Conflict Timeline.

1801: Act of Union – Ireland and Britain formally united
1905: Creation of Sinn Fein – a political party with the aim of freeing Ireland from British rule
1913: Creation of Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) – formed of Protestants who opposed Irish Home Rule
1916: Easter Uprising Irish Catholics proclaim an Irish Republic in Dublin, brutally suppressed by the British army. The Easter Uprising volunteers become known as the Irish Republican Army
1920: Partition of Ireland The 6 northern counties will remain part of the United Kingdom with a parliament in Belfast, while the 26 other counties form the Irish Free State with a parliament in Dublin. Conflict over partition led to intra-communal violence that left hundreds dead in 1922
1948: Irish Free State granted full independence from Britain and become the Republic of Ireland
1967: Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association (NICRA) formed to agitate for full civil and political rights for Catholics in Northern Ireland. 19th century anti-Catholic laws remained on the statute books as the Northern Ireland parliament was dominated by Protestant Unionists
1969: Increasing tensions between Catholics and Protestants overwhelm the Royal Ulster Constabulary (police) and the British army are called in
1969: The Irish Republican Army (IRA) splits into the Official IRA and the Provisional IRA (PIRA).
1971: Internment (detention without trial) of IRA members legalised
1972: Bloody Sunday British Paratroopers fire on a peaceful civil rights protest in Derry, killing 14 people. Belfast parliament is suspended and Northern Ireland will be ruled direct from London. The IRA responds with increased attacks on British targets.

1980s: Hunger strikes and violent attacks on British targets in Northern Ireland the Britain
1994: IRA and Loyalist groups declare a ceasefire
1996: Multi-party peace talks break down over disarmament, violence resumes
1998 (April): 6 months of peace talks lead to the Good Friday Agreement and a formal end to hostilities
1998 (August): A bomb set by the Real IRA kills 29 civilians in Omagh, the worst single bombing of the Troubles for civilian victims
1999: Direct Rule ends as power is handed to the Northern Ireland Assembly
2000: Continuing controversy over the decommissioning of weapons leads to the re-instatement of Direct Rule and the suspension of the Northern Ireland Assembly from February to May
2001: The Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) is replaced by the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) with recruitment set to be 50% Catholic and 50% Protestant.
2005: The PIRA announce that they have decommissioned
2007: A new Northern Ireland Assembly is elected
2009 (March): 2 British army soldiers are shot dead, then one British police officer. Dissident Republicans claim responsibility. Fears grow of a new phase of violence, but there are strong public displays of opposition to any more violence, and the killings are rejected by all political parties
2010 (January): Scandal involving Iris Robinson, MLA and wife of Peter Robinson, the First Minister of the NI Assembly, leads to Peter Robinson temporarily stepping down as First Minister – he resumes his role in February.
2010 (February): Announcement of a deal on the devolution of policing powers to the NI Assembly. This issue had been particularly contentious, and it was feared could cause the collapse of the Assembly.