGearaitt. Ma ( Gill & McMillan press).1969.) We can see that Ireland was inhabited from around 6,000BC ( The Cruthin) and that the Celts did not arrive until 600 BC ( 5,400 years later ) The Cruthin the original inhabitants became outnumbered and swamped with the arrival of the Celts, They lost most of their language and were subdued by the Celts, but they still held a presence in Ulster. The Gaelic invasion of Ulster The Uí Néill clan of the Celts invaded Ulster. The capital of Ulster, Emain Macha (can be seen today as Navan Fort) seems to have fallen to the Uí Néill (O’Neill) or been abandoned by the Ulstermen around 450 AD within Ulster there was a system of tribal alliances, The dominant political grouping were the Ulaid ( from whom Ulster was to get its name ) they were probably a warrior caste of the ( La Tent ) Celts wielding a lordship over indigenous tribes, among those indigenous tribes were the Cruthin the most populous and important of these Pre Celtic peoples who shared in the over-kingship of Ulster. The Cruthin more often than not bore the brunt of the wars against the Uí Néill Celts and at times claimed that they were the ( Fir Ulaid, ) The true Ulstermen. In the far west of Ulster the Uí Néill conquest was the most complete and the Ulster leaders were driven East, in this reduced Kingdom of Ulster they ( The Cruthin ) attempted to stabilize their power with the erection of “Danes Cast” Earthworks as a visible reminder to their adversaries that they were in no respect a spent force. The Cruthin confronted the Uí Néill Celts in 563AD at the battle of Móin Dairi Lothair (Money More) however seven Kings of the Cruthin were killed. The way was now left open for the Uí Néill Celts to expand further into Ulster to what is today county Londonderry. Two years later the Cruthin over-King of Ulster, Aed Dub Mac Suibni slew the Northern Uí Néill King, a battle is also recorded at Coleraine in 579AD. However it was to be the great battle of Moira that the Ulstermen were to make their most determined effort to call a halt to the Uí Néill expansion. Congal Cláen was possibly the greatest of all Cruthin Kings became over-King of Ulster in 627. By 637 Congal had managed to gather around him a Powerful army which included not only Ulstermen but according to Colgan contingents of Pict,s (Scotland) Anglo Saxons (English) and Britons (Welsh). The battle as depicted in later Bardic romances seem to have been a ferocious affair and as well at the land confrontation it included a naval engagement. In 1872 Sir Samuel Ferguson- born in 1810 published his masterpiece “ Congal” based on the bardic romance. ‘Cath Muighe Rath’ ( Battle of Moira ) Congal was slain in the battle and the battle or Moira effectively put an end to any hopes the Ulstermen might have harbored that they could undo the Uí Néill gains, for although the Ulstermen were to still retain their independence in the East of the province for another 500 years the Uí Néill were now firmly entrenched as the dominant power in the North. Many of the Cruthin were absorbed into the Celtic way of life and lost their identity completely, but many had made their way across the narrow sea to Scotland from which many would return some centuries later and become known as the Ulster Scots. When the ancient kindred ( The Cruthin ) returned to Ulster it was as Protestants. Scotland had whole heatedly embraced the reformation but Ireland was Catholic it was unfortunate for Ireland being on the edge of Northern Europe it missed out on three great happenings in Europe namely The Roman influence, The Reformation and The Industrial revolution. The Ulster Scots return to Ulster. The Cruthin ( Scots ) came back to Ulster in three great waves. The First were the border reveres (Cattle rustlers) who lived on the border between Scotland and England they were tough and hard men and lived by the sword, attributes which would serve them well as the frontiersmen and Indian fighters when they eventually sailed from Ulster to the new world (America). They were The Grahams, The Johnstones, The Elliot’s, The Armstrong’s, The Bell’s, etc when the Thrones of England and Scotland became one under James the 1st he quickly clamped down on their activities and they were quick to move to Ulster, Indeed in some cases encouraged by the authorities to do so. The second wave were the hill farmers of Ayrshire and Galloway who one historian describes as “Rising like swarms of Bees from the hill’s of Ayrshire” They were the ones who cultivated the land when they arrived in Ulster. The Third wave were the Presbyterian Covenanters who because of their opposition to the established church they were persecuted and many were put to Death. So here we have the return to Ulster of the ancient kindred (The Cruthin). When they arrived in Ulster things weren’t easy. “ If Chichester was not wholly satisfied with the settlers it cannot be said that in the majority they lacked energy or zeal. During the winter of 1610-16011 they came over by every passage sometimes there were Carpenters and Masons with them let us strive to picture the advent of these little communities. they arrived in the midst of the wet though generally mild winter had to buy carts and teams if by chance they had brought them over with them, after long and anxious preparations the day came when they fared forth into the unknown one can picture the wagons stuck in fords or defiles, till with double teams, they had been hauled out one by one imagine the wayside camp in the rain and mud, watched over by a weary sentinel for in the woods might lurk the woodkerne swordsmen or if not them, there were wolfs to contend with. A welcome sight in the evening must have been the lights of a fort or little town such as Monaghan or Omagh. From the birth of Ulster. by Cyril Fall’s fellow of all souls Oxford. In 1641 the Irish rose up against them and massacred the settlers in Thousands estimates vary as to the number who actually perished, figures vary as low as 12,00 to 35,000 and even higher there is a suspicion that in the present climate there is a tendency to lessen the figures. One thing is certain of those that did die many were tortured and treated atrociously. Oliver Cromwell came to Ireland in 1648 many say to avenge the massacre of the Protestant settlers and this he did in towns throughout Ireland but Dundalk is the one that draws the most attention where 2,600 people died. By 1687 the Protestant settlers were once again under threat and flew to the walled city of Londonderry seeking refuge, the Irish surrounded the city and demanded entry, while the Alderman and the leading lights of the city were deliberating what to do 13 apprentice boys sized the initiative and slammed the gates shut. The resulting siege lasted from the 18th of December 1688 to the 12th August 1689 they ate Cats, Dogs and even Rats, but still 10,000 died behind the walls the relief of Londonderry took place the ship The Mountjoy broke the boom built across the river Foyle and brought much needed provisions to the city. The ship “Mountjoy” broke the boom on the Foyle In 1690 the Protestant settlers joined with king William III at the battle of the Boyne and defeated the Catholic king James II. William III at the battle of the Boyne In 1702 Queen Anne ascended to the throne and in who's reign the High church party were pressing for complete conformity to the English ( Episcopalian ) Church. In 1704 the Test act was passed which required all office holders in Ireland to take the sacrament of the Anglican Church. although ostensibly passed to further discourage Catholicism the real object of this act was to place the Presbyterians on the same plane of importance Presbyterian ministers now had no official standing and marriages performed by them were null and void. To the high churchmen they were actually inferior to Catholic priests who were considered lawfully ordained in the line of apostolic succession. Presbyterians and other dissenters could not now serve in the Army ,the Militia, the Civil service, the municipal corporations, the Teaching profession or the commission of the peace. In Belfast the entire Corporation was expelled, and Londonderry lost 10 of its 12 Aldermen (Schism Act ). The time had come for the great Ulster Scots migration to the new world. The Ulster Scots arrive in the new world The great migration to America began around 1717 some folk had gone before, but had turned back, there were usually whole congregations from various Presbyterian churches along with their ministers one ship the Eagle Wing sailed from Groomsport (a seaside town 13 miles from Belfast) in 1638 although they had almost reached America which had been a struggle because of the weather their minister took this as a sign from God that they were not meant to leave Ulster. Those that did arrive in America (250,000) found to their surprise that they were given the appellation, Irish. The Ulster Scots in America were always at great pains to distinguish