Murals in Northern Ireland have become symbols of

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...

, depicting the region's past and present political and religious divisions.

Belfast Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...

and

Derry Derry, officially Londonderry, is the second-largest City status in the United Kingdom, city in Northern Ireland, and the fifth-largest on the island of Ireland. Located in County Londonderry, the city now covers both banks of the River Fo ...

are home to many of the most famous political murals in

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

. In 2014, the book ''The Belfast Mural Guide'' estimated that, in Belfast, there were approximately 300 quality murals on display, with many more in varying degrees of age and decay. Murals commemorate, communicate and display aspects of culture and history. The themes of murals are often reflections of what a particular community believes is important. Political murals exists to express ideas or messages and often reflect values of a certain group or community. In

Irish republican Irish republicanism () is the political movement for an Irish republic, void of any British rule. Throughout its centuries of existence, it has encompassed various tactics and identities, simultaneously elective and militant and has been both w ...

areas the themes of murals include the 1981 Irish hunger strike, with particular emphasis on strike leader Bobby Sands, murals of international solidarity with revolutionary groups, and murals highlighting a particular issue, for example the Ballymurphy Massacre or the McGurk's Bar bombing. In working class unionist communities, murals are used to promote

Ulster loyalist Ulster loyalism is a strand of Unionism in Ireland, Ulster unionism associated with working class Ulster Protestants in Northern Ireland. Like other unionists, loyalists support the continued existence of Northern Ireland (and formerly all of I ...

paramilitary groups such as the

Ulster Defence Association The Ulster Defence Association (UDA) is an Ulster loyalist paramilitary group in Northern Ireland. It was formed in September 1971 as an umbrella group for various loyalist groups and undertook an armed campaign of almost 24 years as one of t ...

and

Ulster Volunteer Force The Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) is an Ulster loyalism, 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 North ...

and commemorate their deceased members. However, traditional themes such as William of Orange and the

Battle of the Boyne The Battle of the Boyne ( ) took place in 1690 between the forces of the deposed King James II, and those of King William III who, with his wife Queen Mary II (his cousin and James's daughter), had acceded to the Crowns of England and Sc ...

, the

Battle of the Somme The Battle of the Somme (; ), also known as the Somme offensive, was a battle of the First World War fought by the armies of the British Empire and the French Third Republic against the German Empire. It took place between 1 July and 18 Nove ...

and the 36th Ulster Division are equally common.

History

Murals can be described as a mirror of political change, as they have been painted throughout the last century and display all important historic as well as political developments in the scope of unique wall paintings. In 1908 Ulster loyalists started to portray William of Orange on a white horse in order to strengthen the Orange identity of

Ulster Protestants Ulster Protestants are an ethnoreligious group in the Provinces of Ireland, Irish province of Ulster, where they make up about 43.5% of the population. Most Ulster Protestantism in Ireland, Protestants are descendants of settlers who arrived fr ...

wall-paintings started in the late 1970s and can be seen in particular as a visual display of a social movement, which was radicalized after the IRA began to fight for a greater political voice and a

United Ireland United Ireland (), also referred to as Irish reunification or a ''New Ireland'', is the proposition that all of Ireland should be a single sovereign state. At present, the island is divided politically: the sovereign state of Ireland (legally ...

. Unionist murals quickly forewent general commemoration and became explicit signage of loyalist paramilitaries, a fixture that remained following the

peace process A peace process is the set of political sociology, sociopolitical negotiations, agreements and actions that aim to solve a specific armed conflict. Definitions Prior to an armed conflict occurring, peace processes can include the prevention of ...

although alongside an increase in commemorative murals. Republican murals, while often drawing upon the likes of Bobby Sands and the IRA, are less squarely militaristic featuring a broader repertoire that extends to Celtic mythology and international revolutionaries; their scope includes style, ranging from "anti-fascist propaganda to commercial film posters". Murals are for the most part located in working class areas of Northern Ireland, primarily in

and

. Arguably the most well-known and easily identified mural is that of Bobby Sands, on the side wall of

Sinn Féin Sinn Féin ( ; ; ) is an Irish republican and democratic socialist political party active in both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. The History of Sinn Féin, original Sinn Féin organisation was founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffit ...

's Falls Road office. A close second is the collection of Irish republican and international-themed murals which are located at what is known as 'The International Wall', also in Belfast. In Derry, Free Derry Corner, where the slogan "You Are Now Entering Free Derry" was painted in 1969 shortly after the Battle of the Bogside, is prominent. Free Derry Corner has been used as a model for other murals in Northern Ireland, including the "You Are Now Entering Loyalist Sandy Row" mural in Belfast, which was a response to the republican message of Free Derry Corner, and the "You Are Now Entering ''

Derry Journal The ''Derry Journal'' is a newspaper based in Derry, Northern Ireland, serving Derry as well as County Donegal in the Republic of Ireland. It is operated by National World. The paper is published on Tuesday and Friday and is a sister paper of ...

'' Country" mural, which is an advertisement for a Derry publication. Not all murals in Northern Ireland are directly political or sectarian in nature, with some commemorating events such as the

Great Irish Famine The Great Famine, also known as the Great Hunger ( ), the Famine and the Irish Potato Famine, was a period of mass starvation and disease in Ireland lasting from 1845 to 1852 that constituted a historical social crisis and had a major impact o ...

