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Although nationalists and Republicans wish for the Reunification Of Ireland , the island of Ireland has never existed as a single sovereign political state in the modern sense. However, prior to 1922 , the island was always considered as a single entity, having been the Kingdom Of Ireland for centuries until the Act Of Union of 1800 . KINGS AND HIGH KINGS Before the coming of the Normans there existed the title of '' Ard Rí '' (High King), usually held by the Uí Néill but this was more of a ceremonial title denoting a sort of "first among equals" rather than an absolute monarchy as developed in England and Scotland . Nevertheless, several strong characters imbued the office with real power, most notably Mael Seachlainn I (845-860), Flann Sinna (877-914), Mael Seachlainn II Mor (979-1002;1014-1022) Brian Boru (1002-1014), Muircheartach Ua Briain (1101-1119), and Toirdhealbhach Ua Conchobhair (1119-1156). What prevented the consolidation of truly national power even by the Ard Ríanna was the fact that the island was divided into a number of autonomous, fully independent Kingdoms ruled by rival Dynasties . The most powerful of these kingdoms in the immediate pre-Norman era were Aileach, Brefine, Mide , Leinster , Osraige, Munster and Connacht . In addition to these, there were a number of lesser subject kingdoms such as Airgialla, Uladh, Brega, Dublin , Ui Failghe, Laois, Desmond , and Hy-Many . Many of these kingdoms and lordships retained, at the very least, some degree of independence right up to the end of independent Gaelic polity in the 17th century. A profound misunderstanding of the nature of Irish kings, high-kings and kingdoms - as well as a general ignorance of their existence - continues among Irish people to this day. This creates a great deal of confusion when addressing the basis of a united Ireland. CONFEDERATE IRELAND 1642-1649 The next significant moment occurred in 1642 when the Confederate Catholics Association Of Ireland – an Irish Catholic government formed to fight the Irish Confederate Wars , assembled at Kilkenny and held an all-Ireland assembly. The Confederates did rule much of Ireland up to 1649 , but were riven by dissent and civil war in later years over whether to ally themselves with the English Royalists in the Wars Of The Three Kingdoms . Ultimately, they disolved their Association in favour of unity with the Royalists, but were defeated anyway in the Cromwellian Conquest Of Ireland . 1653-1921 Although ruled by Britain , Ireland was a united political entity from the end of the Wars Of The Three Kingdoms in 1653 until 1921 . Until the Constitution Of 1782 , Ireland was placed under the effective control of the British-appointed Lord Lieutenant Of Ireland due to restrictive measures such as Poynings Law . From 1541 to 1801 , the island's political status was of a Kingdom Of Ireland in Personal Union with the English (and later the British) Crown. Under the leadership of Henry Grattan , the Irish Parliament (still dominated by the Ascendancy) acquired a measure of autonomy for a time. After the Act Of Union , Ireland became part of the United Kingdom Of Great Britain And Ireland , a single entity ruled by the Parliament at Westminster . Ireland was last undivided at the outbreak of World War I after national self-government in the form of the Third Home Rule Act 1914 , won by John Redmond leader of the Irish Parliamentary Party was placed on the statute books, but suspended until the end of the war. It was amended to partition Ireland following the objections of Ulster Unionists . In the 1918 General Election , the republican Sinn Féin political party won a landslide victory. The newly elected Sinn Féin candidates formed a republican assembly Dáil Eireann which unilaterally declared itself in 1919 the Government of the Irish Republic and independent of the British Empire . Its claims over the entire island were, however, not accepted by Unionists . Under the Anglo-Irish Treaty the Irish Free State became in 1922 the name of the state covering twenty-six counties in the south and west, replacing the Irish Republic, while six counties in the northeast remained within the United Kingdom under the 1920 Government Of Ireland Act . 1922-1998 The Free State and its successor, the Republic Of Ireland (declared in 1949) both claimed that Northern Ireland was part of their territory, but did not attempt to force reunification, nor did they claim to be able to legislate for it. In 1998, following the Belfast Agreement , the Republic voted to amend Articles 2 And 3 of its Constitution so that the territorial claim was removed and replaced with recognition of the Northern Ireland people's right to Self-determination . PRESENT DAY The leading political parties in the Republic of Ireland, Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael , as well as the SDLP in Northern Ireland have often made a united Ireland a part of their political message, although they rarely spell out how they see it coming about. It is, however, the main focus of Sinn Féin . In contrast, the Unionist community – composed primarily of Protestant s in the six counties that form Northern Ireland – opposes unification. All of the island's political parties (except for tiny fringe groups with little electoral representation) have accepted the Principle Of Consent , which states that Northern Ireland's constitutional status cannot change without majority support in Northern Ireland. Many Protestant s (and some Catholic s) in Northern Ireland argue they have a distinct identity that would be overwhelmed in a united Ireland. They cite the decline of the small Protestant population of the Republic of Ireland since secession from the United Kingdom, the economic cost of unification, their place in a key international player (within the UK) and their (Protestants) mainly non-Irish ancestry. Many parties throughout Ireland have suggested that one such method of governing in a United Ireland, would be for a united nine-county Ulster to have local self-government, and perhaps local self-government for Ireland's other three Provinces (like U.S. states or German federal states), to help ease the worries Unionist in Ulster might have about joining a reunified all-island nation-state. Unionist people in Northern Ireland primarily decend from the Scottish and English Planters , whose descendents can also be found in the three counties of Ulster which are governed by the Republic of Ireland. Such individuals celebrate their Scots heritage each year like their counterparts in the other six counties. Many supporters of Irish unity (and some Unionists) claim that a united nine-county Ulster with cross-community local government within a United Ireland would give the Ulster Scots community throughout the nine-county Ulster more freedom to celebrate their culture than they currently enjoy within the UK. A possible referendum on a united Ireland was included as part of the terms of the political party (the most high-profile party that supports independence) receives less than a tenth of 1% of votes. While small-scale opinion polls might or might not give a true representation of political views in Northern Ireland, the majority of Ireland as a whole support a United Ireland. There is also wide support in Britain for Ireland to reunify as a political entity. An ICM poll conduced by '' The Guardian '' in 2001 revealed that only 26% of Britons supported Northern Ireland remaining a part of the UK, while 41% supported a united Ireland. {Link without Title} SEE ALSO
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