themselves from the so called native Irish who emigrated, In their religion and culture as in their former homeland they broadly ploughed a different furrow. Parker’s 'History of Londonderry, New Hampshire' from the 18th century relates. “ Although they came to this land from Ireland, where their ancestors had a century before planted themselves, the Scots Irish settlers retained unmixed the national Scots character …Nothing sooner offended them than to be called Irish” The Reverend James McGreger minister of Aghadowey in county Londonderry and a defender of Londonderry during the 1688-1689 siege wrote to Colonel Samuel Shute, Governor of new England colony shortly after his arrival from Ulster in 1718 with several hundred Presbyterians from the Bann valley around Coleraine, Ballymony and Macosquin. “ We are surprised to hear ourselves termed Irish people when we so ventured all for the British crown and liberty.” The Rev Dr John Macintosh of Philadelphia and an Ulsterman made this statement “ From Derry to Down I have lived with them every town and hamlet from the Causeway to Carlingford is familiar to me it has been said that the Ulster Scots settlers mingled with the Celt----The Ulster Scots mingled freely with the English puritans and with the refugee Huguenots; but so far as my search of state papers and old manuscripts, examination of old parish registers and years of personal talk with and study of Ulster folk disclosed—the Scots did not mingle to any appreciable extent with the so called Celtic native Irish.” To this very hour, in the remoter parts of Antrim and Down the country folk will tell you “Were no Eerish bot Scoatch” all their folklore all their tales, their traditions, their songs, their poetry, their heroes and heroines, and their home speech is of the oldest Scots Lowland types and times. The early wave of Ulster Scots families to America had still strong attachments to the British crown but these sentiments largely dissipated over the years of the 18th century and their treatment in Ulster by the British authorities didn’t help Today of the estimated 40 Million people in the United states with “ Irish blood in their veins “ an estimated 56% can trace their roots back to the 18th century Ulster Scots settlers. Paul Blanshard one time head of New York’s department of investigations and accounts, educated at Michigan Harvard and Columbia. States “ Almost all of the original Irish immigrants who came to the 13 Colonies in the 17th and 18th centuries were from Ulster—A fact which Catholic historians are likely to overlook when they discuss the Irish contribution to Americas beginnings—Irish Catholicism in fact made almost no contribution to the Political foundation of the American nation. In 1790 there were only about 25,000 Irish Catholics in the whole United States—less than seven tenths of 1% of the America people and less than 5% of the Irish American population the rest of the 555,000 “ Irishmen ” in the United States where chiefly Protestants of Presbyterian persuasion.” A Massacre which revulsed the settlers Bufords massacre at the Waxshaw region of North Carolina on the 29th May 1780 was the defining moment for many Ulster Scots settlers in the region who until then had not taken sides in the revolutionary war. A patriot force retreating back to Virginia, The 11th Virginia regiment led by Colonel Abraham Buford was caught by Colonel Tarltons British Cavalrymen and nearly obliterated, So savage and merciless was the attack that Tarlton was despised as a “ Butcher ” by the frontier settlers and it led to many of them enrolling in the Militia units that were soon to see action at the Battle of Kings Mountain and Cowpens. The Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence drawn up in North Carolina on the 20th May 1775 is widely acknowledged to be the preamble to the American Declaration of Independence of July 4th 1776 and the Ulster Scots settlers were its instigators.Tennessee's three Presidents - Andrew Jackson, James Knox Polk and Andrew Johnson, all of incidentally born in the Carolinas - Jackson at the Waxhaws, Polk in Mecklenburg County, and Johnson at Raleigh, were of the Scots-Irish tradition. In fact, Andrew Jackson was born 18 months after his parents left Carrickfergus in County Antrim in 1765 and he is the nearest that we have to an Ulster-born American President. Presidents, pioneers and performers From top universities to Tabasco sauce: How people from Northern Ireland helped America achieve its dream What does President Bill Clinton have in common with John Wayne, Mark Twain, 'Stonewall' Jackson, Thomas Alva Edison and Davy Crockett? Indeed, what does he share with George W. Bush? And what is the bond between Country music's Reba McEntire and Jimmie Rodgers, the Getty and Mellon industrial dynasties, the astronauts Neil Armstrong and John Glenn, as well as movie stars James Stewart and Robert Redford? They are all descendants of settlers from. Northern Ireland These were the pioneers who have made a huge - and often unsung - contribution to the making of America over the past three centuries. Most of them were Ulster Scots (people of Scottish origin, often described in the USA as the 'Scotch-Irish') who were taming the wild Frontier and founding great institutions more than a hundred years before the Potato Famine caused a flood of emigration from the rest of Ireland. The offspring of these early Ulster settlers, who today number upwards of 25 million, have been successful in many fields, notably in politics; education; religion; the military; commerce, industry and technological innovation; journalism and literature; the arts and entertainment. Politics: At least 14 US Presidents, from Andrew Jackson and Woodrow Wilson to George Bush and Bill Clinton, plus both signatories to the first draft of the Declaration of Independence, John Hancock and Charles Thomson, were of Ulster stock. Thomson, who was born at Upperlands, County Londonderry, designed the USA's Flying Eagle emblem. Few Americans who see it on every $1 bill know it was the inspiration of an orphan immigrant. Sam Houston was President of Texas and avenger of the Alamo, where frontiersman and patriot, Davy Crockett, died. Education: It is often said that the American public school system owes its origins to 18th century Scotch-Irish educators. Universities such as Princeton developed from early Presbyterian Colleges. William Holmes McGuffey's series of school readers sold 120 million copies last century and helped establish the values of Middle America. Religion: The Father of American Presbyterianism was Ulster-born Francis Makemie and the USA's first Roman Catholic Cardinal was John McCloskey whose parents were from Dungiven. First Archbishop of New York was John Hughes, whose childhood home has been re-located to the Ulster-American Folk Park at Camphill, County Tyrone, a unique museum devoted to celebrating transatlantic links. The Disciples of Christ sect which flourished in the early 1800s - and still has a million members - was founded by Ballymena-born Alexander Campbell. Industry: The Mellons and Gettys were two of America's wealthiest families; John Paul Getty, whose ancestor was James, (founder of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, scene of the crucial Civil War battle), became the world's richest man through his oil interests. Other transatlantic 'brand-name' families with their roots in Ulster soil, include the Armours, (meat products); Lockheeds (aerospace); Eatons (Canadian stores); McIlhennys, (Tabasco sauce) and McCains, (potato products). Innovation: Lisburn-born Alexander T. Stewart of New York and the Newry-born trio, Carson,Pirie & Scott of Chicago are jointly regarded as the creators of the quintessential American department store, while Aaron Montgomery Ward pioneered mail order catalogue shopping. Cyrus Hall McCormick invented the combine harvester, Robert Morse was the pioneer of telegraphy, Robert Fulton developed the first steamboat and Thomas Alva Edison, whose ambitious Ulster-Scots mother nurtured his need to innovate, became the greatest inventor in US history, most famous for the light bulb and phonograph. The Military: Up to a third of George Washington's patriot army was composed of Scotch-Irish 'buckskin brigades'. In a later era, almost twenty Civil War generals were of Ulster lineage: the Union Army included Philip Sheridan, from County Tyrone, George B. McClellan, Irwin McDowell, David McMurtrie Gregg and the supreme commander who was to become 18th President, Ulysses Simpson Grant. Ulysses Simpson Grant The Confederate generals included Joseph E. Johnston, cavalry commander J.E.B. Stuart and the legendary Thomas 'Stonewall' Jackson. Thomas 'Stonewall' Jackson Journalism and literature: Among the earliest Ulstermen to have left an indelible imprint on US history was John Dunlap, publisher of The Pennsylvania Packet, first American daily newpaper, as well as being printer of the Declaration of Independence. The