Stamps of Ireland

On Tuesday I got my order from An Post, which included some Irish stamps about World War I.

During World War I Ireland was a part of the United Kingdom, but during the war the discontentment with the British rule rose and during the Easter Rising in 1916 even an independent Irish Republic was proclaimed, which was quelled shortly after. Of the 200000 Irishmen who fought during the war around 50000 died. In 1922 the Irish Free State was created.

The RMS Lusitania was a British ocean liner. As consequence of the unrestricted submarine warfare of the German Empire during World War I the ship was sunken on 7th May 1915. 1198 passengers died including 128 citizens of the USA. The sinking caused a storm of protest in the United States and helped shift public opinion in the United States against the German Empire. Afterwards the submarine warfare was discontinued until 1917.

Centenary of the sinking of the RMS Lusitania (issued 07-05-2015)

The Battle of the Somme was fought from the 1st July until the 18th November 1916 between the German Empire and the Triple Entente countries France and the United Kingdom. The battle started with a large-scale offensive of the Triple Entente and ended without an achievement. It was the fiercest battle of the World War I. 

Centenary of the Battle of the Somme (issued 23-06-2016)

The Battle of Messines Ridge was fought on the Western Front near the village of Messines in West Flanders in June 1917. The battle resulted in a British victory and the recapturing of the Messines Ridge. During the battle Irish soldiers, supporting and opposing the ideas of the Easter Rising, fought together. 

Centenary of the Battle of Messines Ridge (issued 08-06-2017)

Another stamp set I bought for my collection is this:

Emoji (issued 16-03-2017)