CCEA A-Level History 4010
England 1509–58AS Unit 1
England 1603–49AS Unit 1
Britain in the Age of Reform 1830–80AS Unit 1
Italy and Germany 1815–71AS Unit 1
Germany 1919–45AS Unit 1
Spain and Europe 1556–98AS Unit 2
The Ascendancy of France in Europe 1660–1714AS Unit 2
Ireland 1823–67AS Unit 2
France 1815–70AS Unit 2
Russia 1914–41AS Unit 2
Italy's Quest for Great Power Status 1871–1943AS Unit 2
Crown and Parliament in England 1625–1714A2 Unit 1
Ireland Under the Union 1800–1900A2 Unit 1
The Causes and Consequences of Great Power Conflict 1848–1945A2 Unit 1
The American Presidency 1901–2000A2 Unit 1
Clash of Ideologies in Europe 1900–2000A2 Unit 1
England 1558–1603A2 Unit 2
Ireland 1685–1714A2 Unit 2
Ireland 1778–1803A2 Unit 2
Partition of Ireland 1900–25A2 Unit 2
Ireland 1778–1803
The American War and the rise of the Volunteers
- 3 things to know
- A2 Unit 2
Overview
The effect of the American war on Irish opinion, the formation and composition of the Volunteers and the Dungannon convention.
What you need to know
Answer each one before you reveal it.
Why did the American colonists' case appeal to Irish Patriots?
Why was Ireland left militarily exposed in 1778?
Questions from this subtopic
Each one with the model answer underneath.
- 1
Why did the American colonists' case appeal to Irish Patriots?
Model answer
The colonists complained of being taxed and legislated for by a parliament in which they had no representation. Irish Patriots made exactly that objection to the British Parliament's claim to bind Ireland.
- 2
Why was sympathy for America especially strong among Ulster Presbyterians?
Model answer
Ulster Presbyterians had emigrated to the American colonies in very large numbers, so many families had relatives fighting there, and Presbyterians at home resented their own exclusion from full civil rights.
- 3
How did the war damage Irish trade?
Model answer
The loss of the American market and the embargo of 1776 on Irish provisions exports cut away much of the provision trade and helped produce a severe commercial depression by 1778.
- 4
Why was Ireland left militarily exposed in 1778?
Model answer
Most of the regular army in Ireland had been drawn off for service in America, and when France entered the war in 1778 the coasts were left almost undefended.
- 5
Why did the government not simply raise a militia in 1778?
Model answer
The Irish administration had neither the money nor the parliamentary authority to embody a militia, so local defence was left to associations that the gentry raised and paid for themselves.
- 6
What were the Volunteers?
Model answer
The Volunteers were armed and uniformed corps raised locally from 1778, funded and officered by the gentry and the urban middle classes, to defend Ireland against French or Spanish invasion.
Other ways to work this
The same content, four other ways.
What is inside Levo
Six ways to work the same material.
Every question in Ireland 1778–1803, on a schedule.
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