Commemorating Historical Conflicts during the Peace Process: The Bicentenary of the 1798 Rebellion in Ireland and Northern Ireland

Abstract

The 1798 Rebellion pitched rebels, led by the United Irishmen, against the Irish/British authorities. Although, the Rebellion failed and was followed by the 1801 Act of Union, its remembrance became highly politicized. Different interpretations divide indeed Nationalists and Unionists, and contributed to build mental barriers. Nevertheless, thebicentenary of the Rebellion coincided with the signing of the Good Friday Agreement, amajor step in the Peace Process in Northern Ireland. The challenge was then, in a context of political reconciliation process, to commemorate a conflict which had been very divisive.The comparison of commemorative exhibitions held at national museums in Dublinand Belfast first focuses on the artefacts, their interpretations, their uses and their displays inorder to highlight the various ways of reconciling opposite narratives. Then, the analysisintends to consider the whole memorialization process. In order to do so, it makes clear howthe museums acted as a bridge both between the different agents of memorialization(curators, politicians, European Union civil servants…etc.) and between the different publicsvisiting the displays.