McCormicks and McClures also founded newspaper empires. Editor, Horace Greeley, famously urged young men to "go West" and Harold Ross founded the New Yorker. Andrew McNally's map publishing firm is still the world's biggest. Popular writers from Mark Twain, Edgar Allen Poe and Henry James to Margaret Mitchell, Carson McCullers and Larry McMurtry are of Ulster descent. Arts and entertainment: From Marion Morrison (John Wayne) to Van Morrison, people of Northern Irish birth or ancestry have played a starring role in American popular culture. Hollywood's Greer Garson, Tahullah Bankhead and James Stewart share their heritage with today's stars Robert Redford and Kenneth Branagh. American Country music's Scotch-Irish roots is reflected in the popularity of Jimmie Rodgers, Kenny Rodgers and Reba McEntire. Stephen Foster was the leading American songwriter of last century and its best portraitist was Thomas Eakin - whose artistic style made less of a splash than that of action-painter, Jackson Pollock, 100 years later! One-third of all US Presidents had their ancestral origins in Ulster During his first two visits, President Bill Clinton spoke proudly of his ancestral links with Northern Ireland and of the remarkable fact that a third of all US Presidents had their roots in Ulster. President Clinton, whose connection is through his Blythe and Ayer ancestors, is one of at least 14 Chief Executives who are descended from the 250,000 Northern Irish immigrants who had already settled along the American frontier by 1800. Most of these early migrants were Ulster Scots, those people of Scottish origin who spent a century or more in the northern counties of Ireland before moving to the New World. These pioneering people and their descendants, known in the USA as the 'Scotch-Irish', have often been called "the first true Americans". They have had a huge and disproportionate impact on American education, politics, commerce, the military, journalism, literature, the arts and entertainment. While many of the Presidents have typically Ulster-Scots surnames - Jackson, Johnston, McKinley, Wilson - others, such as Bush, Roosevelt and Cleveland, have maternal links with the homeland which are less obvious. Andrew Jackson 7th President 1829-37. He was born in the predominantly Scotch-Irish Waxshaws area of South Carolina two years after his parents left Boneybefore, near Carrickfergus in County Antrim. A heritage centre in the village pays tribute to the legacy of 'Old Hickory', the People's President. James Knox Polk 11th President 1845-49. His ancestors were among the first Scotch-Irish settlers, emigrating from Coleraine in 1680 to become a powerful political family in Mecklenberg County, North Carolina. He moved to Tennessee and became its Governor before winning the Presidency. James Buchanan 15th President 1857-61. Born in a log-cabin (which has been relocated to his old school in Mercersburg, Pennsylvania), 'Old Buck' cherished his origins: "My Ulster blood is a priceless heritage". The Buchanans were originally from Deroran, near Omagh in County Tyrone where the ancestral home still stands. Andrew Johnson 17th President 1865-69. His grandfather left Mounthill, near Larne in County Antrim around 1750 and settled in North Carolina. Andrew worked there as a tailor and ran a successful business in Greenville, Tennessee, before being elected Vice-President. He became President following Abraham Lincoln's assassination. Ulysses Simpson Grant 18th President 1869-77. The home of his maternal great-grandfather, John Simpson, at Dergenagh, County Tyrone, is the location for an exhibition on the eventful life of the victorious Civil War commander who served two terms as President. Grant visited his ancestral homeland in 1878. Chester Alan Arthur 21st President 1881-85. His election was the start of a quarter-century in which the White House was occupied by men of Ulster origins. His family left Dreen, near Cullybackey, County Antrim, in 1815. There is now an interpretive centre, alongside the Arthur Ancestral Home, devoted to his life and times. Grover Cleveland 22nd and 24th President 1885-89 and 1893-97. Born in New Jersey, he was the maternal grandson of merchant Abner Neal, who emigrated from County Antrim in the 1790s. He is the only President to have served two terms with a break between. Benjamin Harrison 23rd President 1889-93. His mother, Elizabeth Irwin, had Ulster roots through her two great-grandfathers, James Irwin and William McDowell. Harrison was born in Ohio and served as a Brigadier General in the Union Army before embarking on a career in Indiana politics which led to the White House. William McKinley 25th President 1897-1901. Born in Ohio, the descendant of a farmer from Conagher, near Ballymoney, County Antrim, he was proud of his ancestry and addressed one of the national Scotch-Irish Congresses held in the late 19th Century. His second term as President was cut short by an assassin's bullet. Theodore Roosevelt 26th President 1901-04. His mother, Martha Bulloch, had Ulster Scots and Irish Hugenot ancestors who emigrated from Larne, County Antrim, in May 1729. Teddy Roosevelt's oft-repeated praise of his "bold and hardy race" is evidence of the pride he had in his Scotch-Irish connections. Woodrow Wilson 28th President 1913-21. Of Scotch-Irish descent on both sides of the family, his roots were very strong and dear to him. He was grandson of a printer from Dergalt, near Strabane, County Tyrone, whose former home is open to visitors. Throughout his career he reflected on the influence of his ancestral values on his constant quest for knowledge and fulfilment. Richard Milhous Nixon 37th President 1969-74. The Nixon ancestors left Ulster in the mid-18th Century; the Quaker Milhous family ties were with Counties Antrim and Kildare. George Herbert Walker Bush 41st President 1989-94. His Scotch-Irish links are through William Gault and Jonathan Weir, his great-great-great-great grandfathers who both settled in Blount County, Tennessee, around the Revolutionary War period. President Bush was made aware of this ancestry during a visit to Knoxville, where Gault is buried in nearby Baker's Creek United Presbyterian Church cemetery. William Jefferson Clinton 42nd President 1993-2001 His Scotch-Irish links are through his Blythe and Ayer ancestors. During his first two visits, President Bill Clinton spoke proudly of his ancestral links with Northern Ireland George Walker Bush 43rd President 2001- Present His Scotch-Irish links are through William Gault and Jonathan Weir, his great-great-great-great-great grandfathers who both settled in Blount County, Tennessee, around the Revolutionary War period Other occupants of the White House said to have some family ties with the Northern Ireland include Presidents. J.Monroe H.S Truman D.W Eisenhower J.E Carter The Declaration of Independence Eight of the 56 signatories of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776 were Scots-Irish - John Hancock, William Whipple, Robert Paine, Thomas McKean, Thomas Nelson, Matthew Thornton, George Taylor and Edward Rutledge. The man who printed the Declaration was John Dunlap, from Strabane in County Tyrone and the first public reading was enacted by John Nixon whose father was Ulster born. Frontiersmen, soldiers and politicians Davy Crockett and Sam Houston were of the Scots-Irish tradition - Davy born at Limestone in East Tennessee, the grandson of an Ulster emigrant, and Sam Houston, born near Lexington in Virginia, of second generation Scots-Irish family from County Antrim. Their stories are legendary. The two men who founded the great city of Nashville - John Donelson and James Robertson - were also of County Antrim stock; those sturdy founding fathers of Knoxville - James White, John Adair and George McNutt. There were illustrious churchmen like Revs Samuel Doak, Joseph Rhea, John Craig, William Marlin, William Tennent and Samuel Black, and the first map maker of Tennessee in the early 19th century, Matthew Rhea. And there was Arthur Dobbs, who was instrumental in populating large Ulster-Scots settlements in North Carolina in the 1740s-1750s. The American Civil War Many Civil War soldiers of distinction were of Ulster-Scots origin: Thomas John Jonathan'Stonewall' Jackson, J.E.B. Stuart, Ulysses Grant, George Brinton McClellan and Philip Sheridan. In the Carolinas, North and South, it is estimated that 40 per cent of Confederate soldiers were of Scots-Irish lineage. North Carolina suffered the highest casualties of the War - Company 'B' of Jackson's Guards from the Waxhaws, a Scots-Irish stronghold, had the biggest loss of any Confederate unit, 80 killed or wounded at Gettysburg. Others of Scots-Irish roots were Samuel Lanthom Clemens (author Mark Twain), Cyrus McCormick, the man who revolutionised farming; songwriter Stephen Foster, and James Stewart, the Hollywood movie star. The wealthy Hearst publishing family can trace their history back to John Hearst, a County Monaghan Presbyterian who sailed from Newly in County Down in 1764 for a fare of four shillings and eight pence. The Scots-Irish who headed west 200-250 years ago belonged to the same breed of people who today constitute the majority of the Protestant and Unionist community in Northern Ireland. Virtually all of these emigrants led the vanguard against the British in the War of Independence in the 1770/1780s. In Northern Ireland today, the Scots-Irish (the Protestant-Unionist population) pledge themselves to the maintenance of the link with Britain. The complexities of the Several hundred years of British history since fully explain this paradoxical situation in terms of economic benefit and cultural attachments for the one million people who presently hold this view. In the United States today an estimated 44 million people claim Irish extraction. But whithin the Irish American community, the descendants of the Roman Catholic emigrants who moved at the time of the potato famine in the mid-19th century are the most vocal and politically active on Ireland. 