Ireland in the 1960's?

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dsoc

Not quite answering the question, but I'm sure that Yahoo are delighted with all the "Google It" advice!!!!!!!!!!!

Why not "Yahoo it"

I can only speak for the Republic of Ireland.

Ireland in the sixties was drab. The Catholic Church still held authority (there was even a clause in the Irish Constitution, since removed, which recognised the special position of the Catholic Church). Unemployment was high, with many people taking the boat to the UK or the US.

There was only one TV station and one radio station, both Govt. run. Traditional Irish music was much listened to, but folk songs which spoke of "left wing" tendencies (Woodie Guthrie, Bob Dylan, even Luke Kelly) were frowned upon. Showbands, which played a mixture of traditional and pop music were very popular. Groups like the Beatles and the Rolling Stones were considered to be a bad influence. Pure Rock & Roll (Elvis Preasley, Buddy Holly, Chuck Berry) also known as "The Devil's Screaching" was banned in most dancehalls.

In the later years of the sixties, Ireland began to become more liberal. Economically, things improved, and with the availibility of BBC TV, Irish people could see for themselves how others lived. When Ireland joined the Common Market (EU) in the early seventies, things changed. Some people even think for the better.

There are probably parallels that can be drawn between the changes which Ireland underwent in the sixties with the changes currently being experienced in some of the ex Warsaw Pact countries.

xenon

It was the wish of De Valera to keep Ireland as an agricultural country, somewhat like Spain and Franco.
The Brits had been kicked out, so there was no excuse from that quarter.
It has been only since the State joined the common market that Ireland began to upgrade, and is now a vibrant country.
It's not generally known that Mr De Valera went to the German Embassy on the death of Hitler to give his condolence to Eduard Hempel the Ambassador.
As far as the sixties is concerned, it was bleak indeed, children were beaten to a pulp by the Christian Brothers who were supposed to teach them, girls were interfered with by "Roues" and told that they would be held in purgatory if they told of their ordeal.
There were many "showbands " who toured around the country, and the people flocked to dance to their music.

cookie

OK yeah times were tough but people were happiest they were thankful for what they had instead of always wishing for more.
Both my parents grew up in the 1960's my mother in Offaly and father in South Tipperary and they both experienced different lifestyles. My mother had electricity but no running water ,whereas my father had their own well but no electricity also his father worked in England and sent money home.

My mother had to leave her education after her intercert (2nd yr) to work in dublin as her father got ill and my father left after 1st yr.

Every week they would attend dances to meet the local ppl and socialise.

The church had a very heavy hand concetraption was illegal and ur husband was always right. Unmarried mothers were sent to live in Laundrys where they lived lifes of hardship.

not all ppl went to convents or CBS schools in fact only those with money went to religious schools most went to the local "TEC" school.

Also almost every family had a member as either a priest or nun.

hope this helps

starrygirl

well people listen to mainly what ever songs were played on the radio or what ever song that was sung by people.
Ireland was a pretty poor country back then
the average family size was like 10
there was conflict in the north between the catholics and protestants

Keery

I'm sad to see so much negativity - I too grew up i nIreland in the 60's and now live in the UK. Yes, family size was bigger, yes the Catholic Church had a lot of power.... and so on and so on, but I had a very happy childhood. Life was simpler - we could play late into the long summer evenings and didnt get shot at, grannies didnt get attacked by hoodies, we respected our parents, our elders, our teachers. We didnt have divorce - perhaps it meant that a lot of parents stayed together for the kids but at least kids had two parents who cared about them and some degree of stability. We didnt have have a lot of money but we had a mother at home when we got home from school, cooking a simple home made meal not some processed rubbish from Tesco that is shoved in the microwave. I dont want to go on but I wish that the Ireland I grew up in was still there. Prosperity has bred greed, arrogance and a lack of moral values. Politicans have been hugely instrumental in changing the whole moral fibre of the country, as well as destroying the environment as a result of poor planning regulations and unrestrained development. I am now going to stop before I really get annoyed.

marysmith1234567

Bands like the fortunes, and the four tops were popular in ireland in the 1960s
Frank sinatre, Patsy cline (not sure if thats the 60s)--they were very popular

There wud b a "dance" on through the week, and people used to go with their boyfrends or husbands and do dancing.

People were not wealthy at all.
Most people were quite poor.
In ireland, usually the girls in a family would do all the housework for their mums, and their dads wud go to work.

In the 60s, irish families were BIG families. It was very family orientated, and families used to all go out together all the time. Brothers, sisters and cousins, aunties..etc wud go out together....

In those days, Girls used to go to a convent and boys went to the "christian brothers schools.
FOOTBALL, FOOTBALL, FOOTBALL, thats all every single irish boy was ever interested in lmao!!!!

dmIRL

It was a pretty drab place to live, nothing like it is know. people were really poor and familtys were big. The first person who answered is right though. Google 'Ireland 1960's'
and you should get all trhe answers you want.

tony m

Hello Ruby, I have a fair idea about life in Ireland in the 1960's it was as miserable as it is now really, you had to be there, my Family left Ireelands shores in 1956 and moved to England with our Fathers employment, he worked for an American Company, and they gave him an opportunity to keep on working for them but they were moving their outfit in its main business to England as the work was already there for the most part..
I still return home to County Galway 2 or 3 times a year when I can and in all the trips home in the last 40 odd years I cannot honestly say I have seen much of a difference, Oh there have been changes of course there has, but that is going to happen anywhere in the world. even the rain forests are being depleted still and that's the worst kind of change for it affects the whole planet..
We lived the lives of a farmers Family, but we were not Farmers, the rest of the Family we left after us were though, and they have never seen much of an improvement in their lives either, it was a simple case of 1% of the population owned 99% of the country's wealth, or figures fairly close to that, and the great emigration that happened in the 19th and 20th centuries left the population today in Ireland at less than the current Population count of Birmingham in England, and more than this, it is true that there are more Irish people still living in NewYork and Boston, now than ever there was in Ireland in those 2 Centuries, I told you about above...
What caused all this migration? well it was pure Greed by the richer of the population, taking most of the financial gains, which left even less for the workers, so the workers had to leave to improve their lives as best as they were able working in Foreign lands, but those away from Ireland, well, we stick together because we cannot be together at home, but we sing songs about our homelandmand weep over it afterwards, I know I do, but the people that still live in Ireland are very tough and will stick it out now, no matter what..
They still sing and dance to the music of those days, because of the passion that is contained within it, justy check the lyrics of any Dubliners recording, and you will see what life was like in the 1960's..As for the State of the country, well, that too is quite unchanged really, Oh they are getting Motorways built now, but they no sooner open a new motorway and it gets jammed up almost immediately, So what it is in my mind is ...the more things don't alter, they are very definitely going to remain the same...
Don't get me wrong Ruby, I love my country and all the people that live there, especially my family, but I weep for them and their ways of life as regular as I think of them there, one last point for you...I don't think I could afford to live there now. I know I can't, and at no time in those passed 40 odd years could I have afforded to live there, so I will remain in England and will my money to my Irish Grandchildren, if they remain there, they are certainly going to need it. I might as well just give it to the Irish government, and short circuit the theft of it....Ruby, I hope this helps you out, but I have loved being an Irishman all my life thus far...Buy for now...Tony M

wwJad

there was lots of prearation for acts of terrorism against Northern Ireland
and preparation for an invasion of Londonderry
the first threatened invasion of the UK since the second world war

Tam

Google 'Ireland in the 1960s'.

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