The Flight of the Earls represented the final destruction of the Irish Gaelic society as it had existed for about 3,000 years from the arrival in Ireland of the Gaelic Celts. The "Flight" was followed by the Plantation of Ulster - the forced displacement of Irish people from Ulster and the settlement of the province by settlers from Scotland, England and Wales. The Plantation of Ulster allowed England to control all of Ireland for the first time. Native people had their lands confiscated and their titles removed. This led to war, famine, and destruction. English laws were introduced to destroy the Irish language, religion, economy, and culture. The visible results of this colonization include the deaths of millions, the emigration of over seven million between 1620 and 1920, the impoverishment of countless generations of people, and the partition of Ireland in May 1921.

Image By Willie Duffin, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=13503203