56 per cent of Americans with “Irish” roots are of Protestant stock, whose forebears were the Scots-Irish or Ulster Scots Presbyterians who settled on the frontier lands in the 18th century. Tennessee records its appreciation. A proclamation approved by the Tennessee house of representatives in May 1995 acknowledges the outstanding contribution made by Ulster Scots in the history of the United states: It reads Whereas it was the “land clearance after the failure of the 45 rising that brought thousands of people to leave Scotland and. ? Whereas some Scottish immigrants came directly to this country and. ? Whereas others left Scotland and came to Ireland before eventually coming to this country ( i.e. Ulster Scots ) and. ? Whereas any Scottish and Ulster Scots people settled in our State area because it had reminded them of their homeland and. Whereas they brought with them their love of independence, their religion, their crafts, their music and dances, their own colorful expressions and their friendliness and. Whereas many of the early leaders in Tennessee history were of Ulster Scots or Scots Irish descent including three presidents Andrew Jackson, James K Polk and Andrew Johnson, John Seviér our first Governor, General J Robertson pioneer settler and founder of Nashville, Davy Crockett member of the state legislature and pioneer hunter member of congress and hero of the Alamo and Sam Houston member of congress Governor of Tennessee and Texas and. Whereas important traces of Scottish and Ulster Scots culture remain with us to this day and ? Whereas it is appropriate that a day to set aside to specially recognize and commemorate the tremendous contributions made by the peoples of Scottish and Ulster Scots heritage to the founding and development of Tennessee. Now I therefore, I Don Sundquist, Governor of Tennessee, Pursuant to public charter 233 of the public acts of 1995 and in conjunction with representative Howard Kerr and Senator Carl Koella do hereby proclaim June 24th of each year as " Scottish, Ulster-Scots Heritage Day " and urge all Tennesseans to join in the observance of this day Proclaimed in Nashville on the 20th day of May 1995. The Proclamation is signed by Governor Don Sundquist, representative Howard Kerr and Senator Carl Koella. The Ulster Scots groups in Tennessee were behind the idea of the proclamation and the leading man for the concept was Tommy Rye, ( of Ulster Scots descent) and his wife Betty of direct Scots ancestry they live in Maryville Blount County outside Knoxville. The name Scotch Irish is somewhat misleading as it implies the intermingling of the two races through marriage, the records that we can get hold of, show that very few marriages took place between the Scots and the Irish. The Ulster Scots people are the people who came from Scotland and then went to America by way of Ulster, Ulster Scots is a more definite term as very few Scots ( if any ) went to America by way of Galway, Cork, Kerry etc. Some important quotes “ The Scotch-Irish held the Valley between the Blue Ridge and the North Mountain and they formed a barrier which none could venture to leap.” Thomas Jefferson ( United States President ) “ It is Scotch-Irish in substantial origin in complexion and in history, Scotch-Irish in the countenance of the living and the records of the dead.” Report to the American congress. “ My Ulster blood is my most precious heritage” James Buchannan 15th President of the United States. ( 3rd Ulster Scot President ) who’s family left Deroran near Omagh in 1783 eight years before he was born. “ Our prosperity is largely due to the Ulster people and their descendants and from them the blood line was scattered throughout the South and the South Western United States. Governor Gilmer, Historian of Georgia. “ If defeated everywhere else, I will make my last stand for liberty among the Scots-Irish of my native Virginia.” George Washington ( 1st President of the United States.) "The Scots-Irish were the first to proclaim for freedom in these United States; even before Lexington Scots-Irish blood had been shed for American freedom. In the forefront of every battle was seen their burnished mail and in the retreat was heard their voice of constancy" President William McKinley "What race of people do you believe makes the best soldiers?" He replied: "The Scots who came to this country by way of Ireland" Confederacy leader General Robert E. Lee "It is doubtful if we fully realised the part played by this stem and virile people. They formed the kernel of that American stock who were the pioneers of our people in the march westwards. They were bold and hardy people who pushed the settled regions of America and plunged into the wilderness as the leaders of the white advance. The Presbyterians were the first and last set of immigrants to do this: all others have merely followed in the wake of their predecessors" President Theodore Roosevelt "The Scots-Irish had a system of religious faith and worship which has ever borne an inflexible front to illusion and mendacity, and has preferred rather to be ground to powder like flint than to bend before violence or melt under enervating temptation", J.A. Froude,19th century historian, "The beauty about a Scotch-Irishman is that he not only thinks he is right, but he knows he is right" President Woodrow Wilson "We were apprehensive from the Northern Indians. I therefore thought it might be prudent to plant a settlement of such men as those who formerly had so bravely defended Londonderry and Enniskillen as a frontier in case of any disturbance" James Logan, Ulster-born Secretary of State in Pennsylvania in the early 18th century. Poems Remember me My sculptured Glens were crystal rivers ran, my Purple Mountains misty in the Sun My coastlines little changed since time began, I gave you birth. I watched you go, You saw me fade into the distant sky, You sailed away from me with your tear filled eye, You said you’d ne’er forget, though years passed by, But time rolled on. Your young land grew, And new sons fought to keep their country fair, And at the Alamo and Shiloh they were there, And with pride they filled the Presidential chair, My Ulstermen, Remember me, Though battle-scarred and weary I abide Though Americans their heritage denied, When you speak of history say my name with pride I am Ulster. Hi ! Uncle Sam. Hi ! Uncle Sam. When freedom was denied you, And imperial might defied you, Who was it stood beside you, At Quebec and Brandywine ? And dared retreats and dangers, Redcoats Hessian strangers, In the new lean long rifled Rangers, And the Pennsylvania line. Hi ! Uncle Sam. Wherever there was fighting, Or wrong that needed righting, An Ulsterman was sighting His Kentucky gun with care, All the road to Yorktown, From Lexington to Yorktown From the valley forge to Yorktown, That Ulsterman was there. Hi ! Uncle Sam. Virginia sent her brave men, The North paraded grave men, That they might not be slave men, The first to face the Tory, And the first to lift the Glory, Made your war on Ulster’s story : Think it over Uncle Sam. Rev W.F Marshall Co Tyrone ( 1943) The Ulster Scots who stayed in Ulster. Back in Ulster things hadn’t improved much for those Presbyterians who had stayed. They formed the “ United Irishmen” ( perhaps the first time that ever that Presbyterians had used that title) together with the Roman Catholics, and rose up in Rebellion against the English authorities. They won a few battles ( at Saintfield etc) but were defeated at Antrim and Ballynahinch their leader Henry Joy McCracken went on the run but was eventually captured and hanged in Belfast. Before he died Henry Joy McCracken heard more bad news. The Roman catholic “ United Irishmen” in Southern Ireland had turned on the ordinary Protestants living there and committed murder and torture against them. On the 5th June 1798, 224 Protestants were herded in to a barn at Scollabouge in County Wexford (near new Ross) the barn was then