, and other moments in Irish history. Many portray events from

Irish mythology Irish mythology is the body of myths indigenous to the island of Ireland. It was originally Oral tradition, passed down orally in the Prehistoric Ireland, prehistoric era. In the History of Ireland (795–1169), early medieval era, myths were ...

, and images from Irish myths are often incorporated into political murals. A few murals avoid the subject of Ireland altogether, instead focusing on such neutral subjects as litter prevention and the

C. S. Lewis Clive Staples Lewis (29 November 1898 – 22 November 1963) was a British writer, literary scholar and Anglican lay theologian. He held academic positions in English literature at both Magdalen College, Oxford (1925–1954), and Magdalen ...

novel ''

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe ''The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe'' is a portal fantasy novel written by British author C. S. Lewis, published by Geoffrey Bles in 1950. It is the first published and best known of seven novels in ''The Chronicles of Narnia'' (1950–1956 ...

''. In Derry's city centre, a mural depicting the five principal characters from the TV show Derry Girls was painted on the side of a pub, with the mural being updated during the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

in 2020 and prior to the airing of the show's final series in 2022. Murals representing peace and tolerance are becoming increasingly popular with school groups who have children either design or actually paint murals in areas around their schools. With many paramilitaries now involved in community work, there has been a move to decommission many of the hard-edged murals across Northern Ireland (although this trend is reversed in times of tension). This change was further highlighted in 2007, when the Bogside Artists were invited to Washington, D.C. for the Smithsonian Folk Life Festival. The three artists were invited to recreate murals in the Washington Mall.

Examples

Republican

File:Unidentified irish mural.jpg, A mural in Short Strand saying ''" Slán Abhaile"'' or "Safe Home" to British troops

Loyalist

File:Fountain (01).JPG, A mural in a loyalist enclave of

File:Thorndyke Street.jpg, Loyalist murals on Thorndyke Street, Belfast File:Innishargie.jpg, A UDA/UFF mural in Bangor File:Kilclief flats.jpg, An

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 was then part of the United Kingdom. The Ulster Volunteers were based in the ...

/ UVF mural in Bangor File:Red Hand Commando Mural, Bangor.jpg, Another RHC mural in Bangor File:Loyalist mural, Morven Park, Ballybeen - geograph.org.uk - 1706295.jpg, A RHC mural in Ballybeen housing estate File:Red Hand Commando Mural, Rathcoole.JPG, A RHC mural in Rathcoole File:Sandy Row mural 2012.png, A mural in Belfast, commemorating William of Orange and the

File:Protestantmuralbelfast.jpg, A mural in Belfast depicting republican killings File:Carson Mural.jpg, A mural dedicated to

Edward Carson Edward Henry Carson, Baron Carson, Privy Council (United Kingdom), PC, Privy Council of Ireland, PC (Ire), King's Counsel, KC (9 February 1854 – 22 October 1935), from 1900 to 1921 known as Sir Edward Carson, was an Irish unionist politician ...

File:Loyalist mural2 Island Street Belfast.jpg, Loyalist mural in Ballymacarrett Road, east Belfast. File:Newtownabbey.jpg, Ulster Volunteers mural in

Newtownabbey Newtownabbey ( ) is a large settlement north of Belfast city centre in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is separated from the rest of the city by Cavehill and Fortwilliam golf course, but it still forms part of the Belfast metropolitan area ...

File:UVF mural in Shankill Road, Belfast.jpg, Ulster Volunteers mural in Belfast File:Muralnewtownabbey.jpg, Loyalist mural in Newtownabbey File:Nothing with us.jpg, A loyalist in Belfast mural critical of the

Good Friday Agreement The Good Friday Agreement (GFA) or Belfast Agreement ( or ; or ) is a pair of agreements signed on 10 April (Good Friday) 1998 that ended most of the violence of the Troubles, an ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland since the la ...

Other

File:NI murals NI football.jpg, A

Northern Ireland national football team The Northern Ireland national football team represents Northern Ireland in men's international association football. From 1882 to 1950, all of Ireland was represented by a single side, the Ireland national football team (1882–1950), Ireland ...

mural File:Derry - Bogside - Civil Rights Mural - geograph.org.uk - 3732933.jpg, A

civil rights Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' political freedom, freedom from infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. They ensure one's entitlement to participate in the civil and ...

mural in Bogside, Derry

References

External links

Map of murals

Map of current Belfast murals

Peter Moloney Collection – Murals

Extramural Activity – Blog and illustrated history of murals, graffiti, and street art

Claremont Digital Collection

CAIN (Conflict Archive on the INternet) Mural Collection

Northern Ireland political murals Flickr group

Belfast Wall Murals Flickr Photo Pool

Bill Rolston

Videos of Belfast murals

Take an online tour of the murals in Belfast, Northern Ireland

Documentary about Devenny/Ervine collaborations

Routes of Reconciliation: Visiting Sites of Cultural Trauma in the U.S. South, Northern Ireland, and South Africa
by Charles Regan Wilson, ''Southern Spaces'', 26 March 2009 {{DEFAULTSORT:Murals In Northern Ireland Art in Northern Ireland Irish paintings Political art Politics of Northern Ireland Propaganda art Works about The Troubles (Northern Ireland) Murals in Northern Ireland