set alight some Children were Piked as they tried to crawl from the barn. Out of the entire number only Three escaped namely Richard Grandy, Lofus Frizzel and Benjamin Lett. Thirty Seven were shot and One Hundred and Eighty Four burned to death. Scollabouge barn 5th June 1798 On the 19th June 1798 at Wexford bridge on the River Slaney ninety-seven Protestants were executed many were Piked and held up writhing on the Pikes. Wexford bridge 19th June 1798 While McCracken, Munro, Orr and other leaders in Ulster were inspired by the Revolutions in America and France and the belief that it was a the dawning of a new age, when to quote Robert Burns.” Man to man the World oer shall brothers be” Unfortunately the ‘United Irishmen’ in the South of Ireland were not interested in this ideal, but were fighting instead to establish a ‘Catholic Gaelic Ireland’. Following the events of 1641, 1688, and 1798 The Protestants had now had enough now turned their backs on the whole concept of a United Ireland no more would their trust be betrayed many turned to the Orange order and joined in their Thousands. In 1816 the Catholics formed the Fenian Brotherhood and launched a raid on Canada trying to provoke an Anglo-American conflict which they hoped would set the scene for an all out revolt in Ireland. In 1886, 1893,and 1912 The British Government introduced so called Home Rule Bills in the House Of Commons when the Third Bill was discussed in Parliament nearly every Unionist ( Protestant ) speaker raised the question of What of Ulster ? , they claimed that there were Two sets of people in Ireland, not only were there Two religions, there were Two Races or even Two Nations in the Country. So as Congal Cláen and Cuchulain had done centuries before the men of Ulster prepared to take on the “Host’s of Ireland”, as tensions grew meetings were held all over Ulster in Belfast 100,000 turned out to hear their leaders on ‘ Ulster day ’ 28th September 1912. A Solemn League and Covenant for Ulster was organized based on the Scottish Covenant. Lord Edward Carson was the leader of the Ulstermen and he signed the Covenant at the city hall in Belfast where 300,000 people had gathered. All over Ulster ordinary people signed the Covenant and to show how strongly they felt some even signed in their own blood ! When the figures were added up over 450,000 Men and Women had signed the Covenant. They formed the Ulster Volunteer Force and prepared to take on Britain ( as their Ulster Scots brethren had done in 1776 in America ) if she persisted in forcing her into an all Ireland. Meanwhile in southern Ireland the ‘Host’s of Ireland’ were massing Eion MacNeill formed the Irish Volunteers to fight the Men Of Ulster. At Larne County Antrim (Ulster) on the night of 24th / 25th April 1914 25,000 Rifles and 3 Million rounds of ammunition were landed from the SS Clydevalley On the 26th July 1914 back at Howth, ( Southern Ireland ) the Irish Volunteers brought in a total 1,500 Rifles and 45,000 rounds of ammunition on board the Yacht Asgard. It looked like nothing could avert all out war as the Men of Ulster prepared to defend their homeland once more against the Host’s of Ireland as well as the might of Britain. But fate intervened in the shape of the First World War 1914-1918 and the Men of Ulster and the Men of Ireland both made ready for War with Germany. The Ulstermen were the first into action. The Ulster Volunteer Force now named the 36th ( Ulster) Division. Lord Carson insisted that Ulster be included in the title Lord Kitchener had resisted this, pointing out that no other Division had a name just the number but Carson won the day and so it was the 36th Ulster Division was born. They had their baptism of Fire at the Somme on the 1st July 1916 3,000 Ulstermen died that day and 2,000 were wounded they won 3 VC,s on the day and they were the only Division that penetrated the German lines and reached their objectives, but the Divisions on either side of them could make no headway and with no support the 36th Ulster Division had to withdraw taking more heavy casualties in the process. Captain W.B Spender wrote “ I am not an Ulsterman but yesterday the 1st of July, as I followed their amazing attack, I felt I would rather be an Ulsterman than anything else in the World” The Irish took the field at the battle of the Messines they also fought with great bravery. As the 16th Division one of their officers a Willie Redmond was mortally wounded he was 59 years of age and brother of Irish Nationalist leader John Redmond. A few months before the Men of the 36th Ulster Division ‘went over the top’ at the Somme, Patrick Pearce led an attack on the Post Office in Dublin and declared a Republic of all Ireland, once again the Irish were insisting on claiming Ulster. After a battle with the British Authorities Pearce, Connolly and others were arrested and executed but Michael Collins who had been involved at the Post office was spared, he swore to fight on, but in a different manner a terror campaign was launched and the British withdrew from the Southern part of Ireland, but what of Ulster? Collins knew it was no use trying to force the Ulstermen into an all-Ireland republic so a compromise was reached. The Six Counties of Ulster would remain apart from the rest of the Island and maintain their own identity ( as Scotland does on the Island of Britain ) but the age old threat to our existence hasn’t gone away, and to this very day the ancient Gaelic aspirations of the conquest and domination of all the whole island and it’s peoples remain. While the Gaelic hordes under the leadership of the Uí Néill ( O’Neill) have long since been replaced by more subtle opponents the aspirations still remain. The Ulster Cruthin will have to be as vigilant as their forebears were. Congal Cláen, Setana ( Cuchulainn the Hound of Ulster ) and the Red Branch Knights. It is ironic that the English and the Irish who have been at loggerheads with each other for Hundreds of years, both aspire to the same goal – namely the ‘ taking over ’ of the Northern part of their respective Islands…..The Irish would probably support the Scots and the Welsh in their assertion of a separate identity from England - yet in Ireland they play the English role and oppose the idea that Ulster has the right to exist at all …….. Strange Bedfellows..... Appendix 1 Gods Frontiersmen by Rory Fitzpatrick An Independent, American review of the Book Gods Frontiersmen. Tells the dramatic story of the Ulster Scots, or Scots-Irish as they are also known - Scottish Presbyterians who came to the North of Ireland in the Seventeenth century and who constitute the dominant strain among Ulster Protestants today, Aptly called the ? Frontiersmen of God, they brought with them their Calvinistic beliefs, a stern work ethic and a fiercely independent spirit. Economic hardship and religious discrimination led thousands to cross the Atlantic where they formed the vanguard of the great army of pioneers who pushed the frontier Westwards. Introduction "God's Frontiersmen" was written by Rory Fitzpatrick. The movie was also shown on Channel 4.Television (United Kingdom ) A few terms for your understanding: S/I = Scots-Irish, purely a U.S. term used to distinguish the Presbyterian/Protestant Irish, mostly from Northern Ireland, who emigrated to the U.S. in the 1700's as separate and distinct from earlier or later Catholic emigrants. The name Ulster Scots is what they prefer to call themselves. Papists = Roman Catholics. You should understand that much of what happened in Scotland which resulted in the emigration to Ireland was the result of the English King realizing that the Pope held a "higher" position than that of the King of England. With that thought came the outlawing of the Catholic Church in the whole of the British Isles. Ulstermen or Ulster-Scots = Another name for the Scots-Irish, since Ulster was the part of Northern Ireland in which the Scots were settled by the British. And Ulster Scots is the name by which the Scots-Irish are known in the United Kingdom. Orangemen = This name for the Scots-Irish comes from William III, Prince of Orange, and is kept because his victory over despotic power laid the foundation for the evolution of Constitutional Democracy in the British Isles. [O.K. Some of this rhetoric is rather radical, but that is the nature of the people.] The Scots The People In the early 1600's, the border between Scotland and England was in terrible trouble. It was impossible to live peacefully and normally. In order to survive, the border people became "Border Reevers" (Robbers) and turned their hands to cattle, stealing, kidnapping, protectionism and fraud. Because of their way of life, they made excellent frontiersmen, guerrilla fighters and scouts. [However, the English had no use for people with such professions on their borders.] The most famous of these border clans were the Armstrong’s, the Bells, the Grahams, and the Johnstones. The most notorious of the clans were the Pringles. When James I of England (who was the Scotish. King James VI and son of Mary, Queen of Scots) came to the throne in 1603, the border was finally "pacified". Many people were killed and others sent to low countries. Whole families were sent to Ireland with the hopes that they would settle down to farming and be peaceful. However, their previous way of life had become so ingrained, they became the hard core of the Scots/Irish settlers. They were the best frontier fighters in Britain, if not in Europe. The Scottish people who found themselves in Ireland had gone through a transforming experience - that of the Scottish Reformation, which was a complete and total break with the Catholic Church. The average Scottish Emigrant had discovered that he needed neither the Priest nor the King to think for him. This was the beginning of the great radical tradition of the S/I people. The Religion The Calvinist Reformation taught the Scots/Irish that they were a chosen people and they hungered for the promised land which was always just beyond the horizon. The Calvinists advocated the grimmer aspects of all things focusing on death and they actively persecuted those whom they considered to be witches. The Scots/Irish, however, in Northern Ireland were mild in their treatment of witches. John Knox, was a great educationalist and the Scots/Irish absorbed his love of education which gave them great advantage as propagandists. The Common People Actually, the greater majority of the Scots/Irish were tenant farmers, and neither cattle thieves nor religious fanatics. They left Scotland because the land could no longer support them due to the ravages of war, and they could not pay the high rents that were being charged. So many people left Scotland that they were compared to great swarms of bees rising from the fields. They included Grassmen of Lanarkshire and skilled grain growers from Wigton. Cattle were virtually the only wealth of the Scots. The Wars Clashes between the English and The Irish The native Irish were defeated by the English in the Nine Year War. Chichester commented, "We spare none! James I exiled some chiefs (one of which was McNeil), confiscated their lands, and gave it to the Scottish and English families he considered gentle and peaceful. Also he chose people who had the wealth to install tenants and to improve the land. James I even then considered the native Irish a barbarous and unsubdued people. [Another reason of the English for displacing some of the Scots, and encouraging others to move on their own, was the intention for the Scots to help in the pacification of the Irish. The English authorities of this time period seemed to like the idea of using the solution of one problem in providing the solution to a second problem.] Lord Abercorn was given 3,000 acres in Ulster. L'Derry was given to the London City Guild, however the 20' wall surrounding the city of Derry, proved the Scots/Irish dominance. Coleraine was given to English land owners, but the Scots took it over. Tully Castle on the shores of Loch Earne in Fermanagh was one of the original Scots/Irish forts. So many Scots had migrated that the ratio of Scots to English in Ulster was 20 to 1. Clashes between the Scots and the Irish The native Irish rebellion in 1640 was answered by the Scottish Army who considered themselves to be God's Army. The Scots were headquartered at Carickfergus with the intent of converting the Papists in Ireland to the Presbyterian faith. The Scottish Army failed and Cromwell took over with a war lasting until 1660. In answer to the incursion of the Protestant Scots, the Irish in the 17th century, banned Presbyterian services and outlawed their ministers. Thereafter, Presbyterian services were held when and where they could (many times in the woods with guards posted to ensure safety) Clashes between the Scots and the English Poverty and persecution made the Scots/Irish sharply aware that they were separate and second class citizens. In the 1680's, a radical and dedicated Presbyterian sect labeled the Covenanters declared War on the English King. Two women were made martyrs in Scotland when they were tied to posts in the tide- lands and left to drown in high tide - all because they refused to reject the principles of the Catholic Church. Whole prisons were built to house the Covenanters who were arrested. At the closing of the 17th century, English landowners again began the persecution of the Presbyterians. The Presbyterians could not be married in their own church without being labeled as "fornicators". They could hold no position above postman. The Emigration to the American Colonies The Start The English landowners no longer had a need for the soldier farmers. There had been no harvest for 5 years due to the ravages of war and several severe winters. [This area of the Scots/Irish was hit by the same bad weather as the Palatines were in Germany] This recreated the need for emigration in the early days of the 1700's. Many paid passage by agreeing to 4 years as indentured servants in order to take advantage of the fertile and free land in the US. [In this we see many parallels between the Palatine migration and the Scots/Irish migration. Both groups were nonconformist Protestants, Both groups were hit hard by warfare and religious persecution, and Both groups were mainly farmers who had, in a final insult, been hit hard by severe weather.] The Voyage [Here, the movie "God's Frontiersmen" describe a rather severe ocean voyage. This voyage is so severe that you may think it was extremely atypical. Not true. The records left by the Palatines have similar references to bad ocean voyages, and even in the best of trips, which lasted 2 to 3 weeks; the ships were overloaded with people, the rations were short or just barely enough, the food was vermin ridden, and the water was stagnant and scummy.] The ship "Sully" set sail for PA on the 31st of May and at first was blown off course northward. The weather turned very cold and icebergs were sighted. By the 10th of Aug. the weather had turned very warm and their rations were down to 1 ½ loaves of bread per passenger per week. 2 weeks later, the ration was cut even further. In the next 12 days, they were reduced to 2 biscuits per week. Hunger and thirst reduced them to shadows. Many killed themselves by drinking salt water or their own urine. They were saved only by a providential rain. On Sept. 2, they finally saw land. Their journey had lasted 14 weeks or 3 1/2 months. [The film didn't bring this out, but the Palatines tell of the disembarkation process at their destination. First the ones who could pay full price were allowed to pay and get off the boat. Next the healthy ones were sold to their new masters for the full fee. Then unhealthy ones were sold at auction. This process often took several weeks. If one of the family died, the rest of the family members were held accountable for passage fees of the deceased.] However, like the Germans the Ulstermen thought they had found the promised land. The Settlements The Scots/Irish occupied the hills around the settlements in PA, and later they did the same in Maryland. They chose that which most closely resembled the areas from which they'd come. Those Irish who had indentured themselves to reach the US, set out for the frontier immediately on fulfilling their Indenture. The "frontier" was 40-50 miles. west of Philadelphia, and south in the foothills of the mountains in Western Maryland. They marked their property by cutting their initials in trees on the boundary of what they considered to be theirs, then cut circles in the bark to kill the tree. They refused to pay for the land, since God owned it. Immigrant Irish wives spun flax, milled the corn, worked in the fields and bore 10-15 children. They also educated their own children. The Irish felled trees and cleared 'round the stumps, rather than clearing the land properly, as the German immigrants had learned to do. Home made whiskey was important for trade and made a harsh life more tolerable. The Ulstermen were known for drinking, arguing, singing and dancing but neighbors gathered to clear land, build houses, harvest crops and then they partied. The first Ulster settlement was in Donegal, PA - the Susquehanna being a barrier, and beyond which lay the rich Cumberland Valley. Eventually, a ferry opened the Cumberland Valley to the Scots/Irish and it became their heartland. The Scots/Irish were used unknowingly to form a cordon around the English and the Germans. [Actually the Germans were settled a little further inland than the English, to provide a buffer between the English and the Indians, and the Irish were settled a little further into the frontier than even the Germans. Another example of the English solving two problems at once.] For every Native American killed, 50 Irish settlers were either killed or kidnapped by Native Americans and a kind of literal bankruptcy took place in the Scots/Irish which would be termed racist genocide today. The Scots/Irish moved down the Cumberland to VA and Carolina. From PA to SC, they dominated. In the Shenandoah Valley between the Blue Ridge and Appalachian Mtns, two land grants existed. During the 1740's, here lived the Lyles, the Lusks, the Trimbles, and the Houston’s. [Here we see another pattern developing. The old reevers of the Scots-English border, became the frontiersmen and the mountain men. The tenant farmers of the Scots settled in many of the same areas as the Palatines because of their similar history and disposition. However, even among the farmers, the Ulster Scots tended to be more scrappy than the Germans, as the Presbyterian Scots never had a pacifist background as did the Anabaptist Palatines.] At War The Scots/Irish did not have the same peaceful relationship with the Indians which the Germans enjoyed, so there were numerous individual clashes between the two even when they were at peace. During the French and Indian War, the Scots/Irish were among the first to suffer, and among those who suffered the most.] The Augusta Stone Church in the Shenandoah Valley became a refuge against the Native Americans. At Tickling Spring, 10 mi. from Augusta, many died at the hands of Native Americans. The Gilmers, the Hamiltons, and the McKees suffered severely. After the French and Indian War was won by the English in Europe and on the seas and the Colonists in North America, the Colonists and especially the Scots/Irish were full of self confidence and ready to take on anything. They started becoming active in the government of the colonies, and they were for autonomy and independence. When the English started taxing the colonies to pay for the reconstruction of the English economy and military, the colonists objected severely. Many of the tax collectors who were specified by the Stamp Act were beaten, ran out of town, tarred and feathered, and rode out of town on rails. When that was deemed a failure, and the tariff was imposed on many trade goods which were sent to the colonies, i.e. tea, the colonists were fed up. The Calvinists of New England fired the first shot in the Revolutionary War, but they soon were joined by the Scots/Irish from Pennsylvania and Maryland. The Scots/Irish had taken control of PA by means of Revolutionary Committees, [ which means was also used by the Germans and the Ulstermen in Frederick County, Maryland ]. In Philadelphia the framework for independence was created. John Hancock and Charles Thompson received a draft of the constitution - both being from Londonderry. Five of the signers of the final document were Scots/Irish. Two of them were: Francis Alison from Co. Donegal at New London, and Thomas McKean. The Scots/Irish of PA, MD and VA pledged them- selves to the revolution. Early settlements in the Carolinas were along the coast and up the navigable rivers but by the middle of the 18th century, the flow of immigrants from PA down the Shenandoah Valley and westward from Charleston and Carolina ports filled the back countries of the Carolinas at a remarkable rate. The region supported an agricultural life style and the influx created rapid economic growth. Traveler Charles Wood-Mason, an Anglican minister, who worked among the Scots/Irish, saw a shocking and primitive life and recognized that trouble lay ahead. When British intelligence officers moved into the Valley, stories of radical agitators reached their ears. After five years of war, the Revolution had approached stalemate. While the Americans had won in the North, the British were largely in control in the South. The British commander, Cornwallis, prepared a master plan, intending to move up the interior, through land held by the seemingly quiet Scots/Irish heartland’s. [ Needless to say, the British advance was met by the scrappy frontier fighters who were descendants of the border reevers, and who were blooded in their battles with the Indians.] After the British defeat, Charles Thompson who began life as an indentured servant, was virtually in control of the US administration, it was he who designed the seal of this country. It was through his efforts that the constitution was ratified. John Smiley served in Congress but remained a radical until his death. Ulster men in Washington's army were Scots/Irish settlers from PA to SC. "Oh Shenandoah", was considered a Scots/Irish ballad. Settling the New Nation Conquering the Frontier The children of the pioneers moved on to Arkansas and MO. Fresh immigrants landed at New Orleans & moved up the Mississippi and met the 3rd generation of S/I coming down the Ohio from PA. The Scots/Irish were so reproductive that they dominated the South where their leisure oriented lifestyle worked but they were uncomfoable with too many neighbors. Their move to a less settled area caused their influx into TX. Davy Crocket was the son of an immigrant from Londonderry. The Scots/Irish, were clannish, aggressive, violent and devoted to their livestock, and they influenced the South more than any other group. [A lot of the modern Country & Western music out of Nashville resembles so much the Irish ballads that the styles are almost indistinguishable. The Clog Step of the Nashville square dances is no less than a Scots/ Irish jig.] The restless Scots/Irish moved on to the Midwest; Indiana, Illinois and Nebraska. The wealth of the beaverskins brought the more adventurous to the Rockies - Kit Carson was the grandson of an Ulsterman, Bill Craig desperado, was wanted for Murder. John Colter discovered Yellowstone and Jim Bridger convinced sceptical journalists of the truth of Coulter's claim. Developing the Government It was in Nashville that the foundation of Scots/Irish political power was laid. In 1829, Andrew Jackson, an Ulsterman, was the first "people's President". Jacksonian democracy was to be the foundation of American politics with one man, one vote, and was rooted in Scots/Irish Presbyterianism. Jackson knew politics would become a cross between a spectator sport and an evangelical revival. His ideas broke the grip of the aristocratic planters' family on the White House. For the first half of the 19thcentury, the S/I dominated the Presidency. James Polk of NC, James Buchanan, son of an immigrant from Co. Donegal, Andrew Johnston a grandson of a Co. Antrim farm laborer, and Ulysses S. Grant were all Scots/Irish. The Civil War divided the S/I into both camps, but most fought on the southern side. Stonewall Jackson was a Scots/Irish Presbyterian deacon. His Shenandoah Valley campaign became a classic in military textbooks. Will McGuffie, who had Ulster roots, was schoolmaster to America. Don Spidell's Notes: This article cleared up a some misconceptions on my part and answered a some questions. Primarily: The Scots/Irish are always called Irish in the history books; Especially Sharf's "History of Western Maryland" and T.J.C. William’s' "History of Frederick County, Maryland" and "History of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania." That left me with the question as to why the Irish were such staunch Catholics in Ireland, and yet they settled with the Protestant Germans and were described as Presbyterians and Methodist/Episcopalians. I now know that the ones called Irish in the genealogy and biography of Frederick and Washington Counties of Maryland were really the Scots/Irish, and they were a completely different people from the Native Irish. Therefore, a lot of us Americans who have been wearing green on St. Patrick's day, should really have been wearing Orange in honor of the true nationality of our ancestors, the Ulster- Scots. Appendix 2 Ulster’s great Wall Ulster’s great wall was the Black Pigs Dyke which ran from Bundoran in Donegal to South Armagh It must have been a formidable barrier to approach from the South. The wall is situated within a Drumlin ( small hills) belt and was made up of tens of thousands of shaped streamlined mounds of boulder clay which provided a defense in depth for the kingdom of Ulster. Literature One of the earliest collections of old Irish literature was the book Drunsnat which was written in the first half of the 8th century it contained some very early tales and an account of the history of Ireland There are four main grounds of tales in early Irish history 1. ‘The mythological tales’ these are the tales of the ancient Irish gods. 2. ‘The Ulster Sagas’ these are the tales of the Ulster heroes and tell of the Red branch knights and Cuchulain ( Setanta) the greatest of Ulster’s warriors who defended Ulster single handed against the armies of Connacht and all Ireland. 3. The legends of the Kings. 4. The cycle of Finn and the tales of Finn Mac Cumal and his warrior band. Finn was originally a divine pagan hero. And they wrote poems and ballads about him Oisin, Diarmaid and the heroes of the Fianna. But it is with the ‘Ulster Sagas’ and Setenta’s (Cuchulain) defense of Ulster that is of most interest to the Ulster people. As Scotland is distinguished from the rest of the island of Britain so it has been with Ulster and the rest of the island of Ireland. Setenta was the great warrior of Ulster who later became known as Cuchulain the hound of Ulster after he had killed the great hound owned by Cullen with his bare hands Here are Some quotations from the Ulster cycles dealing with Cuchulain and his battle with the hosts of Ireland may give an insight as to how Ulster viewed itself in regard to the rest of Ireland. 1. Slieve Cuillen and Slieve Fuad stand like warrior brothers to hold the ‘ Gap of the North’ that was the chief way from Ireland into Ulster. 2. Iam Fedelma – ‘ As to what I do – I weave the four provinces of Ireland together for the attack on Ulster’. 3. This is from Fergus MacRoy, to give me warning the hosts of Ireland will be in the Gap of the North within two days. 4. It was for him ( Cuchulain ) to hold the pass against the whole war hosts of Ireland. 5. The foreguard of the Irish hosts had not moved a bowshot from their last nights camp before their champion went down with Cuchulain’s spear though his heart. 6. Maeve’s army had all Ireland behind to feed but Cuchulain and Laeg had to hunt for themselves. 7. Laeg tended his wounds and looked out towards the hosts of Ireland that by now had all but reached the Ford. 8. With Follaman the King’s son for their captain, they marched out to meet the war hosts of Ireland, For the honour of Ulster and the aiding of the hound. 9. A great hoarse shout broke from Cuchulain’s strained and tortured heart and it came like a cry for aid to the men of Ulster. 10. ‘Up ! up! Cuchulain ! The hosts of Ireland will be upon us now that their last champion is dead. Appendix 3 The Irish American Myth If we listen to what some American people say about Ireland one would think that the USA was 95% Irish Catholic descent and the rest Italian. This absurdity has been perpetuated and promoted by Hollywood film makers for many years. The impression is given that the good old US of A was personally built by Paddy Murphy, brick by brick, and that prior to the arrival of the Irish in America in the mid 19th century America did not exist. Propaganda would have us believe that it was the Irish immigrants who founded that great nation - nothing could be further from the truth. The Irish did not sail for the New World in any significant numbers until the famine of the mid 1800s hit Ireland with devastating effect. However anyone who knows a little of American history knows that the Pilgrim Fathers landed in 1620, 230 years before the Irish! So who were the founding fathers of this great nation America.? They were English Puritans and Scottish Protestants who had left their own land because of religious persecution and went with the ideal of civil and religious freedom for all. so it was in the latter half of the 17th of the century  the persecuted Ulster Protestants set sail for the New World in search of the religious freedom and civil liberties. These are the people that America knows as the 'Scotch-Irish.' Only a short time before had they fought with heart and hand, sword and shield against the forces of James the II, but now once more they were being driven out of their land, the they had fought so hard for too defend. The Ulster men and their families having suffered so much persecution set sail. The freedom, religious and civil liberties which the American people enjoy today was an ideal which the Ulster-Scots brought with them. And which today is enshrined in the American constitution. They arrived in droves, Philadelphia being a major port of entry, and by 1729 many thousands had arrived there. For the next 30 years or so they continued to arrive at a steady rate. One historian wrote: "The Irish never went; they seem not only tied to the county but almost to the parish in which their ancestors lived, It wasn’t until the next century following the disastrous potato famine in Ireland that a mass exodus of Irish Roman Catholics took place.” “They made their own contribution to American life in later years, but they were not there when the foundations were being laid."  What were these foundations ? The Pioneering work of the frontier. This was done by the Ulstermen. Both Daniel Boone and Davy Crocket were of Ulster stock. They fought the Indians on all fronts and pushed through to New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Western Maryland, North Virginia, Kentucky and Georgia. This pioneering success is clearly seen in the many Ulster place names which exist in the USA today. There are 18 towns named Belfast, 7 Derrys, 9 Antrim’s, and 16 Tyrones. They brought Christianity. These people brought with the religion of the Bible, true biblical Christianity, it was a hard life, but God was with them, they set forth with true Ulster grit and the God of Heaven before them. The impromptu church services on the frontier were not an altogether a new experience for these people for they had not to long before had to meet in such gatherings in the hills and glens of their native land were they would be hunted down like dogs for daring to worship God with  freedom of conscience. The God of Heaven had preserved them then, he preserved them on their hazardous journey in the ships and now they continued to look to Him as they made their way into the new world. They built the schools. Recognising the need for education they built schoolhouses, they employed the best of teachers and ministers, often sending back to Ulster for other good men to come and labour with them in the New World. Building a great people who would become a great nation. They brought liberty: The Christian ideal of 'liberty and freedom for had stamped upon their memories, for it was something which they had sought for themselves for many years. The Ulster- men were in the forefront of the American War of Independence. The Declaration of Independence of July 4 1776 was in the handwriting of an Ulsterman, Charles Thomson of Maghera. It was first printed by an Ulsterman and first publicly read by an Ulsterman. Many of the names attached to it were of Ulster stock. It is truly an Ulster-Scots document. Many of Washington's General's were Ulstermen, Knox, Wayne, Lewis, Morgan, Scott , Thompson, Clark, Baine and Irvine, all of whom distinguished themselves as soldiers. Not only did Ulster supply the freedom fighters and finance the war, she also provided the necessary leadership for the fledgling new nation of the United States of America. Roosevelt wrote: "It is doubtful that we have the part played by this stern and virile formed the kernel of that American stock who were pioneers of our people in their march westward". An Irish Government Handbook In 1932 the Minister for Industry and commerce of the Irish Free State ( Saorstát Erieann ) Commissioned an official Handbook in which Eion MacNeil wrote. " While the Celts were still new comers to Ireland and Britain, the inhabitants of both countries were known to them by the name of the Pretani or Queteni From Queteni came their old name in Irish—Cruthin. The old Celtic name for Ireland was Everio, for Britain Albio. In Irish Everio became Eriu, and afterwards Eire. Albio became Albu, then Alba. The Greeks who knew of these Islands mainly through intercourse with the Gallic Celts, called Ireland Ierne, and Britain Albion; and they called both Islands the Pretanic Islands, the Islands of the Pritani. Latin writers, following the example of Julius Caesar, changed the forms and application of these names, Caesar substituted Brittani for Pretani, and gave it to the people of Britain, calling that Island Britannia instead of Albion. Ireland was renamed Hibernia, its people Hiberni. Later on before AD300 a new name Scotti began to be used in Latin for the people of Ireland and a new name Picti for the people formally called the Pretani then inhabiting the Northern parts of Britain. The name Britannic Islands was substituted for the Pretanic, which properly signifies the Islands of the Pict’s Irish traditions amply confirm the evidence of the Greek writers that Ireland was once a country of the Pretani, Cruthin or Pict’s our own writers, in the seventh century and later show that in their time there were a numerous families, including many of high degree, in every quarter of Ireland but especially in Ulster and Connacht, who were recognised to be people of Pictish descent. The problem who were the Pict’s? has long been under discussion. Ancient And firm tradition, in Britain as well as in Ireland, declared them to be a quite distinct people from the Gaels and the Britons; and some who have sought to solve the problem have ignored the existence of a large Pictish element in Ireland. The view of the late Sir John Rhys appears most reasonable, that, whereas the Celts came from Mid-Europe and belong to the Indo European linguistic group, the Pict’s belong to the older peoples of Western Europe they were the chief people’s of Ireland in the Bronze age, and to them the Irish arts and crafts and monuments of that age may be Ascribed